when in thailand: a gr-r-reat tiger experience!

hey guys! i know it’s been a while but i have been having some fun adventures. i’m in thailand! there will be a full post about all of my adventures but i wanted to make a specific post about something super exciting i got to do here in chiang mai. you’ve probably guessed by the picture but i got see tigers! and not any ordinary zoo view, but up close and literally side by side next to tigers! i got to pet them and this is an experience that i will never forget.

we went to the tiger kingdom to see these tigers. i was a bit apprehensive because i did not want to go anywhere where the animals were harmed or abused and i asked multiple times if the tigers were sedated and everyone told me that they weren’t. i was pleasantly suprised when we got there. the tigers were also raised there and all of the staff seemed to genuinely love their job and the tigers.

we saw both the large tigers (we were in a large area with two) and the smallest baby tigers (which was a smaller encounter with five cubs). my sister and i had this package which was around 2,200 bahts. my mom had a smaller package of just seeing the baby tigers.

the baby tigers were very playful. some napped while we were there while others wanted to play. one thing that i observed and liked was that the trainers never forced the tigers to play or wake up. they knew each one by name and would call out to them sometimes but they would never physically force or scold them for lying around. it was pretty hot here so the tigers liked to nap a lot and even without heat being a factor they sleep for about 16 hours a day. after we left the encounter the trainers let us watch them bottle feed the babies which was adorable.

i was a little scared to see the big tigers. i always knew that tigers were big but seeing tigers in a picture and then being next to a giant cat are very very different. despite their size, they still seemed super cuddly. as i said before, i was really happy that the tigers weren’t sedated but at the same time there was a lingering thought in the back of my head saying that there was nothing i could do if the tigers decided to get hostile. the larger tigers slept most of the time but at one point a trainer brought out a toy and one of the tigers played a little.

overall, i really recommend this place if you’re ever in chiang mai. the tigers were so beautiful and this is definitely an experience that you don’t get everyday.