A Bucket List Experience: Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Feeding, bathing and swimming with Asian elephants at Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Chiang Mai, Thailand was an experience I’ll never forget. I wanted time to stand still just to have the opportunity to soak in every second with the most fascinating creatures I’ve seen in my 26 years of life. It brought tears to my eyes at how beautiful and majestic these huge animals were and at the same time the amount of personality they encompassed.
Seeing elephants up close and personal has been on my ever-growing bucket list for a while now. We missed our opportunity back in May 2017 when we had plans to honeymoon in Thailand. Due to passport issues, we ended up honeymooning on the island of Sardinia. I truly believe that timing is everything because I’m not sure if I would have treasured the time we spent with the elephants and in Thailand itself 2.5 years ago.
This was our fourth day in Chiang Mai and we were absolutely loving it so far. If you happened to read our pre-trip post “Next Adventure: Asia“, you probably know that visiting Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Thailand was part of our 23-day excursion through Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. We used a travel agent (Tropics and Beyond) and booked a fantastic package for our trip.
Table of Contents
Getting to Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
A private driver from the sanctuary picked us up at our hotel, Holiday Inn Chiang Mai, in a 4×4 and we drove about 1.5-2 hours up winding roads and down one very steep dirt road to get to the camp. We were the first ones to arrive, meaning we had the opportunity to spend a few minutes of peace and quiet with the elephants before the main group joined us at the camp. The rest booked their tours in downtown Chiang Mai and they were driven up in the back of a pickup truck (obviously with bench seats, but very typical transportation for Thailand). I much preferred our experience after hearing their bumpy ride stories.
Male elephant
Learning About the Elephants
After being led to an outdoor seating area that had a very Bohemian feel to it with rugs and comfy pillows to lay down, we were given traditional Karen-tribe village wear to put on over our clothes – and also to take home for souvenirs! Our guide for the day introduced himself and informed us about the elephants: how to handle them, where they are ticklish (near their armpits), how they behave, how many hours a day they eat (20!), how much they sleep (4 hours a day), and more. He explained the difference between Asian and African elephants, such as their size – especially in their ears – and the fact that Asian female elephants have no visible tusks. I enjoyed learning so much about elephants and he did a great job explaining things in English!
Time to Meet the Herd
A short tutorial about how to appropriately feed the elephants was given before sugar cane was passed around to the group. We took photos, felt their skin and rubbed their ears, learned their names, and spent plenty of time admiring the beautiful animals. As a group, we then trekked over to the next camp down the river and made it just in time to see the baby elephants taking a plunge in the mud bath. They rolled around playfully and it seemed to be the best thing in the world to them. It was a “pinch-me moment” watching these vivacious babies swim in the mud. Even better was when we went to take a photo in front of them and they used their trunk to squirt mud on us!
During the short hike back to our starting point (Camp 1), we passed elephants coming up the river immensely enjoying cooling themselves off in the water. They sucked up the cool river water into their trunks and then would squirt it onto their backs. I even spotted a few water buffalo lounging in the shade. This was one of the many reasons that I loved Elephant Jungle Sanctuary. They are just that – a sanctuary. The elephants have room to roam (of course not as much as in the wild), a river that they always have access to, mud ponds and large open barns to seek shade.
Lunch & Relax Time
One of my favorite parts of the day was following a delicious lunch, we were given time to relax on the rugs while overseeing the elephants in their habitat. I soaked up every minute watching them come up next to the fence near us and reach their long trunks over to pick the grass on the other side, meander through the barn to get some shade and play in the water to cool themselves off.
After lunch, we were tasked with creating the “protein balls” to feed them their vitamins and nutrients. A handmade machine was used to ground-up bark and sugar cane. We then stirred the bananas and rice and formed all the ingredients together into mushy, sticky balls. The instructions were to feed the protein balls directly into the elephant’s mouth – as opposed to earlier to their trunks – and the elephants knew exactly what to do! They lifted their trunks and opened their mouths wide!
Mud Bath & River Rinse
Time to play in the mud! We changed into our bathing suits and followed the elephants into the murky water. They seemed so exuberant to be rolling around and cooling off in the chilly water. Lathering the elephants up with mud helps to cool them down and protect them from the sun. Once they were nice and muddy, we walked down to the cleaner stream and rinsed them off with buckets provided by the sanctuary.
It was during this part of the day where Stephen and a baby elephant made an adorable connection. They were off in the river away from the group swimming together playfully and it made my heart swell. I had nothing to capture the moment, but it was one that I will try to remember forever when he looked up at me and I saw the glee in his eyes.
Teas & Goodbyes
The camp had showers, so we rinsed off and changed into the extra clothing we brought before being treated to coffee, tea, and some sweets. Shortly after, we followed our private driver back to the car and started toward the hotel.
It was, hands down, one of the best days ever and I hope you could sense that through reading this post. I not only encourage you to visit Elephant Jungle Sanctuary, but I urge you to do your research before visiting just any elephant sanctuary and to stay away from riding elephants.
Tips for Visiting EJS
We visited Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Thailand in mid-July and it was super hot and humid. I suggest wearing a tank top or a light shirt to go underneath the traditional Karen throw that they provide. You’ll also want to bring: good walking shoes, a change of clothes, bathing suit, towel, and plenty of sunscreen.
The full-day tour included transportation, lunch, water bottles, and coffee/tea/sweets at the end of the day.
About Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Thailand is an ethical elephant adventure. They were originally found in 2014 and currently have camps located throughout Thailand including in Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Phuket, and Samui. Having rescued over 100 elephants, they stick to their mission of providing as many elephants as possible with freedom and the health care they need. EJS supports local farms in the Karen tribe village so that their only concern is the well being of the elephant by providing them food, housing, all medical expenses for the elephant, and re-education. Elephants are rescued from riding and entertainment and logging.
Website: www.elephantjunglesanctuary.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elephantjunglesanctuary/
Stay tuned for more posts from our travels to Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam!
If you’re visiting Chiang Mai (or anywhere else), use the booking.com search engine below to find the perfect place to stay! Using this search engine helps us to maintain this blog and continue providing you with awesome posts like this!
One Comment
Pingback: