Our Boy absolutely adores animals, he is rarely seen without a stuffed one under his arm. His favourite is Monkey – a small gangly thing that he has had since he was a baby, well actually we are on Monkey Mark III now and thankfully he hasn’t noticed the difference. Mark IIII is waiting hidden in my drawer ready to be pulled out after the loss of the current one. With this in mind it has been a pleasure to seek out a couple of local animal attractions.

We’ve had our eye on Drusillas Park for a while now but always thought Boy was a bit too young. However after reaching two and being quite able to run around and enjoy things himself we decided a trip to see the monkeys there was in order. I can understand why this little zoo and activity centre has been voted the No.1 attraction in the UK by The Times because it is brilliant. This clean, bright and engaging park is full to the brim of sights to delight any child.

Happily Boy got his fill of monkeys – there are plenty – as well as penguins, because if there is one animal he loves after a monkey it’s a penguin. But as well as seeing some lovely animals he also got to have a go on a full size working Thomas the Tank Engine (another house obssession) and take part in lots of age-appropriate activities. In fact I think Drusillas will be somewhere we go to regularly as Boy grows, because there will always be something to keep him occupied from now until he gives up his stuffed animals and beyond.

The Aquarium on the seafront, or to give it its proper name, The Sealife Centre Brighton, is a traditional aquarium that has had a modern update. Whatever you think about aquariums, and sometimes I am undecided, they now focus very heavily on animal care and conservation. There has been a marine exhibition on this site since the late 1800’s and Brighton has been famous for it in the past, happily you still get a real sense of the history of the place as the entrance hall remains largely the same. The new tanks, tunnels and exhibitions are very different now and new modern displays are regularly installed keeping the place fresh and always different to visit. Incredible to think they used to host dancing dolphin displays for visiting royalty!

Of course for a little boy it’s a fascinating magical place and seeing it through his eyes I would be happy to visit again. I have been going for many years already myself, it is the centrepiece to one of my earliest memories of visiting Brighton. A subsequent visit with a boyfriend in my 20’s resulted in me being bitten by a fish – yes my eager hand was thrust in the water only to emerge with a whiskery sea creature attached to it! After the shock subsided and the wound dressed I spent a nervous couple of hours wondering The Lanes hoping I wasn’t going to turn into Fish Girl.

But the stroking of the fish, the kissing of the rays and running through the shark tunnel is all part of the fun, and upon exit the tunnel that leads to the beach affords you with one of the best views of Palace Pier you could hope for. I know its hard to imagine visiting tourist attractions right on your doorstep but I would recommend it for kids, families, young lovers and would-be fishy superheroes!