Animal Welfare

Caring for both wild and domesticated animals is something we’re passionate about. We strongly stand against animal cruelty, exploitation, and suffering in any form in the travel industry. Our Animal Welfare Policy helps shape what we do and spreads awareness to ensure animals are treated with respect. 

We believe it’s our responsibility to look out for animal welfare because it helps create a kinder, more just world. By treating animals with care and respect, we’re working toward a future where all living beings are valued and protected. 

In 2015, World Expeditions Travel Group (WETG) aligned with World Animal Protection to develop our inaugural Animal Welfare Policy. This 2025 Animal Welfare Policy builds upon and expands our commitment to animal welfare. 

You won't find these animal experiences on our trips:

 > Elephant interactions and rides. 

 > Petting lion cubs, walking with lions, and canned hunts. 

 > Situations where animals are subjected to cruelty for the purpose of entertainment. 

  > Aquariums or marine parks where large mammals like dolphins and whales are captive. 

 > Souvenirs that involve animal cruelty or place animals at risk. 

 > Wildlife selfies.

You will find these animal experiences on our trips:

 > Viewing wild animals in their natural habitats. 

 > Itineraries that include pack-animals, carrying loads in accordance with The Five Domains. 

 > Itineraries include pack-animals, pulling loads in accordance with The Five Domains. 

 > Itineraries that include companion animals and pets, in accordance with The Five Domains. 

 > Itineraries that include visits to sanctuaries that abide by World Animal Protection's Genuine Sanctuary Checklist. 

The Core Model 

The WETG advocates for the use of the ‘Five Domains’ model of animal welfare, addressing both the physical and mental state of animals: 

• Nutrition: ensure animals have access to clean water and enough food in a balanced diet. Available food is nutritious, appropriate for the species and individual animal, and varied. 
• Environment: ensure animals are comfortable and safe and provided with opportunities and choices to engage in natural and rewarding behaviour. 
• Health: ensure animals are fit and healthy and injuries and illnesses are prevented or immediately and appropriately treated. 
• Behaviour: ensure animals can express natural and rewarding behaviour and are able to engage in free movement and play and have positive contact with animals and people to form social bonds. 
• Mental state: provide safe, species-appropriate opportunities to have pleasurable experiences. Nutrition, the environment, health and the opportunity for expression of natural behaviour all influence an animal’s mental state. 

Industry leading animal advocacy 

In 2014, World Expeditions signed World Animal Protection's Elephant Friendly Tourism Pledge to:

 > Audit our entire product offering to assess if we directly or indirectly use wild animals for the entertainment of travellers, e.g., elephant rides. 

 > Remove all such instances from our product offering. 

 > Promote responsible tourism among our customers to enable them to be animal-friendly travellers. 

This led us to remove all instances of elephant rides and interactions from our product offering, as well as produce our inaugural Animal Welfare Policy. 

WETG offers elephant-friendly experiences, where travellers can observe elephants from a distance, either in the wild or in a genuine high-care elephant sanctuary. 

Learn about the cruelty behind elephant rides.

10 Steps to Being an Animal-Friendly Traveller

1. The best animal encounter is a wild one. View animals in their natural habitat exhibiting natural behaviours and do not initiate contact with them.
2. Do not ride on the back of an elephant. To ‘train’ an elephant to accept riders, they are taken from their mothers at an early age and physically and psychologically abused.
3. Avoid aquariums or marine parks where large mammals like dolphins or whales are kept in captivity. These environments are very unnatural and cause stress to these intelligent and far-ranging animals.
4. Do not purchase souvenirs made from wild animals such as fur, ivory, shells, seahorses, teeth, rhino horns and turtle shells.
5. Never participate in lion cub petting and lion walking experiences; many of them breed the lions for the ‘Canned Lion Hunting’ industry, to be shot in captivity.
6. Do not attend festivals or attractions that subject animals to cruelty for entertainment, such as animal circuses, dancing bears, dog or cockerel fights, running of the bulls, and any festival that causes suffering to animals.
7. Don't take a wildlife selfie if the animal is being held, hugged, or restrained, if you are baiting the animal with food or if the animal could harm you.
8. Before riding on the back of a horse, mule or donkey, match your size to that of the animal and ensure that your weight is evenly balanced when riding.
9. Only visit and support animal sanctuaries and shelters involving wild animals in captivity if the objectives of the organisation are in the animals’ best interests (e.g. rehoming, rehabilitation or release into the wild).
10. Speak up! If you see an animal in distress, please tell your World Expeditions guide. Make a note of the date, time and location, as well as the type and number of animals involved. Take photos and/or videos as proof. Alternatively, if you see an animal that is well looked after, offer praise to the owner and tell him/her why you have chosen to give them your business.