Sea Turtle Protection Association
Sea Turtle Protection Association
Sea Turtle Protection Association
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- romanshornerMunich, Germany1,220 contributionsIndifferentWhen we arrived, we payed the entrance fee. Our guide was really good and told us a lot and we learned a lot. They alsthough asked several times for donations. The idea of this institution is good, although not everything might be done in the best way.Visited March 2023Traveled as a coupleWritten February 28, 2024
- Sand77MDubai, United Arab Emirates78 contributionsSea TurtlesIt’s very nice to be able to sea the Sea Turtles. There are several sections of eggs to tanks by the age of the sea turtles. We were able to touch them & take some nice pictures. Kids were loving it. Cute to see the 1 night old baby sea turtles. Thank you for the great work to breed the ST.Visited August 2024Traveled with familyWritten August 1, 2024
- VictoriaR871Knutsford, United Kingdom32 contributionsVery insightful visitWe came here yesterday as part of our tour and absolutely loved the turtle sanctuary! It was the highlight of our trip to see how carefully the team look after the eggs and baby turtles. They protect them from predators and humans. Highly recommend this as part of your tour. The staff are so friendly and speak good English. They are all very knowledgeable about the center and all seemed to love working there together !Visited August 2024Traveled with familyWritten August 4, 2024
- BazzlaAuckland, New Zealand185 contributionsGreat to see the turtlesVery informative tour and it’s amazing to see so many of the turtles and hear about what’s happening to their ecosystem. I think the entry is cheap at 2000rs per person but they also try and sell you some merchandise for 4000rs as a donation. Would prefer if they increased the price of entry as a portion of it is doing good in keeping the venture running. We went at 5.30pm and it was an awesome experience to release baby turtles into the water at sunsetVisited August 2024Traveled with familyWritten September 5, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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4.0
1,060 reviews
Excellent
471
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369
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134
Poor
45
Terrible
41
VictoriaR871
Knutsford, UK32 contributions
Aug 2024 • Family
We came here yesterday as part of our tour and absolutely loved the turtle sanctuary! It was the highlight of our trip to see how carefully the team look after the eggs and baby turtles. They protect them from predators and humans. Highly recommend this as part of your tour. The staff are so friendly and speak good English. They are all very knowledgeable about the center and all seemed to love working there together !
Written August 5, 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.
Tarj s
7 contributions
Dec 2019 • Family
It's a great initiative by the volunteers. Went there and saw how well kept the turtles are. The volunteers also explained us each and every things from the egg hatching to the point where the turtles are eventually let go in the ocean. Amazing.. keep up the good work guys!!!!
Written January 28, 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.
Dev B
21 contributions
Oct 2023 • Couples
Turtles were kept in a terrible state. I was surprised to see they allowed to hold turtles just like it was nothing. Some tanks were not clean at all. I was bit concerned about hygiene and overall health of turtles. It almost seemed like they were just kept there for tourist.
Written October 13, 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.
Sand77M
Dubai, United Arab Emirates78 contributions
Aug 2024 • Family
It’s very nice to be able to sea the Sea Turtles.
There are several sections of eggs to tanks by the age of the sea turtles. We were able to touch them & take some nice pictures. Kids were loving it.
Cute to see the 1 night old baby sea turtles.
Thank you for the great work to breed the ST.
There are several sections of eggs to tanks by the age of the sea turtles. We were able to touch them & take some nice pictures. Kids were loving it.
Cute to see the 1 night old baby sea turtles.
Thank you for the great work to breed the ST.
Written August 1, 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.
moffit808
Oxford, UK39 contributions
Dec 2013 • Couples
After travelling around Sri Lanka and experiencing the wonderful diversity and wildlife the country has to offer, we came across this Sea turtle Hatchery in Bentota. It was more the fact that we had a driver, who when we arrived in Bentota literally insisted on us visiting the sea turtle hatchery. I DEEPLY REGRET that we did visit and pay money towards this disgusting practice.
After reading a lot of the reviews previous to this one, I'm staggered at the number of 4-5 star ratings that have been given, but can only put this down to the clever way in which some Sri lankan locals seem to have the ability to make tourists feel guilty, and part with money on the basis that it is being used for the endangered sea turtle.
A number of poorly kept concrete tanks over filled with hatchlings (50,60,70) clambering over each other, whilst other exhausted baby turtles float and get knocked and nipped at by other turtles which have gone into their natural second stage, the feeding stage, not to mention the dead baby turtle floating upside down which I insisted was removed from the tank. Also seeing adult turtles barely able to stretch their legs in tanks a couple of metres square.
I have also been made aware after speaking to well informed individuals at the marine conservation society that this can also be harmful to humans especially children who hold the turtles due the spread of disease from poorly kept conditions.
