We went to the Seal Sanctuary at the end of July 2007 with our 3 children. I would advise going early, we got there when it opened at 10.00am, and there were only 2 other families waiting, when we came out, there was a queue as far as up the hill to the car park at least an hour wait to get ... Read review
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1-5 of 6 reviews of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
Seal Sanctuary, Gweek, Cornwall
Advantages: Tesco vouchers can be used, somewhere different to go Disadvantages: Long queues in the school holidays
We went to the Seal Sanctuary at the end of July 2007 with our 3 children. I would advise going early, we got there when it opened at 10.00am, and there were only 2 other families waiting, when we came out, there was a queue as far as up the hill to the car park at least an hour wait to get in, and staff were handing out lollipops to children, the one disadvantage here is that there only seems to be one member of staff taking money when you arrive ... ...information, they are currently giving each child a shark top trump card and if your card matches the one in the shop you get a free pack of shark cards, this all takes time hence the queue when we came out.
We used Tesco vouchers which made it very reasonable it would have cost nearly £40.00 but only had to use £10.00 of vouchers, the current prices are as follows:
We went to the Seal Sanctuary at the end of July 2007 with our 3 children. I would advise going early, we got there when it opened at 10.00am, and there were only 2 other families waiting, when we came out, there was a queue as far as up the hill to the car park at least an hour wait to get in, and staff were handing out lollipops to children, the one disadvantage here is that there only seems to be one member of staff taking money when you arrive he then has to hand out leaflets and tell you information, they are currently giving each child a shark top trump card and if your card matches the one in the shop you get a free pack of shark cards, this all takes time hence the queue when we came out.
We used Tesco vouchers which made it very reasonable it would have cost nearly £40.00 but only had to use £10.00 of vouchers, the current prices are as follows:
Adult £10.95 Child £7.95 5 up to 15. OAP £9.95 Family ticket 2 adults, 2 children £31.80.
Children under 5 free.
There is a gift shop on the right as you go in which is quite good but I would have liked to see more for younger children, I did not notice any pencils or rubbers etc, quite a few ceramic seals and cuddly seals for sale etc. There are pictures of seals and what you can adopt and then as you walk through there are toilets on the right. After these you can walk through to the outside, there is a safari bus, tractor with trailer of rows of wooden seats on which is good for going or coming back on. We walked down as it is sloping downwards and there is woodland on eitherside of the path and informative wooden animal shape signs, ie; one of a badger with facts on badgers and a badger set, there are views of the working boat yard and the Helford river on the right.
The first building you come to is the hospital building which you walk to up a ramp, this was empty when we went, which is good news as they had no new seals or pups, pups are about to be born anytime now so this was the quietest time. Further up the bank was the first pool with 2 seals in and then further up the furtherst right pool is a nursery pool this had one big seal in which was in and out of the water and in a little cave, next to this was the convalescent pool which has seals by coincidence a father and daughter, the father called Magnus originally from Scotland, he was later rescued from somewhere that was going to put him to sleep, he arrived at the Sanctuary in 1990, the daughter was born at Edinburgh Zoo and had lived at Whipsnade Zoo she was lonely after her companion died and the zoo asked the seal sancturary if they would have her, she arrived 2004. The Seal Sanctuary did not realise they were related until they realised they had both been at Edinburgh Zoo, they got the Zoo to look at their history and realised they were father and daughter. the dad is very miserable and groans at everyone including the staff who feed him and his daughter is not much better, there were 2 pups there who had been there since December, they had a long recovery period due to illnesses but were being released early the next day back into the sea, they had little white hat tags on their head so that hopefully they could keep track of them.
We were there at the first feeding time 11.00am which I would recommend, a member of staff gave an interesting talk about the seals there and where they were from and how they had got both father and daughter by coincidence, they then feed them, you could if you wanted to spend all day there follow them round when they feed all the others as well including the otters, there was another feeding time of I think 2.00pm. Further along there were more pools with sea lions in and seals.
There is also another gift shop here and a cafe, also a fast food kiosk which was reasonable for hot dogs and burgers etc, this was one of the cheapest fast food places we had seen on holiday.
Further along is a rock pool with crabs, sea cucumber and anemones in, their was a member of staff there who answered childrens questions, she was very knowledgeable, they also had a mock tidal wave set up in the rock pool about every 2 minutes water gushed down the rocks.
There is a play area and further down a sloping track there are the otters, 2 of them running around in the otter creek, there is also a feeding time here.
When we went there were not a lot of animals which is of course, a good thing, I think if you went later in the year there would be pups, in one way you want to see the pups but of course, if they are there it is because they have been abandoned by their mums or they are injured, this is a sanctuary and they do a lot of good work, it is not a zoo and they are there to care for animals rather than show them, they have posters up saying they would never have dolphins.
