Private Tour: Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary Day Tour from Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Visit the Elephant Conservation Farm at Kuala Gandah - only one and a half hour's journey from Kuala Lumpur. Located in a beautiful tropical rainforest, the Elephant 'Sanctuary' in an ambitious elephant conservation program implemented and managed by the Malaysian Wildlife Society, where you come into close contact with semi-wild elephants. Truly an exciting and never-to-be forgotten experience!

Spend a very special day at the Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary on a private tour you'll never forget. Start your tour with a visit to Deerland Park where you'll see over 30 Indonesian deers. Next, venture off to Malaysia's tropical rainforest, 1.5 hours from Kuala Lumpur, for a fully personalized visit to the elephant sanctuary.

The Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary is an ambitious elephant conservation program implemented and managed by the Malaysian Wildlife Society. When you visit, you'll come into close contact with semi-wild elephants and spend an exhilarating day with these unique creatures. You'll take rides, feed them fruit and experience the thrill of bathing with the elephants at a nearby river all under the watchful eye and careful supervision of the elephant's skilled trainers. The specially trained and committed team of wildlife experts are dedicated to the protection and preservation of the Asian elephants.

At the sanctuary, you will also enjoy a 30-minute documentary on the conservation activities and programs carried out by the team. This private tour offers a wildlife experience that's not to be missed!

Special Note: When Deerland Park is closed on Fridays, guests will visit the Aborigine Settlement.

USD $146.66

Review by: Denise C	April 2012
A memorable experiance, it was a shame that there was significant rainfall the day before and the river was running too high abnd fast to allow entry into the water to swim with the elephants. Our driver was very helpful, friendly and informative, well worth the effort to go.

Review by: rachel w	March 2012
Great day our guide had great tips and was very flexible! Worth visit to elephant park!

Review by: Kim G	March 2012
Tour guide Mr Sofa gets 5 stars. It was an excellent day, lots of information. Didn't get to bathe the elephants so hence the 4/5 stars. Children have great memories and I would recommend this tour to others. I would suggest that you bring water and for younger children car activities it is a bit of a drive, but well worth it if Mr Sofa is the guide.

Review by: Rhonda O	March 2012
Good tour, the elephant sanctuary is small but appears to be well run a documentary is run to show you about a group that relocates elephants, they don't appear to be connected with the sanctuary, I personally believe the sanctuary could do so much more to educate people and in turn hopefully brining in more money for the preservation of the elephants but it was a good tour, our guide was good, informative but not always with the correct information we found out later but all in all had a wonderful day.

Review by: K J K	February 2012
Our tour guide was amazing, really attentive. There was 2 of us so he customised the day around what we wanted to see. He even took us to the wet markets on the way home because we said we thought they would be interesting. He was considerate (stood in line for us in the hot sun so we could rest) and knew things like we should buy bananas on the way there because elephants love them more than peanuts. Definitely an amazing experience for animal lovers!

Review by: Walter H	February 2012
Great trip and tour guide!

Review by: colly2467	February 2012
Excellent day spent with our tour guide Desmond Heng who made our day very special, would certainly recommend.

Review by: StEPHANIE O	February 2012
Our tour guide was amazing and told us lots of information about KL. The elephants was magical especially for my daughter is elephant obsessed . Will book again with you the next time we go to KL.

Review by: Kyle D	February 2012
Would thoroughly recommend this trip, myself ( and my Mum especially) had a fantastic day. Our guide Ai was amazing!! He was very informative, good fun and we seemed to have about 10 times as much food to feed the elephants as everyone else. We were also treated very well, with drinks and snacks provided when we needed them. The elephants themselves are fantastic and you do get the feeling that they are not being overworked/stressed, as is sometimes the case on trips like this. We could not praise Ai highly enough, if you get him as your guide, you're in for a good day!

Review by: George D G	January 2012
Had a fantastic tour!! Our tour guide Ai was incredible, got us to the front of the queue for everything, and even on the drive he kept us entertained by stopping and letting us try the local fruit, which was definately an experience! We also stopped at deerlands which I thoroughly enjoyed, and we were lucky to be the only tourists there, so got to do a lot of extras. On a whole this tour was the highlight of our holiday (that includes the New Zealand part) and in a large part this was down to our tour guide. This was a christmas Present from me for my boyfriend, and needless to say he was chuffed to bits!! I wouldn't hesitate to book a Viator Tour again!

