In recent years, Thailand has seen a steady growth in alternative forms of tourist attractions that are more in-line with the environment and natural habits of animals. Near Chiang Mai, there are a lot of elephant sanctuaries that are now open to visitors. Their focus is on taking care of the elephants. It was a great experience for me and I enjoyed seeing the elephants in their natural environment. The dark side of elephant tourism Tourism doesn’t often have the best reputation. There is always the risk involved that too many tourists will delude the local culture and damage the environment. Elephant tourism is no different. In Thailand, it is very popular to use elephants as a form of entertainment. Tourists ride them and elephants are often forced to perform tricks. While this can look entertaining for the tourists, it certainly isn’t for the elephants. Although they are very big animals, their anatomy doesn’t handle the riding very well and it damages their overall well-being
Thailand is a traveler's hotspot of Southeast Asia. And for good reason. This travel guide details everything you should know before traveling to the Land of Smiles, including detailed advice from a former expat, responsible travel tips, and plenty of recs on the best things to see and do!