Elephant orphanage – Pinnawala

Description

The elephant orphanage can be addressed by turning the 82nd km post in the Colombo-Kandy road. The orphanage was set in 1975 in a 7 ha coconut plantation. It is the first elephant orphanage built in Sri Lanka. Moreover, it is also used as a breeding centre for elephants, which refer to the National Zoo in Sri Lanka. A part of the National Zoo is also presently open right close to the orphanage.

At now, the orphanage is residence to over 60 elephants, including both male and female elephants. Alternatively, elephants are brought here from several regions found abandoned by their mothers or dismissed from their wild environment. As a result, the elephant orphanage has become a tourist attraction and a favourite place among local and foreign tourists and nature lovers.