Visiting an elephant sanctuary was one of our bucket list dreams. There are plenty of sanctuaries around Southeast Asia, but not all of them are beneficial to the elephants. I wanted to make sure to visit one that didn’t allow elephant riding, and was also helpful to the surrounding community. So I began my search for an ethical elephant sanctuary in Cambodia. This led me to the Mondulkiri Project, a place that went beyond my expectations. Not only do they help to preserve elephants, but they also contribute to forest conservation. Our one day here was an incredible experience not to be missed.

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Mondulkiri Project: An Ethical Elephant Sanctuary in Cambodia

In This Article
What is the Mondulkiri Project?
When to go to Mondulkiri
Things to Know Before You Go
How to Get to Sen Monorom
Where to Stay
The Elephant Sanctuary
One Day Elephant Tour
Lunch and Hammock Time
Giving the Elephants a Bath
Head Home

The forest protected by the Mondulkiri Project

What is the Mondulkiri Project?

The Mondulkiri Project is a a registered Cambodian NGO managed by the Cambodia Elephant Rescue Organization. Mr. Tree founded the project and has a deep passion for protecting the forests in Sen Monorom. He’s also trying to preserve the dwindling Asian elephant population. Sadly there are less than 300 Asian elephants left in the wild. The local indigenous communities need an income and resort to logging to support themselves. But in 2013 this project has made an agreement with Bunong elders to stop logging, which in turn will protect this forest for the next 30 years.

The central idea of this project is to help the local Bunong people by providing them an income in return. They are able to create jobs for them by employing them as staff. The forest also provides earnings through forest herbs, wild honey and resin. Proceeds from the elephant tours and jungle treks are also given back to the local villages. At the same time, wildlife is preserved and protected. It’s such an incredibly sustainable organization that we feel lucky to have been a part of.

A typical style home in Sen Monorom

When to Go to Mondulkiri

The Mondulkiri Province is on the eastern side of the country bordering Vietnam. It has dense tropical jungles, gorgeous waterfalls, and local indigenous tribes. It’s best for you to visit this area during dry season, which typically goes from November through April. The area is almost inaccessible during wet season, with travel being difficult and flooded roads. There’s also more risk of mosquito-borne illness during wet season. The rain brings a lot more mosquitos in this area. Our trip here was in February, and we found it to be perfect. We barely saw a mosquito in sight, and the weather was gorgeous.

Things to Know Before You Go

There are a few things that are helpful to know before visiting here. The first one is the weather. It’s actually much cooler here than other parts of the country. At night it got slightly chilly. We recommend having a light jacket or cardigan. The other thing to be mindful of is the presence of malaria. Malaria pills is definitely a personal choice. We didn’t want to risk it so we ended up taking them. It’s also important to use good bug repellant at all times. Sawyer makes some great Picaridin products which worked great for our trip. If you’re really hardcore you can also cover your skin with breathable clothing. There are also bug jackets and pants to keep mosquitos away. Most importantly, make sure to use those mosquito nets provided above your bed, they are essential while you sleep.

The minibus we took to Sen Monorom

How to Get to Sen Monorom

The trip to Sen Monorom is certainly not the easiest. It’s a 6 hour bus ride from Phnom Penh and more than 10 hours from Siem Reap. We decided to stay overnight in Phnom Penh and take the early 7:00am bus. We booked the TCT Mondulkiri Express via BookMeBus. Although the ride was a bit rough at times, the service was great. We were on time and everything went smoothly. Bus service in Cambodia can be hit or miss, so we can vouch for this company. Tickets were around $10 per person, and brought us to the center of town around 1:00pm. From there we took a $2 tuk tuk ride to the lodge.

View of the bungalows from the terrace

Aerial shot of the lodge

Where to Stay

Mr. Tree owns and maintains Tree Lodge, an eco lodge immersed within the jungle and mountains of Sen Monorom. It takes about 10 minutes to get here by tuk tuk from the main bus stops on town. The lodge has a restaurant with Khmer and Western cuisine. There’s also a terrace with gorgeous sunset views. We spent most of our evenings here relaxing, drinking fruit shakes and enjoying the beautiful surroundings.

Terra playing on the terrace area of the restaurant

The beautiful terrace views at sunset

A closer look at some of the smaller bungalows

We arrived at the lodge around 1pm and we spent the rest of our day lounging and relaxing. The property has several bungalows all lined up. There is a walkway that connects them all together. Each bungalow has a porch area to relax and hang out. We booked the family one which had 3 double beds, a hot shower, and hammock on the porch. Ours was surrounded by banana trees, avocados and beautiful greenery. Accommodations were very rustic and basic, but the experience was incredible.

Several geckos came out at night and made visits around our table at dinner. At night you can hear the sounds of the jungle come to life. It was just like a natural sound soother, and we slept so well!

The elephants live a free and happy life at the sanctuary

An Ethical Elephant Sanctuary

The Mondulkiri Project owns and maintains an ethical elephant sanctuary within the protected forest area. They offer one and two day elephant tours along with jungle trekking. At the sanctuary are five elephants named Sophie, Happy, Lucky, Princess and Comvine. A few of the elephants are owned by the sanctuary while the rest are being rented to save them from tourist riding.

The elephants are well taken care of by the mahouts and staff here. The spend their time roaming the protected forest free from heavy work and tourist rides. Their habitat is also protected from being destroyed by logging, and they are safe from poachers. Elephants are often just rented for the day at other sanctuaries while still being used for riding. Here at Mondulkiri Project they will spend the rest of their lives living happily in the jungle.

