During my time in Northern Thailand, I had the incredible opportunity to visit the Elephant Nature Park. The Elephant Nature Park is one of several sanctuaries changing the lives of hundreds of abused elephants who were mistreated in Chiang Mai.
Why is it important to find an ethical elephant sanctuary in Thailand?
Simply put – wild elephants won’t let humans ride them. In order to make elephants obedient enough for tourism (or logging), they need to be captured at a very young age. The babies are then tortured into submission. They are imprisoned in very small spaces, beaten, starved, deprived of sleep, and pierced with bullhooks until they are so fearful their spirit breaks. Seeing the scars and mutilation of the rescued elephants was absolutely horrifying. I was so grateful they were no longer living in such inhumane conditions.
Even with increased awareness in recent years – elephant riding, cruel living conditions, and abuse are still rampant. Unfortunately, some sanctuaries now even prey on tourists by branding themselves as “ethical” when they are not.
How to know if the sanctuary you are visiting is ethical?
Just like everything when it comes to travel, research is key. Here are some important factors to keep in mind.
- NO RIDING policy: It’s hard to believe because of their size but elephants cannot hold the weight of a human on their back without being severely injured over time. We saw the tragic consequences of elephant riding at the park, several rescued elephants could barely walk and their spines were horrifically bent.
- Are their volunteers? If a company isn’t non-profit, it’s important to consider where your money is going. If the establishment relies on volunteers it’s likely more of your money is going directly back to the care of the elephants.
- Website Research: What does Tripadvisor say? Have they received press coverage? Where do their elephants come from?
- What activities do they allow with their elephants? Ethical establishments focus on feeding and observation, some allow visitor interaction during bath time. (Note: since I visited Elephant Nature Park they have stopped visitors assisting in the elephant’s bathe. This is part of the next phase of Elephant Nature Park to offer elephants a chance to live as natural a life as possible.)
What to expect at the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai
We were picked up at 07:30AM from our Chiang Mai hotel. On the way to the sanctuary, they play a National Geographic documentary about the park.
On arrival, it’s breakfast time for the elephants. We were taken to a viewing platform to give the elephants fruit. Each elephant had so much personality, it was hilarious to watch them interact with each other as they munched away.
After this, we were taken down to the river to help the elephants bathe. Now that the policy has changed around this, you will get to observe them in the water from the bank as they bathe. While I enjoyed hopping into the river, I think this was the right decision by Elephant Nature Park. It has become a very popular attraction so they have a lot more visitors that could potentially disrupt the elephants.
Before we started the afternoon excursion we had a wonderful vegetarian buffet.
We then broke into small groups of 10 and explored the park with a member of staff. We were told the individual stories of each elephant we passed. From how long they’d been at the park, to their background, what their personality was like, or any challenges they were currently facing – this was my favourite part of the day. We also got an insight into what led our guides to volunteer at the park and how the sanctuary ran.
Transport back to Chiang Mai was then provided that evening.
- Are you a fan of ethical wildlife encounters? Why not check out my guides to:
How to book Elephant Nature Park Chiang Mai?
Follow this link to make an online booking in advance. I highly recommended booking before your trip as they sell out year-round.
I chose to do the full day trip from Chiang Mai which cost 2,500 THB.
Visiting an ethical elephant sanctuary was a highlight of my time in Thailand, they are truly incredible creatures. I am relieved awareness and concern for animal welfare in Thai tourism is improving and can only hope that continued efforts of responsible travelers like yourself force operators to move away from unethical practices.