Elephant Refuge

Our Elephant Refuge (ER) project was started in 2003 and we currently care for over 20 Asian elephants. The majority of them were rescued from trekking camps where they were brutally exploited to entertain tourists. Although they are not able to return to the wild, nearby forests give our elephants the chance to roam around in huge forested enclosures. We have purchased huge pieces of land with forests and lakes, and our largest elephant enclosure is 20 hectares in size! We are proud to be Asia’s first chain-free sanctuary where no elephant is ever chained up, day or night.

Historically, domesticated elephants have been used mainly in the logging industry, helping to destroy the very habitat they need to survive. After the ban on logging most of these elephants ended up being used in the tourism industry or have had to make a living begging on the city streets. Walking on these often dirty and traffic-congested streets is dangerous and unhealthy, and very often these elephants end up being involved in traffic accidents. Regrettably, in Thailand there are no laws to prevent this abuse and mistreatment.

As a volunteer at ER :

Volunteering is very hard and physically demanding work, but the reward of seeing the animals enjoying your efforts is priceless

Our volunteering projects run each week from Sunday to Sunday and we welcome volunteers all year round. We usually have availability if booking a few months in advance, however some times of year are more popular than others so we need to know which dates you would like to join us before we can offer you a place.

To volunteer with us you also need to fulfil the following criteria:

You must be 18 years old or over
You must be able to speak a good level of English
You must be of good physical and mental health, and be able to tolerate a hot and humid climate
You must have a positive and practical attitude towards animal welfare and wildlife conservation

We value long-term commitment, so the longer you stay the cheaper it becomes!

Please note that all projects require a minimum commitment of 1 week.
The maximum booking length at any one time is 12 weeks, however this may be extended on site (subject to availability).
The volunteer fee covers the cost of your accommodation and 3 meals per day, as well as a contribution towards the animals’ food and care.
We can help you arrange taxi transfers to our projects from Bangkok, Petchaburi, Hua Hin or Cha Am for an additional fee.

Does volunteering sound like something you could do?

Please submit your application form or download our volunteer information pack.

Apply Now

Apply TODAY

STEP 1

STEP 2

Complete the Volunteer Application form
We will send an acknowledgement email
We will then check your application and send you another email advising the application has been approved of not.
You MUST NOT pay your deposit until you have received approval.

STEP 3

Once approved you will be asked to pay a non-refundable 200 € deposit
Payment can be made using a card or a PayPal balance. You do not need a PayPal Account to make a payment by card.
We recommend that volunteers use PayPal, as this allows us to provide confirmation of your booking more quickly than with bank transfers
Please email us a copy of the payment confirmation you receive along with the following in the email subject field. Your Full Name Volunteer Project Start Date Eg Subject:Billy Bestmate - Elephant Refuge - 3 March 2025
If you have not paid your deposit within 60 days, we will cancel your booking.

STEP 4

Once a we have received your Volunteer Application Form & Your Deposit Payment, we will send you a Confirmation email showing an invoice of outstanding balance
The confirmation email will contain the information to pay the remaining balance.
Please email us a copy of the payment confirmation you receive along with the following in the email subject field. Your Full Name Volunteer Project Start Date Eg Subject:Billy Bestmate - Elephant Refuge - 3 March 2025
Following receipt of the balance, we will send you an updated confirmation to confirm that you have paid in full.

NOTES

Bank Transfer

If you prefer to use Bank Transfer method to pay your deposit, please use the following details.

Bank: Siam Commercial Bank (Publ. Co. Ltd.), Thayang Branch, Petchkasem Road, Thayang, 76130 Petchaburi, Thailand

Account holder: Wildlife Friends Foundation

Account number: 708-208086-6

SWIFT Code: SICOTHBK

Cancellation

Here at WFFT, we have a 30-day policy regarding cancellations. Cancellations made more than 30 days before the start of your volunteering placement will be refunded the amount paid, minus the 200 Euros non-refundable deposit. Cancellations made less than 30 days before the start date are non-refundable. You may postpone until a later date, but this must be rescheduled within 12 months and is subject to availability.

Your volunteer fee covers :

Please note that all projects require a minimum commitment of 1 week, and the maximum booking length at any one time is 12 weeks. This may be extended on-site depending on availability. We value long-term commitment, so the longer you stay, the cheaper it becomes!

Elephant Refuge (ER)

Our projects Wildlife Rescue Centre (WRC), Elephant Refuge (ER) and Wildlife Hospital (HOSP) all run from one location in rural Thailand. This means you can combine volunteering projects and help the animals in many different ways. If you would like to know the cost of any other combination experiences please ask a Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@wfft.org.

Wildlife Rescue Centre (WRC) & Elephant Refuge (ER)

Please note that all projects require a minimum commitment of 1 week (7 nights, Sunday to Sunday), and the maximum booking length at any one time is 12 weeks. This may be extended on-site depending on availability. We value long-term commitment, so the longer you stay, the cheaper it becomes! Please refer to the pricing tab.

Getting to WFFT

Volunteers are responsible for arranging and paying for their own flights.

We are unable to advise or help you in booking flights. The nearest international airport is Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (airport code BKK). There is a second airport, Don Mueang (DMK), that takes some international but mostly domestic Asian flights.

Arranging a Transfer to our Projects

We are able to arrange taxi pick-ups for volunteers from Bangkok, Hua Hin or Cha-am.

PAT Clinic volunteers will arrive at WFFT’s Wildlife Rescue Centre on a Sunday and be given a tour before heading off to the clinic.

Bangkok – 2200 Thai Baht per taxi. We are able to pick you up from either Suvarnabhumi BKK, Don Mueang DMK airports or a hotel in Bangkok. We are able to arrange taxi pickups from Bangkok between 6AM and 2PM, because the centre is a 3-hour drive away andotherwise there will be no staff member available to greet the volunteers.

Hua-Hin – 700 Thai Baht per taxi. We are able to pick you up from hotel, bus- or train station. However, please note for train or bus station pick-ups you must call us on arrival because trains and buses can arrive much later than scheduled, and we do not want to keep our drivers waiting. We are able to arrange taxi pick-ups from Hua Hin between 6AM and 4PM. The centre is 1 hour drive from Hua Hin.

Cha-am – 400 Thai Baht per taxi. We are able to pick you up from hotel, bus or train station. However, please note for train or bus station pick-ups you must call us on arrival as trains and buses can arrive much later than scheduled, and we do not want to keep our drivers waiting. We are able to arrange taxi pick-ups from Cha-am between 6AM and 4PM. The center is 45 minutes from Cha-am.

Your Pick Up Details – If you wish to be picked up from an airport please send us the airport you will be flying into, your flight number and arrival time. If you want to be picked up from a hotel, please send us the hotel name, address and phone number. The best pick-up time for a hotel pick-up from Bangkok is 9AM and the best pick-up time from Hua-Hin or Cha-am is 10AM.

For calls on arrival at bus or train stations please contact Volunteer Coordinators at +66-8-76640260 or +66-871060992 and we will send a taxi for you. Please note we cannot arrange a taxi pick up on arrival later than 4pm. Payments must be made to the driver in cash (Thai Baht) on arrival at the centre. Sometimes we are also able to arrange pick-ups together with other new volunteers that arrive on the same day as you. However, this depends on what time you and other
volunteers are available to be picked up. Please, let us know if you are interested in sharing a taxi with other volunteers, or prefer a private transfer.

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