When you go here you are helping them raise much needed funds, and the children loved it here especially feeding time, we were lucky enough to see some seals in the sea at Lands End a few days later and I prefered seeing them where they should be in the sea but the seals here are well looked after and they try to release as many as they can back into the sea, some like the father and daughter will be staying there at the sanctuary the father is the oldest seal in captivity in the world, if seals have got to be kept somewhere other than the sea what better place than the Seal Sanctuary being looked after by the caring staff.
Advantages: it's a good corse, very funny and cute animals, entertaining Disadvantages: outside, so weather dependant
As I said in my earlier review about Cornwall, I enjoyed my visit to the Seal Sanctuary so much, that I have to write a separate review about it. The sanctuary is based in Gweek, which is a small place, 45 Minutes from St. Austell. It is well signposted, so easy to find or just type in TR12 6UG into your sat nav ;-) . Why is a Sanctuary important?
the seal sanctuary treats injured seals, baby seals that seem to have been abandoned. They provide ... ...they rescue and rehabilitate over 30 injured or abandoned seal pups. Not all of them can be released. The adult animals you can see in the Sanctuary are ones, that wouldn't survive in the wild anymore. Adoption:
The sanctuary offers it's visitors to adopt an animal, which helps, giving the animal the best chances of recovery. The adoption cost £30 for children and £50 for adults if you want to adopt one of the animals in the sanctuary (you can choose ...
murphypig 23.03.2008 (24.03.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
Advantages: Informative and fun Disadvantages: Doesn't appear to be accessable by bus or train?
The Sanctuary was started in 1958 by Ken Jones when a baby seal, only a few hours old, was washed up on the beach at St Agnes. For many years it was based in St Agnes but as news of it's good work spread the amount of animals it received increased and in 1975 it re-located to Geek.
Today the Sanctuary has Nursery pools, Convalescence, and Resident pools, and a specially designed Hospital. The hospital over the years has been extended to include ... ...They have rescued many seals over the years, and most are well enough to be released back into the wild after treatment, but some seals, for various reasons, would not survive back in the wild, so they have them as their guests at the Sanctuary.
In addition to the Grey and Common Seals, they have Californian and Patagonian Sea Lions. The Sanctuary also provides a much-needed haven for a variety of other animals, such as Otters, Ponies and Goats. ...
LucyFan 01.05.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
Advantages: Interesting, informative,lovely seals, refreshments,lovely location, good access for people with mobility problems Disadvantages: Not sure if can access by us/train, maybe a little pricey for families, can get crowded
We go to the seal sanctuary every time we go down to Cornwall and even when we go to Dorset and Devon! (which is once a year!)
Parking is free and is right near the entrance. I can not remember the exact price as every year we have been able to get a 2 for 1 ticket. I think though we paid around £6.50 last September. I think this is quite pricey but it is a charity and it is a lovely day out. If you look around for leaflets where ever you go you ... ...have paid there is a downhill walk to the seals but there is a landrover train that can take you down and bring you back for no extra charge. The drive down is through the woods and you get a lovely view down into the sanctuary and then beyond to the wooded river/lake. It is only a short ride and you are dropped off between the pools where the seals live. You can wander round looking at the seals. There are views of the seals mainly all around the ...
Tussie69 02.08.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
Advantages: Great family day out, lovely animals, good facilities Disadvantages: Bit of a trek to seals - no land train 'off peak' months
Having visited before a good number of years ago, I was pleased to see that Gweek was going from strength to strength when re-visiting in October. It is quite a way out from the nearest towns (Falmouth and Helston) but is well worth the trip. Prices are £10.50 for adults, £6.50 for children. Buy 'The Cornishman' newspaper (out every Thursday) which often has 2-for-1 offers for a wide range of attractions, including Gweek.
There are good parking ... ...up to say that they were hoping to build more facilities nearer to the 'attractions', as the entrance is quite a way from the seals etc. In summer months there is a land train to take you down to the pools but as we visited in winter this was not the case. Be warned that this results in quite a long, hilly walk - fine for most but may be a problem for the very young or old. Check their website or pphone for details of 'off peak' dates.
Once you ...
princess_leia 19.11.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
Advantages: Loads to see and do, your money goes to a fanatasic cause Disadvantages: None!
We have been going to the Sanctuary for years and have enjoyed every second of it! There is just sooo much to do!! Firstly, you couldn't ask for a more beautiful destination. The Sanctuary is set with a backdrop of the gorgeous Helford estuary in the quaint little village of Gweek, just outside of Helston. Theres the seal hospital (this is where the seal pups will be in winter), then several pools which are home to loads of different types of seals. ... ...will teach you what they do when they rescue a pup and you get a chance to have a go as well. Theres the most wonderful underwater viewing areas - where you can watch the seals swimming towards you underwater!! The kids will sit and watch it for hours!! Then you've got the ginat rock pool which has loads of different types of fish, anemones, sea snails etc and you even get the chance to hold a crab or a starfish! Then you've got the brilliant woodland ...
MissLcornwall 10.11.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek
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