There is no elephant riding, trekking, or circus tricks at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary. In fact, the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary is the first tourist attraction in Pattaya to offer the opportunity to interact with elephants in a “elephant friendly” environment.
The elephants at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary are retired from shows, or have been rescued from neglectful and cruel owners. Just like at many of the elephant sanctuaries in Chiang Mai, the elephants are free to roam, no bull-hooks are used, and the elephants are not made to perform.
What the Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary actually offers is a rare opportunity for humans to interact with elephants by feeding them, and getting in the water with them to give them a mud bath and shower. It’s all about being eco friendly and doing things elephants enjoy.
Order of Play at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
There are 2 sessions at the sanctuary, one in the morning, and one on the afternoon. On arrival at the park you will be given a brief lecture about the elephants feeding habits, behavior, and how to approach the elephants and feed them.
The guides will then give you each a bucket of bananas and take you to mingle with, and feed the elephants. After feeding the elephants you will learn how to make paper from elephant poop.
The last activity at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary is to bathe the elephants. First of all you will give them a mud bath, followed by a plunge in another pond to wash off the mud, and finally shower them with hose pipes.
The Experience at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
You can see the photos of our afternoon visit to Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary a little further down the page. The photos of the visit describe the experience much better than words. Besides it being a unique experience which you would otherwise need to travel to Chiang Mai to enjoy, the visit was fun, professionally run, entertaining, and most definitely the only way to get up close and personal with elephants.
What’s Good About Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
- Informative and entertaining English speaking guides.
- No riding or cruelty to elephants.
- An awesome, unique experience.
- Pick up from your hotel.
- Free photos of your visit via their Facebook page.
Where is Pattaya Elephant Sanctuary
The map marker on their Facebook page is inaccurate, and their website states it takes around 1 hour to drive from Pattaya. I was a little surprised to find the location of the sanctuary is just past Mabrachan Lake on Soi Siam Country Club Road. You can find it on this Google map.
Prices at Pattaya Elephant Jungle Sanctuary
You can find current rates on the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary website. When we visited (December 2017) the price per adult was 2,500 for adults, and 1,900 baht for children. I got discounted rates by booking through Klook. I highly recommend you do the same, simply because every time you book you earn points towards your next trip at hundreds of venues throughout Thailand and Southeast Asia.
