Community Tour

An unforgettable experience!

Visit our sanctuary to meet our animal residents and hear their incredible rescue stories.

Duration

1.5 Hours

Please note: While our community tours are open to all ages, private tours are strongly recommended for families with young children to enable us to better adjust the pacing and content of the tour for them.

No one will be turned away due to lack of funds. If the suggested donation of $25/adult and $15/child is not in your budget, please contact us by email at [email protected] or by text message at 707-204-0020. We will reply to your message with a discount code you can use to waive the cost. Please be sure to still reserve your spots so that we know to expect you and to ensure we don't go over group capacity.

What exactly is a sanctuary?

Charlie’s Acres is a nonprofit farmed animal sanctuary that provides lifelong care for rescued animals. Our 150 residents come from a variety of situations, including neglect, abandonment, abuse, and our food system. Here, they are safe, respected, and free to live out their lives without being expected to provide anything in return.

In addition to providing a forever home, we help visitors connect with farmed animals as individuals by sharing their stories, personalities, and experiences. Through these connections, guests can learn more about the challenges farmed animals face and gain a deeper appreciation for who they are.

Unlike a petting zoo, our priority is the welfare of our animal residents, not profit or entertainment. Our residents always have the choice to interact with visitors or keep their distance, and their physical and emotional wellbeing guides everything we do.

Charlie's Acres is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit. All donations and registration costs are tax deductible.

What should I expect?

We are a working farm animal sanctuary, so please expect to do some walking, potentially get dirty, and be exposed to the natural weather elements (rain, heat, wind). Also expect to meet some amazing rescued farmed animals and hear their incredible stories. Tours last between 75 and 90 minutes and involve about 1/2 mile of walking.

What should I wear?

If you would like to go into the animal pastures, please wear closed toe shoes. Boots are preferable, but any closed toe shoe will do. If you are wearing clothing that we do not think is safe to be with the animals, we may ask you to wait outside the pastures.

Tours of Charlie's Acres are offered rain or shine. We have barns and shelters along the tour route for cover as needed. Please dress appropriately for the weather.

Can I bring my dog?

Please leave your companion animals (dogs, cats, etc.) at home. We do not have a space for them to be left safely during the tour and temperatures heat up tremendously in cars in Sonoma. If you do bring an animal, you may be asked to leave and come back for a tour on another day. If you have a service dog required to assist with a medical condition, please contact us in advance so we can arrange accommodations.

What should I bring?

Please bring a water bottle in the summer months as it gets hot! We have filtered water on site, so you can refill it as needed. We have limited shade and coverings, so an umbrella and/or hat could be useful as well. Please do NOT bring any food or really yummy smelling items on your body or in your purse during the tour as our animals love to eat! Feel free to bring your camera and take pictures. Tag us on Facebook and Instagram!