Review by: Danika H	January 2012
The guide was great and helped everything run smoothly, from standing in line for us to taking photos. It was a great day and definitly a trip highlight

Review by: Philippa W	January 2012
To have an up close experience with the elephants was wonderful and a real highlight of the trip to Malaysia. However, the private tour was not good value. The driver picked us up at 9.30am. The seatbelts for the children were not adjustable and therefore completely hopeless. The "packed" lunch was a stop off at an awful back routes restaurant. The food was actually delicious if you were brave enough to try it. We were told we either had to eat now (at barely 11.00am) or wait until 5.00pm. The plantation stop was literally a stop on the side of the road where the driver insisted we walk (trespass) into a plantation which was strewn with rubbish. He then revealed a palm oil seed from his pocket!!! The same thing occured when he drove past a rubber plantation - quick stop, dangerously cross the road and trespass. The local fruits was the driver pointing out every fruit tree we passed without stopping to try any. On the return we insisted he drive us straight back to the hotel. He did this at 60kph on the freeway where cars were driving at 100kph. It was excruitiating. He kept telling us how he didn't want to get picked up for speeding - no chance. When I didn't think things could be worse, I noticed the driving nodding off to sleep. To be sure I watched carefully and he did it again. I spoke sternly and told him he should rest. He of course denied almost falling asleep and bounced back into conversation. Our driver was knowledgable about Malaysia but he almost ruined the day. Thank goodness the elephants were so beautiful. Don't get trapped into a tour. Perhaps hire a driver and go straight to the sanctuary.

Review by: Stephanie D	January 2012
This was an absolutely AMAZING day! Michael was a fantastic guide, he shared a great amount of information with us and knew all the best spots for us to be at the right time! He lined us up for spectacular photo opportunities and took control of our camera to ensure we captured every moment that we were both involved with activities. He even lined up for us at times so that we could be first in! We loved the fact that this was not a commercialised tourist attraction but a beautiful elephant sanctuary and were very privileged to have the opportunity to share this experience!! Definitely a highlight of our trip and I reccommend the tour to anyone!

Review by: Joshua R	January 2012
We had a great guide who gave us plenty of information and was extremely helpful._br/_ The tour is highly recommended, but note that the actual elephant ride is only a small lap of the area. So, don't expect a ride longer than a couple minutes.

Review by: Joe S	January 2012
Great guide/driver who had some great tips for us to make the tour better. We enjoyed seeing all the animals, especially the wonderful elephants. They were magnificent. Our lunch was at typical sidewalk cafe at the edge of the sacncturary, and it was wonderful. Some others declined to eat there. Too bad, the food was superb. All around fantastic

Review by: T M P	January 2012
It was an excellent tour, I can't rate our guide Chi'A highly enough. He always went the extra mile to make sure you had the best experience at each point in the tour and had a great knowledge of the Malaysia and all things Malaysian.

Review by: Guidegirl	January 2012
Our tour guide was very knowledgeable. We were disappointed that we could not bath the elephants. It seems the river was very high and had a swift current. WEish we had known that before we booked.

Review by: Alison N	January 2012
We thoroughly enjoyed our tour, the guide - Chi-Ai was very knowledgable and did extra things for us like buy bananas for the elephants and lots of different local fruits to try. The only disappointment was that we paid to wash the elephants and that didn't happen due to the water in the river being too high (that's why 4 instead of 5 stars) as that was the main highlight. Overall all, an excellent day, thank you

Review by: Michael H	December 2011
Like michael p, my guide was Ai as well. He was outstanding. He bought extra bananas for the elephants, and told me were to queue to get the best photos. He showed me rubber trees and the swallow houses for obtaining the nests for bird nests soup. We stopped and got some local fruits, some of which were excellent (jackfruit, malay apple) and some that are an acquired taste (durian). Simply an awesome day!

Review by: Sally J	December 2011
That was an extraordinary experience. I am surprised by the other posts on this site. This is not a tourist attraction, it is a sanctuary and I feel privileged to have gotten so close to them. Thank you

Review by: CLAIRE P	December 2011
We read the reviews and we had a fantastic day. We are a family travelling with a 3 and 5 year old, so we were a bit worried about taking the children but they had a great day. A great opportunity to get near the elephants and see some of the malaysian country. You will not regret booking this trip. Also a big thank you to Che Ai for being such a fantastic guide and making us feel like VIP's. My advice is not to book with any other agent!!

