ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

Focusing on elephants' welfare, Thailand's latest sanctuary lets guests commune with retired pachyderms

- JEREMY TREDINNICK

The Asian elephant has been an icon for tourism, perhaps nowhere more so than Thailand. The country has tourist camps and parks offering rides, treks and opportunities to bathe with the elephants or watch them play football or even paint pictures. I have been to many of these attractions over the past 30-odd years - I even have a 'mahout driving licence.

Times move on, however, and in more recent years the concept of what is actually good for the elephants has rightfully gained ground. Some 100 years ago there were roughly 100,000 elephants in Thailand; today that number is about 3,000 wild elephants, and 3,000-4,000 domesticated beasts. Our modern, human-dominated world has taken its toll on the natural wilderness and its inhabitants. In addition, as there has been a new and belated focus on the animals' wellbeing, many of the less responsible camps have closed.

On the plus side, more socially aware enterprises have emerged. One such is The Bush Camp, which opened in September 2022 in a remote and rarely visited area of the country near the district of Hot to the southwest of Chiang Mai. It offers a two-day Bush Camp Experience blending the African safari camp idea of luxury tented accommodation with the verdant tropical forests of Thailand. Intrigued, we arranged a visit.

AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE

The first morning, we were picked up from our hotel in Chiang Mai and began the 1.5-hour drive from the city on remarkably smooth highway, passing the hulking mountains of Doi Inthanon National Park to the north, and roadside temples glittering gold in the sunlight. Arriving at the compound's gate we were ushered through by a smiling guard, and met at the open-sided reception area by Jonathan Chell, general manager of both The Bush Camp and its sister enterprise Elephant Hills Camp, located in Khao Sok National Park in Thailand's far south.