I stayed in a safari lodge surrounded by giraffes - and didn't have to leave the UK

It’s 8 o’clock on a sunny August Sunday morning and my 12-year-old daughter Georgie is playing tug of war. With a pair of giraffes.

She’s gripping onto a leafy acacia tree branch as tightly as she can as Tula and Millie – two 15ft-high giraffes peer down at her with their huge doe eyes, tugging enthusiastically on the branches as they scrape them bare.

We are not however in the wilds of the African savannahs, in case you were wondering.

Our giraffe feeding activity is just one of several VIP experiences at The Reserve - a brand new enclave of 51 deluxe lodges at Chester Zoo, just half an hour’s drive south of Liverpool.

We had first met the giraffes the previous evening on arrival at our VIP lodge and although I’ve been fortunate enough to stay in hotel rooms with spectacular views in the past - from oceans to mountains - I have never stayed anywhere quite like this.

As we walk into our spacious, two-bedroom lodge, Tula and Millie are taking a graceful stroll around a large, oval-shaped paddock right outside our veranda.

A short while later they are joined by a zebra and a bunch of roan antelopes.

With the animals providing the ultimate, scene-stealing backdrop, we barely register the décor in the lodge.

But later I notice it has a high-end safari feel, with velvet scatter cushions in shades of sage green and faun, and wooden, designer lampshades that look like they’ve been carved out of an African tree.

The double walk-in shower, which comes complete with multicoloured light effects, is large enough to hold a small party, but the star of the show (apart from the giraffes, obviously) is a free-standing, copper, roll top bath, tucked away in a corner of the veranda so you can take a soak whilst observing the animals.

Leaving our lodge, we walk along the elegant pathway, lined with flower beds, to a private gate which takes us directly into the main part of the zoo.

One of the giraffe keepers, Hannah, takes us into the ‘giraffe kitchen’, a large warehouse-like building, where we help fill the large hexagonal pots which are hung high up on poles for the giraffes to feed on during the day.

Hannah explains how the giraffes are looked after and also how the profits from The Reserve will directly fund Chester Zoo’s projects working with partners in Uganda and Kenya to prevent the extinction of different animals, including the Northern (aka ‘Rothschild’) giraffes, as well as the black rhino and giant pangolin.

Later on, after a barbecue dinner at The Reserve’s smart Amboseli restaurant overlooking a lake, we’re taken on a private, behind-the-scenes tour of the zoo’s ‘Heart of Africa’ area.

Along with the chance to see African wild dogs without having to peer over the heads of the usual crowds, we learn fascinating facts about including how they communicate with each other by sneezing.

We are also shown several species not currently on show to the public.

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As we look into a glass case full of what look like dark rocks, suddenly, Scott, another of the rangers, shines an infra-red torch into the case, and we see a mini village of dark grey naked mole rats.

The next day, after an excellent night’s sleep cocooned in silky soft, high thread count, cotton bedding, we’re woken up by what sounds like a cross between a horse neighing and an elephant’s fanfare.

It is in fact our neighbour, the zebra.

For our final activity, Conservation in Action, we meet lead Ranger Fraser who takes us to a small, pretend lab near the African wild dogs.

Information panels on the wall detail the conservation work carried out in the zoo, as Fraser explains how they analyse the giraffes’ poo in order to check for infections or hormones so they know when it’s time for them to breed.

Then it’s our turn, as we don white coats and get play conservationists for the morning, and Fraser shows us how to take the samples ourselves with syringes and pipettes, albeit using pretend poo and water.

“The poo-ssibilities are endless,” quips Fraser, whose arm-waving enthusiasm must surely qualify him for a job as a Blue Peter presenter sometime soon.

We spend the rest of the day visiting some of the 500 species on view in the main zoo including waddling penguins, sleeping Sumatran tigers, elephants, rhinos, orangutans and flamingos.

The zoo is impressive but, for Georgie, it has been our time with the giraffes that has made this much more than just a smart staycation.

‘This is one of my favourite places that we’ve ever stayed’, she says as we leave.

And as for Henry and me, taking part in our own game of giraffe tug of war has certainly made this a trip to remember.