They really treat these creatures like human family. Was such an experience. Got to ride and feed them. There is so much room for them to roam more than any lame Zoo. They have a thing where you can bathe them. The people who run this are amazing. I know they have been through alot over the years and goad they are able to keep moving forward one giant paw at a time. read more

Two Tails Ranch - elephant - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

A wonderful place to learn about elephants (and the world) from Patricia I recently visited Two Tails Ranch in Williston, Florida. You have to reserve a spot online before you go. They will respond with a date and time to show up. The sign in the gate when you arrive says they open the gates 10 minutes before the showtime so you may be sitting in your car along the dirtroad if you arrive early. You are directed where to park and then choose what options you want (feeding, picture, ride) and they give you tickets for each item. If you are going to ride the elephant you cannot be over 200 pounds (there is a scale at the ticket counter). Once everyone is done buying tickets you go to the first top. Our group of about 20 sat in rows of chairs under the shade right in front of the elephant pen with Zika the elephant and Patricia Zerbini. She has decades of hands-on elephant care through her family's dedicated efforts. She is the real deal. She stands in front of you and will answer any question in a straight-shooting, authentic, and honest manner, no punches pulled. She shared her experiences about elephants past, present, and future while teaching us about their care and the importance of their current issues. After that, you move in a group to another enclosure with a different elephant where people can feed, get a picture and ride an elephant. I chose all three and found them each well worth the time and money. They are once in a lifetime experiences that I'll remember forever. Patricia then walked us around the ranch, showing us her tortoises, zebra, and lemurs. She will answer any question as she is touring the group around. We ended at the little museum and gift shop, packed with fossils, artifacts, and elephant memorabilia. Two Tails Ranch is a real hidden gem run with love and purpose. If you're even remotely interested in elephants, this is a must-visit. Patricia and her family are doing wonderful work. I highly recommend visiting and supporting their efforts. read more

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What an experience!! I got to do the extreme encounter for my bday and it was so worth it! We got to bathe one of the elephants, see some other animals on the property, take a short ride on one, and take some close up pictures as part of our experience. I definitely recommend using the bathroom or getting some food before arriving at two tails unless you want to use the portable potties; there's also no snacks or water sold on property or anything close by. If you're looking to book the ride on the elephant I recommend booking ahead as they have limited spots that get filled quickly. Overall, we had a super informative session where we learned a lot of facts and got to ask questions. read more

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Loved the extreme experience and being able to feed, ride, and brush the beautiful elephant. Highly recommend the experience.

Asha the elephant, from the Natural Bridge azoi in Virginia, that we fought hard for years to get released to a sanctuary, is at Two Tails. Asha is not resting and just being allowed to be an elephant, no that elephant is never allowed to retire. They have her doing the same thing at Two Tails that we tried to rescue her from in Virginia. Putting people on her back and giving rides for money. So they are not helping her just using her more all with smiles probably telling you how much she loves it. I challenge them to ride people on their back every day snd see how long they like it. Shame on them read more

Our visit was amazing! I took four mature ladies & we loved it like we were kids. Two of us had been to Africa twice, yet, I learned even more in Patricia's opening session. The work load that Patricia handles as a mostly one person show is tremendous. It is labor of love for her, she genuinely cares personally for each individual elephant, she knows each of their individual needs & caters to those needs. Her manerisms may be short; yet, it's because she has done this for her whole life so she has repeated the same lines forever. Without question her intentions for the animals are all the best. I highly recommend a visit and contribute as you best you can, the expense to feed an elephant is as enormous as they are. Thank you, Patricia for the care you give these creatures. read more

This place is amazing!!! Definitely do the ultimate elephant experience!! My wife and I did it and it was awesome! Super informative and very personal! I would give her 10 stars plus! read more

Two Tails Ranch - Up close and personal experience! - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

