Gone There, Seen That: Krabi Elephant Sanctuary and Elephant Jungle Sanctuary Pattaya

ELEPHAAAAANTS!

Calm down, Captain!

BUT WE SAW ELEPHAAAAAANTS!

I realize that, but you need to stop shouting!

I WILL Try. They were so amazing though!

I know. But let's reassure everyone first that we went to rescue sanctuaries that are working to stop the abuse of elephants in tourist activities like elephant shows and elephant riding. Please be ethical and don't ride elephants!

That's right. Elephants are horribly abused to allow the riding boxes to be strapped onto them and to "tame" them.

So to talk about the first sanctuary: Krabi Elephant Sanctuary. Obviously this is outside Krabi on the Andaman Coast. We found this one through our hotel's concierge.

Since we stayed on Railay Peninsula, we took a long boat to the pier outside Krabi. (We visited this sanctuary during the rainy season.) Their five elephants were rescued from the logging and tourism industries. Several are blind or partially blind and would be unable to survive completely on their own in the wild.

From the pier, the sanctuary met us and transported us to a Thai restaurant with little floating dining platforms surrounding a lake. The tranquil setting allowed us to enjoy a relaxing meal.

Huge fish in the lake

A platform for pictures across the lake

Lunch with rice, stir fry vegetables, and a sweet and sour chicken dish

After lunch, we headed to the sanctuary. Once there, we met our guide who would take us on a short walk through the forest to the elephants. Those who wished could change into traditional Thai fisherman pants and shirts.

Now our first view of the elephants was mind-blowing. There were 5 elephants lined up together, their mahouts nearby. (A mahout is the one person entrusted with the care of an elephant. Each elephant has their own mahout. The mahout ensures they eat enough and that they do not get constipated, which can be fatal for an elephant.)

Now most people at this point learn the elephants names. They also learn which elephant is blind, which doesn't like their trunk touched, and so on. This is important for the comfort of the elephant and for your safety. It is also time to feed the elephants! At Krabi Elephant Sanctuary, the elephants were fed bananas only at this point. Later they ate palm leaves and sugar cane. Captain and I could only watch, because we were the size of some of their favorite snacks. It wouldn't be good if the elephant wanted a taste!

Isn't that the truth! Once they had been fed, which was basically only a snack since they eat 220kg per day and are always eating, we walked with them through the forest.

We chose not to get in the mud, but a mud bath helps protect their skin. Mud is rubbed all over them except on their ears and around their eyes. After the mud bath, they are rinsed in the river.

Since neither of us can swim, we watched from the bank. Then it was time to learn how to make herbal medicine for elephants. It's some specific herbs, salt, and coconut sugar to mask the bitterness of the herbs. They loved it!

The elephants strolled through a pasture and we said our goodbyes. The sanctuary transported us back to the pier so we could return to Railay.

JUNGLE ELEPHANT SANCTUARY AT PATTAYA

Once I met an elephant, I wanted to meet more! That's why we visited another sanctuary during the dry season.

This sanctuary also has transportation from certain hotels in the Pattaya and Jomtiem areas. These beaches are on the Gulf of Thailand and much closer to Bangkok.

A lot of things were very similar between the two sanctuaries: besides the transportation and lunch being included, of course. Both have rescued elephants, visitors are allowed to feed the elephants after a training session, and the elephants receive mud baths and play in the water as they are rinsed. Neither allows riding and neither uses sticks, bull hooks, or any device to subdue an elephant.

One difference is that this sanctuary had 9 elephants, and one was a 2-year old male! He was rescued from an elephant show and is now learning how to live unchained.

We met the elephants and were able to feed them pineapples and bananas. One elephant, the oldest, can not have the pineapples.

Just like in Krabi, the Captain and I kept our distance so we wouldn't appear to be an appetizer.

Our walk with the elephants was not through the forest here. We walked through an open pasture instead.

With 9 elephants, there was plenty of skin to cover in mud. The dry season is the tourist season, so more people were at the Pattaya sanctuary. (It's also closer to Bangkok for day trips.)

The bathing area was a pond, and not a river. The elephants loved the water no matter what form!

Our final activity was making paper from elephant dung. This is not as disgusting as it sounds, and Krabi offered this activity as well. The dung is dried, washed, and it's the undigested fibers that are used to make the paper.