The Only Real Ethical Elephant Sanctuary in Phuket, Thailand
As an animal lover and trying eco-tourist, it’s important for me to research how to support local wildlife and conservation efforts when visiting countries with a history of environmental exploitation.
Over the last 3 generations, the wild Asian elephant population in Thailand has fallen at least 50%, mostly due to deforestation. Researchers estimate that there are approximately 6,000 Asian elephants left in Thailand, with only half in the wild (https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/05/elephants-tourism-thailand/483138/).
When researching for my trip to Phuket, Thailand, I noticed a number of elephant “sanctuaries” all throughout the island. As I looked further into each elephant sanctuary, I was saddened to see that so many of them didn’t actually have the elephants’ wellbeing as a priority.
Don’t get me wrong, all of these sanctuaries are still way more ethical than elephant circus performances, roadside zoos, and elephant riding companies that are still marketed to tourists. However, it didn’t seem right that a sanctuary would allow hundreds of tourists each day to climb, bathe, swim, and hug a previously abused elephant.
Yes, these animals would benefit from a warm human touch and general hygiene maintenance, but elephants naturally prefer to bathe and play alone or with a few other elephants in their herd. Crowds and constant touching, hugging, and other interaction from new people can be extremely stressful. Elephants also don’t need to be bathed as often as some of these sanctuaries schedule in their itineraries.
I decided to support Phuket Elephant Sanctuary. Following the success of Elephant Nature Park in Chang Mai, Phuket Elephant Sanctuary became the first ethical elephant tourism experience for elephants to roam and swim freely. The price for one adult is ฿3,500 (approximately CAD$170) for the morning program (9:30AM – 1:00PM) and a shared shuttle to and from my hotel (approximately 1 hour away). The price initially seemed a little steep to me, but trust me – it is worth every penny. I came away with a whole new appreciation for these intelligent animals and an experience I’ll never forget. They rescue these elephants by buying them off from owners at elephant riding camps, and each elephant can cost them upwards of ฿2 million. I thought of the price as a donation, rather than an entry fee.
My Experience
Booking and Payment
You have to make your reservations on their website. Upon booking the date and time (morning or afternoon) that you want to make your reservations for, I was prompted to make a 30% deposit via PayPal, and then instructed to pay the remaining balance upon arrival. The confirmation email included all the details you needed to know about the program (what to bring, pick-up schedule, remaining balance, and forms of payment accepted).
A free vegetarian lunch buffet is included with your program, so I indicated that I had a peanut allergy. They emailed a few days after I booked my program instructing me to check in with staff upon arrival, as they will set up a separate dish for me far away from any dishes that had peanuts in them. They emailed again a week before our program date to confirm what hotel we were staying at, and the time we should be waiting in the lobby for. Any questions or responses we emailed them were addressed within a day.
Pick-Up and Orientation
On the day of our visit, we were picked up from our lobby (a little bit late, but were staying off the main road so it was confusing to find). The bus had a picture of their logo making it easy to flag down. We showed the driver a copy of our confirmation email, although I’m not sure if he actually needed that. We drove to pick up a few other guests and then started our 40-minute ride to the check-in building.
We met with a receptionist who gave us some pamphlets and collected our remaining balance. After checking in, we were told to wait for a songthaew to take us to the sanctuary (5-minute drive through a forest behind the check-in building). The waiting area had A/C, filtered water, and free WiFi.
We immediately saw some elephants wandering with their mahouts as we got out of the songthaew, but had to first go through a brief orientation. We were asked to wash our hands and change into rainboots that they provided. They also offered a breakfast buffet with fruit, juice or water, and crackers and other snacks. We ate our breakfast by the ledge to admire the view and watch elephants roaming. We then had a brief 10-minute orientation on the history of the sanctuary, the tragic history of elephant exploitation in Thailand, and a schedule of the day.
The Elephants
We were split up into smaller groups of 7 to 10, and had one tour guide take us to different “elephant stations”. We spent approximately 15 minutes at each station, which included: an elephant eating near her shed, two elephants bathing with a hose (that you could hold), a few elephants roaming in different areas of the large park, an elephant swimming, and a few different elephant feedings. None of these stations had any scheduled interactions with the elephants, but some elephants would get close enough to you to sniff you with their trunk.
At the feeding station, we were given a handful of fruit that we offered different elephants. All the guests were very patient with each other, allowing one another to go first for solo pictures and videos. Even without hugging or petting the elephants, the feeding experience was enough to feel their trunk and get face to face with their gentle eyes. You could really appreciate their size and features without physical interaction.
Wrap-Up
At the end of the morning program, we all regrouped for lunch. The lunch buffet had so many options, but they provided me with my own two dishes of vegetarian fried rice, mushrooms, and broccoli. I also went to get my own fruit and drinks from the main buffet. We grabbed a table with a beautiful view overlooking the sanctuary and an elephant bathing in a waterhole. After lunch, we boarded a songthaew to take us back to the check-in building where our transportation back to our hotel was waiting.
Phuket Elephant Sanctuary treated their guests and elephants with the same respect, and went out of their way to ensure we had a good time. There were no donation bins nor did they ask for additional donations at any time, although I’m sure they could use the extra money to save more elephants. We didn’t feel rushed with each elephant or with lunch. I’ll definitely be returning the next time I’m in Thailand!