Victory! Indonesia Leaves Cruel Elephant Rides Behind—Here’s Why This Matters
Cue the confetti for elephants! Indonesia has officially ended cruel elephant rides nationwide, marking a major step forward for compassionate tourism and a huge blow to the elephant-exploiting industry.
This victory comes after PETA Asia blew the whistle on the violence and abuse inside some of Bali’s elephant tourist attractions.
Behind Bali’s Elephant Ride Business
At these facilities, PETA Asia investigators found elephants chained in bleak, concrete pens, many with open wounds and permanent scars on their heads and legs. Behind the scenes, eyewitnesses caught handlers repeatedly jabbing and striking the animals with bullhooks—weapons resembling fireplace pokers with sharp metal hooks—or denying them food to force them to give rides or pose for tourist photo ops. One baby elephant was locked away in a dark, off-limits enclosure, isolated and invisible to the public.
These aren’t isolated incidents—they’re the standard at elephant-exploiting tourist traps. When handlers aren’t forcing elephants to entertain tourists, they leave them chained for hours at a time. Many develop agonizing foot and joint problems, and some suffer from post-traumatic stress.
This suffering couldn’t be further from the lives elephants are meant to live. In nature, they move in tight-knit matriarchal herds and spend their days foraging for fresh vegetation, playing, bathing in rivers, and traveling miles together. In the tourism industry, “trainers” take babies from their protective, nurturing mothers, tie them down with ropes, and beat them mercilessly, sometimes for days on end. Some babies don’t survive these “spirit-breaking” sessions. Those who do survive are condemned to a lifetime of miserable servitude, forced to carry tourists for hours at a time, even when they’re injured, exhausted, or in pain.
But now, that industry in Indonesia is finally changing. With elephant rides, shows, and performances officially banned under new government guidelines, some of the most abusive and exploitative practices that PETA Asia exposed are no longer legal.
But there’s still work to do.
Holdouts in the tourism industry apparently haven’t gotten the memo and still force elephants to do unnatural, painful, and harmful things like carry humans on their backs, paint, or play soccer. Some places even hide behind words like “conservation,” “rescue,” or “sanctuary,” when they’re nothing more than roadside zoos in disguise.
Never visit any facility that allows direct contact with elephants. That includes rides, bathing or feeding interactions, selfies, or “performances” like painting or playing soccer. These activities are only possible when humans have intimidated, beaten, or psychologically tormented elephants into complying.
True sanctuaries never buy, sell, breed, or exploit animals for profit. They allow elephants to live in large, natural habitats, form bonds with other elephants, and make their own choices. Visitors may sometimes observe from a respectful distance, but direct contact is never allowed—protecting both the elephants and the public
