Chiang Mai | Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
Elephant tourism is one of the most exploited trades in Thailand. These beautiful animals are often beaten into submission so that tourists can come ride them and see them do tricks. The brutality of it all has inspired many locals to partner with villages to essentially save and protect these animals from such abuses. Instead, tourists are encouraged to come to sanctuaries like the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary to feed the elephants, bathe with them in the river, and interact with them more naturally.
EJS
Elephant Jungle Sanctuary is an ethical and sustainable eco-tourism project located approximately 60km from the city of Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand. Founded in July 2014, it is a joint initiative between members of the Karen hill-tribes and Chiang Mai locals who were concerned about the welfare of elephants in Thailand.
(Photo Credit: Ash Edmonds)
What to Expect
Cute elephants! You'll have a bit of a drive out to the sanctuary and expect to get dirty. There's three parts mainly:
Feeding the Elephants
Mudding the Elephants
River Bathing with the Elephants
You'll probably take a lot of photos and you'll be encouraged to show gentle affection towards these creatures. The staff is very enthusiastic and helpful, so feel free to ask all the questions you have. At the end of the interaction you'll have lunch, which mostly consisted of rice, chicken with potatoes, a salad and watermelon. Its buffet style so you'll go home pretty full if you want.
Things to Know:
You'll get picked up on time and ride in the back of a safari van with cloth covers.
We signed up for the 11:30 AM tour (the afternoon) and were only waiting for 10 minutes before the driver walked up to us. You'll probably meet other (hopefully friendly!) people in the truck and have the opportunity to make friends. There are many trucks that go out to collect patrons.
When you get there, the drivers and hosts will ask you to carry bananas for a 20 minute walk into the foliage.
The bananas are not heavy, but when you're trying to look out for your feet then it becomes a little uncomfortable. Regardless, if you're weak (like me.... ) have a banana carrying buddy - aka my best friend Kathy and I switched every once in a while so we could rest our arms.
Bring a change of clothes, a towel, and something warm.
You'll get very dirty bathing the elephants and getting in the water. Towards the afternoon, you'll actually get in mud and throw mud on each other before going into the river (also freezing). There are outdoor showers there, so you can dry off, change and go home in a presentable state. However, by that point, the sun is going down and the drive through the mountains gets a little cold. So bring some sweaters or some sweatpants so that on the ride home you can stay warm despite having wet hair.
After-Thoughts:
Nothing is perfect. For those of you that are concerned about animal rights - yes there is some research to suggest that this animal sanctuary may not exactly be a sanctuary at all. And I've done my best (post partum) to understand more about whether or not elephant sanctuaries should be promoted. Unfortunately, I've come to no real good conclusions.
In my honest opinion, the relationship these elephants have with the caretakers is genuine and kind. I think that from what I experienced, these elephants were happy, playful and treated fairly. They were gentle in their demeanor and the elephants seemed to respond well to the caretakers. (See photo above).
The Good
Are bananas healthy for elephants? According to Sarah Dean they are not. But A LOT of other research suggests that its a natural part of their diet, in addition to other foods, like bamboo leaves and canes (which they were also fed). They weren't on a strict diet of bananas and had leaves and other fibrous material to munch on, making this less of a concern.
Chiang Mai seems to be Vegan Approved, but... not all of them seem to hold their sanctuaries to the same standards. The same company that has roughly 10 sanctuaries around Thailand has a concerning Phuket location that questions whether or not it's ethical to donate to this organization. You can read about it in the vegan approved link because she breaks down some valid points on the differences between the sanctuaries.
The Bad
Overall
I went with my best friends and had an amazing time. Is it in their most natural habitat? I'm not entirely sure. I don't think so. But, all things considered: these elephants have a good life, and are treated well. If you can assure somehow that your funds are contributed to a specific tribe (like Chiang Mai) its probably worth it for you to visit. Otherwise, if you're concerned, the Elephant Nature Park will be your best option for complete assuredness that its fully ethical. Just beware: their waitlist fills up months in advance; sign up early. That's not to say that I feel unethical after visiting the EJS, its just that post-visit research does make me uneasy and hopefully they read some of these posts to demand change of the Phuket location. Its also a bit of a learning lesson for me too - researching animal abuses and companies ahead of time more thoroughly is probably worth the time and effort before unknowingly walking into a moral dilemma.