Marriott Faces Scrutiny Over Wildlife Tourism and Egg Sourcing
- Wendy Kaplar
- Jun 10
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 22
An investigation into wildlife tourism and food sourcing in Southeast Asia has placed renewed scrutiny on David Marriott, chairman of Marriott International and a trustee of the National Geographic Society.
The investigation, released June 9, 2026, by the International Council for Animal Welfare, examines wildlife tourism attractions and food suppliers in Thailand and Bali, Indonesia. Investigators say the facilities are connected to Marriott-linked travel offerings and the company’s food sourcing network.
Investigators conducted fieldwork in Southeast Asia in March 2026 at tiger and elephant tourism sites, Kopi Luwak facilities, and egg suppliers. They documented welfare concerns at each, including battery cages at some egg suppliers despite Marriott’s public cage-free egg pledge.
The International Council for Animal Welfare argues that Marriott’s tourism and sourcing practices conflict with the National Geographic Society’s conservation mission.
The investigation includes footage from tiger attractions promoted through Marriott-linked tourism. In one video, a worker appears to strike a tiger cub. Other tigers appear so subdued that investigators described their behavior as consistent with sedation.
Dr. John A. Knight, former veterinary officer with Regent’s Park Zoo and the Zoological Society of London, evaluated video evidence included in the investigation.
In his assessment of Tiger Park Pattaya in Thailand, Knight wrote that several tigers appeared “unnaturally quiet” and displayed severely muted responses to stimuli. He suggested medication may have caused their condition but emphasized that investigators would need further evidence to determine whether any substances were used.
He also found that several tiger enclosures lacked enrichment, limiting the animals’ ability to climb, explore, hide, and retreat from public interaction.
A separate veterinary review of Nongnooch Wonder World and other elephant attractions in Chonburi, Thailand, described the facility as clean, well-built, and well-organized, while also raising concerns about elephant rides, prolonged tethering, visitor safety, and stress-related behaviors in some elephants.
That review also found that direct contact between tourists and elephants, including rides and close interactions, posed “significant public health risks and animal welfare issues.”
Several veterinary assessments focused on Kopi Luwak tourism facilities in Bali, where civets are kept in captivity for tourist displays and Kopi Luwak production. The coffee is produced after civets consume coffee cherries and pass the beans through their digestive systems.
Knight repeatedly described the enclosures as “depauperate environments” that failed to meet the animals’ behavioral and physiological needs. In addition, Knight also raised concerns about chronic stress, obesity, sleep disruption, lack of enrichment, and stereotypic pacing behavior.
The veterinary assessments note that palm civets are nocturnal, largely solitary animals that naturally spend their nights climbing and foraging. He found that repeated daytime interactions with tourists and confinement in small wire enclosures could disrupt normal rest, movement, and foraging patterns.
Knight warned that the civets shown to tourists may represent only a small part of the wider Kopi Luwak supply chain and called for broader inspections of supplier facilities.
