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View all Chiang Mai toursEthical Elephant Tour and Pad Thai Cooking in Chiang Mai
Full-day tour in Chiang Mai, including Observation of elephants in their natural habitat and Conversations with elephant experts. Run by Living Green Elephant Sanctuary Chiang Mai and Chonburi, booked direct rather than through a reseller.
Highlights
- Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy
- Runs 7 hours
- Observation of elephants in their natural habitat
- Conversations with elephant experts
- Small activities for the elephants
- Vitamin ball feeding
Ethical Elephant Tour and Pad Thai Cooking in Chiang Mai: Key Facts
| Price | From $74 per person |
|---|---|
| Duration | 7 hours |
| Languages | English |
| Tour type | Guided Tour |
| Booking | Direct with the local operator — no OTA markup |
Full description
This is a 7-hour experience from Chiang Mai, built around Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy. It is run by Living Green Elephant Sanctuary Chiang Mai and Chonburi, an operator we book with directly rather than through a reseller, which is why we can hold your place with them before we treat your booking as final.
Japanese cooking classes usually build a meal around dashi, the kombu and bonito stock that sits under miso soup, simmered dishes and noodle broths, and then one or two headline dishes: rolled sushi or nigiri, gyoza, tempura, okonomiyaki, or a bento box. Wagashi classes make the seasonal sweets served with tea from sweet bean paste. Most classes run two to three hours in a home kitchen or a small studio, and vegetarian versions replace the bonito with a kombu-shiitake dashi. You eat what you make, and Japanese teachers are precise about technique.
The price covers Observation of elephants in their natural habitat, Conversations with elephant experts, Small activities for the elephants, Vitamin ball feeding and Pad Thai cooking workshop. It does not cover Other personal expense and Tips and gratuities, so budget for those separately. Everything included is listed in full on this page; if something is not on that list, assume it is not in the price.
Chiang Mai. We need at least one day's notice, and we confirm the date with Living Green Elephant Sanctuary Chiang Mai and Chonburi before treating your booking as final. If they cannot take your date we tell you and refund you rather than leave you waiting.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Pickup location
Chiang Mai
Van
(1.5 hours)
Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy
Visit, Guided tour
Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy
Lunch (1 hour)
Arrive back at
Chiang Mai
Detailed Itinerary
Pickup location: Chiang Mai
Van: (1.5 hours)
Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy: Visit, Guided tour
Ethical elephant sanctuary chiangmai by Big Boy: Lunch (1 hour)
Arrive back at: Chiang Mai
Includes
- Observation of elephants in their natural habitat
- Conversations with elephant experts
- Small activities for the elephants
- Vitamin ball feeding
- Pad Thai cooking workshop
Excludes
- Other personal expense
- Tips and gratuities
Important information
Meeting point
Chiang Mai
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
So fun- our guide Adam was so lovely! He explained everything so well and it was just such a wonderful way to experience the elephants without infringing on their boundaries. So lovely- would highly recommend!!
Wonderful experience! Learned a lot about each elephants history and the people who take care of them. Very ethical sanctuary!
What an amazing and insightful experience. Everything was perfect from start to finish. Our guide, Adam is very experienced in working with elephants; he made the trip extremely informative and insightful. We prepared some food for the elephants which help with their digestion before leaving the food down and letting them eat it themselves. There was absolutely no touching of the elephants involved. The pad thai we prepared was also delicious! The guides really do have a love for these gentle creatures and it shows, their boundaries are respected and they are cared for. Would 100% recommend.
We had an amazing day! Completely enjoyed by all three of us! The guides Mr Su and Miss Tukta were great! Informative and interesting and great to see the work everyone is doing at the sanctuary to help the elephants!
Absolutely loved this tour! Our guide was so kind and knowledgeable, it was in an amazing coffee farm setting and the experience of roasting our own coffee beans to take away was so special. I loved learning about the processes of coffees, different roasts and aromas and I loved the overall experience. 10/10!
The most ethical sanctuary I have ever seen. The elephants were treated amazingly, I couldn’t recommend more definitely book this over other sanctuaries in the area
A very good morning, ethical and great value for money.
Exactly what we expected and more. Elephants seemed happy in their surroundings. Guide was very good, informative and helpful. The food preparation and feeding without touching was very nice to see and taken part in. Our guide Tuck was a good teacher in the Pad Thai class at the end, and the food we cooked was excellent. Driver for the trip was very careful and attentive, unlike some we’ve had on other trips. The only slight downside was that it was quite hot in the van on the return journey, but I’m sure if we’d have asked the driver would have sorted it out for us. All in an excellent 2/3 of
Such a lovely day with our guide Tuk Tuk 🐘🤍 She was so kind and knowledgeable, sharing so much about the elephants and making the whole experience feel really special. This sanctuary is truly ethical, which made it even more meaningful. It’s only been open around 8 months and already feels like such a beautiful, well-cared-for place. I’d 100% recommend visiting, and I can’t wait to come back again in the future 🙌🏾✨
We had a great time at Big Boy Elephant! Even though no elephant was forced to do anything, we got up close and personal with the elephants. Pretty pricy considering that there is similar activities for half the price. The pad thai was amazing and all the guides were very friendly!
Was one best experiences I’ve ever done! Completely ethical, very educational. Everyone was so friendly and they made it easy for everyone to join in. Wor the very penny! (Special thanks to our driver, he made the trip)⭐️
Can’t imagine any place being better than this. I know people always say seeing elephants are amazing but it genuinely was thanks to Big Boy Sanctuary. No stress or harm caused, just observed them freely and can tell they’re being well looked after. Pickup was on time and everybody on site spoke perfect English. Hard to believe they put this much energy and enthusiasm into explaining the elephants lives every day. Big bonus and a lot of fun having the cooking class included, as well as making the elephants food. Only reason there aren’t a ton of reviews is because they’re newly opened.