I came into elephantstay with very little knowledge of elephants but have always been passionate about animals and was eager to learn about how they are treated, etc. As a result I stayed here for 3 days and I learnt so much more than I ever anticipated. The hosts made so much time for my partner and I, for example, they stayed up with us till late every night (even though they had work at 6am the next day) just to chat to us and make our experience fun! They were also so passionate towards educating us on elephants and Thai culture as a whole. They taught us how to speak words in Thai, how to respect the culture, and introduced us to some delicious Thai dishes. After spending a long time trying to choose an elephant sanctuary, we came across this village and it stood out to us. This village offers so much more than just an afternoon of bathing elephants which the majority of tourists are sucked into. They show you how to know when the elephants are happy or sad, what to feed them, how to communicate with them and so much more. I learnt that the elephantstay has the highest number of successful births, has been visited by Thailand royalty, and even has a vet who lives there 24/7 to care for all the elephants needs. Yes - you can ride the elephants which at first may sound unethical, however, I learnt that each elephant is able to happily carry up to 25% of its body weight but the elephants only actually carry around 10%. Also, I rode the elephant once a day for around 40 minutes which included swim-time for the elephant. Therefore, they are not being constantly ridden for hours and hours and giving rides to tourists is actually integral to preventing their extinction as it the main source of income. Not to mention, the elephants enjoy it as they get exercise and are able to eat as much food as they want along the way. I ensured that the elephants were not being exploited, as a lot of articles suggest, because I simply could not live with myself if I was involved in anything that was putting elephants in harms way. Many articles spread a lot of questionable information about the elephants as I have not been able to find any supporting research for what they are stating. I learnt that elephants would be extinct if they were not allowed to work, as work offers them a purpose and the exercise that they need to be happy and healthy. If they do not wish to work, they are not forced to do so at the Elephantstay which was music to my ears as it shows that the elephants are not forced to do anything they don’t wish to do. Therefore, I would recommend elephantstay if you are looking to create deep connections with the elephants and are looking to gain a genuine insight into the life of the domestic elephants of Ayutthaya.