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How to choose an ethical sanctuary for elephants in Thailand
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Joanna Horanin

Hi, I'm Joanna, the author of The Blond Travels. In the worlds of Thailand and Portugal, I feel like a fish in water - and it's no coincidence! I've been exploring Thailand for over a decade, and I've settled in Portugal for 6 years now. My mission is to support Dreamers - just like you - in discovering these fascinating countries and helping those in love with them find their own place on Earth, preferably for good! Let's uncover these unique corners of the world together.
Do you want to travel consciously and ethically? Your dream is to meet elephants in Thailand? Check out how you can choose an ethical sanctuary that aims to care for the animals.
When I first traveled to Thailand, I didn’t know anything about how elephants are treated there and why elephant rides aren’t such a great attraction. Unaware of the harm being done to these animals, I rode an elephant. I even have pictures! Today, I know a lot more and try to introduce others to how elephants are trained for rides, as well as advise others to choose a good, ethical elephant sanctuary where we won’t contribute to their harm.
If you travel consciously, I’m sure you already know quite a bit about the dark side of Thai tourism. You’re probably wondering where to go to see elephants up close, at least for a while, but in doing so, not harm these beautiful, majestic animals. In this post you will find all the information you need to help you in your search.
Elephants in Thailand – Statistics
Thailand is home to an estimated 3,000-4,000 elephants. Half of them are domesticated, working in the tourism industry or used illegally for logging. The rest live in the wild. At the beginning of the 20th century, more than 100,000 of these animals lived in forests and jungles throughout the country.
The reduction in this number is due, among other things, to the fact that forests are constantly being cleared in Thailand. So the animals have less and less room to live. Above that, the problem is the constant fires, which also contribute to the extinction of the species.
Elephants in tourism
The sight of an elephant on the road or getting very close to it is quite a delight for tourists. Rides on them are quite a lucrative business, as are the so-called elephant camps, where elephants perform all sorts of circus tricks. Buses full of visitors stop at these attractions.
Fortunately, more and more people are realizing that these attractions are not at all as wonderful as they may seem.
To prepare an elephant for work, it is taken away from its mother as a baby elephant. He is locked in a small box, where he is beaten for days and starved. Only when he is finished is he released and trained to drive tourists and perform circus tricks. It is a long, painful and very cruel process. You can read about phajaan and elephant rides more here.
An elephant that works in such an elephant camp is chained to a short chain for most of the day, causing depression and anxiety. The animal’s back deforms after years of working and carrying benches of tourists, causing it pain when moving. Often such elephants refuse to obey and become aggressive. There are cases in which an elephant has thrown down tourists sitting on it, then trampled them and everyone who was standing nearby. So if the harm to the animal does not convince you to give up the rides, perhaps it will appeal to you that by using such attractions you are risking your life and health.
Elephants in many places are also used to perform circus tricks, such as playing basketball, dancing, or painting. While this may look funny and adorable, it is important to remember that most likely the elephant was beaten and tortured for many hours in order to be able to perform such acts. This is not natural behavior for a wild animal.
Elephants in Thailand can sometimes be seen on the streets of cities and towns. Mostly they are baby elephants begging for money. It is worth knowing that this is illegal in Thailand and you can report it to the police.

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Book your tour with TakeMeTour.Sanctuaries vs camps – What’s the difference?
It is also illegal to cut down trees with these animals. They were once used to transport large logs. Today this is less popular, but in further corners of the country elephants are still used in this way. Experts say that such work is even worse for the elephant than the rides themselves.
Elephant camps are centers where elephants are used for rides or performing tricks.
Sanctuaries generally try to help elephants and improve their situation. They buy them out of captivity and provide them with a peaceful life.
Why aren’t elephants free to roam?
One would think that a sanctuary is not the best solution for elephants. After all, the animal is still in captivity, surrounded by fences and people. It is not living in the wild. Shouldn’t they be released into the wild?
It turns out that any elephant held in captivity must belong to someone. It cannot be released into the wild without the knowledge of government organizations. And even if you do, that elephant is still the responsibility of the owner who appears on the papers.