I urge any tourists visiting Sri lanka ( especially the Galle district) to think very hard before contributing to this dangerous money making sham. While there are genuine conservation projects in Sri Lanka which I would support 100%, the 7 or so hatcheries in the galle district are anything but.
After reading a lot of the reviews previous to this one, I'm staggered at the number of 4-5 star ratings that have been given, but can only put this down to the clever way in which some Sri lankan locals seem to have the ability to make tourists feel guilty, and part with money on the basis that it is being used for the endangered sea turtle.
A number of poorly kept concrete tanks over filled with hatchlings (50,60,70) clambering over each other, whilst other exhausted baby turtles float and get knocked and nipped at by other turtles which have gone into their natural second stage, the feeding stage, not to mention the dead baby turtle floating upside down which I insisted was removed from the tank. Also seeing adult turtles barely able to stretch their legs in tanks a couple of metres square.
I have also been made aware after speaking to well informed individuals at the marine conservation society that this can also be harmful to humans especially children who hold the turtles due the spread of disease from poorly kept conditions.
I urge any tourists visiting Sri lanka ( especially the Galle district) to think very hard before contributing to this dangerous money making sham. While there are genuine conservation projects in Sri Lanka which I would support 100%, the 7 or so hatcheries in the galle district are anything but.
Written January 15, 2014
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.
Deepak Shantilal
Tumkur, India14 contributions
Apr 2013 • Family
Bentota turtle hatchery where in the buy the eggs of the turtles and after they hatch and are few days into birth are again left in the sea....
Written April 30, 2013
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.
fruitcupsingapore
Singapore1 contribution
Dec 2013 • Family
I totally agree! Finally, someone who tells it how it is! After reading all the rave reviews on here, I thought that maybe we had been ripped off and had been taken to an unofficial turtle hatchery!!!! Did we really go to the same place as everyone else?! it really wasn't the wonderful experience that everyone on here claims it to be!! We thought it would be educational and fun to take our 6 year old daughter there when we were holidaying in Bentota. She is a real animal lover and was so excited at the prospect of seeing baby turtles. However, she was very disappointed with the whole experience and when we got back to Singapore she didn't even tell any of her friends about it. One guy took us on a lightning tour around the tanks with little information about the turtles, my daughter held one of the babies and then that was it they were telling us it was time to go and were asking us to give a donation and buy trinkets. It looked like it was operating out of someone's garden and was really run down...we felt pressured to give a donation but we refused point blank. While I don't know much about turtle conservation, the environment certainly did not seem natural and looked more about making money at the expense of the welfare of the turtles. My advice would be to definitely give this one a miss and not support this money making enterprise!
Written January 16, 2014
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.
NarenG
Los Angeles, CA134 contributions
Apr 2013 • Friends
This is a scam cloaked in conservation. I visited this place and then did a bit of research. Turtle hatcheries are illegal in Sri Lanka as you need a permit to keep these animals and none of the hatcheries have these. The practice of keeping the young turtles in the tanks is damaging to them. Each turtle is born with the energy and the drive to swim past the inner reefs and out to the open ocean to avoid predation. Keeping the turtles in tanks exhausts them making them more vulnerable to predators when released. The original hatcheries started with good intentions at a time when scientific knowledge about turtle life was minimal. Now it is just an opportunity to make a buck while not helping these animals at all.
Written August 6, 2013
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.
BMandGang
London, UK17 contributions
Aug 2016 • Family
We arrived at 4:30pm and paid 1600 for 5 of us |(2 adults, 3 kids) to view the centre and release a turtle.
Was tremendous priviledge to hold and touch new hatchlings and to see large turtles up close, HOWEVER, there were only about half a dozen concrete tanks about the volume of water taken up by a 6 seater table, each one housing a few poor turtles whose fate is too remain here for the next few decades (due to lack of flippers, birth defect etc).
We all enjoyed watching and eventually releasing one turtle each.
I have to echo other reports that it is very emotional (felt i had scarred my kids for life but now the rate it above seeing the elephants) but we sat in silence on the way back to hotel, each contemplating their survival odds - quite sad.
Once we though about it though, we became quite irritated by the fact that everyone is paying to release these creatures and the facilities are still pretty poor for something that has been established for years. They released 50 turtles the evening before we got there, we saw at least 20 go on our evening, this is a very profitable business which could seriously improve the conditions for its permanent residents if it chose to.
Once released, staff couldn't wait to pack up and go.
Our kids aged 8,10,12 were smitten with hatchings which we could pick up man-handle and 'play ' with. There was no washing hands is salt water to remove sun oil, no washing hands before moving onto each tank to prevent any germs spreading, so you were left to have a good look and feel which was great for us but probably not the inmates.
Would love to see it turned into a well run establishment as it was informative, great that you got so close, but so sad for these beautiful creatures which can live to be 100-200 years old - left to perish in concrete enclosures with no stimuli, nothing to interest them, very sad indeed.
