Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage - is it ethical to visit, and if not what are the better alternatives?

This is a question I am asked regularly and I will give you a completely honest answer based on what I know about elephant welfare from working with wildlife for 16 years.

What Pinnawala actually is: it began in 1975 as a genuine orphanage for abandoned and injured elephants, administered by the Department of Wildlife Conservation. Over time it has evolved significantly. It now holds around 80-100 elephants including multiple generations born at the facility. The rescue and rehabilitation function still exists for injured animals, but the primary activity for visitors is watching the elephants being led to the Maha Oya river twice daily for bathing.

The welfare concerns that are real:
The elephants are managed with bull hooks (ankuses) and are chained when not in managed activity. This is standard practice at government elephant facilities in Sri Lanka and widely criticised by international animal welfare organisations.
Tourists are permitted to feed the elephants and in some areas stand very close to them, which can be stressful for the animals.
Elephant rides were offered in the past and there is ongoing uncertainty about what contact activities are currently permitted - this changes periodically under regulatory pressure.

The river bathing: this is the main visitor draw. The walk to the river and the bathing itself looks natural and the elephants do appear to enjoy the water. However, the procession is managed for visitor convenience rather than the animals' natural schedule.

Better ethical alternatives for seeing elephants:
Udawalawe National Park - wild elephants in their natural habitat, consistently excellent sightings from a jeep with no animal handling involved. This is the recommended alternative for anyone who wants to see elephants ethically.
Elephant Transit Home at Udawalawe - a government facility that rehabilitates orphaned wild elephants with the explicit goal of releasing them back into the wild. Feeding sessions can be observed from a distance with no direct contact. This is the closest thing to a genuine rescue centre in Sri Lanka.

If you still choose to visit Pinnawala: observe from a distance, do not participate in any direct contact activities or feeding, and go early in the morning before the main tour bus crowds arrive.