TUI Group is one of the largest travel companies in Europe. Shockingly, they are still happy to profit from exploitative practices, making money from around 400 captive dolphins at 25 venues around the world.
So far 100,000 people have signed our petition, over 4000 people have emailed TUI and 300 independent travel agents have asked TUI to update their animal welfare policy and still they choose to continue to profit from captive dolphin venues.
This is one of the busiest holiday booking periods of the year and we need to tell TUI that it is time to stop profiting from dolphin suffering.
This is not conservation.
They are mostly bottlenose dolphins, which are not an endangered species, bred solely to provide entertainment to tourists. They are then kept in a small barren pool, performing circus tricks in exchange for fish.
This is not education.
You cannot learn about the conservation of the ocean by watching a dolphin push a trainer through the water with its snout. All you learn is that using wild animals for entertainment is OK. Which it isn’t.
So why is this seen as entertainment?
In exchange for a 30-minute show for tourists, a dolphin is put through a lifetime of cruelty, subjected to loud noises and repetitive interaction with throngs of tourists, day in, day out.
While large travel companies like TUI choose to profit from captive dolphin venues, making this form of entertainment seem acceptable, the problem will continue.
Tell TUI that until it does, we’ll be saying #NoTanksTUI and going elsewhere to book our holidays.