A Better Alternative to Elephant Riding | Chiang Mai based elephant sanctuary

When you look up things to do in Thailand you stumble upon an array of elephant activities. They all look pretty affordable so you think, why not, that's a cool experience that will spice up my Insta feed?! Unfortunately the tourism industry has some dark secrets and elephant tourism is one of them.

As part of my 10 days in Thailand, I sent a few in Chiang Mai I was lucky enough to visit an elephant sanctuary, The Elephant Nature Park. There we learned about the grueling process of taming wild elephants for tourism.

I want to share a few things that resonated with me. But if you don't feel like reading on, just take away this one piece of information:

Key Takeaway

Don't ride elephants and if an "animal sanctuary" offers elephant rides, they're NOT A REAL sanctuary.

4 things I Learned about Elephant Tourism

1. Babies are separated from their mothers

To get started in the industry wild baby elephants are taken away from their mothers after birth. Why? Because you can't train a large wild elephant without some serious risk, while a baby is small and easy to manipulate. 

2. Their spirit is broken through Phajaan

After they're captured they're taken out into the forest, chained up and beaten. This process is known as "breaking their spirit" or "phajaan" and it's a way for the elephant to learn that the human is the dominant and they need to listen to their commands. 

3. painting and circuses are torture not entertainment

After the baby is tamed they are shipped off to be trained in all sorts of things, it can be anything from the lumbar industry to tourism. In tourism they can be seen in circuses, performing tricks. You may see an elephant "painting" well it's not like they have a passion for the arts. They have their master poking sharp objects in their ears in order to maneuver their heads. 

4. Elephant's backs are not structured to support human weight

And yes, riding an elephant is horrible. In fact while elephants are massive animals, their backs are not structurally made for riding. At the end of their "career" they often retire because their backs are deformed and broken from the stress. 

*The above 3 are not my photos but used to highlight the issue

What YOU Can do to Stop Bad Elephant Tourism

I'm sharing all of this not to upset you, or shame you if you've done these activities in the past. My parents took me on elephant rides as a kid and they just didn't know any better.

I'm just trying to raise awareness and help spread the word.

1. Don't go on elephant rides

If less people chose to partake in these activities then they'll stop. Basic supply and demand (thanks Econ 101). So simply put - don't ride elephants.

2. Don't give your money to companies that offer elephant rides

If you want to spend time with elephants I highly encourage you to look for somewhere that doesn't offer elephant rides. There are many "conservation" or "eco parks" for elephants in Thailand, but if you can ride elephants there then they're pure b.s..

You can chose to spend a day with elephants or volunteering for an extended time at the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai.

Below are a few pictures of our experience at The Elephant Nature Park. We spent the day walking with them and giving them snacks. When we visited we bathed them in the river, however Elephant Nature Park has since changed their policy so there are no bathing tours offered anymore. Now you can go down by the river and watch them bathe by themselves.

Because these are retired elephants, and not wild, the risk of charging and injury is minimal. They were very friendly, especially if you're holding a banana. 

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An elephant on our walk at the Elephant Nature Park

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