This Rural New York Sanctuary Has Become An Unlikely Home For The World’s Big Cats
You don’t expect to be thinking about lions and tigers while driving through rural New York, but here we are. The setting feels quiet, almost low-key, and then suddenly you realise what’s actually here.
Big cats. Real ones.
Just… living their lives in a place that feels completely removed from the chaos.
It’s calm, respectful, and honestly a little surreal in the best way. You’re close enough to notice the details, the way they move, the sheer presence they have, but everything still feels safe and thoughtfully managed.
In New York, experiences like this aren’t exactly what you picture, which is why it sticks with you.
At some point, it stops feeling unusual and starts feeling special. Like you’ve stumbled onto something meaningful without even trying.
Where Else Can You Literally Sleep Next To A Tiger
Most people have a pretty standard checklist for a good hotel stay: clean sheets, working Wi-Fi, maybe a nice view. This place decided that was all a little too ordinary and added Bengal tigers to the window.
Seriously. You check in, unpack your overnight bag, and within minutes, a 400-pound striped cat is pressing its nose against the glass to get a better look at you.
The bungalows are designed to give guests unobstructed views of the tiger and lion enclosures, with large floor-to-ceiling windows that make the animals feel almost impossibly close. Reviewers consistently describe the moment the cats emerge from their indoor quarters as something between a nature documentary and a fever dream.
One guest wrote that Raja, the resident white Bengal female, came right to the window and settled in for a nap that lasted several hours.
The rooms themselves are thoughtfully outfitted with modern furnishings, electric fireplaces, streaming services, full kitchenettes, and private outdoor fire pits stocked with wood. Staff even dug guests’ cars out after a snowstorm one winter morning, which is a level of hospitality that most five-star hotels do not offer.
The animals are let out into the viewing enclosures at 2 PM, right when check-in opens, and return indoors at 11 PM. They come back out at 7 AM the following morning, so even your checkout routine involves watching tigers stretch in the early light.
It is, by any reasonable measure, unlike anything else in New York State.
The Backstory Behind This Unexpected Sanctuary
The Wild Animal Park in Chittenango, New York, was founded in 2010 by Jeff Taylor, a man whose ambition clearly outpaced the expectations of most people in central New York. What began as a wildlife park on 14 acres has evolved into something far more layered and ambitious over the past decade.
Taylor’s vision was rooted in conservation and education, but he never seemed content with doing things in a conventional way.
By 2020, the park had opened a drive-through safari experience, letting visitors observe zebras, ostriches, tigers, and other animals from their vehicles. The timing was practical during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the concept proved popular well beyond those unusual circumstances.
People liked being able to experience wildlife without leaving the comfort of their cars, and the park capitalized on that appeal.
The real turning point came in 2022, when Taylor announced a $10 million expansion plan that introduced The Haven of the Wild, a resort component built directly alongside the big cat enclosures. The idea was straightforward but genuinely audacious: give guests a place to stay overnight where the view from their room is a lion pride or a group of Bengal tigers.
Guests who have met Taylor in person describe him as passionate, knowledgeable, and deeply committed to what he has built. One reviewer noted that he seemed like a man who understood exactly what kind of place he was creating and took quiet pride in watching visitors experience it for the first time.
The Big Cats Who Actually Live There
Kane and Raja have become something of local celebrities in Chittenango, though they seem entirely unbothered by the attention. Kane is a male Bengal tiger of considerable size and presence, while Raja is a white Bengal female who, according to multiple guests, is absolutely in charge of the dynamic between them.
One reviewer put it perfectly: Raja may be smaller, but she runs the show.
The park is also home to African lions, and guests staying on the lion side of the property report an equally gripping experience. Lions are more vocal than tigers, particularly in cooler weather, and several guests mentioned being startled awake in the early morning hours by deep, resonant roaring that somehow felt both terrifying and magnificent.
One couple staying for their one-year anniversary described October as an ideal time to visit, noting that the cooler temperatures made the cats noticeably more active and expressive throughout the day.
It is worth understanding that these are cats, and cats sleep a great deal. Guests occasionally arrive with cinematic expectations of constant action and need a gentle recalibration.
The animals do play, wrestle, groom each other, and interact with guests through the glass, but they also nap for hours at a stretch. Knowing this ahead of time helps set the right expectations.
The animals are not performing; they are simply living their lives, and watching that unfold at close range is genuinely more interesting than any scripted encounter could be.
