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Chai Lai Orchard is an innovative luxurious ethical hotel with elephants near Chiang Mai in Thailand. Staying here was genuinely one of the most unique, memorable and enjoyable hotel stays we have ever experienced. As long term travellers we have stayed in our fair share of hotels! So we are especially excited about sharing this one with you. BUT… there are some very important things you need to know about before you book your super special stay in 2026.
Don’t miss our video on staying at Chai Lai Orchid with our lovely boys
Our time here was so special we have made a dedicated video on it. We decided to surprise our beautiful boys with a wake up call from the elephants! Oh yeah and while you’re on our channel definitely don’t forget to subscribe!
In this guide we will tell you everything you need to know to plan an amazing stay at the Chai Lai Orchid hotel with elephants in 2026. We answer all of your questions and give you top tips to get the most out of your stay.
Chai Lai Orchid is much more than a hotel. Comprised of luxurious wooden nature lodges and situated in the jungle hills of north Thailand, Chai Lai offers guests a chance to slow down and detox from the high pace of life. Guests can relax in stunning surroundings, sample decadent local foods and encounter beautiful elephants throughout the day. This hotel has a multifaceted ethical mission to impact their community positively whilst providing a safe, happy home for elephants.
For a project of this calibre, the only thing that we are surprised about is how genuinely affordable Chai Lai Orchid is for guests. They clearly want to keep their experience accessible for people, and we are genuinely impressed.
To put it into perspective, some elephant sanctuaries in Thailand charge the same price for a single day visit as Chai Lai Orchid charges for a two nights stay and a full day private jungle trek with the elephants!
By the way, if you’re visiting Chai Lai Orchid, you may also be interested in this incredible 10 day Chiang Mai itinerary
What is a day like at Chai Lai Orchid?
This hotel really is unique in terms of the experience they offer. A day at Chai Lai Orchid is magical from the moment you wake. You can literally receive a wake up call from the elephants who often pop a trunk into your room to say hello and politely request some bananas. A stay at this UNIQUE hotel with elephants is perhaps one of the most unique elephant encounters in the world.
Chai Lai Orchid also offers a “breakfast with elephants” experience. You can sit on a balcony or terrace and feed the elephants their favourite fruits. If you’re quick at getting the food in, you can also enjoy a nibble or two of your own breakfast. After the elephants have enjoyed their breakfast with you, watch them wander off for their next breakfast at the next bungalow… who doesn’t love multiple breakfasts?
Top tip: Plan for hygiene. Bring some wet wipes and sanitiser if you want to have breakfast with elephants.
Chai Lai Orchid wakes up slowly. If you’re up early enough (around 6-7am), you will also see stunning scenes of oceans of clouds in the valleys. This really is a dreamy place. Elephant wake up calls normally happen after 8am so check with the lovely staff to arrange this.
Throughout the morning you can enjoy hot drinks, juice and cereal at your leisure. Watch the valleys light up and the jungles come to life around you. Take time to get photos with the elephants and meet some of the lovely staff. Take a stroll and explore the beautiful surrounding jungles, villages and the river in the valley. There are several impressive waterfalls near Chai Lai as well.
Chai Lai Orchid also have a restaurant that serves food throughout the day. In the evening try some decadent food from the restaurant, and enjoy the beautiful colors of the sunset. Listen to the jungle taking on a new life of its own in the night. There is also a small bar serving a tempting array of cocktails, beer or wine.
Where is Chai Lai Orchid located?
Chai Lai Orchid is also known as Chai Lai Mountain. It is located in the hills approximately 55km by road, southwest of Chiang Mai. It is also north of the Doi Inthanon National Park (around 20-30km by road). Beware that Chai Lai Orchid is labelled incorrectly on some maps. Use our label to help you get to the right place.
Also don’t miss the Royal Twin Pagodas near the summit of Doi Inthanon
How do you get to the Chai Lai Orchid hotel with elephants?
Chai Lai Orchid can be a little tricky to find at first. Also be aware that some maps label it incorrectly so please use our information to help you land in the correct place. The best way to get to Chai Lai Orchid is to travel from Chiang Mai. There are several ways to get here from Chiang Mai.
Rent a bike: This is a fun and cheap way to get around the area. If you are planning to rent a bike to get to Chai Lai Orchid, be aware that there are some very steep hills in the last couple of kilometers. We recommend a bike with a reasonably powerful engine (check that you are qualified to ride the power of the bike that you rent). You can normally find bike rental ranging from 100 – 400 baht per day depending on the age, power and style of bike you rent (this is roughly £2 to £8 or $2.50 to $10).
