cherokee trace drive-thru safari

We have driven by the signs for years, but had no idea what a hidden treasure it was right here in East Texas! Took my 10 yo nephew and my 7 yo daughter and I think I was as excited with the animals as they were. Had a few up close and personal viewings of the animals, esp.. Ollie the camel, who will help himself to your feed if you aren't careful. You are given a bag of food per person and can purchase extra for $3, we had 3, plus the larger purchased bag and had a hand full left to feed Ollie who met us again at the end of the trip. Was at least a 2 hour tour and we could had took more time just watching the animals. They do have a gift shop with a few snacks. If you aren't familiar with the area, you are in the middle of no where so bring a picnic or plan to drive about 30 minutes to find a restaurant to eat at

We will definitely go back !! My kids loved it. We were each given a bag of food that lasted the entire time ( 2hrs ) but we had 5 in the car. You can buy more for $3.00 each. Ollie the camel is FUN to see and feed. ENJOY

We had a great time! Lots of animals to see at the safari. The real beauty of the experience is that you get to see many of them up close. We actually had an Emu I think it was stick its head in our car. The kids laughed about that for days afterwards. Take a picnic lunch and enjoy the experience from a different vantage point. I will caution you to avoid the drive thru if you are in a car that is low to the ground as there are a couple of places on the trail that where you may drag.

We visited Cherokee Trace today and had a great time. Zebras, bison, camels, etc. Fun feeding the animals and a really up close experience. This is defintely worth the money. Took us about 2 1//2 hours and we were sorry when it was over. I would highly recommend this for families. Our teenage daughter and 5 year grandson loved it.

We took our three-year-old grandson here on Jan. 1st & it was excellent! Even though it was cold and raining, we had so many wonderful animals come to the car for food. And, yes, the camel was VERY friendly. Ha! He likes to get up close (head in your car.) Can't believe this treasure is not more well-known! We will definitely go back!!

This is one of the fun-est places I've visited in a long time. The way this works, you drive through in your vehicle and stop when you see animals. You open the window and wait for them to approach. Then you toss the (purchased) food out and shoot closeup pictures. DO NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR! Look out for that camel, though! He'll stick his head right in your window and kiss you with furry lips until you throw all your food at him. My 92 year old mom was the victim and we laughed until we cried. We drove away with some great pictures and kept saying, "That damn camel!" We still laugh about it...

This was so much fun!!! We laughed so hard. A must if you are in the area! They give a free bag of food per person. It is only $3.00 for extra. They also offer a Military discount.

If you're traveling through the piney woods of East Texas near Jacksonville and need a break from miles and miles of freeways, this is a great 3 hour respite! There's a picnic area if you want to eat under the trees. Then, you take the complimentary bag of feed that comes with the entrance fee, hop in the car, roll down the windows and drive slowly through peaceful rolling hills into the land of Ollie the Camel, ostriches, exotic antelopes and more! Other than some proud stags and zebras, the animals want to be your friends and will put their heads in the window if you're not careful. The staff is very friendly and helpful and the restrooms at the center are clean. I have more photos and videos than I need to remember a delightful drive through the woods!

Found this on Groupon and decided to try it! We were pleasantly surprised to find a gem in the middle of East Texas. Great place for kids and families. My family and I didn't feel like we were being rushed thru the park like at Fossil Rim. We did this at our own pace and love it.

I just returned from going through this park this past weekend and had a wonderful time! The park is full of exotics and endangered species animals that are very beautiful! The staff here is very friendly and informative and the scenery is unsurpassed. We took 3 1/2 hours to go through the park and replenished our food as we ran out half way through the trip. The animals come right up to the car and want to be fed and they are all friendly. You will have some wonderful experiences here just feeding the animals and what a collection to see. The animals in the park are from all continents and they get along so well in the park. The Welcome Center is great too, full of all sorts of fun things and the staff here is so nice. This is a very clean park and the picnic tables and grounds very well kept. I highly recommend this park for anyone loving animals and beautiful scenery!!

This was such a beautiful setting for viewing a variety of wildlife. Well-maintained with a very nice picnic area. We were one of the first cars to arrive, so the animals were hungry and came right up to the car.

A great drive thru zoo! My kids had a blast. The price was very fair considering the length of the drive through the park, the amount of animals, and the all day admission. Next time, we'll pack a picnic lunch - there is a really nice picnic area just outside where you drive through the zoo. The staff is super friendly, and the park is very well maintained and the animals are obviously well loved and looked after. We will definitely be back!

We love wildlife and this is a great place to go for a fun adventure. Drive through safari just about 30 minutes south of Tyler. We went at 1pm in the afternoon and wondered if we would see many animals since it was so hot, but we saw LOTS of animals. We love seeing the animals up close from your open windows and getting to toss some feed out and see them so happy. My 21 year old son said... if you were one of these animals, this would be the life! You get 2 free bags of food, and we bought 2 extra bags for $3.00 each. If you don't use the purchased food, you can return it for a refund. We used all the food! They have several "extinct in the wild" animals, so it is amazing to have this wonderful property to care for them. Your entrance fee includes an all day pass. They have picnic tables - so it is a great outing. Great gift shop. Friendly people. We laughed and had a wonderful time. We will go again!

Many, many animals up close, the kids absolutely loved it ages 22 months, 9&11. We did but extra food so we wouldn't run out.

This was a pretty fun venture. The only bad comment I have is if a military families goes on this venture the active duty member is the only one who gets the discount, which is unfair to me because I am a veteran and we are paying as a family. I never heard of such a thing before.