Anantara Elephant Camp
On the northern border of Thailand, a resort unlike any other has successfully merged luxury and adventure in place of legends. After a long flight and much driving along the picturesque rice paddies, Anantara feels like forever away. Luckily the reward is soon evident: beautiful exotic gardens and views stretching across the mighty Mekong River to three different countries. Photo by: Michelle 217
Most of all, though, the resort is famous for its mahout (elephant trainer) camp, where guests are taught the art of ”ele-driving”. The daylong crash course to become a mahout is an incomparable experience, and real privilege. Before you know it, you will be riding elephants bareback and giving your impressive mount Thai commands to follow, then sliding off down its trunk like an old pro. Photo by: gsummerville7
The entire resort pays homage to elephants: Even the towels in the designer bedrooms are cleverly folded origami style into elephants shapes. After a hard day’s ele-driving, reward yourself with a dip in the infinity pool or a visit to the spa to be massaged in style cocooned in an atmosphere of dark woods, orchids, and silk. Excursions to what was once Burma and Laos are also part of the attraction. Once a mysterious no-man’s land, the Golden Triangle is now a place to go for something utterly different. Photo by: Robert Stokes
Photo by: Kevin Day
