We Need to Talk About How Amazing the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project Is

Everybody loves turtles, that’s just a given. But did you know that Dubai’s very own Burj Al Arab hotel has a turtle rehabilitation center inside it? Probably not. Well, let us take a few moments of your precious time and tell you all about The Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project. Located in Jumeirah, the project aims to rehabilitate sick and injured turtles and eventually return them to their natural habitat.

The DTRP has been running in its current form since 2004 and has so far seen the release of over 560 rescued sea turtles back into Dubai’s waters. The center promotes awareness and better understanding to the issues with this endangered species.

Here are some cute pictures of the turtles they’ve treated that’ll give you life: 

Sick and injured sea turtles found by the public on United Arab Emirates beaches are rescued and brought to the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project @dubaiturtles They are nursed back to health and released into the ocean once they are strong enough. Hawksbill turtles are the most common patients, a species listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Unpublished photo from @natgeo story on Arabian Seas. #Dubai #beach #nature #turtle #nationalgeographic #conservation @thephotosociety @natgeocreative

A photo posted by Thomas Peschak (@thomaspeschak) on Nov 6, 2016 at 6:54am PST

AMAZING NEWS: @burjalarab AQUARIUM has won a silver award for ‘BEST CONTRIBUTION TO WILDLIFE CONSERVATION’ at the WORLD RESPONSIBLE TOURISM AWARDS for the work the DUBAI TURTLE REHABILITATION PROJECT has been conducting around the UAE for the last twelve years! They had this to say about us: Although the stunning aquarium at Burj Al Arab looks like it is all for show, flanking glamorous restaurants and hotel environs, it was set up in conjunction with the UK’s National Marine Aquarium and has a strong conservation ethos. The Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation project (DTRP) is part of that ethos and is based at both Burj Al Arab and Madinat Jumeirah, a sister property. It is also run in conjunction with Dubai’s Wildlife Protection Office. Although the luxury hotel chain doesn’t shout about it to its guests, and most of its conservation goes on quietly behind the scenes, they are busy rescuing sea turtles that have been injured or harmed in some way. Most importantly, DTRP provides space that acts as a natural foraging area as well as an artificial reef where they can be nourished and start to thrive again, before being released back into the wild, with an impressive record of 1,000 turtles being sent back into the ocean to date. If you are lucky enough to be there for a release day, then you will have timed your visit well. Read all about it here: http://www.responsibletravel.com/aw…/categories/wildlife.htm

A photo posted by Dubai Turtle Rehab Project (@dubaiturtles) on Nov 8, 2016 at 9:25pm PST

Amazing image by @warrenbaverstock of Ali, our satellite tagged juvenile hawksbill sea turtle making his way out to sea after release. The satellite tags for Alpha and the four other juveniles released on World Sea Turtle Day were kindly sponsored by the fantastic team @dubaiaquarium ; You can follow Ali and the other turtles we released at www.seaturtle.org

A photo posted by Dubai Turtle Rehab Project (@dubaiturtles) on Jun 19, 2016 at 10:29pm PDT

A great photo by @allylandesphotography of Beau, our satellite tagged amputee loggerhead sea turtle being cared for by @warrenbaverstock as he makes his way down to the sea. You can follow Beau and the other turtles we released at www.seaturtle.org

A photo posted by Dubai Turtle Rehab Project (@dubaiturtles) on Jun 20, 2016 at 10:16pm PDT

Great photo by @scaprodossi of Beau, our satellite tagged 50kg male amputee loggerhead making his way out to sea after release. You can follow Beau and the other turtles we released at www.seaturtle.org

A photo posted by Dubai Turtle Rehab Project (@dubaiturtles) on Jun 17, 2016 at 11:35pm PDT

WE SAID THIS: The DTRP is currently the only project of its kind in the Middle East and Red Sea region.