Elephant tourism is a hot topic in Thailand and we chose to go the route of not riding these beautiful animals at a sanctuary near Chiang Mai. Soon after checking into a nice backpacker hostel in the Old City, a whole variety of tours are presented to us. I’m not really a tour person but we mentioned elephants and our ever-eager hotelier nudges us towards a lesser-known camp that could use the support. We asked her at least five times if this is the bad kind of elephant sanctuary because if so, they can have someone else’s money. The next morning, a man named Ding Dong (DD) picked us up and took us along with five or six other people for a short drive away from the city. This is how one of the most amazing days in our lives began.
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A Thai Elephant Sanctuary Without the Riding
“Whenever elephants met men, elephants fared badly.” – Carl Safina, Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel
Ethical Elephant Sanctuaries in Chiang Mai
You can book online through either the Elephant Nature Park or Elephant Retirement Park websites but in Chiang Mai, most hotels will want you to book directly through them. They’ll also offer a better deal and may have better intel. For example, whether or not the elephant sanctuary will be too busy when you plan to visit.
Background Info about Elephants
Before digging in and getting dirty, he gives us some background info about elephants and their place in Thailand. DD explained that elephants are a major symbol of Thai history and culture. However, these days their numbers continue to drop thanks to habitat destruction and a variety of other reasons. In 1989, the Thai government imposed a nationwide logging ban and created a surplus of unused animals. Desperate measures led to the boom in Thailand’s elephant tourism boom and eager visitors came calling. Numbers vary on just how many elephants there are in Thailand but DD noted about 3,500.
The Elephant Tourism Industry
Thankfully, the Elephant Retirement Park is one of only two in the Chiang Mai area that doesn’t offer rides. Some people might have different views on the elephant tourism industry, backed by anecdotes and testimonies from the camp owners themselves. The things we saw and heard on our day with the elephants convinced me that a life of riding is not in the best interests of these animals.
Revise that Bucket List
With so many elephant tourism parks throughout the country, it’s easy to get sucked into the bucket list topper that this has become. Nearly everywhere one looks in Chiang Mai, signs advertise a day out with them as a “truly educational experience.” Learn to control them and see how they live every day! Says one poster. It’s really hard to take sides on this because I know so many people who’ve ridden elephants. Honestly, I don’t think you can blame every tourist for doing this but DD said that there are countless riding camps because that’s what a large majority of visitors want. He hoped that more visitors like us will come and spread the word about this type of elephant experience.
Elephant Food Consumption
Being such massive creatures, I shouldn’t have been surprised at the numbers that DD threw out when talking about daily consumption. One full-grown elephant drinks 20 liters of water and eats 150–300 kilograms of food each day. I’m still trying to physically comprehend these figures. They taught us a few words that notify the elephants to open their mouths, hug, and kiss. All very valuable phrases and I quickly tried to remember them, because it was then time to go down and play with the elephants. We watched one of the staff who’s standing next to one and gripping a handful of sugarcane. He raised his hand, said “bohn,” and placed his food-filled hands into their enormous mouths. Then, it was our turn. Most of us cringed as the elephants grabbed their meal and slobbered all over our hands in the process.
Elephant Command Words
I stood there facing him with a handful of sugarcane and there he was with the appetite of 40 human beings. In my life, I never expected to be standing in front of a retired elephant with nothing more than a handful of sugarcane but they say dreams can come true. I said “bohn“ and his mouth opened, exposing a mouth similar to mine but just… bigger, much bigger. Timidly, I placed the sugarcane in his mouth and almost expected to lose my hand. It comes out fully intact but he wanted more food. Repeating the exercise until I ran out, the guides said “goht” and he gave me a massive hug with his trunk. I then heard “joop” and feel a huge suction against my cheek, as he gave me a huge kiss. That feeling is so hard to describe but afterward, I possessed so much love and warmth for this beautiful creature.
The Perfect Day
I didn’t want this day to end but if it did right then, I’d have still been a very happy person. DD reveals the rest of his plans as he brought out a pile of clothes with instructions for us to put them on. Elephants not only drink copious amounts of water but also depend on it to provide sanctuary from the powerful sun. After changing and getting ready, the group headed down and we could see a couple of elephants proceeding toward the water. There’s very little more than I can say other than this being one of the most wonderful experiences in my life. We got dirty and watched the elephants play in the water like any normal person would on a hot day.
Bath Time!
Volleys of water went between the elephants and us. Occasionally, one trumpeted and reminded us and we all stopped for a second before realizing that it was all in fun. We moved to a nearby muddy spot for fresh coats to be applied to their skin as further protection from the sun and mosquitos. Generous helpings of mud flew around in all directions and sometimes, a few of us got carried away. The elephants shook things up and splashed mud on our faces. Another dip in the pool later and somehow, the day was almost over. We stood for pictures with our new friends and got a few more hugs and kisses. Before getting into the van to come home, one of the younger little giants stopped by and said goodbye to us all, with his ears and tail happily flopping around.
