Hathigaon (or elephant village) is situated at the foothill of the Amber Palace and Fort near Jaipur. Elephant Safari has been one of the most preferred activities among the tourists visiting Jaipur. For that reason, Hathi Gaon, the Elephant Village gained popularity in the recent past.
Hathi gaon ( Elephant village ) is a small village that was set up by the government in 2010 to give proper shelter and water facilities to all the families and their elephants that served tourists in and around Amer Fort during the day. Along with all the homes and shelters for the elephants, there are big man-made ponds in the village designed specifically for elephants to relax and bathe in it after a long hard day’s work. People can visit the place and enjoy the sight of many elephants playing and bathing in open which is a rare sight in this part of India. It’s a photographers paradise indeed. It is world’s third, and India’s first elephant village. Rajasthan Forest Department has announced entry fee for tourists visiting Elephant Village in Jaipur. The fee will be charged for maintenance and development of the village. A domestic tourist will have to pay Rs 50 for an entry ticket, while an international tourist will be charged Rs 300.
The administration of Elephant Village was handed over to forest department from the Rajasthan tourism department.
A perfect get away from Jaipur, Hathi Gaon is a splendid abode of Elephants for the families with children who can spend a good time in the cool breeze and greenery all around with elephants entertaining themselves and their visitors.
It’s a celebrated architectural project and was done by architects Rahul Mehrotra, Cyrus Patella and Robert Stephens. We must admit that space is designed in a way that seems more like a natural habitation. Often the relationship between a mahout and the elephant is glorified, and though mahouts are not cruel. Here’s a video shared by Jaipur Explore on how elephants are enjoyed.
A nice and quiet place on Amer road, ask locals for Haathi Gaon. Mr Kabeer Khan aka Ahsan was very nice, he knows the many languages and explained the things very nicely. This place is amazing. You can feel so privileged to be close to the elephants. These people are kind and patient. This area has around 250 elephants belonging to various owners and thus is called Hathi-Gaon! Mostly these elephant riders (mahouts) have ancestors who served with the army of Jaipur in past era! Today they earn by ferrying tourists to give them feeling of Maharajas!
Elephants are well cared for and you can feed the elephant bananas ( which we did ) .. slightly off the beaten track ….apparently, the elephants have a monthly or weekly check by the vet depending on how they are. The government requires 18 elephants to take tourists to the Amber Fort daily during the tourist season so make sure they are healthy and happy as obviously, they want to promote the famous elephants of Jaipur, Kabir Khan aka Ahsan told to Jaipur explore.
The livelihoods of the people in the village also depend on the elephants. The people there were very helpful and friendly. We had a great experience with the elephants there.
If you want to spend a day with the elephants, Elefantasy is the right place. You get to feed them, ride them, bathe them and moreover, get to know them! The place is clean and the elephants are well taken care of. Lots of sugarcane and plenty of water. The staff is friendly and an owner is a good person who is always ready to help you. Perfect place to visit with kids, family and in groups of friends. Keep lots of time on hand as you would not wish to leave!
