Extinction at Marwell Zoo
Disclosure: We were invited on this day out for the purpose of this post however all opinions are my own.
Last week we were invited to check out the new Extinction attraction at Marwell Zoo before it opened to the public. We have been to so many special events at Marwell Zoo over the years and they are always a great addition to an already lovely day out. We couldn’t wait to experience Extinction for ourselves.
What is Extinction?
Extinction is a trail around the zoo that lets you travel back in time and discover lost species – crafted from over two million toy bricks! The trail features over 30 different models and 20 different creatures, all built from toy bricks.
The trail lets you discover lost species, including a gigantic woolly mammoth, a hissing titanoboa and a giant ground sloth. It’s educational but fun and something the whole family will enjoy.
Experiencing Extinction
When we arrived at Marwell Zoo we were given an Extinction trail guide which included a handy map as well as plenty of fun activities and quizzes to work on whilst we enjoyed the trail. The map showed all 31 models that we had to find and we loved that by following the trail, and finding all the brick displays, we would see the whole of Marwell Zoo too.
We spent about three hours at Marwell Zoo, making sure we ticked off all the Extinction models along the way. From the very first dodo we saw, to the t-rex skull, Tasmanian tiger, giant ground sloth and dire wolf, we were engaged throughout, on the hunt for models and excited to see what we could find next.
The children loved that each model came with a sign that told us what the creature was, how many bricks were used to build it and facts about the creature. They spent so much time reading all the signs and it was lovely to see them so engrossed.
As well as seeing all the incredible brick sculptures throughout the zoo, we also got to see all of the wildlife at Marwell Zoo too. From giraffes and zebras to rhinos and red pandas. It was great to get up close to so many animals whilst enjoying the trail.
Marwell also has so many play areas throughout the zoo, plenty of places to grab a drink or something to eat, so many photo opportunities and so many places to sit and simply enjoy the animals, fantastic brick models and atmosphere.
Extinction Base Camp
Base Camp at Extinction adds a new level of fun to an already fantastic day out and awesome trail. At Base Camp you can get your face painted, build your very own woolly mammoth or dodo or even help build a sabre-toothed tiger! These activities all incur an additional cost but LP and Little Man loved helping to build part of the sabre-toothed tiger and Little Man bought a woolly mammoth and dodo to build at home – although he ended up building it in the car on the way home!
We had a great time at Marwell Zoo, experiencing their Extinction trail and I know it’s somewhere all families would enjoy over the summer holidays. We already can’t wait to go back.
Extinction is running until Sunday 7th September 2025. Find out more over on the Marwell Zoo website and for reference, the zoo address is: Thompson’s Lane, Colden Common, Winchester SO21 1JH
You can see a little Reel of our trip over on Instagram here:
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