Elephant Tours from Phuket: Bathing, Feeding or Riding
By the PhuketGO tour desk on Phuket — we book and run these trips every week · Updated 28 September 2026
Every elephant tour we sell from Phuket heads north into Phang Nga province, and what really separates them is what you do with the elephants: swim with them on a beach, bathe and scrub them in a camp, or ride. Each tour card spells out the elephant programme, so choose by the activity, not the tour name.
Tours and prices in Thai baht
| Tour | Duration | Adult | Child 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elephant beach, Samet Nangshe viewpoint and Mantra Spa | One day, 07:00–18:00 | 3,400 ฿ | 3,000 ฿ |
| Rafting and the elephant spa | One day, nine hours or more | 1,550 ฿ | 1,350 ฿ |
| Rafting, elephant spa and ATV in one day | One day, around nine hours | 2,050 ฿ | 1,750 ฿ |
| Khao Lak safari: jungle, waterfalls and elephants | One day, around ten hours | 1,650 ฿ | 1,450 ฿ |
| Phang Nga and Samet Nangshe: viewpoint, mangroves and an elephant spa | One day, 06:30–17:30 | 2,050 ฿ | 1,650 ฿ |
| Phang Nga and the Samet Nangshe glass skywalk | One day, 06:30–18:00 | 2,650 ฿ | 2,400 ฿ |
| The Avatar world: jungle, elephants, rafts and hot springs | One day, 07:00–19:00 | 2,950 ฿ | 2,650 ฿ |
| Phuket sightseeing: the island in half a day | About six hours | 1,050 ฿ | 950 ฿ |
| Secrets of Krabi: hot springs, jungle lakes and the Tiger Cave temple | One day, 05:00–17:40 | 2,500 ฿ | 2,300 ฿ |
Prices come straight from our booking system. Children under four join free on most trips — each tour page says so.
Where can I swim with elephants in the sea?
On the elephant beach day. We pick up between 07:00 and 08:00, stop at the white temple at 09:30 and at the airplane beach at 11:00 (aircraft pass just above the sand). At 12:20 the elephants arrive. You feed them, and then they walk into the sea with you — the moment people film on repeat.
No ride on this one, which is exactly why some of our guests pick it. Lunch is at the Samet Nangshe viewpoint over Phang Nga Bay, and the afternoon ends at Mantra Spa: mineral pools, herbal baths, mud. Up to twenty people; back at 18:00. That viewpoint, and how it differs from Beyond Skywalk, is explained on Samet Nangshe or Beyond Skywalk. That's an afternoon visit; the morning ones are on Samet Nangshe at sunrise or in the afternoon.
Wear something you can swim in under your clothes. Elephants splash, and nobody stays dry — which is half the fun.
Can I choose between bathing and riding?
Yes — on the rafting day. It is a busy one: pickup at 06:50, a cave temple at nine, five kilometres of river before lunch. The elephants come at 14:10, and here you pick one programme, bathing or a ride. The mud treatment, showering the elephants and the baby elephant show come either way. Want both? The ride as a second programme is 300 ฿. Booking the version with quads instead? There the elephant part is a ride and the show, as does the rafting, elephant and ATV tour include elephant bathing sets out tour by tour.
The version with 250cc quad bikes swaps the choice for a ride plus the baby elephant show. Minibus back at 16:30 on both.
Which would I choose? Bathing. You spend longer with the animal, you are in the water with it, and the photos are better than from the saddle.
Which tours include everything, ride included?
Three. The Khao Lak safari gets to the elephant spa at 12:05, after a cave temple and a small local zoo, and carries on to bamboo rafting, a turtle farm and a waterfall. The Phang Nga and Samet Nangshe day, and its glass-skywalk twin, reach the spa at 13:40 — after the viewpoint, a longtail through the mangroves and a seafood lunch in the floating village. Mud, bathing, shower, show, ride: all in the price.
Then the Avatar world day, a small group of up to twelve. Bathing an elephant and a baby elephant show at 11:00, bamboo rafting, ATV trails, a waterfall, and hot springs on Natai beach at sunset. Long day. Good one. Bringing children? See is the Avatar world tour suitable for children.
Is there a short elephant stop inside another tour?
Two of them. On the Phuket sightseeing tour you feed a baby elephant at 11:45, between the Big Buddha viewpoint and Wat Chalong. On Secrets of Krabi an elephant turns up at 16:00 for feeding and photos (the feeding is 100 ฿ on the spot). The rest of that sightseeing morning, stop by stop, is on Phuket sightseeing in half a day.
Good if you want five minutes with an elephant inside a day about temples, viewpoints or hot springs.
- Swim with elephants in the sea, no ride — Elephant beach, Samet Nangshe and Mantra Spa
- Bathing or a ride, plus rafting — Rafting and the elephant spa
- Everything including a ride — Khao Lak safari, Phang Nga and Samet Nangshe
- Small group, elephant plus hot springs — the Avatar world day
- A quick feeding stop — Phuket sightseeing or Secrets of Krabi
What else happens on the elephant days?
On the elephant beach day the morning is quiet: the white temple at 09:30 and the airplane beach at 11:00, where aircraft pass just above the sand. After the elephants and lunch at Samet Nangshe comes Mantra Spa at 15:00, with mineral pools, herbal and tom yum baths, mud treatments, saunas and a lily lake.
On the Khao Lak safari the elephants come between a local zoo and bamboo rafting on a jungle river, and the day continues with a turtle farm, a waterfall, the Sarasin bridge viewpoint and a fruit market where the guide has you taste what grows on the plantations along the way.
What should I know before I book?
Wear clothes you are happy to get muddy, and bring a change for the ride home: the mud spa and the bathing leave nobody dry. Several of these days include a temple, where shoulders and knees must be covered; cover-ups can be hired for a small fee.
If you would rather bathe and feed the elephants than ride, say so in the chat when booking and we match the tour to it. On all these trips children aged 4 to 9 pay the child price. Every tour in our catalogue runs with an English-speaking guide.
The tours on this page
Questions people ask
Can you swim with elephants near Phuket?
Yes. On the Elephant beach, Samet Nangshe and Mantra Spa tour you feed the elephants and they go into the sea with you. It runs in Phang Nga, north of Phuket.
Which elephant tours include a ride?
The Khao Lak safari, the Phang Nga and Samet Nangshe day and its skywalk version include a ride in the price. On the rafting day you choose bathing or a ride.
Is there an elephant tour without riding?
Yes. The Elephant beach tour is feeding and swimming only, and on the rafting day you can choose bathing instead of a ride.
Where are the elephant camps?
In Phang Nga province, north of Phuket. Pickup is between 06:30 and 08:00 depending on the trip, and the elephants come around midday or early afternoon.
What should I wear for the elephant spa?
Swimwear under old clothes, and a change for the way back. Temples on the same days require covered shoulders and knees.
Can children join elephant tours?
Yes. Children aged 4 to 9 pay the child price. On rafting days the minimum age for the river is six.
Tell us your dates
Send the trip you like, your dates and your hotel. We confirm the pickup time and how the sea looks for that day. Payment is agreed in the chat after the booking is confirmed: by card, bank transfer or USDT.