Is it a genuine wildlife sanctuary?
How to know if the sanctuary you want to visit is a genuine one that puts the animals' welfare first.
Elephant-friendly venues
These places provide a natural habitat and safe environment that meet the highest welfare requirements for their resident elephants.
Thousands of captive elephants are suffering in low welfare tourist venues and used for tourist entertainment like rides and shows. We work with our partner elephant-friendly venues to promote ethical animal tourism and help rescued elephants retire in peace.
Meet our partner elephant-friendly venues
Being cited as a best practice venue in our last round of assessment doesn’t constitute an endorsement or certification and our research may not reflect the latest on the ground situation. Please always look at a venue’s website and social media feed before you travel in case any policies change over time.
Thailand:
- ChangChill
- Boon Lott's Elephant Sanctuary
- Burm and Emily's Elephant Sanctuary
- Elephant Valley Thailand
- Following Giants
- Global Vision International
- Kindred Spirit Elephant Sanctuary
- Mahouts Elephant Foundation
- Phuket Elephant Sanctuary
- Somboon Legacy Foundation
Cambodia:
Nepal:
India:
Laos:
Sri Lanka:
ChangChill: better for elephants, better for tourism
With our support, that of the TUI Care Foundations, and the encouragement from some of the world’s leading travel companies, ChangChill is now a place where elephants can be elephants, and tourists can have the honour of witnessing that.
What’s in a name?
A venue may call itself a sanctuary, rescue centre, or retirement home for elephants, but don’t assume this means they are meeting any welfare requirements. It’s important to do some research before booking.
We’ve prepared some resources to help you make informed decisions!
View our Sanctuary Checklist to help you know if the sanctuary you want to visit is a genuine one that puts the animals' welfare first.
Download our animal-friendly travel guide
Our animal-friendly travel guide includes a genuine sanctuary checklist, animal attraction checklist, and other useful tips to help you choose animal-friendly activities.
Use your guide to help you make informed and compassionate decisions to ensure no animals are harmed. You can print our guide or save it to your phone or any device so you'll have it handy on your next trip.
