The Phuket Elephant Nature Reserve was founded by a cooperative of passionate experts who have worked in the elephant welfare field for many years. We felt that Phuket needed an elephant sanctuary that did as many things right as possible: helping elephants, educating people, and being kind to the environment.
First and foremost, our elephants always come first. We started our sanctuary to save and protect as many elephants as possible. All the money raised from our visitor programs is used directly to support our entire sanctuary. This includes providing elephant food and expert veterinarian care, and providing livelihoods for local mahouts and staff. In addition, we are always looking to expand our sanctuary, obtain more land, and rescue more elephants.
As a pioneer in ethical tourism and elephant rescue in Phuket, we offer an educational and sustainable approach at our reserve. We have rescued overworked, tired elephants from the Thailand tourist industry and welcomed them into our natural jungle environment. They now have a safe home and can live a protected and peaceful life.
All of our elephants have come from elephant riding parks, circus shows, the logging industry, street begging, or other tourist attractions where they have been exploited and neglected.
Elephant welfare is our top priority. As such we follow strict guidelines for nutrition, husbandry, and vet care, guided by international standards.
By providing conservation through tourism, we can give captive Thai elephants a better home and future.
To us, elephant conservation and environmental conservation go hand in hand. They are both parts of the same efforts as elephants can’t thrive if humans destroy their habitats and the environment as a whole. This is why we weave environmental conservation into everything we do.
