What to do at the Weekend: Enjoy a Porcupine Experience
Wow, what an experience! Getting up close and personal in a porcupine encounter experience is something we definitely didn’t think would ever happen.
So, if you feel like taking a break from the theme parks, and are an animal lover, we couldn’t recommend this porcupine experience more.
What we did at the weekend:
A Porcupine Experience at Wild Florida
Location: Kenansville, Florida
Our rating: 9/10
Where We Did Our Porcupine Encounter Experience
We did our Porcupine Encounter Experience at Wild Florida Airboats located in Kenansville, Florida.
Despite the name, they don’t just do airboat rides – although that is a pretty cool thing to do too!
Whilst vacationing in Orlando in September 2024, we took a day off from hitting the theme parks to do our porcupine ‘meet and greet.’
Originally a birthday present for Ben, this turned out to be a present for us both (really), as we were both able to do the encounter.
We did their African Crested Porcupine Encounter and it was awesome.
Why Did We Do a Porcupine Encounter Experience?
Well, why not? Look how cute they are!
But, we get it. When you think of porcupines, what comes to mind?
Maybe a prickly creature that is best admired from a distance?
Something you definitely wouldn’t want to pet, let alone hand-feed?
Well, with the Porcupine meet and greet experience, those assumptions get flipped upside down in the most adorable way possible.
Their African Crested Porcupine Stella was downright lovable.
She was the sweetest little girl who was extremely food orientated and loved attention.
What Does a Porcupine Feel Like?
Not prickly – more course feeling.
The first time you reach out to scratch a porcupine and it leans into the affection like a dog, the experience will feel weirdly comfortable and familiar.
Any lingering nerves about being too close to a “prickly” creature melted away in about 10 seconds.
What Does the Porcupine Encounter Experience Include?
You get right up close to the porcupine, entering her enclosure and hand feeding her.
She did not need very much encouragement.
From the moment we entered, she came running over expecting her favourite food.
The porcupines at Wild Florida are habituated to human interaction and are surprisingly social.
Something we found out very quickly!
She was more than happy for us to stroke her, give her some scratches, and take plenty of pictures and videos. We also noticed how delicately the porcupine takes the food from our hands.
Her keeper was also very knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our porcupine-based questions.
We also got a handful of porcupine quills to remember the experience by!
Did the Porcupine Shoot its Quills?
No, that’s just a crazy myth.
Porcupines can’t actually shoot their quills.
I imagine that this is something that the keepers get asked on every single experience.
But yes, this a common misconception that will be quickly debunked during the educational portion of any encounter with a porcupine.
What Species of Porcupine Did We Encounter?
African Crested Porcupine
These porcupines aren’t your typical woodland critters.
Native to sub-Saharan Africa, African crested porcupines are the largest species of porcupine in the world.
They boast a mohawk-like crest of long quills that they can raise when threatened—hence the “crested” name.
These gentle giants are more likely to retreat or rustle their quills as a warning rather than lash out.
Safe to say, Stella was definitely not feeling threatened by us.
In fact, once you get to know them, you’ll realise that the porcupine in this experience is a big softy with a serious love for snacks.
How Much Does the Porcupine Encounter Experience Cost?
At $45 per person (ages 8 and up), the Porcupine Encounter Experience is probably a special occasion level activity. It is definitely worth the money though in our opinion.
The experience price includes entry into the wildlife park also, which is also a great way to spend a couple of hours.
The park features a wide range of animals from alligators to exotic birds. They hold live ‘gator’ feeding demonstrations throughout the day too, which are very cool to watch.
More from the Blog
Thank you for reading! We have many more Florida related articles available to read via the blog, if that’s what floats your boat.
Alternatively, animal lovers might be interested in our Red Panda Experience article, where we met the beautiful “Betty” at Manor Wildlife Park.
Thanks for stopping by.
