The park, located in Antibes, must face the next ban on cetacean shows in France scheduled for December 1, 2026. Marineland claims to have lost nearly 800,000 visitors in ten years.
Marineland soon to close? The famous park located in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes), announced this Wednesday, December 4, that it was “forced to consider permanently closing the marine zoo from January 5, 2025,” in a press release.
“While 90% of visitors choose to come to Marineland to admire representations of orcas and dolphins, the law of November 30, 2021, prohibiting cetacean shows, requires Marineland to consider this closure,” writes the park.
After several weeks of controversy surrounding the fate of the two orcas still alive within Marineland, the park ensures that it is in contact “with the competent authorities to identify the best solutions” to accommodate the cetaceans, “in structures equivalent in terms quality of care and educational projects with the sole priority of animal welfare.
In October 2023 and March 2024, Moana and Inouk, two elderly orcas respectively 12 and 25 years old, had died within the park. The Minister of Ecological Transition Agnès Pannier-Runacher announced on November 25 on TF1 to oppose the transfer of the last two orcas from Marineland to Japan due to its “regulations” on “animal welfare”.
“A fatal blow” delivered to the park
The association “It’s enough!” had filed a complaint against Marineland on October 18, 2023, pointing out the park's decision aimed, according to them, at “getting rid of its orcas” in anticipation of the entry into force of this law against animal abuse, which will prohibit leaving from December 1, 2026 cetacean shows and, unless exempted, the maintenance of orcas and dolphins in captivity in the park.
Evoking a difficult economic context since the Covid-19 health crisis, Marineland details that the law against animal abuse deals it “a fatal blow” and causes a “long-lasting and continuous” drop in its attendance.
“In ten years, attendance at Marineland has increased from 1.2 million to 425,000 visitors per year,” notes the water park.
If Marineland assures that neither Aquasplash nor Adventure Golf, two neighboring places, will be affected by the closure of the marine zoo, the park says it is forced “to consider separating from the animals before the implementation of the law”.
