Where to See and Ride Elephants
There are several sites which have daily elephant shows. The closest is at Mae Sa, only 20 kms from Chiangmai. Further afield is Chiang Dao elephant camp, another 30 kms north. 80kms south of Chiangmai, on the road to Lampang, is the 'Thai Elephant conservation Centre'. Under Royal patronage, opened by Queen Sirikit, a large area of replanted teak forest is worked by donated elephants. The idea is to prove by doing it that elephants make more sense than vehicles -- they do not damage the surrounding forest so much, they do not require petrol, and damage the soil far less than vehicles. There is even a plan to manufacture teak furniture on site in a few years. There is an excellent show tree times a day. At all the camps, after the show those interested can enjoy a ride of various duration's through pretty scenery. There are also several smaller elephant camps, some with shows.
Most elephants in the north are owned by people of the Karen hill tribe -- in fact many of the mahouts wear the traditional red shirts of Karen men.