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We, like many others from trip advisor, had been semi-tricked into buying tickets from a few friendly locals. We then got back to WiFi and googled it and were very apprehensive about it. However when we got there we were introduced to our guide Yun who informed us that we were the only two on our trip. We arrived after a brief stop at the market where the guide purchased the ingredients for our lunch. We saw five elephants in a small ish area but they were able to walk out of this area and wander around as they pleased. I later found out they had 20 acres of land for the elephants which the elephants could roam around after a few photo opportunities and a bath. The elephants seemed well treated and had lots of food. There was no riding, no hooks, no small knives which was a huge relief. We were supposed to only bathe one elephant but the others wandered freely to join us due to the hot weather. I asked lots of questions about the welfare of the animals and it would appear they are well cared for. However I do appreciate that the elephants may have been less relaxed if we had been in a bigger group. …
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Date of experience: July 2018
1 Helpful vote
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My partner and I were approached by two friendly Thai locals at different times whilst visiting the Wat Phra Singh temple. They both mentioned and gave directions to Chang Sanctuary. We were served by the manager called PIM. We booked the trip with her feeling good and excited. On the way home, we Googled and spoke to other tourists walking by and it suddenly hit us, we did a stupid thing by booking with this company. It was a SCAM/Set up we fell for. We returned back and calmly approached them to ask for a refund as we didn't feel right being part of elephants being mistreated. PIM (the manager) got very defensive very very quickly, raised her voice then threatened to call the police... dramatic I know. We got a full refund in the end. But I wouldn't risk it with these people, I know you shouldn't always go with what reviews say but when it comes to the safety of animals, you don't want to risk it.…
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Date of experience: June 2018
1 Helpful vote
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Much like many of the reviews on this page, we were approached by a seemingly kind local who asked us about our trip and gave us general recommendations about the area we were staying in. She slipped in that Chang was the best elephant sanctuary and that the one we had booked was likely a scam. After reading reviews, we can safely say that Chang treats elephants inhumanly and is NOT a sanctuary you should visit in Chiang Mai.…
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Date of experience: June 2018
1 Helpful vote
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Please don’t fall for this. We was approached by a very convincing Thai man who said he was on holiday here from Bangkok. We was visiting one of the local temples when he asked us about our trip, and advised us of this ‘elephant sanctuary’, explained how amazing and how eco friendly it was. He drew on our map the location of the office and we took his advice. The office looked genuine so we decided to give it a go. These elephants are not in sanctuary, they are kept against there will. The photos and itinerary that we were shown are far from reality. They are kept in horrendous conditions and I wouldn’t give them any time or money! Please take the advice. For yours and the elephants sake. …
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Date of experience: May 2018
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We were approached by two different locals in pretty rapid succession pretending to give us advice on what elephant sanctuary to visit. That obviously raised red flags and we started reading reviews. They seem pretty unethical and I hope you don't fall for their trick!
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Date of experience: May 2018
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