Has anyone opted to just do a one-day Mahout Training course and regretted not doing more? I have 3 full days and about 1 half day at the Anantara and in a dilemma about what to do.

You can do 1 day, and then if you want to do more, add time if there is an elephant available. There are only 4 elephants that do the program I believe, so you do need to book ahead.

The mahout program also has a long break between morning and afternoon sessions, so you would be able to do sightseeing/spa/pool in between if you like.

Write to them and ask for a schedule of the mahout program, as well as their activities and tours on offer, so you can see what you might like to do.

We've done the 3 days at the TECC in Lampang, and it wasn't too much. We will do the 3 days at the Anantara this summer.

My boys, 13 and 16, both did the one-day course. My husband and I did the treks and bathing. The experience was a highlight, if not THE highlight, of our trip, but it is fairly intense(and costly) and neither son expressed interest in more time.

If you only have three and a half days at the Anantara, one day of elephants is probably enough. There are so many other things to do (cooking school, trips on the Mehkong, hilltribe encounters, Hall of Opium); you might regret missing the other activities if you spend more time with the elephants.

Even if you don't do the 3-day course you can still bathe the elephants, collect them in the jungle in the morning and hang out with the babies while the moms do their mahout thing.

We were at the Anantara in late March and did the half-day mahout training. It started around 7AM, going into the "jungle" with the mahouts and retrieving the elephants and watching them bathe. Next was feeding and getting to know the particular elephant you were paired with. We then were quickly taught the different commands we'd use and how to get on/off the elephant. Next was riding around the camp practicing your commands. This was neat because we were riding on their necks and guiding them, versus just in a basket on their backs. This all culminated with a ride back up to the resort. We were done by 9 or 10AM, which isn't really half-day at all if you think about it. I think they just call it that because you have two time periods you can do it, one in the AM and one in the PM.

Overall, it was a great and memorable experience. It fit our time frame perfectly, because we had a flight to catch out of CR that afternoon. We personally didn't need more than the half-day experience.

"Four elephants in the program?"

"Hi my name's Dumbo, and I'm an elephant. No matter how hard I try, people keep getting on my back and taking pictures."

I think you've hit upon the reason my son was dumped in the river.