During our holiday to Trevella Park in Cornwall, we visited the Cornish Seal Sanctuary which is set in the beautiful Helford Estuary. It was a challenging place to find and we did wonder if we were going in the right direction after going down some very narrow country roads, but it was worth it when we got there.
My one tip is to insist that your child goes to the toilet when you arrive, as there are no toilets further down into the Seal Sanctuary and it is a long walk back and the kids won’t make it, as we learned to our cost!
There is plenty to do and see for the little ones. Isaac and Kian were captivated by the talk all about the Seal Sanctuary’s life saving work and were not afraid to ask questions.
Eliza thought the Seals swam very well but looked funny when trying to move on dry land. The Seals also put on a playful show for us to watch and I had to let Eliza down gently as she wanted to bring one home!
Feeding time was a bit of a frenzy too!
The centre was full of all sorts of marine wildlife, so there was plenty to see and hold the children’s attention. We found some Humboldt Penguins and I was impressed that Isaac remembered lots of facts about them after seeing them in London Zoo earlier in the year.
We went in Halloween week and found there to be some spooky goings on, on the way to meet some Otters.
Isaac was fascinated by the crabs and showed no fear at all when handling them, which we were shown how to do correctly. We were also told how to identify the different sexes.
A boy crab has a lighthouse shape underneath
We also got to meet a Hermit Crab, which was hiding in its shell when being held….
and a beautiful Starfish, which Isaac was fascinated by and kept going back to.
What a fantastic place to visit. My children would love it, especially the penguins. Will has a penguin stuffed teddy army on his bed because mean old mommy won’t let him have a real one!
I remember going here a couple of years ago with mine. I totally agree with you regarding the toilets. It looks like there is more to do now than in the past when we found it very overpriced for what was on offer, but then they are trying to look after all those seals which can’t be cheap. Looks like the Halloween activities really added to the entertainment. Thank you for linking up to Country Kids.
Oh that looks so special – how fabulous to be able to get up close to the creatures that way.
Love those crabs!
Wow, that looks like a great day out. I wish we’d had time to do more when we stayed at Trevella.
OOh F would have loved this. He’s always into animals and would have loved seeing the crab. Sounds like a super day out 🙂
Oh wow, I used to go here on family holidays back in the 1980’s when it had just opened, real blast from the past !
Oh wow that place looks lovely…my girls would love seeing the seals and otters
This looks amazing. The photos of the crabs are brilliant. Definitely one to put on my list – I didn’t even know it existed! Great post.
Ahhhh seals! What a lovely place to visit and support – looks great for children too x
It looks a brilliant place, I’ve never heard of it before. I often find lack of toilets to be an issue in Cornwall!