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Elephant Valley Thailand

Tourist attraction Wildlife refuge

👍👍 Awesome place! I learned so much about the elephants and got to cut banana trees that I then fed to the elephants. Also the two guides were so incredibly nice and kind and answered every single one of our questions. They are a truly ethical elephant sanctuary! I did the full day tour for 2.000 Baht... People often mention elephants, sanctuary, tour, Thailand, natural, experience, elephant, Elephant,


Address

RQ8H+XH7, Unnamed Road, Pa O Don Chai, Mueang Chiang Rai District, Chiang Rai 57000, Thailand

Website

www.elephantvalleys.com

Contact

+66 95 452 1974

Rating on Google Maps

4.70 (200 reviews)

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Working Hours

Permanently closed.

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: elephants (32) sanctuary (12) tour (8) Thailand (8) natural (7) experience (7) elephant (6) Elephant (6)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Ronja B. 4 years ago on Google
    Awesome place! I learned so much about the elephants and got to cut banana trees that I then fed to the elephants. Also the two guides were so incredibly nice and kind and answered every single one of our questions. They are a truly ethical elephant sanctuary! I did the full day tour for 2.000 Baht. It was just a bit too long in my opinion, a half day tour plus the optional volunteering would've been perfect (for me). Keep up the good work! 😊
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Kerry I. 6 years ago on Google
    This place is amazing. Our tour guide was jack, the manager. I did a lot of research about all the elephant sanctuaries because I didn't want to choose one that promoted riding elephants or circus elephants. I wanted to see elephants in their natural habitat and I feel the elephant valley sanctuary succeeds in that. Jack was extremely informative about the elephants in Thailand and his elephants. I'm really happy I chose to spend my money here and support all that jack does with these amazing elephants. You can also volunteer your time during the tour and help out with clearing vines for new trees to be planted or cut down banana trees for the elephants to eat! We loved helping out and seeing how much work it actually takes to care for these elephants.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Christopher S. 7 years ago on Google
    We had a lovely time joining one of the very first tours by the newly-opened Elephant Valley Thailand, a rehabilitative sanctuary for elephants rescued from the logging industry, which is run by the same owners as the Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia. The sanctuary is located about 25 minutes from the city center. Upon arrival, we were given an overview of the sanctuary and an introduction to their four elephants. The guide was knowledgeable and genuinely curious about and interested in the welfare of the elephants, biodiversity and conservation in Thailand, and our experience there as tourists. This is a no-ride sanctuary where the focus is on helping the elephants transition from their former lives as work animals to their new lives in the sanctuary. As such, much of the tour consists of observing the elephants of doing what they do best - eating, tearing down bamboo, wandering about, and interacting with each other and the mahouts. We were given heaps of information on the elephants' backgrounds, the process of rehabilitating them, their previous lives as work animals in the border areas, the lives of the mahouts, and the animals' biology. The guide also gave us the opportunity to converse and interact with the mahouts with his translation, which added another really cool element to the experience. A tasty lunch of local cuisine was provided on-site at a covered outdoor eating area. Following our meal, we were given the opportunity to feed the elephants some bananas (definitely the perfect moment for some shameless selfies). If you're looking to sit on an elephant's back and prance about the countryside, this is definitely not the place for you. But if you are genuinely interested in learning about the animals and the process, successes and challenges of rehabilitation, and peacefully observing them in their natural habitat, you will find this experience incredibly enriching and rewarding!
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Augustin 4 years ago on Google
    Beautiful rehabilitation centre for elephants that were used for tourist traps and logging. Incredible and caring staff who teach you so much about the work they do and about their elephants. There is no direct contact with the elephants apart from some feeding towards the end of the tour, but highly recommend this place for everyone going to Northern Thailand to visit. Please don't partake in locations riding (or even washing elephants for that matter) or that use the elephants for 'show'.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Adrian D. 5 years ago on Google
    Place where elephants live in their natural habitat. You observe them. There is no riding, no bathing. Only time when You are close is when they eat. You walk with a guide around. All takes around 3.5 hours. It is located near the White Temple. There are two tours a day. Price 1700 bhtt pp with pick up and lunch
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Alex A. 4 years ago on Google
    We stayed for 4 days and 4 nights to volunteer and HIGHLY RECOMMEND this sanctuary. This elephant project aims to rehabilitate elephants and get them back to behaving like elephants after cruel treatment for the benefits of tourists - circus, riding, trekking, bathing, constant hand feeding etc.. This project has a number of stages, kind of like primary/lower school, secondary/high school and university/college, that elephants graduate through as they rediscover their natural behaviours. There is a programme of hand feeding and chains at night but this is necessary rehabilitation and part of the process of undoing what other 'sanctuaries' have done in the past. Eventually the elephants will graduate to none of this through this project. It was amazing to collect and prepare food, maintain the sanctuary from poo collection (honestly it's fun!) and we helped repair a concrete slab. You'll get involved with whatever needs doing and whatever you feel comfortable doing. The elephants have such incredible individual personalities and for us this was the best sanctuary we found to observe them ethically. The accommodation was excellent and the food was both delicious and plentiful. The staff were friendly, fun and knowledgeable. Thank you so much to the whole team and if you are considering visiting or volunteering...just do it!

  • 5/5 Colin H. 4 years ago on Google
    Definitely worth a visit and a good way to see and experience the elephants in a more ethical way... There's no touching or washing or riding them here. You just get to observe from a distance. If you want you can stay a night or a few nights too. It's a bit on the expensive side compared to other Elephant tourism in Thailand but these are rescued Elephants from circuses, logging or tourism they just get to hang out trying to be themselves as best they can.

  • 5/5 Brandon B. 4 years ago on Google
    Thank you to JJ, Bim & Phon (sorry if spelt wrong) for having us at Elephant Valley, it was such an amazing experience and definitely the highlight of our trip to Asia! We did the full day tour/volunteering experience with overnight stay at the guest house which I would 100% recommend for anyone considering seeing elephants in Thailand! This is a true "sanctuary", totally hands off to tourists so you get to learn about and see first hand how these beautiful animals interact in their natural habitat which is incredible. Not only that but you get to help the keepers and staff prepare the elephants food, clean up their poo (more fun than it sounds) and genuinely help to keep the sanctuary a great place for the elephant to live . Thanks again Elephant Valley Thailand!

  • 5/5 Hojung K. 4 years ago on Google
    I did half-day tour including pick-up and drop-off to my places, Lanna-style lunch, and feeding experience. You can see elephants' natural behaviour, expressing their true emotion. :) Also I learned a lot about elephants with their own stories. It was meaningful time. I strongly recommend to visit there!(don't forget long-sleeved clothes and insect repellent!)

  • 4/5 Kyo L. 4 years ago on Google
    Thailand has lots of elephant "sanctuaries" not many of them actually are. But this place really tries to give the elephants a better and more natural home. Elephant first, tourist fifth, as it should be. Really nice place to visit and listen to the stories of these beautiful animals.


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