This was our third visit to Chiang Mai, but we’d never gone on an elephant tour. Part of it is we are cheap and the tours are not. Not that they are terribly expensive, considering. Most of it was SM wasn’t particularly interested and I had gone to Zoo Camp as a kid. Back then the BR Zoo not only had much larger African elephants but was respected for training them. As campers we were up close and personal with the elephants on multiple occasions. Not the same as interacting with them in the “wild” but enough for me.
Then came parenthood.
Entertaining a four-year-old, especially in a country famed for more adult delights, one makes choices. We knew our LB would love the elephants. But, before we went into the wild, we went to the Elephant Poopoopaper Park where, as you may have guessed, they make paper from elephant poo. And so will you! The park is 10km, about 15 mins, north of Chiang Mai and the entrance fee is THB 100 per person with kids 4 years and younger allowed in for free. Getting out there is easy just be sure you make arrangements for the return trip. We negotiated a roundtrip with a tuk-tuk driver. If you plan on going to Tiger Kingdom (we didn’t and no, not that Tiger Kingdom!) or any of the other sites nearby it’s a good idea to do it all in one go.
At Poopoopaper Park there is a gift shop, cutely called the poo-tique, full of poo themed items including those made from the infamous poopoo paper. Tours happen regularly throughout the day during which you will be guided through the technique of making the paper. Littles, and anyone else who chooses to, can be an active part of the process. Guests have the opportunity to stir the poopoo, press out the water, and make the paper itself. Note, there are no elephants at the park. Just their poo. At the end, for a small additional fee, you can make your own poopoo paper item ranging from bookmarks to journals. If all that poo talk leaves you thirsty or hungry there is a café on the premises serving goods many of the ingredients for which are grown from the park’s organic garden. Plan on spending at least an hour at the park, longer if you are a group or have multiple children.
Primed by poo we were ready for our elephant encounter.
Being a “good tourist” I did the proper thing and researched an ethical elephant tour. No riding, no hooks, no cages. Into the Wild checked all the right boxes and I have no doubt they are fully informed and care thoughtfully for their elephants. We figured the half day tour would be ample for LB. It was 1700 baht a person day which translates to about 55 USD depending on the strength of the currencies in question. Children are free. Pick up is from your accommodation.
The park is about an hour and a half outside of Chiang Mai, plus add some time for picking up and dropping off folks around town. You are picked up in a songthaew and heading up the mountain. In dry season early mornings are crisp and it’s not unusual for the mountains to be cool as well. It’s a long time in the back of a pickup truck, dress accordingly. We made sure that LB was at least three people in from the tailgate and ended up double wrapping her in scarves on top of her jacket to keep her warm on the way up.
Pai, the man who seems to run the place, is a former veterinarian for the Thai government. He gave an interesting introductory lecture that included the fact that while his park does not offer rides that this is more for tourism reasons than ethical ones pointing out that these elephants routinely carried several tons of logs so carrying around a handful of tourists, even portly American ones, was not a strain.
Things to remember are that these are wild animals and this is not a reserve. People, we, pay to interact with the elephants. Not to simply observe them. Therefore, there has to be some training involved. Our day with the elephants included feeding them, following them to a river to watch and intermingle with them as they frolicked, and giving them mud baths before cleaning up in the river. LB was a little intimidated at first but quickly loosened up. She especially enjoyed when the baby elephant gave her daddy a cold and muddy shower. She was less entertained when the nose hose was turned on her.
Afterwards we all showered. We were then fed a vegetarian meal before loading back onto the trucks for our ride back. It was a lovely experience and one I recommend if you are into that sort of thing.