This place has been on my "to-do" list since moving to Florida. I'm so glad my family and I were finally able to make the journey. Upfront...this experience is like no other, I highly recommend it for all ages and if you do it...you will be glad you did. You will be up close no matter which tour option you choose, either is an experience like no other. I did the Extreme Elephant Experience...and want to do it again! I never thought I'd like scrubbing an elephant so much! It is the goal of the Two Tails Ranch, and especially owner Patricia Zerbini, to educate people about elephants in general, but more importantly...elephants in captivity. Moreover, Patricia educates on the importance of elephants being endangered and the importance of breeding programs. I learned so much! Patricia Z. seems very passionate about the animals and cares so very, very much for them. I was amazed to learn what she does here and the impact the ranch has had. Facilities from all over the United States count on her for various reasons as well. This is a very important place in more ways than one, and it's the only one of its kind. Yes, it cost me money, but I feel truly blessed to have been given this opportunity to learn about the elephants. In the end, it is money well spent for you and much needed for the elephants. Remember when you visit that this is not a sanctuary...it is a ranch. On a ranch, things get dirty, it's not Disney, nor any other high-dollar theme park or touristy farm...it's a ranch quite literally and a private home to a certain extent. The way I see it, you are being invited on private property to help educate you (the public) about the elephants. The money you pay for tickets and/or experiences goes to the elephants and pay the bills. Once you learn what they eat every day, and then intern the maintenance every day...you will be in shock. So, if you don't want to sit on a dusty bench, don't want to get dirty from walking around on the tour, don't like parking on the grass, or using a porta-potty to name a few...this is not a gig for you. However, if you truly want to learn about the elephants (and the other critters on the ranch), have an amazing up-close experience, and don't mind the ranch atmosphere...then this is a place for you. Patricia is very nice. At first, I think she seemed a little brash. But I put myself in her shoes and can only imagine what she deals with, and I'm sure it gets old. People spout off, review, talk smack, etc. about things they don't understand, nor have the expertise on...and she has decades of experience and is giving these elephants and the other animal residents their best life. The way I see it, when she opens that gate to let folks in, she has no idea what is coming through it daily and what she may have to deal with. I commend her because I can only imagine what she deals with, and some folks can be mean-spirited with what they think they know or heard. No matter what your beliefs are...come with an open mind and be ready to learn from an expert with decades of experience, and not judge. You will learn a lot and may just be amazed, or surprised. Likewise, all the employees are nice and all of them love the elephants. I truly believe anyone can learn something here, it's well worth a visit, and you will get a better understanding of the importance of this ranch. Oh, and...the elephants living here live longer than in zoos or the wild due to their daily activities, exercise, care, and expertise of Patricia. read more

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This was one of the worse places I've ever been to. it's a total rip off. First the owner is very rude and acts like she don't want to do her job but collect money. $5 to feed the elephant was 2 small carrots ridiculous. $25 for a picture with the elephant was taken with your own phone camera. Thank god it was to cold to ride the elephant for $40. I couldn't imagine what that would of been like. I would never recommend this place to anyone. Plus we were a group of 50 people and everyone felt the same way. read more

Very informative about the elephants and what is going on with the world population of them.

This was one of the most maddening experiences of my life. The place was disgusting. The chairs we sat on were covered in rust and cobwebs. We drove in to what looked like an old trailer park. The enclosures were so small I can't imagine they're happy there. She said she hates animal activists, which was a huge red flag for me. I saw her kicking the trunks of the elephants later and now after reading reviews, I'm disappointed that I patronized this place. Now I understand why she hates animal activists! If you've ever watched tiger king...this is VERY similar. Someone needs to shut them down. Reading the description here: there were zero demonstrations. Zero male elephants painting. It was "here are my elephants. Pay attention or you will be yelled at." The girl running the place was one of the most cold people I've ever met. She seems to think the environment overseas is the reason for them being extinct without realizing that people go over there to kill elephants and sell their ivory. She painted a very poor picture of elephants. She was extremely rude and actually criticized a family with kids (kids were being kids) bc they were so uncomfortable with her cold attitude. She acted as if the people coming to see the elephants were an inconvenience to HER. Also, trigger warning: there's lots of right-winged support and shoved down your throats. For example, "animal activist nut jobs" blocked the previous administration's attempts to allow for the import of endangered species. Of course, it wasn't that. It was the importing of animal tusks for money. She seems to think she is above everyone. She was a cold, rude, and treated the animals poorly. read more

