Travel For Teens: Thailand Elephant Service and Explorers

My summer at TFT was a dope experience 💯. The counselors and the other teens were super chill and made a whole new country feel like a home away from home. The program had the perfect balance of new cultural experiences, group activities, and community service. Every day was something new! Swimming with elephants, going to thai markets, hiking on a beautiful mountain, or learning how to cook noodles in bamboo shoots! We worked to make a big impact and long-lasting difference for the kids we helped and the schools we worked to renew. Where we worked to make a difference, we also made connections along the way. We connected with the Thai language, the food, the people, the wildlife, and each other. The experience goes hard🔥10/10! Recommend!!! <3

My trip to Thailand was one that I could have never imagined, from the days with elephants to meeting the most amazing people it was definitely a trip of a life time. This was the first trip I had ever gone out of the country by myself with people I had never met, and to be honest I was very nervous but when meeting the counselors they made us feel right at home and the campers soon after a couple nights of never have I ever’s/games established bonds that we knew could never be broken. Everyday we took on a new adventure, I remember when I first heard that we were going to be “hanging” out with elephants I thought it was going to be from a far little did I know we would be getting up close and personal feeding them, bathing them, and cleaning up after them. It was astounding how gentle the elephants were and how much they were just like big puppies with how they wanted to play with you. Saying goodbye to the elephants was definitely hard and sad but I know that someday I will go back and see them again. After we finished our community service hours with elephants we then went on a very windy 3 hour drive to Pai where we the most amazing massages. Over the trip two other campers and I got 3 massages and only ended up paying $11. Then we went on a 2 day trip to the jungle which was honestly one of the hardest things physically on this trip, the white rafting was long but the campers and the view make it all worth it. After returning to the hotels the first thing we all did was shower and let me tell you it was the best feeling. Now I was not able to stay for extra 7 days and explore the islands so at the final dinner it was very sad to say goodbye to everyone because even though I had only known them for 10 days we all felt like we had known each other for much longer. The kids I met are already planning on having a “reunion”. These trips not only open up your mind to new places and cultures but also to new people.

I got to go on the Thailand Elephant and Explores trip with TFT this summer! It was my 4th trip with TFT and one of my favorites. We got to do amazing service work taking care of elephants at an elephant sanctuary, getting to work hands on with the enormous animals. We also got to go on a two-day white-water rafting trip down the Pai river, which allowed us to see Thailand from a completely different perspective. The food on the trip was delicious, and every activity we did was so much fun! I got to learn so much about the Thai culture thanks to Travel for Teens.