Insight Guides to Stop Including Elephant Rides in Travel Itineraries

For Immediate Release:

16 August 2018

Contact:

Sascha Camilli +44 (0) 20 7923 6244; [email protected]

INSIGHT GUIDES TO STOP INCLUDING ELEPHANT RIDES IN TRAVEL ITINERARIES

PETA US Appeal Prompts Travel Company to Remove Cruel Attractions

London – After corresponding with PETA US, travel company Insight Guides has agreed to stop all promotions of tours involving elephant rides, including its “Rajasthan: The Land of the Kings” and “India: From Delhi to the Desert” trips.

“Insight Guides sets a compassionate example in rejecting archaic attractions that force highly intelligent, social elephants to give rides,” says PETA Director Elisa Allen. “PETA urges travellers to keep all animal exhibits off their itineraries, and Insight Guides’ kind decision will help prevent holidaymakers from inadvertently supporting cruelty to animals.”

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment” – notes that elephants used for rides are often forcibly separated from their mothers as babies, immobilised with tightly bound ropes, and gouged with bullhooks or nail-studded sticks during “training”. Some don’t survive the gruelling process, and those who do spend the rest of their lives lugging tourists around or performing tricks under the threat of physical punishment.

A recent PETA India exposé of Amber Fort in Jaipur, India, found that elephants were forced to give rides despite suffering from ailments such as foot problems, visual impairment, and psychological distress (as evidenced by repetitive swaying and head-bobbing) – and several tested positive for exposure to tuberculosis, which is transmissible to humans. Last year, a group of American tourists at Amber Fort reported seeing ride operators beating an elephant continuously for 10 minutes.

Insight Guides joins TUI Group – the world’s largest travel and tourism company, which owns TUI and First Choice – as well as Responsible Travel, Intrepid Travel, DK, and G Adventures in pledging not to promote cruel elephant rides.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.

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