Visit small elephant sanctuary operated by local family of elephant keepers whose knowledge passed down from generation to generation. Trek through the lush green forest and cool-down with a splash at a miniature waterfall.
From the operator’s live schedule on Viator, checked Oct 7.
Adventure with the local elephant keeper to forest trekking, enjoy a splash at the waterfall, and learn about their routine in keeping the Elephants.
Pickup time is 06:50 - 07:30. Please standby at your hotel lobby. If you do not see your hotel name in the list please specify. If your hotel is too far from Chiang Mai City, please meet us in the city.
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For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Half Day: Elephant Village Sanctuary lasts about 5 hours. The itinerary has 1 stop.
Prices start at $49 per person for this Chiang Mai experience, booked through Viator with the price shown before checkout. There is 1 booking option, so the final price depends on the option you choose.
According to the operator’s current schedule, it runs every day, starting at 7:00 AM.
Children aged 0–9 pay from $37, adults from $49.
Yes. Cancel at least 1 day before the start for a full refund. Later cancellations are non-refundable.
Yes, pickup is offered. Pickup time is 06:50 - 07:30. Please standby at your hotel lobby. If you do not see your hotel name in the list please specify. If your hotel is too far from Chiang Mai City, please meet us in the city. Pickup points include Amora Thapae Hotel Chiang Mai, Inthanin Hotel.
The experience is available in EN.
It is a small-group experience with a maximum of 15 participants.
Yes, bookings are confirmed instantly.
Travellers rate it 4.4 out of 5 across 8 reviews on Viator and Tripadvisor; it is run by Idaytrip.
Reviews collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
The experience was super cool, you see the elephants in their natural habitat and free, the guide explains many interesting things about them, you feed them, you prepare their medicine and they also give you food there harvested by them that is very good. Also I like that the elephants are free and not in a terrarium just for tourists. Without a doubt the best place.
This was a fantastic experience to meet the elephants in a natural surrounding The trip started badly as we were told to be ready from 6.50 and no-one tuned up until gone 8am. However from that point it was great. We arrived in the village and after a very steep climb down we arrived to a small talk about the elephants. Then we went on a trek through the jungle to find some elephants in their natural setting which was hard work but magical. We found two sisters one who was pregnant wandering in the jungle eating bamboo shoots and then we could watch them eating standing right next to them. They extended their trunks to say hello and smell us. Then we followed them for a while and then trekked through the jungle to find the remaining two. Please note this experience is only suitable for those with moderate fitness and you need good shoes and long trousers. We returned to the village via a waterfall stop to cool down for lunch tasty of egg fried vegetable rice and fruit. Then we learned how to cut Bamboo and how to make elephant medicine from herbs. Two elephants returned to the water and we gave them the bamboo and then they wandered off again. A real experience where you could get close to the elephants and learn about them without exploiting them. Fantastic well worth visiting this one.
This experience was once in a life time! Such a cool experience, felt natural and ethical to the animals. Staff was wonderful. Only thing of note- you are in the jungle and you walk some terrain that was way more treacherous than anticipated, would recommend hiking boots and or rainboots of your own to wear.
Really lovely day and very kind people. They really care about the elephants and it’s all very authentic and interesting. Highly recommend
I would have given this tour company zero stars if not for the guide, Cha who went out if his way to make sure I was safe. First of all, I signed up for morning tour but no one showed up. I had to Google the number to reach them but was informed they moved me to afternoon because no one else signed up. Another person told me, Ken missed my booking. At the sanctuary, the tour surprisingly included a difficult uphill trek in the jungle to a waterfall which I did not sign up for due to a heart condition. Thankfully, the guide stayed with me to make sure I was ok and offered me his water. The trail was so steep and slippery, I fell once. The elephant experience was wonderful and the caregivers were very kind. I’m disappointed this tour could have turned so much better.
Dear Cynthia, We are very sorry to hear about your unpleasant experience. We apologize again on behalve of our partner for missing your booking. That was unacceptable and we have taken steps to ensure it does not happen again. We are also concerned that you did not receive the correct information about the tour. We have clearly indicate that this tour involves trekking and is not suitable for travelers with heart problems or other medical conditions. We always advise our customers to check the details and requirements of the tour before booking and to inform us of any special needs they may have. We are glad that our guide Cha was helpful and attentive to you during the tour and that you enjoyed the elephant experience. We appreciate your feedback and we hope you will give us another chance to serve you better in the future.
I was very surprised when I saw chains around the necks of the adult elephants, was a great experience but walked away confused.
Our driver was excellent, very friendly. Our tour guide at the sanctuary was also excellent. You could really tell he cares about the elephants. One thing I would like to point out, which was not a problem for my group is that there us a but of a hike to get to the sanctuary. There are some steep inclines and declines that need to be navigated.
It was an amazing experience! We gave bananas to the elephants and played with them. Then we walked 5 minutes to a nice waterfall in which we could swim. We also walked through the rice fields to go back to the starting point where the elephants took a nice bath. The guide was so nice and funny! Finally we had a delicious lunch with the whole group, we really had a blast. Highly recommend this tour!
| Tour | Duration | Rating | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Half Day: Elephant Village Sanctuary | 5 hours | 4.4 (8) | $49 | |
 Chiang Mai Elephant Sanctuary, Bamboo Rafting and Waterfall Tour | 8 hours | 5.0 (1,602) | $55 | View |
 3-in-1: Doi Inthanon Tour, Elephant Sanctuary, and Trekking Trail | 10–12 hours | 4.8 (1,161) | $48 | View |
 Chiang Mai Half Day Elephant Sanctuary Observation and Waterfall | 6–7 hours | 4.8 (117) | $49 | View |
 Experience Elephant Sanctuary + Sticky Waterfall | 6 hours | 4.9 (97) | $88 | View |
 Elephant Sanctuary, Wat Ban Den & Sticky Waterfall | 9h 30min | 5.0 (88) | $61 | View |
 Chiang Mai: Thai Cooking Class and Elephant Sanctuary Observation | 10–11 hours | 5.0 (12) | $74 | View |