the dark side

Thai Tourism Statistics

Thailand set a new tourism record in 2012 attracting 22.3 million tourists (Bangkok Post 28 Jan 2013) with a projection of 24.5 million in 2013. The Ministry of Tourism and Sports said the Chinese (2.7 million) just top the Malaysians (2.5 million), followed by Russians (1.3 million), Japanese (1.3 million), Koreans (1.1 million), British (870,164) and Germans (681,566).

Foreigners of every nationality come to Thailand, The Land of Smiles, to enjoy this beautiful country, and the great variety of attractions including diving sites, exotic sandy beaches, tropical islands, a varied night-life, archaeological sites, museums, hill tribes, exceptional flora and bird life, palaces, Buddhist temples, and several World Heritage sites. Tourists can partake in courses including Thai cooking, Buddhism, and traditional Thai massage. There are countless Thai national festivals including “Songkran”, “Loy Krathong”, and famous festivals such as the “Rocket Festival” in Yasothon, the “Phi Ta Khon” festival in Dan Sai, and the annual “Elephant Round Up” in Surin.

The National Symbol of Thailand is the Elephant, and millions of tourists flock to elephant camps every year to see this majestic animal.

The dark side of elephant tourism

On other pages of our website, we highlight the activities available at elephant camps to include trekking rides, painting, and shows.

Tourism fuels this multi million dollar industry but would visitors clap and cheer at a circus show, or take a one hour ride, if they knew the horrifying cruelty the elephants are subjected to? Both behind the scenes, and often right in front of our eyes, elephants are beaten with hooks or stabbed with nails whilst being forced to do the same repetitive routine every single day.

Thailand is not a Land Of Smiles for these elephants. If elephants are part of the culture and tradition, why are they treated this way? Many of the trekking camps are more like ‘prison camps’. Elephants are beaten, chained, dehydrated, underfed, over worked, tired and miserable. Hooks, nails, knives and spears are used to terrify these creatures. They have open wounds on their head and ears, scarred from years of abuse, and deprived of any natural behaviour - all for the tourist dollar.

Even though we have seen this time and time again, we remain deeply upset at the scale of cruelty.

Mahouts (elephant handlers)

It is unfair to tarnish everyone with the same brush. In every country throughout the world there is animal abuse when an animal gets into the wrong hands.

There are many wonderful mahouts who care deeply for their elephants. It’s a hard life for them, they work long hours often with no day off, desperate to make enough money to feed their family and care for their elephant. Living standards for mahouts are basic; they live in Thai wooden homes on stilts, with no hot water, no decent sanitation, cooking over an open fire, with very little possessions. Usually their elephant will be chained at their home if they don’t have access to forest.

But, what we find shocking is that there seems to be a higher percentage of inexperienced or blatantly malicious ‘mahouts’ inflicting pain and brutality on their elephant as a way to control. As of yet, there are no animal welfare laws in Thailand, anyone can own or sell an elephant, therefore there is no punishment in place to stop this.

Tourists can turn the tide on cruelty

Tourism is helping to fuel this elephant abuse. It is about time tourists realise the damage they are doing by supporting badly managed trekking camps, laughing at degrading circus performances, buying sugarcane to feed petrified baby elephants dragged around the streets or on the beaches. Babies that should still be with their mother.

Time and time again, what we find is that after the show or ride, all people really want to do is stand close to an elephant, touch it, feed it bananas, and get their photo taken.

This intimate experience is what tourists want. If they refused to visit a show, or take a trekking ride, and instead insisted on seeing elephants behaving naturally, playing in the mud, bathing in the river, then the elephant and their mahout would have a much improved life instead of walking round and round in circles to please the tourist.

So how we can change this?

If you are reading this page and wondering what is the best approach to enjoy a cruelty-free experience with an elephant, you could opt to visit one of the few true sanctuaries on our where to visit page, to enjoy seeing elephants interacting naturally. Or, if you are in an area too far to visit a sanctuary, visit a local elephant camp, BUT it is important that you insist on walking beside the elephant rather than sitting on the heavy chair which deforms, and often breaks its back over the years.

Please read our Guide - What to Know Before your Go which gives you information on what to look for. The photos on this page are a good visual reference too.

Recently at an elephant camp in southern Thailand, whilst on one of our research trips, we met a lovely European family with 2 children, who turned up at a camp we were visiting. They asked the camp owner if they could pay to spend time with the elephant but not ride it. It was very much welcomed. The children asked if they could help the mahout and hose the elephant with water. It was an incredible experience to watch everyone having so much fun. So, it can be done.

Tourists traveling to Thailand have the power to influence change. The only reason these beautiful animals are continuously abused is for tourist entertainment.

Be part of the change we need to see for the welfare of elephants, and part of the global awareness campaign towards elephant friendly tourism, which will help both the elephants and the mahouts. Look at the photos, watch the videos of bored, tired elephants, and make a conscious firm decision on your trip to Thailand or Asia on how YOU spend YOUR money.

Please do not encourage and accept cruelty on your holiday, and please do not forget the elephants who are left behind to continue their miserable lives, just for the sake of your own entertainment.

Thank you so much.

Tourists traveling to Thailand have the power to influence change

A sharp spear is held at the elephant’s temple to keep it still whilst tourists get on and off

Hooks are used unnecessarily as seen here. Smoking a cigarette and stabbing the hook into the elephants head

Hook and nail wounds seen frequently on the head, trunk, ears, inner ears, and body of elephants

Purple iodine is applied to this young elephants head, covered in open wounds and scars.

When not performing or giving rides, on short chains, unable to move

When not performing or giving rides, chained with the chair still on their back, all day long.

An old thin bull, tired, weary, all he does is give rides every day

This young female was trying to reach the chair to get it off her back

She had just had her chair taken off and had a shower. Do you really want to ride this skeleton thin girl?

Untreated eye infections. Some elephants are blind, yet still forced to give rides

This beautiful old girl is blind in one eye.

Baby elephants are chained at the entrance to camps all day to entice visitors

Chained 24 hrs a day at a zoo. Severe scarring from years of abuse, open wounds. An aggressive, miserable, female. What has she been through?

Elephants performing as an ‘orchestra’ in a show at a zoo. This is their life. All their handlers had hooks and nails that were being stabbed into them.

Degrading performances at many elephants camps throughout Thailand. These elephants never get to enjoy a day splashing about in the river, or throwing mud over themselves.

The elephants in the top video are performing at a show in a zoo. Here is how they live. They are chained day and night, and also sleep and eat here on the concrete.

Stereotypical behaviour. This female is chained at the front of a camp, on a short chain, every day to entice tourists to visit. She is showing clear signs of boredom and stress. Do people REALLY want to see this?

A nail is hidden in a closed fist and is used as a tool to stab the elephant anywhere on its body, instead of, or as well as using the hook.