Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary, Park Bay

We visited this shrine in August 2019. I wanted to make my own opinion, in view of the rather mixed and diverse reviews I saw on TripAdvisor. First of all for me it was impossible not to go because I am passionate about turtle! The visit costs five euros, is pretty fast but if you are lucky enough to fall on the day the passionate owner is there, it's great! He is not avar of explanations, quite the contrary! he transmits his passion to you and explains (in easy-to-understand English) his role, his love of the ocean, and above all his involvement in changing mentalities. He collects the baby turtles and keeps them until they are seven years old so they can release them safely, and give them a real chance to live to be 200 or 250 years old! Indeed the pools are small, I understand some comments, but we must not forget that this gentleman is on his own without any outside or state help. The only grants he gets are the entrances and donations of tourists. That's why it's so important to go there and be understanding. This gentleman not only helps and collects turtles, also sick or disabled, he also criss-crosss schools to change mentalities explaining to children that turtles should not be killed for their scales or eaten. Their survival depends on the future of tourism. I therefore have no regrets about this visit, and I am delighted to have been able to contribute modestly to help him.

The ride is worth it if you walk from Elizabeth Harbour. It takes 40 minutes to walk. It's shady, with beautiful houses - views - beaches. Three-fourths of the way is flat, about 5 km in total. On the other hand, once there, little information if the owner is not there, which we were. However a young employee gave us a quick presentation. About thirty turtles including a 90-year-old, but no egg or young. They only raise young people every 4-5 years, time to feed a generation. 15 Ec per person (5 euros). If you have to pay 80-90 Ec taxi to come, so I advise against.