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Mnarani Marine Turtles Conservation Pond

Mnarani Marine Turtles Conservation Pond

Mnarani Marine Turtles Conservation Pond
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  • Philippe R
    Scherwiller, France89 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great experience, I can only recommend
    Great experience, we had read lots of negative reviews (after booking) and so we were a little scared. Arriving there, pleasant surprise, few people, the water was clean and we were able to enjoy swimming with the turtles. It's quite impressive at first but after a few minutes you get used to it, don't hesitate to gently push the turtles away if they are too close for your liking. We visited the small zoo just behind and we were also very happy, they let us enter the cage with some very nice little monkeys. I would do it again without hesitation.
    Visited February 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written February 6, 2024
  • 679kerenb
    12 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Wish we could have stayed longer
    We were keen to visit conservation centres in Zanzibar and had read about the sanctuary online. It's a 10 dollar entry & when you initially walk in, you think you'll only be there for 30 minutes, but we spent over an hour & would have stayed longer if we hadn't been constrained by time. We had an individual guide who was fantastic & spoke excellent English. We were able to hand feed the turtles for as long as we wanted & could have stepped in with them too but we opted not to. We were then taken around the rest of the centre & learnt about the 400 dolphins washed up as a result of the tsunami. This was a great centre to visit especially as it's all about the conservation.
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 14, 2024
  • Rosa Hand
    Zurich, Switzerland1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    This centre was excellent to see
    Our desire was to see Zanzibar's conservation centres, and we had researched the refuge online. When you first walk in, you assume you'll only be there for 30 minutes, but we ended up staying for almost an hour and would have stayed longer if we hadn't been pressed for time. Entry is $10. Our personal guide was outstanding and had perfect English. For until long we wished, we could feed the turtles by hand. We also had the option to intervene on their behalf, but we decided against it. After that, we were shown the remainder of the centre and told about the 400 dolphins that the tsunami had washed up. This centre was excellent to see, particularly as it focusses on the
    Visited September 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written September 26, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

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

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles855 reviews
Excellent
395
Very good
281
Average
116
Poor
24
Terrible
39

Nikola
Tanzania12 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019
The turtle sanctuary was a very nice experience. You can see that they are really taking a good care about the turtles.
You can come swim with turtles, feed them, touch them.
However, the whole place is quite crowded. I need to recommend some limitations with the number of guests which can come at one time. This was very dissapointing to actually see and swim at the same time together with another +30 tourists. I think it was also uncomfortable for the turtles also.
Written January 15, 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.

Yonomi Go
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania6 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2021
We had a good time "swimming" (more like touching the turltles). I personally felt like it was too crowded. The place is small. I was actually worried about the turtles (I hope they do not get stressed). I 've heard that morning hours are less crowded. Entrance is $10 per person whether you swim with the turtles or not -snorkeling gears not included.
suggestions: Limit the number of people in the water at a time.
Written December 17, 2021
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.

Rebecca P
Exeter, UK8 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022 • Family
We were going to a neighbouring turtle aquarium in Nungwi but we discovered that it was more of a zoo, unlike Mnarani which is all about conserving and rehabilitating turtles back into the ocean.

We were offered the chance to swim with them in the sea lagoon, but we declined as we were worried that the sun cream on our bodies would affect the turtles.

We were more than happy to hand feed them sea weed and learn about how Fishermen receive a small fee from Mnarani for bringing any turtles caught in their nets to them. The centre then rehabilitates them until they can be released back into the ocean.

Our guide told us how it all worked and we learnt so much about these wonderful creatures. Highly recommend.
Written June 30, 2022
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.

O Clayton
Beckenham, UK11 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Friends
Brilliant cause helping injured turtles recover if they are caught in fishermen nets or are sick. You also see where the babies are kept until they are released too. In the main area you can feed the turtles seaweed and touch their backs but this place shouldn’t be mistaken for another local turtle ‘aquarium’ as they aren’t looking after the turtles ethically. Mnarani is the best place to go to see and support the turtles!
Written February 10, 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.

WeeStepherz
Dubai, United Arab Emirates96 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2021 • Couples
This is not a sanctuary. This is a money making tourist trap and quite simply filled with posers taking the best shots for their social media. There is NO care for the turtles at all. People picking them up above their heads, kissing them, constantly touching them. If this was about the care of the animals, none of these things would happen. If I could pay to release the turtles back to the ocean I would. Poor things do not deserve the treatment here. Any genuine animal lovers would be horrified at this place.
Written July 27, 2021
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.

Ioana D
London, UK2 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Solo
This isn't the real turtle sanctuary, but a business where the turtles are kept for profit. I had my doubts about the whole venture when I saw the number of turtles kept in a very small pond, that tourists wearing sunscreen and mosquito repellant (harmful for turtles) are allowed to swim with them. Also, the turtles appeared to be constantly hungry, fighting for whatever seaweed tourists would throw at them to get them to approach.

My doubts were confirms when I left, walked around the corner and saw the real sanctuary. There they explained that the other place is a business that has nothing to do with turtle preservation and release. I was very disappointed with myself for supporting what is in fact a scam. I'd recommend you avoid this place if you care about the welfare of the turtles and support the real sanctuary.
Written March 6, 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.

Francois T
Johannesburg, South Africa1,623 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2021 • Couples
Having the opportunity to swim, touch and feed the turtles were absolutely amazing and at $10 per person not too much for the experience. It was too crowded and they try and sell the use of snorkel gear for extra $5. Take your own if you have but it is not needed. Would also recommend they manage the number of people.
Written December 18, 2021
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.

Michael T
San Jose, CA25 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2021
If you're in Zanzibar, I'd say this place is worth a visit. Not sure where else you can swim with turtles in a pond. Price was $10 per person. If you needed snorkeling gear, you had to pay extra for it. The staff had attitudes. The turtles were cool. We spent about 40 minutes there. It got crowded, they should probably limit the crowds. The water was dirty.
Written April 24, 2021
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.

diana c
123 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022 • Friends
I have given this a 5 star because the conservation is what it's all about rather than the experience. Having said that for $10 dollar entrance its informative and fun you can feed and swim with the Turtles , the guides speak good English and know their stuff. Of course litter plays a huge part of trying to preserve this species ,on the walk along the beach the area around the local boat/fishermen is absolutely full of plastics of all kinds !! horrendous, there are many excuses made for this but noone seems to take responsibility especially the locals who are among the worst offenders !!. We visited Timbatu the Island the Turtle eggs are taken to where they are un disturbed , there are no tourists there except the occasional day visitor and they are few and far between ,it is absolutely full of litter of all kinds . Zanzibar needs to get a grip on this to preserve wildlife and encourage Tourisim.
Even the beach just infront of the Sanctuary has lots of litter, the guides seem oblivious to it even though it is a main cause of death to the Turtles.

Have add I am a litter picker back in the UK so do put my money where my mouth is !!

The restaurant at the entrance Mixed Seafood is lovely, had a great breakfast there.
Written December 11, 2022
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.

Pierrevz
Hartbeespoort, South Africa1 contribution
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2022 • Couples
Totally over commercialized and over crowded - the more tourists they can push thru per day the better!
Rush in, try to squeeze thru to the pool, feed a few turtles some seaweed and snap a few quick photos.
Did not get any impression of a sanctuary or rehabilitation being done.

For what they are charging per person, they can also fix the horrible access road.

Felt exploited!!
Written October 19, 2022
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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Mnarani Marine Turtles Conservation Pond - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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