Travel responsibly – your choices make a difference!
How you can help drive humane change for animals in tourism
A vast industry exists to cater to animal-based tourism, which spans the spectrum from horrific abuse and cruelty to model sanctuaries and ethical projects. The good news is that travellers today are increasingly seeking experiences that allow them to connect with wildlife and nature in a non-exploitative and ethical way – and these choices have a direct impact on humane change.
A sea change in attitudes
Public awareness of the cruel realities behind elephant riding, dolphin shows, captive big cats, bear performances, and other forms of exploitative wildlife tourism has grown significantly over the past decade. That knowledge has shifted attitudes as more travellers than ever before are asking questions about animal welfare and refusing to support attractions that profit from abuse.
A better-informed and more discriminating traveller who values compassion over exploitation holds the key to transformative change in the industry. Their choices on where to spend their money have a direct impact: every ticket purchased, every excursion booked, and every online recommendation helps shape the future of wildlife tourism. By choosing genuinely ethical experiences and rejecting abusive ones, visitors are sending a clear message: end abusive practices towards animals or face the loss of tourist revenue.
Tips to help you plan your next wildlife holiday
Whether you are visiting captive animals or hoping to see wildlife in their natural habitat, research is one of the most important parts of planning your trip.
Before booking:
Always do your homework on potential destinations to make sure you’re supporting an ethical facility.
- Avoid places offering performances, unnatural tricks, or direct handling of wild animals.
- Ask questions: are the animals free to express natural behaviours? Are they restrained at all and by what methods? Is direct contact or hands-on activities with the animals allowed?
- Read reviews by visitors. Hearing the firsthand experiences and insights of other visitors can make all the difference to your choice. So-called ethical elephant sanctuaries are careful to keep hidden from public view any signs of cruel treatment or abuse, but a keen-eyed visitor might have spotted something – maybe a mahout prodding an elephant or pinching its ears to control it, or some other telltale sign that the place is not what it calls itself. By posting a negative review and dissuading others from going there, visitors can have a direct impact on other travellers’ choices.
- Look out for ‘greenwashing’
Despite the encouraging shift we’re seeing in an ethical direction, cruelty remains widespread and many animal tourism businesses do their best to hide it. They market themselves as ‘ethical’, ‘eco-friendly’, or even ‘sanctuaries’, while continuing practices that compromise animal welfare. With elephants, this is especially true in southeast Asia, where elephant tourism remains a hugely profitable industry; many camps brand themselves as ‘sanctuaries’ or ‘rescue parks’ while still allowing unethical practices like riding or washing elephants (and away from public view may be using abusive methods of control). - Check whether respected conservation or welfare organisations recommend the establishment.
Remember: if the establishment allows visitors to pet, ride, bathe or otherwise interact with an animal, it is not a sanctuary but an exploitative business.
Remember: the key question to ask about any animal sanctuary or visitor experience is: does the activity prioritise the animal’s welfare above all else?
Wildlife attractions to avoid
- Elephant camps that allow any kind of interaction with the elephants, such as bathing or riding, or that use coercive means to control the elephants or keep them restrained in any way.
- Facilities involving captive dolphins, whales, and other cetaceans – these highly intelligent sentient beings, with complex physical and social needs, suffer horrifically in concrete tanks.
- Facilities that allow close encounters with captive great apes, big cats, or other wild animals for entertainment or photographs.
- Petting zoos that advertise opportunities to cuddle, bottle-feed, or pose with wild animals. Many animals used in these attractions are repeatedly handled, separated from their mothers at an early age, deprived of natural behaviours, and often sedated or surgically mutilated; in the case of big-cat cubs, they’re frequently defanged and declawed, as well as drugged, to make them compliant and docile for visitors.
If an experience seems designed primarily for people rather than for the welfare of the animals, avoid it – and spread the word.
Ethical elephant tourism in Asia
Few captive animals have been subjected to as much lifelong abuse and cruelty as the Asian elephant. Ripped away from their mothers in the wild when very young, they are first subjected to brutal training to literally ‘break their spirit’, then forced to spend the rest of their lives enslaved and abused.
Growing public awareness of the horrific treatment of captive elephants, even in places that claim the ‘sanctuary’ label, means that more and more travellers are rejecting activities based on exploitation and cruelty. While this has led to some camps converting to a ‘hands-off’ model and stopping rides and performances, it’s also meant a rise in false claims and ‘re-branding’ efforts to make a place seem ethical while continuing to abuse its animals. The use of AI, fake pictures, and fake reviews to portray a facility as ethical means visitors have to be extra vigilant in establishing its authenticity.
Elephant Nature Park
In the forefront of elephant rescue and rehabilitation is Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, Thailand, founded by world pioneer and elephant expert Saengduean ‘Lek’ Chailert. Recognised globally as a model for elephant sanctuaries, ENP has rescued hundreds of elephants from logging, riding camps, and street begging and given them back their stolen lives – most importantly, with the company of other elephants. After decades of suffering and chains, at ENP they finally find peace and freedom, joy and companionship for the rest of their days.
ENP also supports many small elephant projects in the area that you can visit, based on the same ethical principles and ‘saddle-off’ model and offering extraordinary opportunities to see elephants up close in their natural habitat.
See more on ethical elephant tourism in Asia and ENP
🚩Beyond the Brochure: 7 Red Flags of an Unethical Elephant ‘Sanctuary’ in Thailand
Elephants roam freely at Elephant Highlands, an ethical ‘saddle-off’ project near Chiang Mai, Thailand. (Photo: D Dresner)
Ethical wildlife tourism in Africa
Africa is the most popular destination for travellers seeking to experience wildlife living freely in its natural environment. The most ethical experiences are those that
- observe animals from a respectful distance
- minimise disturbance
- support conservation and local communities
Use these three essential criteria and ask more questions. Always choose operators that follow responsible wildlife viewing guidelines, respect park regulations, avoid crowding animals, and never allow dangerous or risky close encounters simply to get better views or photos.
See more on ethical animal tourism in Africa
Elephant Havens in Botswana rescues and rewilds young elephant orphans. Through habitat protection, community outreach, and educating local communities, the organisation is a leading voice in wildlife protection and conservation awareness in the country. (Photo: Elephant Havens)
By choosing to travel responsibly you can use the power of your wallet to help shape a more humane future for captive animals – one that values compassion over exploitation and treats them with the dignity, care, and respect all of them deserve.
Consider every choice you make while planning your trip as an agent for the changes you’d like to see. Multiplied by many more responsible travellers, that choice has the power to bend the curve for transformative change in animal tourism.