The shift towards more ethical elephant tourism in Thailand has been led by the work of Sangduen “Lek” Chailert, who founded Elephant Nature Park — a 250-acre sanctuary in the Mae Chaem region — in the year 2000. Today, there are several elephant sanctuaries around Thailand that provide visitors with unique, ethical opportunities to observe elephants. These include Burm and Emily’s Elephant Sanctuary, Tree Tops Elephant Reserve, Phuket Elephant Sanctuary, Boon Lott’s Elephant Sanctuary and Samui Elephant Sanctuary. Through the work of their founders, these sanctuaries provide captive elephants with opportunities to roam, forage and socialise, making a profound difference to their lives and their welfare.

There are also many camps offering low impact experiences with elephants, such as those in the Pamper a Pachyderm program, and a number of community-based elephant projects that improve elephant welfare, such as the Surin Project and Journey to Freedom. Many ethical tourism projects are run by Lek Chailert’s Save Elephant Foundation.

Other sites that promote ethical elephant tourism include two resorts in northern Thailand — Anantara Golden Triangle and Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle — that also offer observational activities. Together, these sites have changed the face of elephant tourism by encouraging activities that are better for elephants.

All these sites rely on the involvement of elephant keepers known as mahouts — who also work with elephants in tourist camps. Elephant welfare is influenced by the behaviour of mahouts and the methods of training and care they employ.