We went in thinking there would be more to the overall experience but you do get the sense that owner really does care for her animals. There's just not much to do on the basic level of admission and there is quite a bit of up-selling going on while you're there. read more

Two Tails Ranch - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

This place was fun but the owner was undone! My sister and I had a great time. We went to hang out with the elephants. We did the ultimate experience where we got to feed, bathe and hang with a couple elephants. The experience was great. The owner not so much. She most definitely is not a people person. She isn't very friendly, she smokes cigarettes at chance she gets (even hiding behind elephants while you are interacting with them) she seemed very annoyed with people and their questions. Yes, some people may not be bright but she pretty much let them know it by her reactions and answers. She was surprised no one else had questions. I'm sure everyone was afraid to ask as her responses wasn't always pleasant. She may do good with these animals but she didn't do well with the folks who were there trying to education themselves more. Worth the money if you can ignore folks like her. We went to hang with elephants and we did just that. Would he go back or recommend.. probably not. read more

Two Tails Ranch - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

It seems to be closed. There's no response to calls re appointment scheduling, or even a hello !

Highly recommend going to have one and one experience with the elephants! Elephants in the US will be extinct in the next four to six years, so please go and support the care of these amazing animals! It may be difficult to contact the owner for a reservation, but be persistent. Do the Extreme Tour if you want to bath the elephants. I do wish we had more time and an intimate experience with the elephants and not just one. The Extreme Tour was suppose to be three hours, but it ours was one and half hours. The program felt a bit rushed. However, in the end we enjoyed ourselves. read more

Our family loved going here and spending a couple hours. Informative and fun at same time. Neat experience up close with the elephants. read more

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We were up close to the elephants. We got to feed and wash them. I highly recommend this place. read more

Two Tails Ranch - One of the many photos we took. - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

This is an elephants sanctuary. I like that the money collected here all goes to them. It's not a big park. It is nice. If you like this big huggable hairy animals you will enjoy the place, I did. They have different packages to choose. I had the one that included a painted picture by an elephant. A ride, feeding, picture taking and bathing of the elephants. The place opens at exactly 11 not a minute early lol. You will see cars lined up outside the gate, yes there is a gate. There is plenty of parking spaces once you are in. They have turtles, ostriches and other animals around near where you park your car. I recomend bug spray. They have a snack place and bathroom/ portables inside. The adventure starts with a educational lecture on the life of this beautiful creatures. You get to ask as many questions as you like. Then the elephant paints for you. He looks like he really enjoys this. The amount of elephants here can vary because it's a sanctuary and sometimes hotel for some elephants in between places. They then divide people in groups depending on your packages. I saw some people taking pictures. We headed to tje right. She then talked and showed us Zebras, Lemurs and big turtles. She talks about them too. It is hot here. My favorite thing here was the bathing of the elephants. I must say they do work you. But I pleasantly and surprisingly really enjoyed it. They are hairy creatures. The place had some mix reviews. After being here I can see why. This is not an average park This people really love what they do here. To take care of an elephant is a lifestyle not a job here. It takes a lot of your personal time and money. They don't get much help from organizations. The person in charge will tell you as it is. She doesn't hold back. Also the elephant's safety is tops. She will correct disturbing behaviors. read more

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Excellent, extremely informative and fun. The elephants are just amazing animals. The ranch is very well maintained. Highly recommended to everyone. read more

For $20 it's great to see the animals and watch the elephant paint the picture. They offer $20 to take a picture with elephant behind the cage but would recommend just paying $5 to feed them and have someone take the picture. Almost the same thing. To ride them it's $40 per person and it's maybe only for a min for a circle around. Really fun to do if you love elephants and haven't done it before. They need personal magnets in the gift shop read more

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THIS IS NOT A RESCUE! They rent out their "rescue" elephants for profit. That Information is coming straight from the Two Tails website itself! For events including but not limited to - Elephants for traditional Indian ceremonies Weddings, Bharat, etc. Museums, schools, hospitals, zoos, fairs, circuses, display, private parties, parades, republican conventions. They allow people to ride their elephants even though it is harmful to them. Also, why do any elephants need rescued in the US? These poor creatures are bought and used for profit under false pretenses of a rescue. They should be shut down. Please do not give them any of your money read more

