BEES - Burm & Emily's Elephant Sanctuary

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BEES - Burm & Emily's Elephant Sanctuary

A safe and natural home for Elephants. NO RIDES, NO TRICKS - Just Elephants Simply Being Elephants. A safe natural home for rescued and retired elephants.

NO RIDES, NO TRICKS - Just Elephants Being Elephants.

11/07/2025

🐾 Meet some of our Paw Patrol Squad! 🐾

Out on an elephant observation walk, guide Em captured this pawesome photo: 🤩

🐳 Prawan - means whale, our playful queen in the centre, survivor after being dumped as a teenie days old pup and developed a terrible skin infection. (Front and Centre)

❤️ Frankie, also know as Frankie Spanky Wiggle Bum and Bionic boy (he had reconstructive surgery after being hit by car🛠️), always has to welcome everyone with lots of enthusiasm. (In the back)

🦴 Champ, the true champion after defying the odds after his poor mumma passed giving birth to him (right next to Prawhan, they a best buds)

🐶 Gizmo, the wise boy, Thong Dee’s fur friend and survivor after being dumped in a garbage tip as a pup (Off to the left)

Our rescue doggies all have a story and have come a long way — from hardship, healing to now thriving. They spend their days exploring forest trails, keeping a watchful eye on the elephants, and soaking up love from our staff and guests. ✨

They’re fed nutritious meals, given preventative medicine, sterilized, and most importantly — treated like the valued family they are. 🐶❤️

Please make a Donation, and help us continue our work for Animal Welfare here in Maechaem. 🙏🏻

09/07/2025

🎉GRAND OPENING OF OUR NEW OFFICE!🎉

We’re thrilled to announce the official opening of the Be Happy BEES Cafe/BEES New Office — right in the heart of our beautiful Mae Tan village! 🌿☕✨

This exciting milestone is the result of months of hard work and dedication from our incredible BEES staff and passionate workers from the local community. We’re so grateful for everyone who poured their hearts into bringing this vision to life. 💪❤️

This week has been extra special, members of the local community joined the grand opening and a very special blessing ceremony by Abbott Praku Suttamalungkhan. 🙏🏻

After a month of free drinks for the local villagers to get the taste just right 😉, the cafe is now officially open for sales!

Even more exciting — the children’s playground is now open for the community kids to enjoy, and our Office is ready to welcome guests for drinks, information, visitor program bookings, and access to our new CarPark for those arriving in their own transport. 🚗🛵

If you book to visit us at BEES or are passing by doing the Mae Hong Son Loop on the 1088 drop in, buy a drink, learn about BEES and if you have time book a stay 🌿🙏🏻🐘

📍Located in Mae Tan village, Find us on Google Maps Be Happy BEES Cafe - บี แฮปปี้ บีส์ คาเฟ่

🙏🏻🌿🐘☕️🥤🍵🥛🧋🐈🐕🐾

30/06/2025

🌿🐘Mae Dok enjoying Ruzi grasses at one of our many specially made elephant habitat areas🐘🌿

29/06/2025

🐘🌿❤️Happy, Flappy and Thriving! ❤️🌿🐘

🌳Mae Kam in her Sanctuary🌳

23/06/2025

Mae Kam and Mae Dok, enjoying exploring deep in the forest together. ❤️🌿🐘

22/06/2025

Green Season — when lush grasses blanket the land and the forest overflows with nature’s bounty. A time of feasting and pure bliss for the elephants. 🙏🏻🌿🐘

Our guides have a little fun too — here they crafted a leafy frame to perfectly showcase Mae Kam’s beautiful bottom in this playful moment of art and nature.

❤️Happy, Flappy and Thriving❤️

07/06/2025

Elephant Observation 🙏🏻👀🐘🌿

Love, Respect, Protect!

Join our Visitor Program and Experience the Magic of Elephants Just Being Elephants
😍🌿🐘

01/06/2025

🎉🐘 13 YEARS OF ELEPHANTS @ BEES! 🎉🐘

On June 1st, 2012, Mae Kam began her first full day of retirement at BEES — after an exhausting 60+ km journey through the winding mountain roads of Northern Thailand. She was the first elephant to retire to BEES, a trailblazer in every sense. Broken and scarred from a lifetime of labor, Mae Kam had suffered the unimaginable — including the loss of her calves. She became aggressive at work, shaking people off her back — perhaps as a cry for help, a statement of resistance. She may not have had a voice, but her spirit, charisma, and determination spoke volumes.

For nearly two years, she was chained above her owner’s farm. They feared what the camps might do to her because she no longer wanted to work, she had broken her silence— but they felt helpless, with no alternatives.

That was until Burm and Emily came along with a wild idea on their search to retire elephants to the Sanctuary they were building: Let Mae Kam retire — allow her to spend her days at BEES. No riding. No performances. A sanctuary where tourists could experience a new kind of connection — one built on respect, in nature and involving the community.

The road has not been easy. We’ve faced — and continue to face — many challenges. But every time we see an elephant just being an elephant, it reminds us why we do this. It’s truly magical. And we know, there’s still so much more work to do.

Today, 13 years on, we’re still here, still standing, still working hard to be a voice for the elephants, the animals, and our community.

Thank you all for walking this road with us.

Here’s to Mae Kam — the one who started it all — to every elephant who has followed in her footsteps, to all the amazing BEES staff who have helped make BEES what it is today and to many more years of BEES growing, evolving, and giving more elephants the chance to just be elephants. 🐘💚

HAPPY 13 YEARS OF BEES! 🙏🏻🌿🐘🥳🎉

28/05/2025

🫧🌿🐘SPA TIME 🫧🌿🐘

The heavy rains have arrived and the stream is filling up, perfect time to lay down and have a splash with your friend 😍

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Opening Hours

Monday	08:00 - 15:00
Tuesday	08:00 - 15:00
Wednesday	08:00 - 15:00
Thursday	08:00 - 15:00
Friday	08:00 - 15:00
Saturday	08:00 - 15:00

Telephone

+66861972519

Website

http://www.bees-elesanctuary.org/

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A Sanctuary For Elephants and A Small Animal Rescue

A safe natural home for rescued and retired elephants. NO RIDES, NO TRICKS - Just Elephants Being Elephants.

BEES was established to provide a place of rest/care under contract with the hopes of permanent retirement and to rescue and provide a forever home to elephants and animals in need.

Thailand has over 4000 Captive Elephants, many of which are working as entertainers and trekking elephants being ridden and exploited because their mahouts and owners rely on the income.

Help us lead by example, through education and providing alternative solutions that meet the needs of the elephants and the people that work with them. Giving the elephants a better life and ensuring the people that rely on the elephants for income can still provide for their families needs.