Review by: michael p	December 2011
this is a must do tour, our guide was aye, he was fun friendly told us about lots of things that was not covered in the tour like fruit tasting and rubber trees i cant recommend this tour enough worth every penny well done to aye

Review by: Roseanne P	December 2011
We sat on an elephants back for a short ride and found the experience pretty awesome. We didnt get the chance to bathe the elephants which would have been wonderful and found it hard to understand our narrator. Overall a good experience.

Review by: ANDREW M	November 2011
Our tour of the elephant sanctuary was amazing, and most of that was due to Henry our tour guide. We were picked up from our hotel by Henry and had a lovely drive stopping at deerland on the way. Henry knew everything you could possibly what to know about Malaysia and of course the elephant sanctuary and chatted all the way there. Once there he knew all the staff and knew all the best places to stand and ushered us forward at all the right times to get the best pictures and never miss a thing. He also took time to show us a lot of flowers and plants and knew all there uses and names. We had a thoroughly wonderful day and lots of great pictures and memories to show for it. We also had the added bonus of speaking to the Sultans wife who happened to be there on the same day. Great tour and great to have Henry show us everything there was to offer.

Review by: Madelyne C	November 2011
It was a lovely day (very hot), It was wonderful to get so close to these majestic creatures.

Review by: Stefanie S	November 2011
Oh my! What a wonderful trip, our guide was amazing and gave us so much more than we expected, he was great with the camera too! We were always in the right place at the right time, to be at the front of everything. Thank you so very much!

Review by: Craig B	November 2011
Awesome trip kids loved it I highly recommend

Review by: Ashley S	November 2011
Fantastic tour, knowledgeable guide, great value for money, all we wanted from a private tour of this type

Review by: Sam	November 2011
Fantastic experience, totally loved the day and will recommend it everyone :o)

Review by: KATHARINE S	November 2011
Not the most natural environment for these beautiful animals however the elephants need support so do visit. I know the Sanctuary does have some excellent future plans for trips so watch this space...I would thoroughly recommend the private tour - we had an excellent and fascinating guide and a 'cool' car!

Review by: Emma M	November 2011
Excellent, professional and friendly driver. Even lined up on our behalf at the elephant sanctuary while we participated in other activities. Bathing with the elephant was a wonderful experience. No problems whatsoever. Definitely recommend!

Review by: Sarah R	October 2011
Absolutely loved this trip - worth every penny. Would do it again tomorrow if I could.

Review by: Jane T	October 2011
This was amazing - our driver Chi Ai was a font of local information, history and culture, he mad quite a long trip a day of fun and aventure. He also organised for us to feed the elephants bananas and even ride them into the river and wash and play with them. A small price to pay to skip the lines and get the experience of a life time. One of the best tours I've ever done!!

Review by: Pamela R	October 2011
This was not one of most favourite tours and I speak for eight ladies._br/_ We felt it was too commercialised and the name "orphanage sanctuary" was misleading._br/_ We had expected more of a jungle setting and we felt that concrete and elephants are not a good look. We felt that the whole bathing thing was a staged act and nothing seemed to be natural. The guide was very pleasant and did his best to please. The remainder of the trip was very enjoyable and his commentary and knowledge was very good._br/_ Not up there with our favourites!

Review by: Robert T	October 2011
This was fantastic. We hand an unbelievable guide and an equally great day. To feed the elephants by hand was great enough but to have a ride on the and then be able to swi and bath the baby elephants was unbelievable. One of the best day trips I have ever done. Would go back toorrow.

Review by: Alison L	October 2011
A wonderful tour and my guide was fantastic. Disappointed not to see the sun bears at Deerland after they are so heavily advertised. Perhaps the tour details should be revised to to reflect this. Hopefully they will be back soon. The Elephant Sanctuary visit was great, just too short. Could easily have spent a day there just wandering and admiring these magnificent animals. The video shown prior to seeing the elephants was incredibly moving and would love to have been able to purchase a copy.....a revenue idea for the Park and an important educational tool.