An elephant housed in an elephant camp, or sanctuary, must be microchipped and have the proper paperwork. Upon redemption, the sanctuary becomes the full owner of the animal.
Elephants are very social, but they also become dependent on humans very quickly. Once taught where the food is, they return to the same or similar places. Since forests are becoming scarce, elephants released into the wild would certainly enter villages or towns, becoming a threat to the population. They would also certainly destroy homesteads and crops. In such cases, there would be unlikely to be time to convene a sanctuary to take the animals away, and they would end up dead or, at best, taken to illegal logging or any of the elephant camps.
Perhaps they would also check where the elephants were released from and hold the sanctuary in question accountable.
So places that ethically take care of elephants keep them at home and try to provide them with a peaceful life.
Choose an ethical elephant sanctuary in Thailand
Be careful!
Elephant camps sensed the issue. When the owners of these places saw that the sanctuaries were attracting more and more tourists, they decided to make a change. Now they often advertise themselves as parks or sanctuaries, claiming to treat elephants ethically.
The truth, unfortunately, is that animals are still being harmed there. They are chained to short chains for the night. Since the sites are located on a large tract of land, ethical tourism is practiced on one part, while on the other the elephants continue to drive tourists or perform circus tricks.
Don’t bathe with the elephants
Very often during such a stay, you can enjoy a swim in the river with an elephant. The animal walks with us for half a day, we feed it, and you can think that no one gets hurt.
Elephants, despite what is commonly thought, do not need to bathe every day. Especially older individuals are not eager to do so. Their skin is quite sensitive and frequent bathing in water is not good for it. That’s why elephants are specially trained to go into the water with tourists and stand patiently while the latter douse them with buckets of water.
Such bathing is also a kind of party for the elephant, an opportunity for it to play and relate to other individuals from the herd. By taking a bath with an elephant in a river, you are taking away an opportunity for it to do so.
The baby elephants are sweet, but….
Another thing the pseudo-sanctuaries advertise is playing with baby elephants. You can hug them, stroke them and play with them. It’s also possible to get periodic updates on how they’re growing up straight to your email inbox.
The problem here is that in centers where such attractions are offered, it is practiced to breed elephants for tourism. This is not only very bad for the health of the adult mothers, but also dangerous for the elephant babies themselves. In many places, when the elephants grow up, they are slaughtered or sold for illegal logging. And the emails you get most likely represent a completely different individual.
My recommendation – One sanctuary and an ethical safari
As of today, I have not found any other good sanctuary except Elephant Nature Park. ENP was founded by Lek, a woman from a mountain tribe who has been involved in saving these majestic animals for years.
I’ve been to the park 2 times and can see how much the place is changing for the better. For example, the first time we had a little more opportunity to hang out with the animals. There was also an opportunity to splash in the water with them. During my last stay, we were only able to get a little closer to them and only for a few seconds. Bathing with the elephants has also been discontinued. Only the young ones enter the water once a day, and tourists stand on the shore taking pictures of them.
The park has also built quite a few above-ground walkways from where elephants can be observed grazing peacefully.
There is no breeding program there and elephant cubs are rarely seen. My guide informed us that the juveniles appeared as a result of under-rearing. As a rule, males and females are kept separately and are not allowed to integrate.
Another place I can recommend is the Kui Buri Park, where you can go on a 3-hour safari. The rangers take you in a jeep and drive you around a large area, but you keep your distance from the elephants. The animals are not chased and are left in peace. I went to this park once and can really recommend it.
And finally – don’t be selfish
Many people who come to Thailand want to see elephants at all costs. Elephant Nature Park is not a cheap attraction. It also often has a high occupancy rate and cannot accommodate everyone. That’s why a good number of people choose suspicious pseudo-sanctuaries.
Don’t be selfish. I know that seeing an elephant up close is a super attraction, but don’t add to their suffering. If you want to help, but can’t afford to visit ENP or haven’t been able to buy a ticket, support them otherwise. Here are ways you can do so.