Pangea Park Falster offers swimming with penguins despite welfare concerns

Pangea Park Falster now allows visitors to enter the penguins’ enclosure and swim alongside them, with the chance to feed the animals and take photos, though direct contact is prohibited.

Park director Marc Vogel said the penguins are naturally curious and often approach swimmers. “You might find them swimming right up to you. They love guests. They love activity,” he told DR.

Visitors are restricted to a designated area under the supervision of a keeper, who enforces boundaries to prevent disturbance.

Biologist Michael Carlsen of animal welfare group Dyrenes Beskyttelse warned that such interactions can stress the penguins, potentially harming their health. He stressed that the animals must have the option to retreat from human contact. “They need space to move away and use another part of the enclosure without being forced to engage,” Carlsen said.

Vogel insisted the park meets this requirement, noting that penguins can easily swim to the opposite end of the pool or exit the water if they wish to avoid visitors. He added that the animals’ social nature makes prolonged isolation unlikely.

Guests who violate the rules face immediate expulsion and a permanent ban from the park, Vogel said.