Tourism: Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary
The Seal Sanctuary at Mablethorpe is located at North End, on Quebec Road opposite the Mablethorpe Haven Golden Sands Caravan Park.
There is a public car park next to the sanctuary. I’m not sure if they make a charge, as I walked over from our caravan.
The admission price is quite reasonable at £4.50 for adults, and our baby (up to age 3) was free.
As well as the seals there are a wide variety of other animals including reptiles (alligator, and iguana), birds (from exotic birds, and flightless Emus to birds of prey and rescued guillemots), and various mammals (including British animals, as well as monkeys and a pair of lynx).
Two of the main exhibits take you on a walk through an educational tour of what a prehistoric world would have looked like, and then on what the world was like after the ice age.
The sanctuary creates a good balance between showing animals for educational purposes and caring for sick seals and other animals. In particular there is an area for rescuing foxes and badgers that have been involved in a road accident (I saw one fox when we went).
There is good access for pushchairs (although the shop is a tight squeeze). Toilet facilities were provided including a disabled toilet (I didn’t see what baby changing facilities were provided as our caravan was so close by).
The animal / bird welfare is a major part of the seal sanctuary, and there was a number of injured birds that have been so badly injured that they will not be able to return to the wild, as well as some such as the guillemots that they do hope to eventually release back into the wild.
Some of the seal recovery pools are located outside of the main area, so potentially you could visit these without paying the entrance fee, but if you did you’d be missing so much more inside.
The mismatch of buildings does not have the same polished commercial feel as the Skegness Natureland and Seal Sanctuary, but it’s well worth a visit.
GPS Location:
Latitude 53°21'N
Longitude 0°14'E