Warnemunde/Rostock Seal Encounter

[trosebery]

We just disembarked from our 2nd Baltic cruise, and I'd like to share some of the activities that we did that were a little off the beaten path and that I haven't seen mentioned here?

 

When we realized we were going to be in Warnemunde/Rostock again, we seriously thought about going into Berlin as we thought we'd exhausted most of what Warnemunde/Rostock had to offer (including Schwerin), especially on a quiet Sunday. But then I ran across the Marine Science Center and their Seal Encounter:

https://www.marine-science-center.de/touching-seals.html

Although the Marine Science Center is technically in Rostock, it is *very* easy to get to from Warnemunde. We just asked Google for directions. All you need to do to get across the river is take the little public ferry that is beside the cruise port/train station. It runs continuously -- we never waited more than about 5 minutes for the next one -- and it's cheap (you can buy the tickets from the booth, or it's included in a transit day pass). If you're not sure which is the correct ferry, just ask.

The Center itself is sitting in the water. Unless you visit when there's something going on -- such as feeding time -- all you're likely to see is just seals and sea lions (and, in the far enclosure, penguins) swimming around or basking in the sun. (There's also usually a staff member around who can answer questions.) The Seal Encounter lets you go out onto the pontoons with the seals and one of the researchers where the researcher will demonstrate the training that they do with the seals and the types of experiments in which the seals participate. They are sensory experiments -- vision, hearing, etc. The worst thing that happens to the seals is they get told, "Nein!" if they get something wrong. And the seals are eager participants as they get fish when they get something right! They also enjoy playing games, especially fetch. They really are the puppy dogs of the sea.

 

We'd booked the full hour session (4-5 pm on a Sunday) and had so much fun. The researcher who was with us also spoke excellent English. Highly recommended.