They said that fisherman dig up the eggs for turtle omlete and they are forced to buy they at $20 each, to incubate for a month and then release. We gave them double this amount so there must be money left over - surely??
Was tremendous priviledge to hold and touch new hatchlings and to see large turtles up close, HOWEVER, there were only about half a dozen concrete tanks about the volume of water taken up by a 6 seater table, each one housing a few poor turtles whose fate is too remain here for the next few decades (due to lack of flippers, birth defect etc).
We all enjoyed watching and eventually releasing one turtle each.
I have to echo other reports that it is very emotional (felt i had scarred my kids for life but now the rate it above seeing the elephants) but we sat in silence on the way back to hotel, each contemplating their survival odds - quite sad.
Once we though about it though, we became quite irritated by the fact that everyone is paying to release these creatures and the facilities are still pretty poor for something that has been established for years. They released 50 turtles the evening before we got there, we saw at least 20 go on our evening, this is a very profitable business which could seriously improve the conditions for its permanent residents if it chose to.
Once released, staff couldn't wait to pack up and go.
Our kids aged 8,10,12 were smitten with hatchings which we could pick up man-handle and 'play ' with. There was no washing hands is salt water to remove sun oil, no washing hands before moving onto each tank to prevent any germs spreading, so you were left to have a good look and feel which was great for us but probably not the inmates.
Would love to see it turned into a well run establishment as it was informative, great that you got so close, but so sad for these beautiful creatures which can live to be 100-200 years old - left to perish in concrete enclosures with no stimuli, nothing to interest them, very sad indeed.
They said that fisherman dig up the eggs for turtle omlete and they are forced to buy they at $20 each, to incubate for a month and then release. We gave them double this amount so there must be money left over - surely??
Written August 25, 2016
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.
Amy_jed
Brighton, UK10 contributions
Mar 2013 • Family
I found this visit a confusing and mixed experience. Clearly this sanctuary is doing good work by paying fishermen above-market prices for eggs so they have a chance to hatch rather than be eaten. However, I found the practice of keeping the grown-up turtles in captivity highly questionable. Disabled and deformed turtles were kept in small pools. I was told they wouldn't survive in the wild, but these animals were in what can only be described as squalor. They were clearly beyond depressed, motionless, facing the walls of their enclosures. Is it better to keep an animal "alive" in this way or let it meet its fate? This was done under the pretence of "research", to understand their feeding habits and behaviour. How can you understand a wild animal's feeding habits etc when they are in a tiny pool, outside of their natural habitat? And I'm no expert, but I would guess that marine biologists have long understood the various behaviours of these animals. Also the entry fee surely covers the cost of the eggs for hatching and staff wages - perhaps some of this money should go towards improving the quality of life for the captive animals. During my visit a mongoose had broken into the incubation cage. It costs virtually nothing to buy and maintain chicken-wire to keep predators at bay. Why wasn't someone looking over the eggs? This can probably be explained by the passionless guide.
My guess is this is a decent money-spinner for all involved. Clearly protecting these turtle populations is paramount and hugely commendable but when you weigh up the fees versus the costs and the poor conditions the adults are subjected to, this sadly looks like a cynical project.
I should mention here that I've been to turtle sanctuaries in peninsula Malaysia and Borneo and there were no adults held captive in this way and the staff there were passionate and knowledgeable. Clearly Sri Lanka has had huge difficulties up until very recently, but perhaps the government can spare some time considering the governance of these sanctuaries in future.
My guess is this is a decent money-spinner for all involved. Clearly protecting these turtle populations is paramount and hugely commendable but when you weigh up the fees versus the costs and the poor conditions the adults are subjected to, this sadly looks like a cynical project.
I should mention here that I've been to turtle sanctuaries in peninsula Malaysia and Borneo and there were no adults held captive in this way and the staff there were passionate and knowledgeable. Clearly Sri Lanka has had huge difficulties up until very recently, but perhaps the government can spare some time considering the governance of these sanctuaries in future.
Written March 7, 2013
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.
We went at evening like 5PM. I think we were the last guys there. So probably by 6PM they will be closing.
Written February 21, 2019
What is the tour/ entry fee for this? And where is it exactly located?
Written September 22, 2017
1000 rupees. but you can give more...
expensive of you take it as an attraction. a lucrative business on turtles if you take it seriously
Written August 16, 2018
Лариса здравствуйте! Подскажите по черепашьему питомнику - в какое время надо приехать чтобы выпустить маленьких черепашек в море? И сколько это стоит?
Written January 11, 2017
Are you open from 13th to 15th April, over the New year?
Written January 26, 2016
Are you open over the few days of Singhalese New year 13th to 15th?
Written January 26, 2016
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