Blog (News) - Experience Bedfordshire

Looking to get into the spirit this festive season? Here’s our guide to where you can meet Father Christmas, start to feel merry and maybe even get a gift or two early (only if you’ve made it onto the nice list of course!)

A troop of Endangered chimpanzees at the UK’s largest zoo have gone wild for early Christmas presents from zookeepers – marking the start of Christmas at Whipsnade Zoo.

For a Christmas day out like no other, look no further than Whipsnade Zoo – where the wonders of the animal kingdom are guaranteed to give your family magical memories they’ll treasure forever.  

Spirited lionesses Waka and Winta were amongst the many youngsters sinking their teeth into Halloween at Whipsnade Zoo today (Monday 30 October) as zookeepers treated animals across the zoo to a spook-tacular surprise.  

Jess Glynne and Nile Rodgers are the latest acts to headline Bedford’s Summer Sessions, which will take place next summer at Bedford Park.

Two baby yaks named Tonks and Cedric have been captured on camera jumping for joy and bucking around the Dunstable Downs at Whipsnade Zoo - the magical new arrivals were given the monikers by zookeepers following their tradition of naming the yak family after characters from the beloved Harry Potter books. 

A pair of rare red panda cubs at Whipsnade Zoo have been given their first vet check, as the internationally important twins start to leave their nest box and explore their surroundings for the first time.  

Whipsnade zookeeper releases thousands of extinct snails back to French Polynesian islands.Thousands of Extinct-in-the-Wild tropical tree snails bred at British conservation zoos have been flown more than 15,000km, accompanied by a Whipsnade Zookeeper - to be reintroduced to their French Polynesian island home.

A Francois langur baby pokes his amber head out from his mum’s tender embrace, as Whipsnade zookeepers celebrate the new birth as part of a successful European breeding programme for the Endangered species.

The Green Flag Awards have recognised and rewarded some of Bedfordshire’s best loved parks and green spaces. This year, a record 2,216 parks have received the award, with a host of greenspaces across Bedfordshire making the list.