Review by: Alison L	October 2011
A wonderful tour and my guide was fantastic. Disappointed not to see the sun bears at Deerland after they are so heavily advertised. Perhaps the tour details should be revised to to reflect this. Hopefully they will be back soon. The Elephant Sanctuary visit was great, just too short. Could easily have spent a day there just wandering and admiring these magnificent animals. The video shown prior to seeing the elephants was incredibly moving and would love to have been able to purchase a copy.....a revenue idea for the Park and an important educational tool.

Review by: vvdib	October 2011
Well worth visiting i totally enjoyed the experience and my guide was excellent

Review by: Melissa R	September 2011
The private tour was fantastic and didn't have share the experience with a bus load of people. The drive took a couple of hours, but the driver was really good and very helpful during the day. It gave more of a personal experience and we would do it again if we go back for sure. We had a great day and although the elephant ride was short, we still had experiences and the opportunity to get closer to elephants than we ever thought possible. Keep in mind that they are a semi wild elephants but are well behaved and under control of the trainers. Highly recommend this tour for families and people looking to get close to native animals.

Review by: Jutta S	September 2011
The elphant sanctuary only operates in the afternoon so we started the tour with a visit to The Deerland. Afterwards we had a really nice lunch on the side of the road. At the elephant sanctuary we had to change our clothes which was a little bit difficulty because the changing room were unbearably hot and smelly. Everything else was exiting thanks to our tour guide who took pictures, carried bags and did what ever he could to make our trip enjoyable and unforgetable.

Review by: Angelique B	September 2011
Great day for the family or anyone very good guide full of information , on time professional our 3 year old daughter had a ball . Good stuff

Review by: Anonymous, Australia	July 2010
We are so happy we foilowed the advice of other reviewers and booked this tour. We had a private guide and were chauffeured to the elephant sanctuary and nearby Deerland in an air conditioned vehicle. Not only were both attractions extremely interesting and a lot of fun, but our guide, Henry, was a consummate professional and a real gentleman. We thoroughly enjoyed the day we spent with him and his illuminating insights on Malaysian life it was a genuine pleasure to meet him. The elephant sanctuary itself is a modest enterprise which gives people an unparalleled opportunity to interact with these amazing creatures. It was the highlight of my stay in KL. One tip if you are enjoying, as I was, feeding the smaller elephants an incredible privilege, consider passing up the very quick elephant ride and stay put. However, the very refreshing 'dumping' in the river from the elephant's back is highly recommended, given the very hot and humid conditions. Don't miss this, it's worth every cent!

Review by: Rodney A, Australia	July 2010
The tour guide was excellent and really looked after us. The tour was excellent. Please keep the little restaurant in the tour rather then the elephant sanctuary lunch when it is built.

Review by: Kenneth H, Australia	June 2010
Fantastic trip. One of the best days we have had. Our guide, Mr Singh, was fabulous - couldn't have asked for better. Would highly recommend the trip. Swimming with the elephants was amazing, an experience never to forget.

Review by: C A, Australia	June 2010
We had a great fun in this trip. We got the chance to play with elephant closely and feed them with our hands.

Review by: Lisa M, United Kingdom	June 2010
Truly a fantastic day from start to finish. A big part of this was down to our guide Mr Singh who was knowledgable, interesting and went out of his way to make sure we had a great day. We had some truly memorable experiences from holding a python, hugging an adult sun bear and of course all the interaction with the elephants. Lunch was fabulous, we went to a local restaurant where the food was delicious. If you're lucky you'll get Mr Singh who took us into a forest to see how the local people collect latex from the rubber trees, how the native people live and queued for all the activities at the Sanctuary for us so we weren't ever at the back of the queue. Talk about going above and beyond. In short, BOOK IT! You won't be sorry!!!

Review by: Emily S, Australia	June 2010
Probably no where else where you could get that close to these magnificent animals.

Review by: Herbert T, Australia	May 2010
This is a very good day tour, which was helped by a very good knowledgeable driver.

Review by: Durlie B, United States of America	May 2010
Riding the elephants was so much fun!

Review by: Nathalie P, Mauritius	May 2010
If you go to Malaysia, this is a "must do" tour. We had a great time touching, feeding, riding and taking a bath with the elephant. Don't forget to take spare clothes!