From heartwarming stories to unforgettable photos, each submission has reminded us of the joy and wonder Willowbank has brought to so many families over the years. Take a look at all the incredible submissions below!
We gave so many fun memories made at Willowbank. I\'ve been taking my kids there since they were born and everything we discover a new favorite thing. Though personally I am pretty biased to the kea! - Nic Crequer
My first memory of Willowbank 30 odd years ago is when we came up to visit my grandparents who took me and my sister to Willowbank for a lovely day out. Grandma had packed spare knickers in a bag, and we were in the paddock with the deer and a cheeky deer came up and stole the spare knickers and ran off with them! My grandad chased after him! I have memories of grandad running around this paddock trying to retrieve the knickers from the deer š We eventually got them back, but alas they were full of holes so had to be thrown away! - Hannah Jozko
I have many fond memories of days out at Willowbank with my daughter. Feeding a bag of pellets to the farm animals and saying hello to Sam the Clydesdale was always the highlight! She now looks forward to sharing the experience of visiting Willowbank with her baby brother! - Emily Thornton
I visited from Kaukauna, Wisconsin (US). My sonās grandma lives in Otaki, north island. We visited WB to see a kiwi in person. It turned out to be better than I ever imagined. My favorite part were the social eels and the group of capybaras. -Lauren Weigman
Mikayla loved to feed and stroke the eels back in the day. - Jeremy brown
Looking back at photos of our time spent at Willowbank brings lovely memories. Our kids have always loved hand feeding the animals.- Kate Keown
We love willowbank! I have theee children with a very big age gap and they all enjoy it! Annabella my youngest, is her happy place! I actually have a really cute reel we did today but doesnāt allow me to send it here. If you give us a message on instagram @the.vr.family I can share ā„ļø. Happy 50th birthday! - Sofia Lapid
This naughty kia kept trying to steel my dads glasses , not long after it jumped into my sons pram and took his dummy and flew away with it . - Megan Mcnaught
We have been coming to Willowbank since my girl was a baby sheās now six and still loves it every time - Kylie-Maria Solomon
40 years ago, me as a 6 year old patting a Wallaby. - Marie Lange
My son getting to feed and meet his favorite animal. - Jesse Blackwell
Mr Wyatt having a blast feeding animals - Andrea Higgison
My 2 girls discovering the Kea\'s recently. Miss 18 months was very interested, and we have a super cute video of her getting up close and personal! - Amber Graham
Capybaras are my favorite animal and in 2022 my dream came true and I got to pat and feed one through the Capybara encounter for my birthday! - Charlene Lang
Just a girl and her duckies! Followed her from the monkeys to the pigs š - Nikki Lanham
We\'ve been going to Willowbank for the last four years and my daughter loves feeding the animals. - Mandy Kibblewhite
The kids always love willowbank as it is perfect for them to be up and close to the animals! Which makes it even more interesting for them
The good old tractor is always a hit when walking around and we always have to get a photo and the kids also love the Maori village on the way to the end of our trip - Philippa Messervy
My daughter Emily loves horses and always loved saying Hi to Sam everytime we visited. - Roberta Soper
My son Oliver is now 3.5yo
We have had an annual pass yearly since he was 7mo. We love willowbank & creating memories! We now have a 8mo daughter who can be apart of the fun too!
Willowbank is great all year round! -Danielle Earl
We are lucky enough to live nearby, so to say we are locals is an understatement. My wife and I have been visiting since we were kids, as proud Cantabrianās. In recent years we have introduced our two kids to willowbank and have plenty of visits with our two kids to show for it. We have made plenty of memories from patting the sheep (reminding them to be gentle) to feeding the deer or eels, to watching the cows eat with the massive tongues (eeeeewwwwww). We cherish these memories, and look forward to plenty more. - Kurt Higgison
We have many many photos from Willowbank but this one is one of our favourites, we love willowbank, our kids have loads of fun and loves all the animals, happy birthday willowbank š„³ - Chloe Welsh
We love taking our children to willowbank and enjoy how interactive the animals are with them. Every time we go, we get updated photos on the tractor - definitely one of the favourite things to do! - Melissa Haars
Over the years at Willowbank my son loves the animals - Mel L
Our son\'s favourite days are spent at Willowbank. He loved visiting \"his friend Sam\", they would always spend a while being eye to eye. It made our hearts happy. - Carolyn Packer
My kids have always loved Willowbank and we have made so many happy memories there. When she was little, my daughter adored Samantha and would rush to her enclosure. Sam always came over for a pat! - Deborah Riddler
If it aint the kids then its the kea, either way its a mischievous outing and we are always for it. - Kara Tihema
We try come to willowbank at least once a week, itās been a great bonding time for me (mum) and Murphy. He loves bringing a toy to show the animals and best of all the tractor! - Charlotte Thomas
I literally didn\'t live without willowbank! We came almost every 2nd day. It was the first place we visited after i had my youngest just to get out of the house. We had passes for a good few years too.. The younger 2 in tow while the other was at school. Honestly , kids and I could never get bored of the place. We still come. Not as often as I\'d like but I always like to gift the girls an encounter for their birthday. Just a few wee pics of the girls on the \"lizard rock!\"
Such an amazing place!! - Lydia Franklin
4th birthday party - Gemma Jackson
Our 3yo sons visit to Willowbank in 2024. He loves coming to Willowbank, especially the baby birds! - Hayden Pemberton
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