One Day Elephant Tour at Mondulkiri Project

Although the two day jungle trek would have been cool to experience, we ended up booking the one day elephant tour. This was the perfect amount of time for us, and doable with our daughter. Staying at Tree Lodge was very convenient since they provide the ride to the sanctuary. This allowed us to relax more and enjoy our breakfast. We left the lodge around 8:30am with a 20 minute drive there.

The drive into the sanctuary was on a hilly dirt road with gorgeous views of the forest all around. The truck stopped at the top of the hill and we had to walk about ten minutes downhill to get there. Once we arrived Mr. Tree took us to an area overlooking the jungle where we sat and listened. First he explained more about the Mondulkiri Project and what their goals were. He told us more about the indigenous tribes in the area and the struggles they go through. We also learned about his life growing up, with insight into some of the forest medicine. Finally he concluded by explaining more about the elephants and their different personalities. Along with this we also learned some tips on interacting with them.

Meeting Sophie, the first elephant we encountered during our tour

Meeting the Elephants

After our chat with Mr. Tree, we were ready for our adventure into the jungle. The guide first provided us bananas to feed them, so we grabbed a bunch of them. We then started on our journey down the forest path. You’ll definitely want to wear some good walking shoes for this, since there are some downhill and uphill parts.

After hiking for about ten minutes, we finally stopped and waited for the first set of elephants. Soon after getting there, Sophie greeted us with a warm welcome. She’s the friendliest of the bunch and was great with Terra. We had an easy time approaching and feeding her, and she also let us come close to pet her. The next elephant we met was Happy. She was a lot more shy than Sophie, but she sure loved being fed bananas. When you got close or tried to pet her, she would usually back away. She’s the newest arrival to the sanctuary, and also the youngest.

Posing with Happy within the forest

Happy coming out to meet the group and ready to eat

Seikai and Terra meeting Happy, a shy but friendly elephant

Next, we hiked a bit further into the forest to meet the last set of elephants. We reached a clearing where we waited for them to arrive. They took awhile to come, but finally we met Princess and Comvine, who are best friends. Usually you see them together and they have grown quite attached to each other. Princess was definitely a diva expecting you to feed bananas directly into her mouth! The last elephant we met was Lucky. She came and left very briefly right after being fed one banana, which we had to throw onto the ground.

Elephants Roaming Free

It was so amazing meeting these animals as they roamed freely. We have only seen them in a zoo, so it was a much more heartwarming situation to see them not behind a fence. It was incredible to be able to interact with and feed them up close. You will be so humbled by this unique experience! It was definitely a highlight out of our 10 days in Cambodia!

The spread of Khmer cuisine we had for lunch

Terra loved resting in the hammocks!

Khmer Lunch and Hammock Time

Once we greeted and interacted with all the elephants it was time for lunch. The staff prepared a lovely spread of traditional Khmer cuisine, including fish curry, rice, and beans. For dessert we had fresh tropical fruit and coffee. It was a nice time eating together with the group and chatting with each other. It’s pretty cool meeting people who all came here from various parts of the world.

After lunch, it was time to nap in the hammocks. We had about an hour to rest and spend at our leisure. There were plenty of hammocks for everyone, and we took the time to partake in it. Sleeping in a hammock was actually quite comfortable. It was so nice to feel the fresh forest breeze on our faces while resting.

Giving the Elephants a Bath

Our final activity of the day was giving the elephants a bath in the river. We headed down the same path as before, but this time went further in. It wasn’t guaranteed that we’d be able to bathe them since it depended on their mood. But we lucked out and got the opportunity to help clean three of them, Princess, Comvine and Happy.

Still in disbelief that we were able to get so close to these elephants

Feeding the elephant bananas before giving her a bath

Meeting up with the elephants further down the river

We brought along some bananas again to feed them while in the water. There was a small waterfall where we waited for the first elephant to come. Inside the water was small fish that tickled and slightly nipped at your legs, but it wasn’t painful. Happy was the first elephant to come. While I stayed back and photographed the experience, the group had a blast feeding them in the river. After Happy came Princess, then Comvine. All of the elephants looked so happy splashing around in the water. Some of them even came to me in hopes to find a banana. Tip: Don’t run away or pull your bag away from them, they may get upset.

After they all had their bath, we walked further down the river to catch up with the elephants. We watched them walking within the water and said our goodbyes to them. It was truly one of the most memorable travel experiences we’ve had.

The gorgeous sunset over the lodge on our last night

Head Back Home

Once our fun-filled day with the elephants was over, we were taken back to the lodge. We made it just in time for a stunning sunset over the surrounding forest, and relaxed the rest of the night. It felt so great to sit down after a long day trekking in the jungle. It was bittersweet that we were going to be leaving here, but there’s always another time to return again.

The Mondulkiri Project is an incredible experience that just went beyond anything we could have imagined. We were able to achieve a bucket list dream, while also helping out with a sustainable project. You will learn so much about the area in Sen Monorom and what is being done to preserve the wildlife here. It’s definitely an ethical elephant sanctuary that you’ll feel great about visiting. It was such a pleasure being a part of this beautiful initiative. We hope that more people will be aware of places like these and aim to travel responsibly.

Explore more: The Best 3 Days in Siem Reap Cambodia

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