HCMC – The Buon Don Tourist Center in the Central Highlands province of Daklak will suspend elephant riding service starting tomorrow, February 10.
The Biet Dien tourism and hotel branch, a unit of Daklak September 2 Import-Export Company, yesterday, February 8, informed its partners and customers of the suspension decision, Thanh Nien Online reported.
The firm said that the move followed the province’s plan to phase out elephant rides to protect the local elephant population.
During the 2023 Lunar New Year holiday, several people complained that Buon Don Tourist Center elephants looked exhausted after ferrying many tourists.
In related news, the organizer of the Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival, which is set to take place from March 10 to 14, has announced that the festival will no longer feature a street elephant parade.
In late 2022, the Daklak government approved non-refundable aid worth VND55 billion for a program to replace elephant riding service with elephant-friendly service in four years.
Daklak Province has 37 elephants, including 22 in Buon Don, while in the 1980s, the province had over 500 elephants.
