Pantara
 

Hi everyone, I know there is talk of better and worse elephant camps in Thailand. I have heard good things about this one for when we go in February. thoughts?

Not only are the reports from Animal Welfare experts bad on this place, but even people who have visited there (I think Trip Advertiser rates it as a top attraction in Chiang Mai) report that the elephants have fresh gashes from the use of hooks. Take a look at Elephant Nature Park, which gets great reviews from visitors and from animal welfare experts. Note that you must make reservations in advance for the Elephant Nature Park.

Oh no, my friends all suggested it and LOVED it.

Which is just one more indicator that a casual visitor to these camps has no idea what goes on behind the scenes.

Trust in the advice Kathie gives.

I rarely make recommendations on individual elephant parks as it is SO SO hard to tell what is really going on..... i think listening to lay-persons' tales is seldom helpful as they usually know very little about elephants or their circumstances in Thailand and the only information they get is from the parks themselves.

If the emphasis is on interaction and riding then you need to begin to get reservations about a place...I personally would also question any park that has a breeding program. ... there is so much said about the cost of keeping elephants WHY do we need more?

BTW - I;'m assuming it is the place called PATARA? not "Pantara"?
A quick search on Google revealed no "qualified" reviews on this place.....I'd be interested to read some.

Elephant Nature Park gets my vote. It's the only one I've had firsthand experience with. No hooks. No riding. No elephant shows.

Better yet, sign up for their program staying in a hill-tribe village for a week. This gives the elephant mahout's families income and their elephants quality time off their chains in the hot sun.

Best, get out into a remote area, and take your chances of seeing one of these great beasts in their natural habitat. No guarantees (we didn't see one, but we did see a sunbear!), but that's what makes nature viewing interesting and exciting!

I have to agree with the idea of going to see in the wild rather than this obsession with interacting. I get much more of a thrill seeing some big cat scat n the wild than I ever would peering at one in a cage or on the end of a chain.

You may well not get to see very much, but a guide can show you where they've been!