Animal Welfare Policy

At ATD Travel Services, we aim to Add Happiness® to our customers’ holidays.  We take our responsibility in providing over 1 million attraction tickets and holiday experiences annually very seriously.

We carefully review all the products we sell and regularly evaluate suppliers to ensure that their codes of conduct and values are aligned with ours and with the expectations of our customers.

In addition to rollercoasters, helicopter rides and waterparks, experiences involving animals are some of the most popular attraction tickets that we sell.  Our customers value the opportunity to learn more about animals and to observe and interact with them in a responsible and safe way.

The welfare of animals at all attractions is of the utmost importance and we will only work with those organisations who meet our welfare standards.  We require all attractions to comply with the following set of criteria:

 

• To meet or exceed all national regulations and laws on animal welfare, governed by local law
• To have obtained accreditation from internationally recognised associations in the field – such as the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums (EAZA), the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) and the Alliance for Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums (AMMPA).  Thereby to meet or exceed all accreditation standards and abide by all related policies
• To adhere to all local and international zoological regulations
• Not to take or accept any animals from the wild; or if this is deemed necessary (for the wellbeing of the animal or conservation of the species), to only work with commercial collectors practising sustainable methods, as approved by the AZA
• In addition, it is our preference that the facility undertakes research and development projects which directly benefit wildlife populations 

 

In order to complete this review, we worked in association with World Animal Protection and are consequently recommended by them on a list of elephant-friendly holiday companies.  We have pledged our support to end the promotion of cruel facilities worldwide.  We will continue to seek guidance and support from World Animal Protection to ensure that the attractions we sell contribute towards the progression of animal welfare in all parts of the tourism industry, and that our approach continues to be a thoughtful and responsible one.

As a result of our 4-month long investigation, we have now removed some attractions and experiences from sale with Attraction Tickets Direct and DoSomethingDifferent.com. These attractions, featuring elephants and dolphins did not comply with our criteria and as such, we will no longer give them our support. 

The attractions and experiences that we removed from sale are: 

Elephant attractions

Thailand:

• Phuket Fantasea, Phuket
• Ton Pariwat Wildlife Sanctuary, Phuket
• Phang Nga Elephant Park, Phuket
• Namuang Safari Park, Koh Samui
• Khoa Yai National Park elephant ride, Bangkok
• Mae Sa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai
• Chiang Dao Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai

South Africa:

• Elephant Whispers, Kruger

Malaysia:

• Kuala Gandah elephant sanctuary, Kuala Lumpur

 India:

• Elephant Village, Goa
• Amber Fort elephant ride, Jaipur

Dolphin attractions

Dominican Republic:

• Dolphin Island, Punta Cana
• Manati Park, Punta Cana
• Ocean World, Puerto Plata

 Jamaica:

• Dolphin Cove, Ocho Rios

Updated April 2017