Antler, Hoof, Tooth & Feather in Fife (Scottish Deer Centre (Cupar, Scotland))

Member Name: MagdaDH

Product:	Scottish Deer Centre (Cupar, Scotland)
Date:	23/05/09 (81 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: nice, level country park with deers, wolfs and great falconry

Disadvantages: unnecessary mix with shopping, not that cheap

Scottish Deer Centre is one of those glorified country parks with vaguely local animals in them that seem to be a common attraction in Scotland. I am not saying it in a dismissive way, as I generally like them (and already wrote a positive review of another one near Comrie).

They are located very near Cupar, Fife, about 30 minutes drive from Dundee, 40 minutes from Perth and a bit over an hour from Edinburgh. There is ample free parking at the site.

The site, obviously, includes the deer park itself (which is my second favourite part): an extensive areas of enclosures with many animals (apparently over 140 deer from 9 species) happily (as far as I can asses deer's happiness) munching their way through grass. Walking around the deer part is enjoyable and easy (it's all flat) and they also have trailer rides (extra charge) for those feeling less like exercise or wanting to go through rather than round the enclosures.

There are also guided tours with their rangers, which seem quite good but we didn't partake so can't comment on the details.

The Deer Centre is not all deer, though, and they also run regular bird of prey displays in a pleasant outdoor earth-banked theatre. On our visit we saw a falcon, a hawk and a snowy owl and it was a fascinating and a compelling show, with the falconer running it clearly knowing his stuff and quite happy to answer any questions afterwards.This was a definite highlight and it's well worth seeing.

In addition to the deer and the birds, they also have a thing called a Wolf Wood (it's really a large, wooded enclosure behind high fences, not an open wood) which, as the name suggests, does indeed contain a number of wolfs. The feeding time at 3pm (except Fridays) makes for an interesting if slightly gory spectacle. I rather like wolfs and those at the Centre seemed reasonably happy, with nice shiny coats and quite a bit of interesting space for the whole pack. Still, keeping territorial, carnivorous animals in captivity of such kind is always slightly questionable and those more concerned about such things might dislike it.

The Centre also has some other native animals including the iconic Highland coos and less iconic foxes and Soay sheep.

There is a good outdoor play area with what is termed "treetop walk" - probably more suitable for children from three upwards, as well as a rather impressive indoor one (also not really for the smallest ones), so there is a place to hide in a rain emergency.

The country-park part is altogether rather good and if you live or stay anywhere within about an hour's drive (but probably not more than that unless you are very keen on wolfs and deer) it makes a nice day out on a sunny day. The admission price is comparable to similar attractions - not exactly a great bargain but not terrible either.

What I dislike about the Deer Centre is the way it seems to try to "seamlessly" blend the animal country park part and a shopping outlet. In order to get to the wild bit, you have to not only pass the cafe (crowded and not particularly cheap), but also what they call "Courtyard Shopping" which houses, in addition to a typical gift shop, also Edinburgh Woolen Mill shop, and a (decent enough, but I object to such mixture of facilities in principle) deli cum whisky shop called Highland Smokehouse.

All in all, a decent enough day out, especially if staying nearby, but the shopping parts are an unnecessary blemish. I would rate this as 3.5 stars, but as dooyoo doesn't allow half-star ratings, it will rounded up to a generous 4.

****

The Scottish Deer Centre
The Bow of Fife
Cupar
Fife
KY15 4NQ
Scotland

Open every day (except Christmas and New Years Day)

Summer: 10am - 5pm
Winter: 10am - 4pm

Admission Fees:

Adults £6.95
Children £4.95
Concessions £5.45

tel:+44 (0)1337 810 391

Summary: nice country park with deer, wolfs and great falconry; blemished by shopping