Samui Elephant Sanctuary

It was truly a wonderful experience. It gave our children a chance to understand that although the elephants in the sanctuary are now being cared for and enjoying a peaceful life, many of them spent 40–50 years working hard for humans — carrying logs or giving rides. Personally, I don’t think that should ever have happened. The staff at the sanctuary genuinely care about the elephants. We even prepared food for them by hand — it was a little messy (and slightly gross!), but still a very meaningful experience. Even though the meal provided was vegetarian, the food was absolutely delicious.

As another comment has said, if you only visit one elephant sanctuary in your life, make sure it’s this one. This is a genuinely ethical sanctuary with no bathing, riding or excessive touching. Many of the elephants have been rescued from other tourist sites around Thailand where riding and bathing has been offered and are now being given the life they deserve. It’s clear that all of the staff deeply care for and love the animals. The tour groups are kept small and there are only 2 entry times per day (at 9am and 2pm). They provide transfer from hotels and a lovely vegetarian buffet at the end. I left this experience relived that there is at least one place in the world where elephants are truly being cared for. Can’t recommend highly enough.

Wow what an amazing experience. I would recommend to anyone that wants to see and feed the elephants to come here. The service provided from the company is fantastic and the staff are so friendly. I feel that they look after these elephants so well and the support from people that visit help them so much in providing the care the elephants need 24/7. You are able to take pictures and feed the elephants that are happy to do so and the ones you cannot touch you can just observe from a platform. You also get drinks and snacks when you arrive and then a hot vegetarian lunch was was really tasty. Well done all for your great work in helping these elephants 🥰🐘