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ELEPHANTS
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In addition to seeing wild elephants in the national parks
there are also opportunities to interact with domestic
elephants. There are government training camps dotted around
South India and many welcome visitors. The most accessible
is Kodanad near Thattekkad and Konni in Pathanamthitta.
Punnathur Kota at Guruvayoor houses many temple elephants
and the knowledgeable mahouts will show visitors around.
There is an elephant camp and orphanage in Coorg and
visitors are allowed to wash and ride the elephants (for a
fee). There is an ‘ocean swimming’ elephant on Havelock
Island in the Andaman Islands. There are also some
opportunities to ride an elephant (eg at Munnar and
Periyar).
Many domestic/temple elephants are kept by individuals in
small villages and may be visited. There is an elephant
living at Neeleshwar Hermitage, a village with a number of
elephants near Aquaserene and there is one elephant that
lives near Serenity. Guests are allowed to help wash and
ride her (for a fee). However, do not plan your whole
holiday around these working elephants because there is no
guarantee that they will be at home when you visit.
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