Rent a car: This is a convenient way to get to Chai Lai Orchid and potentially do a longer road trip exploring the Doi Inthanon National Park. The cost and availability of car rental depends on the season. During low season car rental can be found for as little as 600 – 700 baht per day if you are willing to shop around and barter (this is around £12 or $16). During high season it is hard to find car rental for less than 1,000 baht and availability is quite limited (this is roughly £20 or $25). Petrol costs around 30 baht per liter (60p or $0.8). We recommend Chiang Mai Wheels for a great car rental service.
Take a taxi: It is likely to cost around 1,000 baht to get to Chai Lai Orchid by taxi each way (this is roughly £20 or $25). We recommend arranging a pick up deal with the same driver if possible.
Directions to Chai Lai Orchid: From Chiang Mai drive south from the city along route 108 approximately 20km. Turn right on the route 1013 and follow it for approximately 35km into the hills until you reach Wat Mae Sapok (Mae Sapok temple). Turn left at the temple. Follow the road down the hill (it gets pretty steep at one point), the road then flattens out and crosses a river. On the other side of the river follow the road up the steep hill (don’t turn off to the left) here. Just keep following the road around 1km up the steep hill without turning off. Near the top of the steep hill Chai Lai Orchid is on your right. You will see some big gates. It’s not super obvious until you actually drive in. The car park is down to your left and the reception is straight ahead as you come in through the gates.
What are the rooms like at Chai Lai Orchid?
Beautiful, luxurious and comfortable. The rooms are luxurious nature lodges which include balconies and/or terraces and seating areas. Most rooms come with a beautiful view of the rolling hills, valleys and jungles. And of course, expect to see a friendly elephant or two wandering outside your abode.
So the rooms are comfortable, stylish and luxurious… But they are still nature lodges. So although rooms have beautiful comfortable beds and stylish ensuite bathrooms, everything has a natural earthy feel. At night you can hear the beautiful jungle sounds. Bathrooms are private but you can gaze up to see the sky or canopy as you shower. Don’t expect your room to be insect free, you’re staying in a wooden nature lodge in the jungle and some bugs are bound to find their way in.
Beds do have large mosquito nets. We do recommend also using mosquito repellant too (they give you free sachets if you forget your own). They also offer fan and air conditioning. It is worth being aware that the temperatures at Chai Lai are much lower than the average temperatures in Thailand, especially at night. You may even need to put on an extra layer! As nature lodges go, Chai Lai Orchid really is excellent.
How much do rooms cost at Chai Lai Orchid hotel with elephants?
FIND OUT THE LATEST PRICES AT CHAI LAI ORCHID NOW
Rooms normally cost in the range of 2,000 – 3,000 baht per night (this is approximately £40 – £60 or roughly $50 – $80 per night). This includes breakfast and meeting the elephants. If you wish to have additional experiences such as treks, trips, elephant photoshoot, swimming with elephants and breakfast with elephants you will need to pay extra.
What is the food like at Chai Lai Orchid?
We absolutely LOVED the food at Chai Lai Orchid. They offer a continental style breakfast with Thai or American breakfast options. They portions are very generous and they often include interesting local treats, fresh local fruits and additions such as pastries and fruit juices. In addition to the breakfast that is served you can also top up drinks and cereal throughout the morning. If you want to do the “Breakfast with Elephants” experience this is offered for an additional charge of
The Chai Lai Orchid cafe offers a menu of delicious fresh food throughout the day. Dishes range in price from around 80baht – 250 baht (this is roughly £1.60 – £5 or around $2 – $7).
They offer both vegetarian and vegan options and also Thai and western food. The Thai dishes include chicken curries, satay, seafood, soups and noodle dishes. We highly recommend trying the tea leaf salad (which is a traditional Karon dish). The western options include handmade flatbread pizzas, pastas, french fries, sticky chicken wings.
They also offer a range of tempting drinks including some alcoholic drinks such as cocktails, beers, wine. And of course soft drinks too.
How long should you spend at the Chai Lai Orchid hotel with elephants?
We recommend spending at least two nights at Chai Lai Orchid in order to enjoy the full experience and not feel rushed. Chai Lai Orchid is genuinely such a unique place, and the chilled rural life will make you want to slow down and stay longer. If you do have more time you could really unwind here and stay for a week or two!
