Terrifying footage shows moment cheetahs chase family down in safari park after they got out of their car

You'd think by now that any visitor to a safari park would be aware of the reserve's one golden rule: do NOT under any circumstances get out of your vehicle.

Well, it turns out, this is far from the case, as heart-stopping footage of a family being hunted down by a pack of cheetahs at a safari park in the Netherlands resurfaced on social media this week.

The parents and children - all of whom hail from France - took trip in 2018 to the immensely-popular Beekse Bergen Safari Park, the largest wildlife facility of the Benelux region and home to approximately 1,250 animals.

Having made their way through several different enclosures, the family ventured into another colossal habitat, which was homed by numerous species from the plaines of Africa.

Hoping to explore the terrain further, the group broke the park's most vital rule and began climbing out of their car.

That's when a coalition of cheetahs came creeping in, approaching the family as they stood unaware, looking off into the distance.

A family made the incredibly foolish decision to exit their vehicle in a safari park. (ViralHog)

In the clip - recorded by another safari park visitor in one of the cars behind - a woman can be seen climbing out of one of the back doors to their car, placing two items in the boot.

Two other children could also be seen exiting the vehicle, hoping to get a glimpse at the famously-fast felines.

It is then that two huge cats could be seen nearing the group, which consisted of another woman holding her toddler in her arms.

While one cheetah approaches the family head on - terrifying the group and sending some members fleeing back into the car - another circled the vehicle, leaving the mother and child with no choice but to go the long way around the car, attempting to shoo the animals away.

Thankfully, the entire family managed to clamber their way back into the car and flee the enclosure before the dangerous cats were able to enact some serious harm.

A pack of cheetahs were seen chasing the family as they scrambled to get back into their car. (ViralHog)

The safari park's manager Niels de Wildt later told press that the group were 'lucky' to be alive.

"The cheetahs are on a food schedule so they are not extremely hungry and are not in the hunt," he explained.

"In the first instance they have the same reaction as when someone rings in unexpectedly, they think: hey, something strange is happening in our territory.

"But in the end they do respond to this exceptional visit, and these people have been incredibly lucky."

Topics: Animals, World News, News

Rhianna Benson

Rhianna is an Entertainment Journalist at LADbible Group, working across LADbible, UNILAD and Tyla. She has a Masters in News Journalism from the University of Salford and a Masters in Ancient History from the University of Edinburgh. She previously worked as a Celebrity Reporter for OK! and New Magazines, and as a TV Writer for Reach PLC.

@rhiannaBjourno