Celebrate World Elephant Day with the VIP’s (Very Important Pachyderms) at Anantara Golden Triangle

To celebrate World Elephant Day on August 12th, Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort in Thailand’s north is inviting guests to an unforgettable day of fun showcasing the unique local indigenous culture while celebrating the rescued residents living in the resorts surrounding lush jungle.

 
The elephants’ special day kicks off with a traditional blessing ceremony followed by a massive buffet of all their favourite fruit and vegetables. Local hilltribe students and artists dressed in traditional northern attire will also join in on the festivities making it a truly indigenous experience.

Guests will also be treated to a range of interactive elephant-related activities organised by the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF) such as the signature Walking with Giants. The experience offers a journey into the misty morning jungle with elephants and mahouts on their daily walk, complete with mud bathing, snack-making and socialising. With the Elephant Guardian activity, nature-lovers can learn the fascinating historical and cultural customs of mahouts and their elephants from the GTAEF team as they make medicinal food for older rescued elephants together. Meanwhile, the ELE Elephant Learning Experience led by a resident veterinarian is a chance to observe the elephants’ playful interaction while learning about elephant anatomy, behaviour and nutrition.

Set up in 2003 as a traditional mahout village, Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort works alongside the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF) to provide care not only for the 20 elephants that it has rescued from Thailand’s city streets and illegal logging camps, but also their mahouts and their families.

As part of the celebrations, Anantara Golden Triangle has also launched a limited-time ‘Touched by Gentle Giants’ discovery package that includes daily interactions with the resident rescue elephants at the hotel’s award-winning elephant camp and insights into its scientific research and elephant conservation programme – a wonderful opportunity to form a deeper connection to these spectacular creatures in their natural habitat

With rates starting from USD 1,113 per night based on two people sharing, the ‘Touched by Gentle Giants’ package includes:

• Luxury accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner at Sala Mae Nam, Elephant Bar or Opium Terrace
• Non-alcoholic beverages
• In-room minibar
• Tickets to the Opium Hall Museum
• Roundtrip airport transfers
• Choice of daily activity: Spa, Yoga/Pilates, or Spice Spoons Thai cooking class
• Daily Mahout Experience:
• Walking with Giants
• Elephant Guardian
• Elephant Education Activity
• USD 100 donated to GTAEF on guests’ behalf.

Set in a lush jungle in the north of the country, the luxury resort offers 40 rooms, 15 suites and six family suites with three-country views, as well as once-in-a-lifetime Dusk-to-dawn Jungle Bubble experience with dinner and breakfast amidst the elephants. In addition to the scheduled Mahout Experiences, each day at Anantara Golden Triangle brings more chances to commune with resident pachyderm neighbours, from yoga enhanced by the calming influence of the elephants exploring the surrounding jungle to hilltop dinner at sunset gazing out over the stunning countryside as elephants ramble within it.

For more information about Anantara Golden Triangle or to book the package, please visit www.anantara.com/en/golden-triangle-chiang-rai.

*MARK THOMSON, GROUP DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS | MINOR HOTELS mthomson@minor.com