Cornish Seal Sanctuary re-opening 12th April

Cornish Seal Sanctuary re-opens to the public

After three closures over 2020/21, the Cornish Seal Sanctuary is thrilled to be welcoming guests back to their 42-acre site on Monday 12th April. 

The Sanctuary will be opening its doors once again, guests will be able to enjoy seeing the animals, get some fresh air and enjoy the amazing scenery of the Helford River. The charity said it is the first time in its 60-year history that it had been forced to close for such an extended period of time. 

The support they have received from the public has been overwhelming. Being able to re-open provides the Sanctuary with the vital funds from visitors it needs to be able to continue their pup rehabilitation work, with 50 pups going through rehabilitation this season. 

As well as rescuing vulnerable seal pups and rehabilitating them so they can be returned to the wild, the sanctuary provides a permanent home to a variety of marine mammals, each with individual care and medical needs. 

Jana Sirova, General Manager of the Sanctuary, said: “We have really struggled throughout the lockdowns and it has been concerning for our future, especially to be closed during the pup season. Being able to re-open really is a lifeline for us, we cannot wait to see guests enjoying the Sanctuary once again, we know the animals are certainly excited to see some new faces!” 

The Sanctuary has also welcomed two rescued baby Beaver sisters to their new home during lockdown. The ‘Secret Creek’ project has been in the works for the past two years and the Sanctuary is thrilled to be able to provide a home for their two rescued beaver sisters and welcome their amazing contribution by landscaping the Sanctuary’s woodland to benefit a vast amount of wildlife and species in the future. 

Sanctuary supporters that are planning a visit can rest assured that the Sanctuary has invested a lot of time and money into updating health and safety procedures, to ensure that all visitors and staff will be kept safe whilst they are there. 

All visitors will need to pre-book a timeslot for their visit before they arrive, to ensure social distancing on site, with last admissions at 3pm. 

Guests can book their slot online at sealsanctuary.sealifetrust.org under the tickets section. Those without a ticket need to buy one first and they will then be directed to a booking slot. 

Visitors who already have a locals’ pass, existing ticket or voucher can go straight to booking their time slot. 

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