Gentle Giants Await
If you’ve ever dream of seeing majestic elephants up close in their natural habitat, Knysna Elephant Park should be your next holiday destination. The Park, situated between the scenic towns of Plettenberg Bay and Knysna on the Garden Route, is home to a number of elephants who roam freely throughout the indigenous landscape.
Visitors to the park will have the honor of walking amongst one of South Africa’s most beloved mammals, enjoying a personal experience with the gentle giants of Mzansi. These highly intelligent and playful animals are a joy to see up close, lest you’re near water - beware, you might get a trunkful sprayed at you!
The park offers a family-friendly encounter that is sure to leave visitors with lasting memories of a day well spent in nature.
Personal Interaction
Knysna Elephant Park was established in 1994 as the country’s first centre focused on the care and rehabilitation of elephants. For the last four decades, the park has overseen a dedicated rehabilitation program that has put over 40 elephants back into their natural habitat. These include relocated elephants, orphaned calves, ex-circus elephants and some rescued from culls. While some become part of the resident herd, others are transported to other reserves and facilities in the Western and Eastern Cape, depending on their personalities, bonds with other animals and welfare needs.
A day spent at Knysna Elephant Park will include the walk of a lifetime - visitors can join the morning or afternoon walk with the elephants, holding onto their trunks as you traverse through the bushveld alongside trained tour guides. After a brisk walk, the guides will introduce visitors to the herd, explaining how they came to call the park home and elaborate on interesting facts about these creatures.
Visitors will then have the opportunity to feed the elephants, making personal contact with them in a secure environment. It is by no means a ‘show’ - the elephants are free to move around and walk off if they feel like it. The experience is one of harmony, where visitors get but a small glimpse into the lives of the elephants.
Respect for Nature
The Knysna Elephant Park has played a vital role in the formation of regulations and guidelines for captive elephants throughout South Africa. They are true pioneers of elephant welfare, working towards challenging and changing traditionally accepted management and improving the lives of the gentle giants on a continental scale.
The African Elephant Research Unit (AERU) works in partnership with the park on national and international research pertaining to elephants and their environment, nutrition and reproduction, as well as welfare legislation.
The Park has strict guidelines that guide all tourism activities, so that animal welfare is never compromised. The handling of elephants are done according to internationally recognised standards that ensures that all visitor activities are done ethically and responsibly. Visitors will leave Knysna Elephant Park not only entranced by the majesty of elephants, but with a renewed respect for nature and its conservation.
Many guests staying at their accommodation in Plettenberg Bay spend the whole day on the terrace, with there being little incentive to mov...
Bounded by Robberg Peninsula in the east and the Keurbooms River to the west, with the Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma Mountains as interior backd...