The Place Revealed, And What Staying In A Bungalow Actually Feels Like
Checking into The Haven of the Wild is a study in pleasant contradictions. The self-check-in process is smooth and code-based, meaning you do not need to interact with anyone to get settled, which suits guests who want to transition immediately into watching animals through their windows.
Yet the staff, when you do encounter them, are described by nearly every reviewer as warm, knowledgeable, and genuinely enthusiastic about the animals in their care.
The bungalows are compact but well-considered. Each unit comes with a comfortable bed, a sleeper sofa, a full kitchenette stocked with basics, a mini Keurig coffee maker, streaming television, and a modern bathroom.
The outdoor fire pits are pre-stocked with firewood, which is a detail that feels both practical and generous. Blackout curtains are available, though most guests report never using them, preferring to fall asleep with the enclosure visible and lit by ambient light.
One reviewer described lying in bed watching tigers sleep under heat lamps in the snow and feeling a calm that she had not expected. Another mentioned that the shower in their bungalow had a small window that looked directly into the lion enclosure, which made for a morning routine unlike anything in their previous travel experience.
Food is not available on-site beyond a vending machine, so guests are encouraged to bring provisions or order from nearby restaurants in Chittenango, several of which have been specifically recommended by past visitors. The overall atmosphere is quiet, unhurried, and completely self-contained.
Lions Vs. Tigers: Choosing Your Side Of The Property
One of the more enjoyable decisions guests face when booking at The Haven of the Wild is choosing between the lion side and the tiger side of the property. It is the kind of dilemma that would have seemed completely absurd to describe to anyone just a few years ago, and yet here we are, ranking African predators by personal preference like we are choosing a Netflix category.
The tigers, Kane and Raja in particular, tend to draw guests who want close-up interaction through the glass. Multiple reviewers noted that the tigers would come right to the windows, sometimes pressing against the glass with what appeared to be genuine curiosity.
The white Bengal female Raja is especially noted for her personality, described variously as bold, playful, and quietly commanding. The tiger enclosure tends to feel more intimate, with the animals spending long stretches near the bungalow windows.
The lions, on the other hand, offer a different kind of theater. A full pride means more social interaction between the animals, more vocalizing, and more of the complex group dynamics that make lions so fascinating to observe.
Guests on the lion side frequently describe waking up to roaring at dawn, which is either thrilling or alarming depending on your disposition. One guest noted that the lions became significantly more active after dark, which makes the evening hours especially rewarding.
Both experiences are exceptional, and several guests have already returned or are planning return visits specifically to experience the side they did not choose the first time.
The Drive-Through Safari That Started It All
Before the bungalows existed, before guests were falling asleep to the sound of lions, the Wild Animal Park was already doing something unusual for upstate New York: running a drive-through safari. Opened in 2020, the experience lets visitors observe animals including zebras, ostriches, tigers, and other species from the safety of their own vehicles as they drive a designated route through the property.
The timing of the safari launch was partly a pandemic-era adaptation, but the format turned out to have appeal well beyond those specific circumstances. Families with young children, guests who might find a walking safari physically demanding, and visitors who simply enjoy the novelty of watching a zebra amble past their car window have all embraced the format enthusiastically.
Reviewers who combined the drive-through experience with an overnight stay in the bungalows described the safari as an excellent complement to the more intimate viewing from the rooms.
One guest wrote that after spending the night watching tigers through the bungalow window, the drive-through safari the following morning felt like a natural extension of the experience, broadening the scope of animals encountered and offering a different kind of engagement. The animals on the safari route are active and visible, and the facility’s overall cleanliness and organization drew repeated praise from visitors.
For first-time guests who are uncertain about committing to an overnight stay, the drive-through safari offers a lower-stakes entry point into the Wild Animal Park experience that often converts cautious day-trippers into enthusiastic overnight guests.
Planning Your Visit: Practical Details Worth Knowing
Getting to The Haven of the Wild requires a drive into central New York, and the approach through rural farmland is part of what makes the arrival feel so unexpected. The property is located at 1875 New Boston Rd, Chittenango, NY 13037, and can be reached by phone at 315-897-2970 or through the official website at thehavenofthewild.com.
The surrounding area is quieter than most visitors from urban centers are accustomed to, which is precisely the point.
Check-in begins at 2 PM, which is also when the big cats are released into the viewing enclosures, so arriving promptly is strongly encouraged. Checkout is at 11 AM, and the animals are released again at 7 AM that morning, giving guests a final viewing window before they leave.
