Sea Turtle Farm and Hatchery - Habaraduwa

Sea Turtle Farm and Hatchery - Habaraduwa

Sea Turtle Farm and Hatchery - Habaraduwa
3.5
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
We are a team of volunteers taking all possible efforts to save the sea turtles for the next generation with the support of well-wishers around the globe. The "Sea Turtle Hatchery" is situated in Habaraduwa (southern part of Sri Lanka - Galle district) near to the beautiful golden sand beach.
Duration: < 1 hour
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

3.5
3.5 of 5 bubbles357 reviews
Excellent
115
Very good
117
Average
56
Poor
26
Terrible
43

These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
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Kai Wah
Malaysia3,824 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Couples
We were brought by our driver to this place and we felt rather fishy about this place. The is an entrance fee of LKR1,000 per person plus donation box inside the hatchery. This place is rather small and few disabled/ handicapped turtles were kept here. There were also some other healthy looking turtles were also kept here. We were bewildered why these healthy turtles were not released to the ocean, instead they are kept in the small pond as “display” to show the tourists? Our understanding about hatchery is that turtle shall be released to the ocean once they are healthy and has the ability to survive in the wild. Another peculiar thing is that the guide was only focus on the explanation about the type of species and the life cycle of the sea turtle. Nothing was mentioned about the effort or what the organisation do to help preserve these sea turtle. After the visit, we learned from our driver that this is a private run establishment and we were bewildered why there is no endorsement from the government body or whatsoever. Comparatively, we have visited some private run wildlife protection establishments in Australia where effort to preserve the wild animals is usually explained/ highlighted. Somehow, this particular establishment doesn’t give us any good feeling about the real intention for this place. Ultimately, we do hope that our gut feel is wrong and the steep entrance fee is indeed properly used to preserve these lovely sea creatures.
Written March 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anita_Barton
Hungary367 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
The hatchery is located next to the road.
It cost 500 Sri Lankan Rupee / person and if you would like to release baby turtles into the ocean you have to donate. For 1500 Sri Lankan Rupee you can release three baby turtles.
One of our baby was a bit lazy so the guy took him back and another little baby got a change to have a beautiful free life. I think he was not ready for the big journey...
The staff is very kind and talkative they told us the whole method about the hatchery.
They have turtles who need recovery time and after they will release them back to the ocean.
I think this hatchery is a true place I mean they really care about the turtles.
I hope our three babies survived the journey and they will have a beautiful wild life.
Written March 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hazyholidaze
Andover, UK42 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019
We were taken by our taxi driver on the way to Tangalle and it hadn't been on our itinerary. Very disappointing experience as 1000 rupees each is a lot to pay to see a few injured turtles and few others in very small tanks. There was also a patch of sand that turtle eggs were buried, The talk was quite interesting but am sure there are better places in Sri Lanka to see turtles.
Written January 1, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anya L
2 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Friends
The tanks are not ideal for the turtles (not very clean or well kept). The turtles look like they’re trying to climb over the edge to escape. I don’t think they’re happy. Realistically, you shouldn’t touch any animals or man handle them. It is cute but it is clear this is for money because if they cared about the turtles wellbeing then you wouldn’t be allowed to touch them. The tourists who visit touch the turtles carelessly. I saw one woman nearly drop the baby turtle and another threw it back into its pool after holding it. Yes they kind of help the baby turtles but they also profit off them and display them so tourists can play with them.
Written June 9, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Charley H
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates12 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Friends
Awful.

Paid 2000rupees to get in. Nobody spoke to us. Not one. We didn’t get a guide and nobody seemed to care about us or the turtles.
Containers were filthy. Dead hatchlings floating around.
We asked about them they would be released and they said now but wanted to charge us $20 each to do so.

Absolutely awful and I regret going in.
Written April 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mark
8 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
Very informative explanation by one of the staff, who are doing a great job in caring for the turtles to rehabilitate and release. Amazing to see the turtles close up. Well worth a visit knowing your entrance fee is going towards their important work in rescuing injured turtles and ensure safe hatching, release of the babies
Written August 4, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ffion H
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
I understand that this is labelled as a conservation project, however when I visited today i was overcome with sadness for the turtles. There are around 10 turtles (ranging from being on the smaller side to quite large fully grown adults) swimming in a dirty tank that must have be no larger than 3X2 metres. When I asked questions about why they were there and how long they were going to have to stay, the answers were very vague and there was no proof anywhere about the help that they were meant to be receiving. Considering these people are meant to be turtle conservationists, they should have been a lot more factual about what they were experts in, however whenever I asked questions I didn’t get any convincing replies just continuously saying ‘plastic’. Obviously I have no way of telling, but the turtles I observed didn’t look injured and all just looked very stressed and as if they were trying to escape. There are also around 30 baby turtles that they claimed had their nests disturbed so needed to be rescued, but were picking them up and waving them at the visitors which, as they should know as conservationists, can damage their soft shells and cause lots of stress. Lastly there was an old albino turtle who had a visibly damaged shell swimming in a tank no larger than 1.5X1.5 which the workers claimed was due to a birth defect so that he had to stay there his whole life (or hers). Although after a bit of research shells can form abnormalities due to lack of sunlight or bad diets. I can’t say this is 100% true but it does make me question whether the poor thing was actually born with it. As we were leaving we saw a sign saying something like ‘see albino turtle here today’ which looked like it could have been at least 5 years old, torn and incredibly faded, which makes me feel truly sad thinking about how long that turtle has been swimming in the same tiny lap, and how long they will all be there for. Please just don’t support this, I’m sure if they really cared about the turtles welfare than they will improve these awful standards.
Written July 3, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Maxime C
3 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Family
It was nice to see, but it cost 2000 rupees per person. And the turtles weren't really sick either, according to the locals. You can also choose to release baby turtles into the sea, but that costs 6000 rupees.
Google
Written April 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

JitixaPatel01
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam22 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2023 • Family
We had such a lovely visit here that we actually went back again! We took my nephew here and my toddler here for their birthdays and had a great experience meeting the turtles & learning more about them and how they need to be protected! It was a definite highlight of our trip and the staff were so kind to allow us on to the beach behind the sanctuary which is beautiful! A must see if you are visiting to Sri Lanka especially for children!
Written November 28, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sharnalee
16 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
During our short visit, we saw several types of turtle, ranging from the tiny to enormous, being looked after as they got strong enough to go back into the sea. Our guide spoke very knowledgeably about the good work they do at the turtle farm, and we learned a lot. It was definitely worth the visit.
Written September 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Sea Turtle Farm and Hatchery - Habaraduwa - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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