Our Thoughts and Yours, Too!
I’ll never brag that I knew better about the riding industry and elephant sanctuaries. People can decide whether or not they want to ride the elephants. All I can do is tell everyone about this experience and hope they’ll want more of the same. If you visit either and see that people are riding elephants, please let me know. I will definitely rethink whether or not this camp should be promoted.
Do you want to visit the Elephant Retirement Park? What are your thoughts on this place? Spread the Awareness! Share this post with your friends to show them there’s a good side to the elephant sanctuaries in Thailand. We’d also love to read your thoughts in the comments section below:)
This article was originally created on October 9, 2015. It has been maintained and updated (as of March 3, 2018) to reflect current viewpoints and travel trends.
Thanks for sharing this. More awareness needs to be created on this subject. Will visit this place when I go to Chiang Mai next. Elephants are lovely creature.
Thanks for stopping by, Allison! I hope you enjoy your time playing with the elephants:) Take care.
I liked the fact that you chose not to ride them. Whenever someone asks me what to do in Chiang Mai I tell them to visit the Elephant Nature Park. I once rode an elephant, but I wasn’t aware of all the nasty things people do to them. I found out about it later and now I am a strong advocate of not riding them. Thanks for this article. I will pass it along if someone asks me about all the facts.
Hi Jo,
We looked into the Elephant Nature Park when in Chiang Mai but the lady at our hotel was pretty insistent (in a good way) about the Elephant Retirement Park, as it was a smaller operation. I keep hearing more and more from people about the former that it really makes me want to go back! I mean, other than Chiang Mai being an awesome place, this would be a perfect reason to revisit it! Thank you for your kind comments and for passing this on to your friends. I hope they enjoy it.
Take care and i hope you’re having a happy new year!
Oh man. I’m glad I read this! We’ve been stoked to ride an elephant but were completely oblivious to this. We just passed on a horse ride up a mountain because I sensed the treatment was wrong, so I should have known. We’ll definitely have to check this place out. (But we may have to walk, I won’t be able to convince the rest of the team to go on an organized tour LOL.)
Support the elephants, dude!
I think I could learn a thing or two from your tour-hating family, lol. There might be a way to go here without a tour but I think you’d have to stay a night or two on site. Either that or finding a “friendly” wild elephant that will let you and the kids play with them? Not sure man but glad to know you passed on that horse based on your gut. Seems like with those things, it’s best to go with your instinct if it doesn’t seem right, huh?
Thanks for commenting, Stephen! I hope y’all are doing well. Take care man.
Riding an elephant was high on my South East Asia bucket list too, until I visited Lek’s Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai. Truly humbling experience!
I wish we’d gotten into that one too but as our hotel lady pushed us, the Retirement Park needed the money and were trying to get on their feet. I hope more like them can spring up and take care of the elephants, the right way. Thanks for commenting, Dannielle!
Very cool! If more people interacted with elephants in the way that you did, they would be better protected and appreciated.
Thank you, Jim! I do wish more people would avoid the rides but unfortunately that glamorous photo of one sitting on top of a saddle certainly has a better ring to most folks. Appreciate you stopping by and can’t wait to see you in the near future:) Take care.
Hey Duke,
Thank you for sharing your experience at Elephant Retirement Park. I’ve read a lot about Elephant Nature Park in both the English and Mandarin travel blogosphere, but this is the first time I read about this alternative place to go if one is against elephant riding.
I gotta admit that riding an elephant was on my bucket list until August this year when I read http://www.dtravelsround.com/2015/08/11/truth-about-riding-elephants-in-thailand/ written by Diana Edelman on her blog.
If I have the opportunity to drop by Chiang Mai, I will definitely want to visit Elephant Retirement Park or Elephant Nature Park.
More travelers should know that one does not need to ride one of these majestic creatures to have a great time. I think your writings portrayed this very well. I’ll be sharing this post on Twitter. 🙂
Thanks for sharing that link, Wayne. I had to stop watching that video where they “crush” the elephants. It’s really horrible and the article really makes a point that I was wondering about. Most people just really don’t know because the mainstream media won’t allow this type of news to come out. Ignorance is bliss, huh?
Thanks for commenting. Take care, Wayne!
How wonderful that you got this chance to visit the elephants. Enough cannot be said for people who take on these kinds of projects. I wanted to visit the Poozenboot when I was in Amsterdam, but it was closed. How clever to keep stray cats on a houseboat 😉
Ok, I had to look this up and wow! The description alone sounds interesting but after having a look, I must go! Thank you for sharing that, Jeri!