Two Tails Ranch - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

For $20 you get a information session and a groups question and answer session. Then you get to watch their elephant Luke paint. Then for extra fees you can get close and take a photo with one of the elephants with your own camera, you can feed and elephant or ride one. You get to see the other animals there as well. All the money goes towards the care of the animals which is great. read more

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WOW!!! This wasn't only fun; but eye-opening as well! What an amazing learning experience! We're definitely going to visit again!! Addressing negative comments: The elephant population in this country is nearing the end of their lifespan, and are only here because of the circuses that imported them 50 plus years ago. Individual elephants were purchased and their trainers hired simultaneously, to replace teams of horses it took to set up and tear down shows. Elephants will rebel if mistreated, and, like most animals, will do the most with positive reinforcement, and loving cultured relationship of trust. The hook tool that gets so much bad press, is used because an elephant's skin is so tough and they have so many blind spots to know where their trainer is, or what they're being asked to do. While the original reason to import these animals to do work and perform, is less than admirable. Their primary function today is ambassadors to the remaining wild population who is being brought to extinction by massive habitat loss. A $10 admission, etc. is not making the ownership wealthy, who is caring for an animal that eats 400 pounds of food per day! As far as the owner's social graces, she's an animal lover, not a people lover. She works under constant pressure to serve the dietary and veterinary needs of the animals she cares for, and works too much to have any resemblance of a social life. The Tiger King comparisons are ridiculous while simultaneously calling her rude. That guy was about showmanship, being flashy, and illegally breeding tigers for profit; as cubs bring the most money.... Made impossible by choosing elephants as the animal to "profit" from. Placing ourselves in her shoes: You've got these beautiful animals, forced to live here 50+ years ago. Zoos can only handle so many. Something has to be done for them. How are you going to finance 3-500 pounds of food PER DAY, vet bills, facility costs, employees, and overhead per animal to care for it? Charge $20 for admission, and no one comes - so, photo ops, feedings, elephant art, and, yes, rides on a padded saddle for pine cone treats, and selling elephant poo to farmers!! Look closely at the residents here....Coats, shells, and feathers look, clean, fluffy and healthy, no ribs are showing, and spirts are lively. These critters are well cared for! Judgement is easy to come by. Just enjoy yourself, learn, and help support the care of these amazing animals! read more

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Quite expensive for the experience but we really liked that all proceeds go to help and feed the animals. Patricia knows her animals and took time to answer every question. Very informative. Paul was kind and especially helpful with questions and "crowd control". Definitely recommend this ranch as a place to learn and appreciate exotic animals. read more

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great place and i recommend the ultimate elephant tour. i can tell patricia is pationate about animal conservation. She does not mince words, but I agree with everything she said. staff is very open and honest and direct, but numerous as well. Great place to support! read more

This place is negative, you feel it as soon as you arrive. Not friendly AT ALL, bitter angry employees. The information given was very a matter of fact and said with no passion. Oh but they are passionate about their political views. Jeez if they gave a quarter of the passion they have from their politics this place might, just might be ok. And just to point out I could careless who they like politically. The ones my heart goes to are the elephants, poor things.. read more

I left this place feeling so sad. My significant other brought me here as a surprise for my birthday as i am a longtime Elephant lover. My dream was to be in the presence of an elephant and touch one. I was not prepared to witness their care giver (Patricia) be so cruel to the Elephant in plain sight. She was a terrible host and gave limited information about the animals. She was cold and just not friendly at all in general. Seemed like she was tired of doing the tour tbh. She did the absolute bare minimum in providing an educational experience. I am not sure what version some of these other reviews got... but that is not what I experienced today. I was compelled enough to leave an honest review of this place. I truly feel sorry for these beautiful creatures. Hopefully for the sake of these Elephants, this place gets shut down. read more

