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Mornings are Better with Elephants

The Only Hotel in Thailand You Can LIVE with Elephants

Live with Elephants

Come to the Chai Lai Orchid in Mae Wang, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Located about one hour from Chiang Mai, the Chai Lai Orchid has two idyllic properties. Live with elephants in our nature retreat featuring riverside bungalows, surrounded by lush tropical forest, or wake up with elephants above the clouds in a peaceful mountain retreat with stunning panoramic valley views from the top of the mountain. Both locations offer our signature Elephant wake-up call!

Woman feeding an elephant from a bungalow

Live with Elephants at Chai Lai Riverside

Live with elephants beside the beautiful Mae Wang river. Chai Lai Orchid River Eco Lodge is the base camp for our jungle treks and ethical elephant adventures. This riverside location features individual bungalows, on-site restaurant and private grounds that are home to a family of Asian elephants. Our accommodations range from romantic bungalows to modern villas. Spend your days hiking to secret waterfalls, lounging in hammocks, playing in the river, or volunteering some of your time. The Chai Lai Riverside Eco Lodge is located one hour from Chiang Mai Airport.

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Mountain Eco Lodge

Sleep Above the Clouds at Chai Lai Mountain

Conveniently located close to the Chai Lai Orchid base camp, at Chai Lai Mountain, guests enjoy all our usual elephant activities plus the serene views of the entire valley below. It’s perfect for those seeking a peaceful retreat in a secluded eco-resort. At the Chai Lai Mountain Eco Lodge, we provide accommodation in teak wood and bamboo bungalows with mountain top panoramic views and an on-site restaurant, all within walking distance of the river two waterfalls and a Karen hill tribe village. The Chai Lai Orchid Mountain is one hour and ten minutes from Chiang Mai airport.

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Trip Advisor Reviews

We just spent the best day ever on our one-day Highlights of Chai Lai Elephant tour. The best part of the entire day was our guide “Jackie Chan.” He was so friendly and taught my kids so many things he learned growing up in the jungle. He taught them how to make spears out of grass, different medicines out of plants, and was constantly making them smile. He made them extravagant hats out of leaves and flowers, carved shot glasses and forks out of bamboo for me and my husband, and even crafted a mahogany arrowhead necklace for my daughter. The bamboo rafting was super fun, and the elephants seemed well cared for and were just amazing. Lunch in the jungle by the waterfall was also great, if a little bland (my only complaint!). Our communication from the moment I emailed Chai Lai Orchid, to all of our arranged transportation was flawless. I highly recommend this tour!

We had a lovely overnight stay at The Chai Lai Orchid. We booked a Mountain View room, so be aware that it is located 15 minutes beyond The Chai Lai when taking a taxi. It does have it’s own registration. The room was basic, but beautiful. There is no air conditioning...just open windows and turn on the fan. It was plenty cool at night. Breakfast was included (you have to order it and they bring it to your room), otherwise they have cereal and coffee in the cafe. We had a half day elephant care experience. Our guide,Alex, was fun and informative. He took lots of pictures! We learned about the elephants, fed them, learned some commands, walked through the jungle with them, and bathed them. It was an amazing and humbling experience. Such smart, strong, animals!! If you are planning a trip to Thailand, I would definitely recommend this experience.

We spent two days with our amazing guide Lan. He showed us amazing parts of Thailand and nature that I would have never even experienced. I had more fun hiking and seeing a beautiful waterfall than playing with the elephants and that’s saying something. Plus he cooked us the best meal that I had on my entire two week trip in Thailand. Would 100% recommend the two day one night trip to anyone who wants this experience.

What a great place to visit to get a feel of jungle, meet the elephants and the staff who care for them. Staying at Chai Lai has given me a much greater understanding of Elephants in Captivity and the extreme care and hard work that the Mahouts give to these majestic animals. I found the staff to be friendly and keen to help. As always there are negative reviews where animals are concerned, however, I have nothing but praise for everyone that works here. I highly recommend a visit.

Me and 4 close friends did the overnight trip. We hiked 2 hours into the jungle with the most amazing guide ever. His name was Lan, he showed us cool tricks of the jungle like what plants we can eat, plants that blew bubbles, cut down bamboo and made us cups and forks out of it, made the most amazing Thai food over our camp fire, told us stories and much more. He made the trip so special! He even had his little dog Chao come with us which we loved. The bungalows we stayed in had no power but that made us all connect and really take the time to appreciate each other and our lives without interruption from the outside world, there was an adorable waterfall right outside of your door and it was the first thing you saw when you woke up in the morning. That next morning we hiked for another hour or so and saw a cute hidden temple, then we had lunch he made for us and wrapped in palm leaves. This was our favorite activity we did in Thailand and I recommend it to everyone!! Ask for Lan, he made the whole experience so special. Such a great man. He spoke perfect English as well!