Elephant Sanctuary Chiang Mai Day

If you are booking a trip to Thailand and you do not have an elephant sanctuary Chiang Mai day on your itinerary, CHANGE YOUR ITINERARY! Before you book an elephant excursion make sure to do your research.

Thailand Elephant History

Half of the elephants in Thailand are captive. Elephants are captured, abused, and domesticated for the Thai entertainment industry. Make sure you do not visit a park that utilizes these practices today. If an elephant is doing any unnatural behaviors such as painting, playing soccer, or giving people rides they are being abused.

About Elephant Nature Park

Elephant Nature Park Website

We chose to go through Elephant Nature Park because of their promise to provide endangered species a safe place to live and thrive. It was important to us to give these rescued animals the love that they deserve.  Elephant Nature Park has been recognized by the Smithsonian, National Geographic, Time Magazine, and the list goes on and on. If you are going to Thailand check them out!

Nature Park Options

The main Park is in Chiang Mai and their satellite locations are all over Thailand and Cambodia. We chose the Saddle Off Satellite location, Elephant Freedom – Single day option. So what’s the difference between the main nature park and the satellite locations?

The satellite options provide a more intimate setting with the elephants and smaller tour groups. You get to feed them, walk with them in the jungle, and bathe them. This location had 6 elephants including an 11 month old baby elephant, so adorable! The satellite location only had a couple elephants and a few dogs whereas the main hub nature park is home to many elephants, dogs, cats, and buffalo.

The reason we chose the Saddle Off satellite location was because of its size. The main nature park hub draws in large groups of tourists whereas the satellite brings in one small group at a time. We highly recommend the satellites if you are looking to get close with the elephants and avoid large groups of people during your elephant sanctuary Chiang Mai adventure.

Tickets & Transportation

• Ticket price: $70 USD per person
• Time Duration: 8:30 am – 4:30 pm
• Transportation: They will pick you up from your hotel anywhere in the Chiang Mai region and drop you back off when the day is done. It takes about an hour and a half south from the main city of Chiang Mai to the Saddle Off satellite location.

Feeding the Elephants

The first part of the excursions starts with chopping buckets and buckets full of bananas and melons. Elephants on average eat 50 gallons of food a day so you can understand there was quite a bit of chopping to do.

Try and picture a group of about 15 people chopping up these fruits. The elephants spot us and can’t take their eyes off of us. The elephants are so friendly and VERY happy to see us with these buckets. They took the fruit right out of our hands and stuck their trucks out for the next banana. The amount of food these creatures consume is INSANE.

Not only are they beautiful creatures, they are highly intelligent. The elephants decided to play a little joke on us. The adult elephants were behind a wooden fence to keep them from eating all of the food at once. After about 5 minutes of feeding an 11 month old baby elephant comes from behind the fence. The group fell in love with her and she basked in their affection. Meanwhile, the adult elephants teamed up and stole all of the baskets of food right behind us! Time is food in their eyes!

Elephant Jungle Walk

After all of the food was gone we walked with the elephants in their natural setting. The walk through the mountains was breathtaking by itself, add in the giant elephants and the sight is indescribable. You could sit for hours and watch the elephants scale up the side of the mountain or stomp through the overgrown trees. The best part was knowing the elephants were free and loving life again. One of the many benefits from an elephant sanctuary Chiang Mai freedom experience.

Another great view was watching the baby and its parents interact. They are very similar to humans. The parents kept a close eye on their baby, but still let her go off and explore. The baby was playing in the mud and then accidently tripped over herself. Her parents sprinted to her side instantly. They are extremely protective of each other.

They also feel emotions like people do. You had to earn your trust with the elephants but once this happened they connected with you on another level. This was our favorite part. We were able to pet and help feed them. We even got to play in the mud with the baby. Rain sprinkled in and out all day, so the elephants were rolling around in the mud and having a heyday.

Once we got all of our pictures we met up with the rest of the group at lunch. Lunch was provided, it was the typical Thai dishes. There was also a vegetarian option available. The food was pretty average. It lasted about an hour, which was plenty of time. Once lunch ended, it was bath time!

Elephant Bath

Lastly, it was time to wash all that mud off. We walked with the elephants down a path and they ran into a river. They loved the water, some of them just sat in the water and let people shower them like they were at a salon. The baby of course splashed people with her truck, similar to how a toddler would splash others at the summer pool. Do watch out though, pooping in the bath is not off limits to the elephants!

Once the baths were over, the elephants got out of the water and rolled right back into the mud. We walked back to the main park alongside the elephants as they continuously threw mud on themselves and the rest of the group. We sadly said our goodbyes to our new friends (elephants, peers, dogs, and all). They then drove each group back to our hotel at 4:30PM.

Understanding The Elephants

Remember these animals were brought up in captivity. They are used to humans and enjoy the interactions especially if you have food. Many people in the group were intimidated by the large animals and kept a distance. If you want to get the full experience, interact with the animals as much as possible. Talk with the tour guides to understand the elephants’ likes and dislikes and learn about their history. Some of the elephants have scars and were abused on specific parts of their bodies. Ears are especially sensitive to them. The guides will fill you in on all of the specifics. They have so much to share with you about the elephants and life in Thailand. The guide allowed us to explore the forest with the elephants and get the most incredible photos while the rest of the group headed back to lunch.

Elephant Sanctuary Chiang Mai Conclusion

Overall, incredible adventure. One of the top 10 things I’ve ever experienced. Not only do I recommend visiting an elephant sanctuary, I demand it. You have to do this, you will not regret it. Not only are you gaining amazing memories, you are providing homes for once abused, now endangered animals.

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For more Thailand adventures check out our The Ultimate 10 Day Thailand Itinerary