Went there on date wanting to a ride an elephant for my birthday but if you would want to ride an elephant they would have to have 4+ more people so it is dependent on others. I was told cause they would have to put the saddle on and everything and that it wouldn't be worth it if it was just one person. We did the hand feeding instead and so what that looked like is giving a single cut carrot slice to an elephant no more than that which also was a little disappointing. The owner is not the most friendliest and did come off as abrasive however, was informative about the state of animals and doing their best to spread the concern of just how dire things are when it comes to our animal kingdom. The experience left a bad taste in the mouth while at the same time supports local community and wildlife. read more

Two Tails ranch is an experience I will never forget as being awesome, fun and so interesting. The elephants, other animals, owner and staff were very interesting and engaging to us. My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed getting up close and personal with the elephants and animals. We did the extreme encounter tour that was worth every penny and that lasted almost 3 hours conducted exclusively by Patricia Z. (owner). It was especially interesting to learn a little about Patricia's life caring for elephants and how mankind was slowly crowding out the elephant and its natural habitat. Patricia has a first hand world-wide perspective and was engaging as well as easy to talk with. We learned so much about elephants, like how to tell the difference between African and Asian, their herding habits and their social disposition and instincts. The people at Two Tails have the passion and dedication to maintain a sanctuary for elephants that is nicer then any zoo I have visited and are to be commended for their efforts. They are dedicated to making as much of a difference as they can. It is so boring to read the remarks by lame brains putting down others for making a difference on their own without government funding. These nitwits want to see a spic and span, phony happy face like you see at Disney or similar for-profit businesses. It is hard for some to face the reality of dedicating your life to a noble cause no matter the cost in money or time. It is much easier to complain and criticize and minimize others because you do not understand sacrifice for something greater then yourself. Grow up!!!! read more

Don't go expecting a petting zoo or Ringling Brothers Barnum-Bailey Circus and it's def not an elephant rescue. Basically a no frills family owned animal ranch. The day we went we saw 2 elephants, lemurs, tortoises, elephants a camel and some big birds. The information the owner shared was basic and provided very matter the fact. From start to finish we were there about an hour and half mostly waiting, wandering around is not allowed. Bring your own drinks none seem to be offered. Small children will enjoy it. Personally, I wouldn't ride an elephant if they paid me but I suppose it's an excuse to milk more money from their guests. That said, we also could've done without the politics. As the trump yard signs don't show up until you're well into their property. Had they been at the entrance I'm sure I wouldn't have gone. read more

Interesting, informative and up close. It was reasonable price for the tour plus extra add-ons. Enjoyed the experience a lot!! read more

It's never okay to ride an elephant! It's cruel to subject an elephant to the tourist trade, and there is no way to do so without cruelty since cruelty is the means used to make elephants compliant. An organization that truly wants to help elephants would never propagate the practice that is putting the wild elegant populations in places like India, Thailand, and Cambodia are risk. And you use bull hooks? You're no better than a circus. I was so excited to have found you. I was a little suspicious of the trick pony photo with the banjo player and the elephant with its leg up, but it was when I went to purchase an experience for my family that the truth revealed itself. read more

Great place to see elephants being taken care of, staff members are always there and making your experience so memorable and welcoming.

We had an incredible experience at Two Tails. Seeing these beautiful animals up close was indescribable. The woman who runs the sanctuary and her family are incredibly knowledgeable; the experience starts out with an informational session followed by Q/A. There weren't time limits so everyone who had questions got to ask them before going on to the photo op, feeding, and elephant rides. The elephants at Two Tails live good lives under the care of people who truly have their well-being in mind. A lot of the negative reviews around are from supporters of PETA and other extremist animal rights groups, please read carefully and mind their bias. read more