Do the staff speak English at the Chai Lai Orchid?
Yes, all of the staff at Chai Lai Orchid speak English, at least to some degree, and some have excellent levels of English. The staff are friendly, welcoming and very hospitable. Most of the staff at Chai Lai Orchid have been given training, support and are paid excellent wages relative to other employment opportunities. We will come back to the excellent ethical treatment of staff later.
What experience does Chai Lai Orchid offer?
In addition to accommodation, Chai Lai Orchid also offers a range of other experiences and trips. Here is a summary:
- Breakfast with elephants: have breakfast set up at your room and the elephants will be brought to join you with their own breakfast fruit. Great photo op. Western and Asian breakfast options available. This service is offered at an extra charge. Enquire with the Chai Lai team.
- Elephant Jungle Expedition: One day private Jungle adventure including elephant trekking, waterfalls, rafting and hiking 3,000 baht (around £60 or $80)
- Elephant Care Intro package: Trekking, bathing and communicating with the elephants. Half day experience 2,000 baht (around £40 or $50)
- Elephant Homestay Waterfall trek: Trek, visit a waterfall and stay in an authentic Karon home and join them for food. 2 days and 1 night 4,900 baht (around £100 or $130)
- Secret jungle temple trek: Trek to an ancient, mysterious jungle temple in the hills 1,500 baht (£30 or $40)
- Jungle wisdom trek: Trek and learn about survival and farming in the jungle. Karon homestay. 4500 baht (around £100 or $130)
- Professional photoshoots start at around 6,000 baht per session (£120 or $150)
Is Chai Lai Orchid ethical?
Now to address the elephant in the room (pun intended). Is Chai Lai Orchid an ethical elephant hotel? In short – YES. Highly ethical.
We wont get into loads of detail here as we don’t want to over simplify a very complicated, nuanced and important issue. Sadly there is a small minority of animal activists who have targeted Chai Lai with over simplified negative reviews.
A short stay at Chai Lai is enough to realise that this small handful of reviews are disingenuous and dishonest. What’s more, if you read the majority of the reviews (across several platforms) you can see that Chai Lai is absolutely superlative, both in terms of the experience they offer and their commitment to the wellbeing of elephants and their community.
We do want to address ethical elephant encounters more fully in the future. For the time being, please be assured that if we observed any abuse or mistreatment of elephants we would not be recommending Chai Lai Orchid on our website.
Here are a few of the indicators that Chai Lai provides an excellent safe home for elephants:
- The elephants are calm, playful, happy, well fed, and well cared.
- We did not see any indication of boredom, distress or abuse of the elephants.
- The needs of the elephants are consistently prioritised when they are interacting with people (this includes feeding, photography, walking and bathing elephants)
- The Mahouts were very sensitive to the needs of the elephants throughout the day (e.g. when they need rest, when it is too hot for them to be out, which elephants interact the best etc…)
A big indicator of the ethical values of a hotel is how well they treat their local staff and community. By this measure Chai Lai is superlative:
- They offers excellent employment and training opportunities for Mahouts who often come from poor and marginalised Karon communities. Mahouts are the companions who look after the elephants and have a deep bond with them. Promoting the wellbeing of Mahouts is fundamental to promoting the wellbeing of elephants.
- They intentionally employs and trains local women who have either been rescued from trafficking or are identified as at risk.
- They support a non-profit organisation that donates 100% of its profits to the anti-trafficking charity Daughters Rising.
In summary, Chai Lai Orchid is a project that CARES. It’s hard to summarise all of the excellent work that this innovative project does. If you want to read about Chai Lai’s commitment to ethical elephant care, then check out their website.
They have lots of information about issues surrounding elephant care in Thailand and share their values and standards of ethical elephant care.
What else is there to do near the Chai Lai Orchid?
Near Chai Lai orchid you can visit the Mae Wang waterfall. This is an impressive waterfall located in a deep jungle valley. Down the hill you can also visit the Maewang village and the Wang river. You can also see Mae Sapok temple.
Chai Lai Orchid is located north of the Doi Inthanon National Park, home to mountains, waterfalls and the iconic Chiang Mai twin pagodas.
If you LOVE unique accomodation check out our guide on AMAZING Phuket hotels with Private Swimming pools. You can even stay in a treehouse with its own swimming pool!
