Breaking into the zoo after hours

EXPERIENCE wildlife under the stars and close to home at Taronga Zoo's safari slumber party.

Close up ... the "Roar and Snore" program allows visitors to stay overnight get closer to the animals / AAP

MY new friend lent me his night-vision goggles.

“They really work,” he whispered, generously handing them over so I could get a better look at my curious friend.

I tiptoed up to the edge of the enclosure. It was pitch black, apart from the twinkling city lights in the background.

A giraffe looked at me, unsure what a person like me, not decked out in the keeper khakis, was doing in the zoo after hours.

Through my army-issue specs, I could see her eyes glowing. As she blinked her lush lashes I was caught in her gaze.

I'd got away from the pack and broken one of the rules of Taronga Zoo’s Roar and Snore – stay together.

My night-vision-goggle pal, aged about five, and I jogged back to the rest of the gang, making their way up to the potentially man-eating Komodo Dragon.

It was easy to get distracted on the night-time tour – ambling through the zoo after hours, checking out animals more active than when the huge crowds gather and catching glimpses of the Sydney Harbour backdrop.

I'm glad I wasn't tempted by the adults-only Roar and Snore session also available at the zoo.

Roar and Snore manager James Dalziel said while kids make up only 30 per cent of the Roar and Snore customers, they spice up the event.

“I like kids cause they ask better questions about poo and wee and sex and that kind of stuff,” Dalziel told me in the afternoon before I embarked on my tour. He said the adults-only sessions are more tame; “there's nothing fruity about them at all.”

Not just about the animals

Roar and Snore has been running at the zoo for almost a decade, and the aims of the program are also wider than just looking at animals, Dalziel explained.

“(We're) trying to give an insight into conservation ... and what people could do at home to address the big, long-term goals,” he said.

For example, advising people against using palm oil, to check the source of the wood in furniture and planting native plants in their backyards.

“It provides an unique environment for people to learn. (And) it's an excitement factor, so people don't think they are coming here to get lectured to.

“It's something completely different.”

While retaining the same key messages, the zoo has spent more than $1 million upgrading the program, re-launched in March.

Luxurious tents

Two-man dome tents erected on turf near the education centre at the zoo have been replaced by luxurious safari tents overlooking Sydney Harbour on an eco-friendly site.

I use the term “tent” loosely – while they take the shape and colour of a typical tent, the wooden floorboards and cushy double bed are unlike any camping experience I've had before.

The harbour views from Taronga Zoo are some of the best you'll see of the city (that's why Australia's answer to Posh and Becks, Bec and Lleyton, tied the knot there).

Upon arrival at the site, the Taronga team, led by charismatic Matt, provided drinks and snacks while we watched the sun set.

We had the chance to meet some scaly critters before a feast in the bistro and a private tour around the zoo.

It was an early start the following morning – 6.10am is the wake-up call. I struggled to open my eyes after a restless night listening out for roars and being woken up by snores.

But the anticipation of hand-feeding the giraffes and going behind the scenes with the marine animals was a good motivator.

Before the morning droves began to head into the zoo we saw the seals warm up for their day's work, hear about their mammoth diet and smell evidence of their fishy favourites in the cool room.

When our educational experience wrapped up at about 10am we were free to roam the zoo, which boasts that 90 per cent of its animals are on the endangered species list.

But after all the roaring, and thunderous snoring, I had to head home and hit the hay.

The writer was a guest of Taronga Zoo.