Two Tails Ranch - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

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Listen.... I'm sure you are sick of people asking the same questions over and over... most of which I'm sure you think are stupid. And I'm sure people are annoying. And I'm sure people wander off. Or a phone rings during your speech that you've repeated so many times that you have no f*cks left to give.., but guess what. It's called running a business. If you hate what you do that much in regards to the general public, then figure out a way to support the elephants on your own. The annoyance from Patricia is palpable. How people keep coming to this place is beyond me. Oh wait,.. it's for the amazing elephants! That's right.... I forgot bc I was so appalled at her sh*tty attitude towards young and old alike. If it wasn't for the elephants, I would have walked out 5 minutes after I got there and heard her yell at a woman from across the grassy lot bc she had pulled in after everyone had parked and proceeded to say "HEY! HEY! HEY! Back up your car and move it over where it belongs!!" which the lady did... about 2 feet to the right. Then she yelled at the crowd "This is a GUIDED tour. If you wander off I WILL yell at you! Any questions?!!" Woo hoo!! And off we go! Let the tour begin..... so we sat in a covered area that made me wish I was sitting on a more comfortable bed of nails... oh wait... it basically was. Man if only ONE of the FOUR fans in the seating area would have worked, I could've avoided turning into a puddle... Nevermind... the wind rushing past my face from the dozens of dirt dinners, flies, no seeums, and hornets will keep me cooled off. Ok now to the Q&A... I'm literally dying inside every time someone repeated a question... "LIKE I SAID BEFORE, blah blah blah." I've never seen so many people try to crawl inside themselves out of embarrassment. When your 7 year old says, "mommy, why is she so angry at us" then there's a problem, Houston. I'm not a Navy seal, but I guarantee you there are several military people who walk through her gates that experience some PTSD from boot camp when she's barking at everybody for everything. "Africa doesn't look like what you all think. It's not what the movies show. They show you what you want to see. They don't show the elephants that are just meat hanging off bones, of disease and sickness." "Do you get any federal aid?" "No, i don't want to owe them anything." I'm not saying she's wrong in what she said, I know she speaks the truth as other reviewers said who for some reason gave 4 &5 stars (mind blowing) but I'm paying $600 for 3 of us to have some fun with some majestic creatures, not spend 2 hours in the heat, surrounded by foul negative attitudes feeling like I had just barely survived the stay without getting spanked and sent to the corner to think about what I had done. I mean, when I go to bring my 16 year old to buy his first car, I'm not hoping the sales man brings out a big expandable file folder chock full of car wreck pictures and decapatations and drunk driving disasters followed by a visit to the morgue after the DARE program finished at the sales desk. We enjoyed the actual elephants, Patricia, not so much. It was definitely an experience... I do wish I didn't have to spend the whole car ride home answering my sons questions about why Patricia yelled so much, snapped at the people, and made everyone feel like they were inconveniencing and annoying her with every breath they took. Look...You can choose every day whether you want to push through with a smile, a good attitude, and a positive demeanor, or take out your frustration, and fed up attitude with a scowl and a well timed cigarette behind an elephant... the choice is yours, Patricia. read more

My husband is the BEST! For Valentine's Day, he scheduled us an extreme encounter at Two Tails Ranch. I'm not going to lie, I was a little hesitant to go considering all of these horrible reviews - BUT - Patricia put my mind to ease. Seeing her with the elephants and hearing her talk about how passionate she was showed me exactly how much she cares. Because we purchased the extreme encounter, we were able to give an elephant a bath, ride an elephant, take photos with an elephant, feed the elephant and receive an elephant painting from Luke. It was amazing!!!!! read more

Two Tails Ranch - Patty :) - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

Underwhelming and disappointing experience. Owner isn't even remotely nice or pleasant. She yelled at children. Answered questions with snark. Used pokers on the gentle beasts. This isn't a sanctuary where these beautiful souls are living. They're still being used for entertainment. Also, I think the three Trump signs at the entrance were incredibly tacky. But luckily for most it said everything and definitely set the tone for the day. The port a potties had no soap, sanitizer, etc. Thankfully I had baby wipes and shared them with everyone. Save your money and donate it to WWF or another organization that actually uses it for good and not profit. read more

Not at all what I expected. The tour is looking at a few sad animals in pens. Tiger King vibes.

Completely speechless! Such an amazing experience please come and do the extreme encounter!!! Worth every single penny read more

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The tour only lasted 45 minutes and their brochure says tours are 1 & 1/2 to 2 hours long. At $40 pp and $5 to only feed one carrot is ok if you feel like you are helping those animals but not worth it otherwise. We weren't up close...hands on with these elephants. The staff seemed unhappy about doing the tour. If you get the chance to travel to Asia, the elephant sanctuaries there are hands-on fun! read more

Two Tails Ranch - Zoos Near Me - Williston, Florida

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