Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand

COUNTRY:
Thailand
LOCATION:
Northern Thailand
DEPARTURES:
2012: 9 Nov
PRICE:
From US $3100 (17 days) including US flights
MORE INFO:
This trip can also be booked exclusive of flights for $2400. Price includes accommodation, elephant conservation and other activities, chauffer-driven minivans and most meals. No single supplements. Maximum group size 12.
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Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand
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Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand

Small group vacation
You will be traveling with a group of an absolute maximum of 11 other people, including the group leader. As this is a special interest tour, whilst people may come from all walks of life, you should have plenty in common! This trip is mainly designed for people who wanted to take our private tours but wanted to travel solo, so unlike most other tour operators we guarantee that the majority of people on this tour will be solo travelers. You will have your own room (except where this is not practical and specified in the itinerary) so even though this trip has no single supplements, it is certainly not on the condition of you having to share a room with a friend you haven't met yet! If you are traveling in a couple, you are welcome to join our set departures, but please note we restrict numbers for group dynamic reasons. You also have the option of taking a private tour with us.

How this vacation makes a difference

Environment

We provide tips on how to offset carbon via changes in lifestyle.

Elephant conservation - This vacation supports two of the three best elephant conservation centres in Thailand (and there are hundreds). By living and working alongside elephant mahouts, you will learn about their lives as well as the elephants. Elephant Nature Park particularly is a showpiece of wildlife conservation in Asia. It was named Time Magazine's 'Asian Hero of the Year'. Not only does Elephant Nature Park provide a refuge for elephants from all over Thailand, often previously-abused, but it spreads knowledge on humane training and elephant welfare to the wider community, as well as providing hands-on medical assistance to elephants who are not lucky enough to live there.

Accommodation - The accommodation on this vacation is small and local, within existing buildings or built with comparatively low impact to the environment.

Community

We employ people locally which helps us work with local people on a highly individual basis. When we say we use local guides, we don’t mean guides from Thailand, but guides in each local area, not those from the ‘big city’.

We often provide opportunities for people who are not involved in tourism to benefit from cultural exchange as well as financially. We are also proud to say we often build in ‘shopping stops’ these are at places like out-of-the-way villages which specialise in a particular handicraft – a great way to break up the longer journeys whilst supporting local economies.

It goes without saying that we also provide cultural guidelines and travel, including responsible travel information.

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Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand

Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand

Reviewed 06 Jan 2012 by Julia Vick2 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?


Being up close and personal with the elephants and sleeping in a bamboo hut at Elephant Nature Park with the sound of elephants, dogs, cats and insects for company!

2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?


If you want a true volunteer vacation experience avoid this vacation and head directly to one of the elephant parks. Expect to spend a lot of time traveling in the first wk.

3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Only when staying at Elephant Nature Park.

4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?


Since this was an elephant volunteer vacation I was shocked to find that the Surin festival was on the itinerary. Not only did we witness elephants being made to perform tricks, paint and play football but baby's as young as 19wks were put under extreme stress. The founder at ENP has rescued several elephants from Surin and she works tirelessly to highlight the darker side of this festival.

Read the operator's response here:

Thanks for the feedback, as well as for filling in our own more detailed feedback form. We're really sorry that you felt the vacation was only 'OK'. Others on the same trip rated it as the 'vacation of a lifetime', which is what we aim for. Unfortunately, your trip in was soon after the worst weather Thailand had in 60 years, which did necessitate a bit of extra traveling at the beginning, but we hope this did not affect your enjoyment too greatly. Our tour leader did say you seemed to enjoy yourself on the vacation itself, so we really hope you did.

This trip benefits local people and the environment by supporting two elephant conservation centres, through accommodation (eg using a hotel which is a converted old mansion rather than a new-build in Bangkok) and where possible geographically, our private vans use natural gas rather than petrol or diesel. These are just some examples.

In regards to the Surin Elephant Festival, we (and elephant conservation experts we know in Thailand) feel it is an important festival. Surin is a poor province, with less work and fewer opportunities than elsewhere, and although many mahouts and elephants are from the area, it is the only time they can make a decent income in it. Many of the elephants are healthy and well looked after, especially given the challenges of the area. Not all of them are of course, but the situation in Thailand with elephants is very complex and support and education are key. It's not like avoiding the tourist camps (which we do): we feel avoiding such an important festival would be shortsighted.

This vacation is best suited for those who want a tour of Thailand and a soft adventure, rather than those who are looking for a pure volunteer experience. This trip includes 3 days volunteering at one sanctuary and 5 days at another, sandwiched between fun activities, sightseeing and relaxation. For those looking to spend 2 weeks volunteering, then we highly recommend the project in the Surin area run by the Elephant Nature Park. It can be booked directly on their website if you organise your own flights and transport to their meetup points. Accommodation there is very basic, but the experience will be highly rewarding for those inclined.

Reviewed 12 Jan 2011 by Vicki Biddle4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?


There were so many - bathing with the elephants in the River Kwai, working with the elephants at the Elephant Park near Chang Mai, touring the Celadon factory in Chang Mai, the Elephant Festival in Surin and the massage!

2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?


Take some old clothes to the Elephant Park, leave them there and shop for some new ones. Bring a few pairs of cheap light gardening gloves and leave them behind too. The park will donate anything left behind so you are still being ecofriendly. Don't forget your camera charger. I was glad I took my small netbook as there was often internet provided in my room. I also could upload my photos as I went and shared them with others using memory sticks easily purchased locally. I wished I had binoculars at Surin and the Khao Yai National Park.

3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Definitely. Much of our accommodation was locally owned and run. We often used local transport. We volunteered our time at the Elephant conservation areas and visited a local school and factory. At all times our guide encouraged us to be ecofriendly.

4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?


Excellent. Everything was so well organised. Our accomodation alternated rustic with luxurious. Our tour leader was highly professional, knowledgable, patient and helpful. Our tour operator went out of their way to adapt to our needs if necessary.
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Vacation Reviews

We invite every traveler who books a vacation via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the vacations they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same vacation can have different views!

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Elephant conservation vacation in Thailand
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