Bed in the lion’s den: inside a new bubble lodge at an animal reserve offering a taste of Africa… in the wilds of KENT

You could be forgiven for assuming that our first night away from our newborn would be a pretty wild affair.

And you would be right.

My husband and I peek out from under the wrinkled sheets, eyes wide.

A low growl turns into a long, blood-curdling roar. Somewhere nearby, a handful of lions let Kent know that they are hungry.

We’re close enough to grab a bite to eat, if it weren’t for an electric fence. We’re camping at the new Lookout Bubble, a clear-domed abode just meters from Europe’s largest lion enclosure.

Port Lympne is a wildlife reserve previously owned by the late zoo and casino magnate John Aspinall.

While south-east England is an unlikely habitat for rhinos, tigers, gorillas and lions, this is their area.

A team of 57 keepers work to protect them day and night, before returning many of them to their natural habitats, including Tanzania and Indonesia.

You can take a truck safari or wander among enclosures filled with tigers, baboons and ostriches on a day visit.

Or, if you stay overnight, there is the possibility of sleeping in wigwams or tree houses – great for families. But Lookout Bubble was built with a more romantic agenda in mind.

The transparent dome is luxuriously appointed, with a large bed covered in cozy blankets, a freestanding bath with geranium-scented Bamford bath, fig plants and comfortable armchairs.

The rain shower and toilet are discreetly hidden behind a zippered panel.

While it’s tempting to bury ourselves under the duvet, you don’t go on a sleeping safari.

Lookout Bubble reservations come with an electric golf cart, so we hit trails laid out across the 600 acres of Kent savanna.

Our neighbors are a pair of northern lynxes with fluffy fur and big eyes, sleeping on a tree branch, while howler monkeys hoot and scream nearby.

We’ve been on safari in Africa and I was wondering if seeing lions, rhinos and giraffes under the dreary UK sky might be a bit disappointing. Not so.

In fact, it’s a chance to witness wildlife up close: every wrinkle on the rhinos’ back, every long, thick eyelash over the giraffes’ eyes. During the giraffe safari, the ranger tells us how the animals’ tongues can grow up to half a meter long.

The giraffes swing toward the 4×4 and, inches from our faces, their tongues curl around the branches in our hands to feed on the leaves.

Later, we visited Rosie the rhino, who has lived here since 2011. I think of a rhino I saw in Tanzania, in a reserve loved by the Obamas and Oprah Winfrey.

It had spent much of its early life in this same meadow in Port Lympne, and was one of eight black rhinos that had been re-wilded.

Nearby is the Gorilla Experience – some of the great apes have tiny babies. “This one is known for throwing sticks,” Helen, the ranger, warns us. She has worked here for more than two decades and has helped recover more than 70 gorillas.

We throw vegetables into the larger apes’ cages, before the smaller ones pick up the remains.

Then let’s move on to the best: the big cats. We see a tiger with enormous paws and long whiskers lying languidly on a log.

Later, we tucked into a leisurely meal of steaks, brownies, and red wine, before touring the dark park in our golf cart.

Lying in bed I hear the low roar of a lion. It’s the last thing I hear before falling asleep. Peaceful sleep. The hallmark of a great night’s sleep.