Elephant Rides Thailand
Koh Phangan

"Elephant rides and trekking in Koh Phangan"

baan suan chang elephant camp elephant rides thailand koh pha ngan koh phangan thailand backpacking tips asia
Elephant rides Thailand

Last updated on June 13, 2010
All information below is subject to change

Do you want to get to know these majestic animals?

There are a few elephant camps in Koh Phangan. We chose Baan Suan Chang Elephant Camp. Here's our review of the elephant riding near Phaeng waterfall!

Prices for elephant riding at Baan Suan Chang Elephant Camp:

1 hour: 800 B (includes bottled water and baskets of bananas)
30 minutes: 500 B




elephant rides thailand feeding baby elephant koh pha ngan koh phangan thailand
Elephant rides Thailand: I'm feeding the baby elephant


The first thing you get to do when arriving at Baan Suan Chang is to feed the baby elephant. You get a basket with bananas, and before you know it, the basket is almost empty and your hand is wet from its saliva! :-)

Then it was time for elephant riding! We got a female elephant, and the mahout took her into the surrounding forest. It was fun sitting on an elephant, but really uncomfortable. We paid for one hour (felt like one and a half hour), but could have settled for 30 minutes!

The elephant drew attention when it headed for the road and passed civilization. It was fun to see the faces of local kids going "Chang, chang!" (chang means elephant)

Then it passed some mud waters and took a bath. I thought that we were going to get thrown into the water, but we weren't! Then the trip was over, and we tipped the mahout.




elephant rides thailand koh pha ngan koh phangan thailand
Elephant rides Thailand: "Our" elephant


You'll notice when walking around the camp that these elephants are old, and they looked unhappy to me (not that I know how unhappy elephants look like…)

Our elephant had a ripped chain around its leg, and it was kind of brutal to see this. And when we were sitting on the elephant with the mahout, he was using some kind of an ice pick to control where the elephant would walk. THAT I didn't like, but whether it's necessary or not, beats me…

When I was in Koh Chang in 2008 and rode an elephant there, the mahouts didn't have tools! They just used their legs to push the elephant in a certain direction.

The elephants in Thailand are endangered, and supporting them by visiting them at camps is a good thing to do! There are several NGOs in the country with the mission of helping them! Elephant camps promote that they help the elephants by giving them food, and I'm sure they do. But I don't think that a mahout with an ice pick is humane treatment towards elephants.

Other Elephant Camps and Tours
in Koh Phangan

A very popular tour is the "Safari boat" which includes elephant trekking, snorkeling, sightseeing and monkey show (1200 B).

For more information, visit this link Safari Boat.

You're done with Elephant Rides Thailand, where do you want to go next?

Back to Koh Pha Ngan Main Page?

Heading off to Had Yao beach on Koh Phangan?

Visiting Thong Nai Pan Beaches on Koh Phangan? Welcome to some of the best beaches in Thailand!

Heading off to Hadrin beach on Koh Phangan?

Want to watch Muay Thai Fights on Koh Phangan?

Return from Elephant Rides Thailand to Backpacking Tips Asia Homepage.



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