Volunteer travel guide
Volunteering abroad used to be a long term commitment for a highly qualified few. Today, opportunities have opened up for people of all skill levels, in virtually every country in the world.
Elephant species
There are two species of elephant – the African elephant and the Asian. The easy way to tell them apart? African elephants have large ears shaped like Africa – while the smaller ears of Asian elephants resemble the outline of India.
Our Elephant conservation Holidays
Elephant conservation holiday in Sri Lanka
Volunteer with elephants in stunning Sri Lanka
From
£945
7 days
ex flights
Family volunteering with elephants in Sri Lanka
Family volunteering with elephants in Sri Lanka
From
£845
7 days
ex flights
Elephant refuge volunteering in Thailand
Volunteer with rescued elephants in an inspiring refuge
From
£890
7 days
ex flights
Thailand family volunteering with elephants
Elephant and Karen Hill tribe community volunteering
From
£450
6 days
ex flights
Elephant conservation holiday, Cambodia
Volunteer with rescued Asian elephants
From
£1195
14 days
ex flights
Thailand elephants and Karen hilltribe stay
Stay with the Karen hilltribe and watch elephants in Thailand
From
£240 to £380
4 days
ex flights
African elephants
African elephants are the world’s largest land mammals; males can grow up to four metres tall and weigh a whopping 7,000kg. Around 500,000-700,000 African elephants live across Sub-Saharan Africa and they are classified as vulnerable. Habitat loss and competition with humans for food and water are problems and elephants can be a danger to people and can trample crops and structures. The greatest threat by far, however, is poaching. The ivory trade became illegal internationally in 1989, but around 1,000 elephants were killed per year between 2006-2009. In 2011 alone, one in 12 African elephants was killed by a poacher, with the majority of the ivory being smuggled into China. A report from 2017 suggests there has been a steady decline in poaching since 2011, thanks to frontline enforcement and demand reduction efforts, but the killing of elephants for their tusks continues unabated.
There are two subspecies of African elephant: the larger bush or savannah elephant, seen across East and Southern Africa, and the smaller forest elephant which is more elusive and lives in the Central and West African jungles.
There are two subspecies of African elephant: the larger bush or savannah elephant, seen across East and Southern Africa, and the smaller forest elephant which is more elusive and lives in the Central and West African jungles.
Asian elephants
There are three subspecies of Asian elephant: the Sri Lankan elephant (which is the largest); the Indian elephant, which is found in 11 countries across mainland Southeast Asia; and the Sumatran elephant, which lives on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, and is sometimes called the pygmy elephant. The Asian elephant is classified as endangered; wild populations are hard to monitor but around 40,000-45,000 are believed to live across this region, meaning there is less than one Asian elephant for every ten African elephants. Sumatran elephants have recently been declared critically endangered. In some countries, captive elephants far outnumber wild elephants. The Asian elephant once spread as far as the Middle East, including Iraq and Syria, as well as Java; it is now extinct across all these regions and around half the remaining elephants are believed to live in India. Unlike the African elephant, female Asian elephants almost never have tusks, and only a small number of males grow them. They can eat 150kg of vegetation a day.
Our top Elephant conservation Holiday
Elephant conservation holiday in Sri Lanka
Volunteer with elephants in stunning Sri Lanka
From
£945
7 days
ex flights
Tailor made:
This trip can be tailor made throughout the year to suit your requirements
This trip can be tailor made throughout the year to suit your requirements
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Elephant conservation or need help finding a holiday to suit you we're very happy to help.
01273 823 700
Call us after 9am
Calling from outside the UK
Elephant facts
Elephant links
The following nonprofit organisations all campaign for the welfare of elephants. Visit their websites for further information about elephants in the wild and in captivity, and what you can do to help.
Elephant Nature Park, in Thailand, is a sanctuary which acts as a 'retirement home' for retired and rescued elephants. It does not promote elephant riding or performances, and is considered a pioneer in the treatment of elephants. Watch Elephant Whisperer, a documentary about ENP's founder, Lek, here.
Elemotion raises awareness about the plight of the Asian elephant, and aims to improve the conditions for elephants living in captivity, either for tourism purposes, or in temples.
Elephant Family is the UK's biggest funder for Asian elephants. It exists to save the endangered Asian elephant from extinction in the wild, and is working to expose and stop elephants being captured from the wild to supply the tourism industry.
World Animal Protection, formerly known as WSPA, works with domesticated and wild animals. Specific elephant projects have included raising awareness of wildlife crimes including trafficking and poaching.
Born Free campaigns for the rights of African and Asian elephants. It focuses on the ivory trade in Africa, as well as human-wildlife conflict and captive elephants across Asia. It also supports Sri Lanka's Elephant Transit Home.
Action for Elephants UK is a campaigning and fundraising group with a focus on stopping the slaughter of wild elephants. It supports and raises funds for elephant groups and projects on the ground in Tanzania and Sri Lanka.
More about Elephant conservation
It's long been a highlight of many holidays in Asia, but riding elephants could lead to the extinction of wild populations, and often involves cruelty to the animals in order to sustain it.
The terminology surrounding elephant sanctuaries can be confusing, but we explain the differences between sanctuaries, orphanages and camps and discuss their ethics.
Asia has a long history of keeping elephants in captivity, to be used in wars, in the logging industry and now in tourism, and we ask what their role might look like in future.
We explain why Responsible Travel no longer promotes elephant rides in sanctuaries or in national parks, based on recommendations by holiday companies and wildlife charities.
Nothing beats seeing elephants in their natural habitat, whether that's in the jungle, savannah or desert. Our interactive map reveals where to encounter elephants in the wild.
Performing elephants, chained elephants, ivory, zoos and howdahs all make for very sad images, which we really don't want on our memory cards after a holiday to Southeast Asia.
Read our list of elephant sanctuaries we do and don't support, based on our comprehensive review of all the elephant sanctuaries featured on our site.
In 2007, we looked into Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage to find out if it really was an ethically-run sanctuary. The following year we removed all trips featuring it from our site. Find out why.
Elephant trekking and captive elephants are complex issues. We spoke with holiday companies, wildlife charities and NGOs to help us form our stance on elephants and tourism.
More relevant guides
