Thomas Cook animal welfare guidelines

We know how much our customers love animals. We also know that our customers expect the animals they encounter on holiday to be well cared for and in a setting that mimics their natural environment. That's why we have established principles that apply to all the attractions we sell tickets for. This gives our customers the confidence to visit venues where animal welfare is taken seriously and the lives of these animals are protected. 

Our guidelines take their lead from ABTA's own policy, and we will review our approach regularly to ensure we follow the latest recommendations and guidance. All our listed attractions adhere to these high standards. We work with external partners to continuously monitor and assess these venues. If customers have any concerns about attractions they have visited, we want to hear from them.

The ABTA guidelines are based on the principles of the Five Domains Model – the most widely accepted model of animal welfare. The five domains are nutrition, physical environment, health, behavioural interactions, and mental state.

Attractions that meet our standards: 

• Horse, camel, donkey riding – domesticated animals in well-supported and nurturing environments 
• Zoos, aquariums, safari parks that meet our high standards 
• Dolphinariums provided there are no performances or shows – although we encourage you to read this from ABTA for a summary of both sides of the argument 

Attractions that we won't sell: 

• Elephant riding 
• Swimming with dolphins or pigs where there is interaction 
• Any attraction that has captive orcas (eg killer whales) and/or dolphins
• Animal encounters that involve touching animals where the animal is unable to move freely away  
• Bull fighting, bull running 
• Any rodeo events  
• Any animals involved in begging or performances where animals do not demonstrate natural behaviour 
• Any feeding of wild animals that is not instigated by the animal  
• Any attraction with wild capture cetaceans