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View all Chiang Mai toursChiang Mai: Elephant Sanctuary Feeding Program Half-Day Tour
Meet rescued elephants at a rehabilitation park south of Chiang Mai — feed, bathe, and learn from these gentle giants with zero riding involved.
Highlights
- Hand-feed rescued elephants bananas and sugarcane
- Join the herd for a mud bath and splash-down
- Ethical, no-riding sanctuary — elephants come first
- Learn about elephant behavior, biology, and rescue stories
- Small-group setting for an up-close, unhurried visit
Choose from 3 available options
Pon Elephant Thailand Park Meeting Point (No Transfer)
Pick Up: Meeting Point in Chiang Mai city
Hotel Transfer from Chiang Mai city
Full description
Tucked into the hills south of Chiang Mai, Pon Elephant Sanctuary offers a rare chance to spend real time with rescued and rehabilitated elephants in an environment built around their welfare, not entertainment. This half-day program is designed to be genuinely hands-on: you'll prepare and hand-feed baskets of bananas and sugarcane, walk alongside the herd through the property, and get to know each elephant's personality and backstory from caretakers who know them best.
A highlight of the visit is joining the elephants at their mud wallow and bathing area, where you'll help splash and scrub them down in a shallow pool while they clearly enjoy the attention. Guides share insight into elephant biology, social behavior, and the realities facing Thailand's captive elephant population, giving the visit an educational layer alongside the fun.
Riding is never part of the experience. Pon Elephant operates on ethical, no-riding principles, keeping the focus on observation, care, and respectful interaction instead. Group sizes are kept small, so there's plenty of room to ask questions and get close without feeling rushed.
Whether you make your own way to the meeting point, join a guide in Chiang Mai city, or get picked up from your hotel, the sanctuary experience itself stays the same: unhurried, personal, and centered on the elephants' wellbeing rather than a show.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Meet your guide
Gather at your chosen meeting point (Maewin Locomarket, the Pon Elephant office, or your hotel) and meet your guide for a short safety and welfare briefing before heading to the sanctuary.
Travel to the sanctuary
Drive south of Chiang Mai into the hills toward Pon Elephant Sanctuary, with views of the surrounding countryside along the way.
Arrival and elephant introductions
Arrive at the sanctuary, change into provided clothing if needed, and meet the resident elephants while your guide introduces each one and their rescue story.
Feeding time
Prepare bananas and sugarcane and hand-feed the elephants up close, learning about their diet, habitat, and daily routines from the caretakers.
Walk and observation
Walk alongside the herd through the property, observing natural behaviors and social dynamics while your guide explains elephant biology and conservation efforts.
Mud bath and bathing
Join the elephants at the mud wallow and shallow pool to help wash and splash them down, a favorite part of the visit for elephants and guests alike.
Light meal and rest
Rinse off and enjoy a light Thai meal or refreshments at the sanctuary before wrapping up the visit.
Return transfer
Board the vehicle for the return drive to Chiang Mai city, with drop-off at your original meeting point or hotel depending on your selected option.
Detailed Itinerary
Your morning begins at your selected meeting point — either Maewin Locomarket, the Pon Elephant office in Chiang Mai city, or right at your hotel door, depending on which option you've booked. Your guide runs through a short briefing covering what to expect, basic elephant safety, and the sanctuary's ethical, no-riding philosophy before you set off into the hills south of the city.
The drive itself is part of the experience, winding through green countryside as the city gives way to rural scenery. Once you arrive at Pon Elephant Sanctuary, you'll have a chance to settle in, change into any provided clothing, and meet the elephants that call the property home. Your guide introduces each one by name, sharing their individual histories — many have been rescued from logging camps, tourist riding operations, or street begging, and now live out their days here with room to roam and socialize naturally.
Feeding time follows shortly after arrival. You'll help prepare baskets of bananas and sugarcane, then hand-feed the elephants directly, an experience that's as much about connection as it is about calories — elephants eat for the better part of their waking hours, and watching them work through a snack up close is genuinely captivating. As you feed them, your guide fills in details on elephant biology, herd dynamics, and the sanctuary's broader mission of rehabilitation.
Midday brings a walk alongside the herd, giving you a feel for how elephants move, forage, and interact with each other in a semi-natural setting, followed by the visit's most popular stretch: bath time. You'll wade into the shallow pool and mud wallow alongside the elephants, helping scrub and splash them down while they clearly relish the attention — expect to get wet and muddy, and to leave with a memory card full of photos.
After rinsing off, you'll sit down to a light Thai meal or refreshments at the sanctuary, a relaxed close to an active morning. From there, it's back into the vehicle for the return drive to Chiang Mai, with drop-off matching your chosen meeting option — back at Maewin Locomarket, the city office, or directly at your hotel.
Includes
- English-speaking guide
- Elephant feeding (bananas and sugarcane)
- Sanctuary entrance fee
- Drinking water
- Use of sanctuary clothing for bathing activities
Excludes
- Gratuities
- Personal expenses
- Elephant riding (not offered — this is an ethical, no-riding sanctuary)
- Alcoholic beverages
- Hotel pickup (included only on the Hotel Transfer option)
Important information
Meeting point
Varies by option — Maewin Locomarket, Pon Elephant office in Chiang Mai city, or your hotel (see booking options)
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
This was the highlight of our Chiang Mai trip. No riding, just feeding, walking with, and bathing the elephants in the mud pit — you could tell they were genuinely well cared for. Our guide knew each elephant's name and rescue story, which made it so much more meaningful.
Took the hotel pickup option ($47) and it was so convenient, driver was right on time and dropped us back exhausted but happy. Getting covered in mud during the bath session was hilarious and the elephants seemed to love it. Very ethical setup, no hooks or chains anywhere.
Really lovely half day out. We met at the Pon office in the city which was easy to find. Feeding the elephants bananas was such a sweet moment and the bathing in the river afterward was great fun, though we were soaked through by the end. Only reason for 4 stars is the drive there felt a bit long.
Booked the cheapest option and met at Maewin Locomarket ourselves since we had a rental car, worked out perfectly and saved some money. The guide was fantastic, very knowledgeable about elephant behavior and clearly passionate about the sanctuary's rescue mission. Highly recommend for families.
Brought my two kids (8 and 11) and they had an amazing time feeding and walking with the elephants. Nothing felt forced or unsafe, the pace was relaxed throughout. The mud bath was messy but everyone was laughing so much it didn't matter.
Great ethical experience overall, our guide explained a lot about why the sanctuary doesn't allow riding and how the elephants were rescued from logging camps. Bring a full change of clothes because you will be soaked. Wish the tour ran a bit longer as it flew by.
Absolutely worth the hotel pickup option, one less thing to worry about on the day. Feeding time was adorable and watching the elephants roll around in the river during the bath was the best part. Genuinely felt like the animals were happy and free, not performing for tourists.
One of the best things we did in Thailand. We chose the office meeting option and it worked out great logistically. Getting muddy with the elephants was such a fun, unfiltered experience, and our guide's care for the animals really came through. Would book again in a heartbeat.