Jungle James Cultural Tour & Petting Zoo

Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo is a departure from your average Caribbean island activity. Both animal lovers and nature enthusiasts will appreciate what this cool place is doing for kids and adults in terms of teaching about animals and stewardship of our planet. Although this place is definitely geared toward kids, I truly got as much out of my visit as any child there. Because it’s only open for three days a week, it tends to be busy. When I visited, there were lots of children with their parents and there was such a happy vibe in the air. I could see that the kids were so excited to be there; the atmosphere was full of smiles and laughter. So with all that in mind, I actually recommend this activity to anyone looking to lift their spirits, or to spend some wholesome time outdoors and just enjoy being alive.

Sustainability in Action

Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo is all about sustainability and education. But they don’t push these values on anyone. They show and demonstrate, letting kids and adults take home any lessons they might have learned about how to live more in tune with nature. I consider myself to be living an eco-friendly existence, but I learned some new practices that I would certainly take back home with me. They emphasize using what you already have to create and sustain rather than being a consumer or using plastic or other materials. For example, they create shade on the property with plantain vines, rather than building an awning or cover. This not only accomplishes the objective, but helps to maintain the natural essence of the property.

Letting Animals Do Their Thing

Another part of their mission is to teach people how to utilize animals to their potential and in a way that aligns with the animals’ natural behaviors and instincts. For example, rather than digging when they need to plant trees, they just erect their pig cage in the area where they want to plant. Pigs are natural foragers and they love to root around in the dirt. So the pigs will dig up the entire area overnight. This keeps the pigs happy, gives them exercise and solves the digging task. Then, they move the pigs to a new location and plant the trees. I keep a vegetable garden back home, and I immediately thought back to how hard I’d worked to turn the soil over before planting. Being here and learning other ways that they leveraged animal “power,” really got my imagination going and I was thinking of all kinds of  other ways I could change how I do things. I bet visiting here will do something similar for you and your children.

Getting There and Booking a Tour

Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo is open only three days a week, from 9 AM to 5 PM, Friday through Sunday. They’re located in Frederiksted, away from the center of town. The fastest way to get there from downtown Frederiksted is to head north on Prince Street until it dead ends at Highway 63 (LaGrange). Then hang a right and continue on La Grange Road as it banks right. After that, make a right onto the first road. It’s unmarked, so you need to be on the lookout. You’ll pass a driveway first; then the next road is the one you want to go down. Follow that all the way to the end and that will bring you to Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo. You do need to book a tour ahead of time, which you can easily do by calling them.

Animals at the Zoo

The Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo is very much an interactive experience. They have lots of employees on hand who gently teach the kids how to hold, feed and pet the animals. For instance, they have a bunny cage and, while the kids are seated, the worker places the bunny in the child’s lap and gives them some greens to feed the bunny. While this is happening, the worker talks about bunnies so the child is being taught without even realizing it. I just love that concept. Often, there’s a very personal backstory for each little animal. For example, when one child was interacting with a baby chick, the worker explained which farm the chick had come from, and how it happened to come to live at the petting zoo. They have all sorts of animals, including miniature horses, pigs, bunnies, small horses, tortoises, frogs and more.

Events

Finally, you can have your child’s birthday party at Jungle James Cultural Farm & Petting Zoo. They really make it special, even offering games of Laser Tag for your child and their friends. Call well in advance to book the date.