Abbotsbury Swannery

What a fantastic place! The Swannery is located a few minutes walk from the car park but once you’re here it’s a lovely piece of nature. There’s a trail you can follow to see all the places where the swans are and also other birds like ducks. It’s a nice walk and also an interesting one watching the birds and learning more about them. We only stayed for around an hour because I wanted to use the bathrooms and there’s only one at the car park unfortunately. Or else I would have loved to stay a bit longer. If you love animals and specifically birds, you’ll love this place.

A beautiful autumn day , a real place to relax watching nature at its best. The swans were so relaxed, not at all bothered as you walked past them. A real joy. ( if you want to loose yourself , try the swan maze )

Absolutely outstanding. This is a must‑visit for anyone who loves swans. Abbotsbury Swannery is the world’s only managed nesting colony of mute swans, with about 600 (!) birds drawn to the ideal conditions of „The Fleet“ lagoon beside Chesil Beach. The team are welcoming, knowledgeable, and deeply committed to the swans’ welfare and habitat. I had the chance to work alongside them for 2 days — feeding the swans, assisting during ringing, and helping with routine chores (such as hand‑gathering washed‑up eelgrass for the cygnets’ feed) — and their professionalism and care were evident throughout. Having come all the way from Germany, the journey was completely worth it, and this unique place is easy to recommend to anyone visiting the area. A memorable, peaceful experience in a beautiful, historic setting. Tip: aim for the daily feeding sessions at 12:00 or 16:00 — you can help feed the swans, which is a special highlight.

Absolutely brilliant day out for all ages. The location is stunning, and on arrival you are greeted by a cafe and play park with a small river running by. There are multiple picnic opportunities around the site if you prefer to bring a picnic. A scenic wander beyond the gift shop brings you alongside the go cart race track (no charge, first come first served) and a willow maze. Amble on further to a large picnic area and wild flower meadow. You'll need to refuel as there is so much more to see yet. Some lovely displays, including a human sized nest, a medicinal herb garden and some artefacts to view. Keep walking and you will discover nesting swans barely an arms length from the path and even more stunning walks. I ran out of time at this point so I will be back. We had a very happy day at the Swannery and came home refreshed and relaxed. A slice of paradise set just outside the idyllic village of Abbotsbury. 🥰

Really fun place to visit, friendly staff and the grounds and facilities are well cared for. We bought a 'Passport' ticket at the entrance so we were able to visit the Sub tropical garden down the road on the same day. Spent an hour or so watching the swans get fed, ran around the maze, great time! It's worth mentioning that there is disabled parking close to the swans, we missed the sign next to the entrance and so my dad had to struggle a bit walking down.

You likely will never see so many swans in one place in all your life away from here. We would definitely recommend coming for 12pm or 4pm before the mass feeding. The staff are incredibly knowledgeable and friendly, and we only got hissed at once (but a swan, not the staff!) You can also get value for money with a ‘passport’ ticket for both the Abbotsbury swannery and the Abbotsbury subtropical gardens.

Lovely walks, trails for kids, the willow maze is gorgeous and worth a wander through, kids also enjoyed the pedal cars. Highlight was definitely being able to help feed the swans at feeding time. Site is very well maintained for visitors and its clear that the health and wellbeing of the birds is foremost.

What a fantastic place to visit. Didn't expect to get so close to the swan's the numbers took my breath away. Even better they were nesting so we were able to see the newly hatched cygnets. This has got to be one of the best places I have visited in Dorset. I would highly recommend as top of the list for anyone visiting. Will definitely be visiting again on our next trip. The staff are incredible and take good care of these beautiful birds.

A beautiful walk with thousands of swans everywhere. A visit to the swannery is fantastic for the whole family, especially between May and June when there are thousands of babies hatching. There's also mass feedings every day at 12 and 4 which are pretty spectacular. I used to be quite scared of swans but most of these seemed pretty used to humans walking around so didn't try and attack!

Abbotsbury Swannery is a really nice place to visit with friends and family. When you go there you get to see a lot of different plants which is presented well. Sometimes throughout the year, the swannery do different events and also the place is near the coast, so once your finished visiting there you can always go near Chesil Beach.

It is undoubtably a beautiful place to visit, loses a star for me based on price compared to similar family attractions in the area. Thousands of swans to see and plenty of information boards dotted around to give you an idea of the history of the place. Thought the layout was great, but would only recommend a visit on dry days! Plenty of places for a picnic on the way round if you've packed one!

Spent a lovely afternoon here. We were surprised by how big it was and how very interesting it was. Swans were beginning to pair up, some had made nests and some had started laying their eggs. Really informative talk at feeding time about the history of the Swannery and how the swans have been helped to breed in a colony instead as singly as they do in other areas of the country. You could happily spend a day here, we look forward to returning.