Day Trip to Badaling Wildlife Park: Worth the Drive?

We pulled up to gates that looked like they were straight out of a scene from Jurassic Park.

The tall fences kept the wild beasts in as we drove through the Badaling Wildlife Park. My friends and I had wanted to take our little girls on a road trip and show them some beautiful animals, so why not a 50-ish-minute drive to this notorious wildlife park?

Badaling Wildlife Park is perhaps more infamously known in Beijing as the place where multiple locals have been injured. Back in 2016, a staff member was trampled to death by an elephant in heat. Later that year, a visitor was mauled to death by a tiger when she exited the car she was in. And most recently, in 2018 a visitor was injured when he fell off a camel.

But, unfortunate injuries aside, the Badaling Wildlife Park makes for super fun day trips.

To get there, you’ll need to drive or book a Didi or private car. Click here to find tried and tested drivers.

Pro Tip
Since recent Covid transmissions, Badaling Wildlife Park now requires everyone who enters to bring their IDs. Regardless whether you’re Chinese or a foreigner, a physical ID will be required at the ticket office. Photocopies or pictures of your ID will not suffice

Badaling Wildlife Park recommends that you purchase tickets in advance, but if you don’t know how to use their mini program to do it, you can still purchase tickets at the entrance. Ticket prices are RMB 150 for adults and RMB 90 for children and students. If you’re planning on driving your own car into the park, you’ll need to pay an additional RMB 200 for a car with fewer than six seats.

Pro Tip
There are bathrooms within the park but the most convenient one is the one right at the entrance.

After signing a (not so detailed) waiver about how if you get injured the park won’t be held liable, you’re off to explore!


Driving into Badaling Wildlife Park you’ll first come to a parking lot surrounded by bears, wolves, tigers, and (for whatever reason) dogs behind cages. Don’t worry. This isn’t all you’ll get to see.

 

The driving route is designed so that you can have semi-up close and personal encounters with animals. After the unfortunate incidents that have taken place at the park, all the carnivores are now behind fences to prevent another person from potentially wanting to hop out and pet a tiger.

There's more to this story! This article originally appeared on our sister site, Jingkids International.

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READ: A Sightseeing Guide for the Yongding River

Images: Mina Yan, Dianping

Comments

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