From local sanctuary to global success: How FareHarbor helped Phuket Elephant Sanctuary grow 13%

“We’ve had excellent support from the FareHarbor team. They came to visit, understood our needs, and provided tailored solutions. That really tipped the scale.”

Vincent Gerards
General Manager

Phuket Elephant Sanctuary

When Phuket Elephant Sanctuary first opened its doors in Thailand, its mission was simple: give rescued elephants a safe, natural environment to live out the rest of their lives — free from the labor and exploitation that had defined their past.

But as the sanctuary’s reputation grew, so did demand. Soon, the team was juggling hundreds of daily visitors, bookings from multiple online travel agencies (OTAs), and a website and reservation system that simply couldn’t keep up.

“We had huge issues with confirmation emails in the past,” said Vincent Gerards, the sanctuary’s General Manager.

“Often these emails were not going out to visitors, so people called and emailed us saying ‘Hey, did my reservation come through?’ It was a lot of manual work on our side again to reconfirm bookings manually.”

With more guests arriving and additional moving parts to manage, Vincent knew it was time to upgrade their systems. That’s when he turned to FareHarbor.

Turning tech upgrades into bookings

Phuket Elephant Sanctuary officially went live with FareHarbor in November 2024. But it wasn’t just a software switch — it was a strategic leap toward smarter operations.

Right away, Vincent noticed the difference.

“The booking process on the website is very smooth,” he said. “Confirmation emails are being sent out and making payments is very easy for visitors.”

FareHarbor’s platform handled the sanctuary’s unique needs with ease: a mobile-first booking experience, seamless OTA integrations, and support in both Thai and English. On-site training ensured that more than 10 staff members were comfortable with the tools from day one.

Perhaps most notably, the team was able to replace their outdated website with a modern, optimized version through FareHarbor Sites — one that now drives 67% of their traffic through organic search and converts at a 3.6% rate on mobile.

That’s no small feat when 75% of your site visitors are on mobile devices.

Smarter systems, smoother experiences

With the FareHarbor + Wherewolf Digital Waivers integration, the team can now check in up to 300 guests per day with ease. Pre-arrival submissions like passport info, dietary needs, and liability waivers  provided by Wherewolf are all handled ahead of time — saving precious time on-site.

“Our arrival experience has drastically improved,” Vincent shared. “Most visitors now submit everything before they arrive. Check-in is quick and easy.”

Back-end operations also became significantly more efficient. FareHarbor’s automated booking tools meant no more manual entry from platforms like TripAdvisor and GetYourGuide. And their customer service experience improved overnight.

“We’ve had excellent support from the FareHarbor team,” Vincent said. “They came to visit, understood our needs, and provided tailored solutions. That really tipped the scale.”

Results worth trumpeting

The impact was immediate. In Q1 of 2025, just months after launching FareHarbor, Phuket Elephant Sanctuary saw a 13% increase in online sales year-over-year.

Since going live, they’ve processed nearly 7,000 bookings and generated more than THB 63 million in revenue.

Website performance has surged as well:

• An estimated 36% increase in traffic
• 6,578 new keywords indexed (a 226% jump)
• 87 new top-ranking keywords (a 30% increase)

And all of it happened while staying true to their mission.

“We’re proud that despite many competitors opening back up post-COVID, we’ve been able to grow our market share, without compromising on ethics.”

Looking ahead

Vincent knows their success isn’t just about numbers, it’s about experience — and the right technology partner.

“Roughly half of our bookings are direct, which is amazing. And around 25–30% come from OTAs like TripAdvisor, where reviews are crucial.”

For tour operators balancing high guest volume, operational complexity, and a commitment to doing things the right way, Phuket Elephant Sanctuary offers a powerful case study in what’s possible when you invest in scalable systems.

Want to boost bookings, streamline operations, and grow with confidence? Book a free demo with FareHarbor to see what’s possible.

All new clients in Thailand receive comprehensive onsite support — from sales consultations to training, onboarding, and ongoing assistance (available in both English and Thai!) — so you can feel confident every step of the way.