The estate with an Edwardian mansion near Lympne was purchased in 1973 by John Aspinall; the intent was to solve lack of space at the nearby Howletts Wild Animal Park.

The park now includes tigers, lions, leopards, gorillas, bears, giraffes and the UK's largest herd of black rhinos.

[5] Opened in 2016 to coincide with the park's 40th birthday, the Dinosaur Forest spans three acres of ancient woodland, and features over 100 life sized and anatomically correct models.

[6][7] Port Lympne houses many rare and endangered species and the largest breeding herd of black rhinos in the UK.

The zoo has an 'African Experience' safari trail where visitors are transported on specially modified vehicles around the park to view giraffe, zebra, antelope and wildebeest.

In 2005, after many years of stillbirths, two infant mortalities, and several premature adult fatalities, the first surviving mother-reared calf, Sittang, succumbed to the virus.

Port Lympne's remaining calf, May Tagu, who was born in April 2005, was transferred to Antwerp Zoo following the spate of deaths, along with her mother and one other cow.

According to a U.S. report, Damian Aspinall had purchased about a million acres in Africa and turned the area into a park in an attempt to protect gorillas whose numbers have been declining due to the loss of habitat and poaching.

Some experts questioned the wisdom of this strategy, citing issues such as the stress caused by "a hazardous journey", low temperatures at night in Africa, as well as "unfamiliar surroundings, foraging for food, predators and illness".

[18] The park is split into two sections; one allows visitors to walk around (or use golf buggies) to view animals in enclosures, such as primates and carnivores like big cats.

[21] [22] [23] [24] The park has a small exhibition area called the Discovery Zone, home to a variety of smaller species, including meerkats, pygmy marmosets, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, plumed basilisks, false water cobras, Australian green tree frogs, green tree pythons and several species of tortoise and tarantula.