The self-check-in system uses a door code, and the process has been described as smooth and intuitive by nearly every reviewer who mentioned it.
Food is not available on the property beyond a vending machine, so guests should plan accordingly. Chittenango is a short drive away and offers several dining options, including an Italian restaurant called Nino’s that has been specifically recommended by multiple past guests.
The Wizard of Oz Museum is also located nearby, which is an oddly charming addition to a trip that already involves sleeping next to tigers. The Haven operates seven days a week with hours from 8 AM to 11:30 PM, and the property currently holds a 4.7-star rating from guests who have reviewed it on Google.
What Guests Are Saying After Their Stays
The reviews for The Haven of the Wild read less like hotel feedback and more like dispatches from people who have just returned from something they cannot quite believe happened to them. Phrases like once-in-a-lifetime and unlike anything else appear with a frequency that would seem like marketing copy if it were not so consistent across dozens of independent accounts from different types of travelers.
Families with young children describe their kids pressing against the glass in wide-eyed disbelief. Couples celebrating anniversaries and birthdays write about the experience with a warmth that suggests it exceeded whatever expectations they arrived with.
Solo travelers and groups of friends all seem to arrive expecting something interesting and leave having experienced something genuinely memorable. One reviewer mentioned that waking up at 6 AM to lions roaring outside the window made them feel as though they were sleeping on a safari, which is a comparison that keeps appearing across multiple reviews in slightly different forms.
The staff earn specific praise in nearly every account, with guests noting that the team’s evident passion for the animals adds a layer of authenticity to the experience that a more commercial operation might lack. Dana, one of the staff members, is mentioned by name in at least one review as being particularly helpful and personable.
The owner Jeff Taylor is described by guests who encountered him as an impressive and genuinely motivated individual whose enthusiasm for what he has built is palpable and contagious.
Events, Concerts, And The Expanding Vision Of The Property
The Haven of the Wild has ambitions that extend well beyond overnight bungalow stays, and the property has already begun hosting events that bring a different kind of energy to the rural New York setting. A concert held at the venue drew enthusiastic reviews from attendees who described the surreal experience of listening to live music while zebras and giraffes moved in the enclosures nearby.
The combination of live entertainment and exotic animals in a pastoral upstate New York setting is the kind of thing that sounds implausible until you read the firsthand accounts.
One attendee, Brenda DiVeronica, wrote a particularly detailed review praising the event organization and singling out a staff member named Amber for going out of her way to accommodate her deaf husband with front-row seating near the stage. The food was described as fresh and hot, the beverages were cold, and the crew managed the crowd with efficiency and good humor despite it being the venue’s first concert.
A follow-up event was announced for September, suggesting that live programming is becoming a regular part of the property’s calendar.
The broader expansion plan includes glamping tents that have been mentioned by multiple reviewers as a feature they are eagerly anticipating. The ongoing construction visible around the property signals that what guests are experiencing now is genuinely just the beginning of what The Haven of the Wild intends to become.
The vision is large, the execution so far has been well-received, and the trajectory of the property suggests that its reputation will only continue to grow in the years ahead.
Why This Place Matters Beyond The Instagram Moment
There is an easy version of The Haven of the Wild that exists purely as a novelty: sleep near tigers, take dramatic photographs, post them online, and move on. That version is real and entirely valid.
But guests who write about their experience at length tend to describe something that surprised them by going deeper than the spectacle. Watching a wild animal live its life at close range, without bars or barriers between you and the glass, changes how you think about these creatures in ways that a zoo visit rarely does.
The proximity is the thing. When Raja presses her face against the window and looks directly at you with amber eyes, the abstract concern for endangered species becomes something more immediate and personal.
Several guests mentioned leaving the property with a changed perspective on wildlife conservation, not because anyone lectured them, but because the experience itself made the stakes feel real. That is the kind of education that sticks.
The Wild Animal Park and The Haven of the Wild represent a model of conservation engagement that takes human psychology seriously. People connect with individuals, not categories, and the overnight stay format gives guests enough time to observe the animals as distinct personalities rather than generic examples of their species.
Kane has his habits. Raja has her temperament.
The lions have their social dynamics. Spending a night watching all of that unfold is a remarkably effective way to send someone home caring genuinely about the future of big cats in the world.
That outcome, quiet and personal as it is, may be the most important thing this unlikely rural sanctuary produces.