Elephant Experience
Three Day Two Nights Trek in Bukit Lawang
If elephants are on your wish list, join us for a trek in Bukit Lawang and the move on to the village of Tangkahan, home to rescued elephants, natural hot springs and a beautiful jungle river complete with butterfly beach!
The Tangkahan Conservation Response Unit, or CRU, established in 2002, cares for a herd of trained, captive elephants. In their early years of operation, the elephants, rescued from training camps in southern Sumatra, were used to patrol the National Park in the fight against illegal logging, once rampant in the area. Now this has been stopped in the local vicinity, the elephants are used purely as an ecotourism attraction. With no chance of returning to the wild, the CRU uses the funds gained from tourism to feed and care for the elephants. While we do not encourage our guests to ride on the elephants, you can take part in their bathing ritual with their mahouts. A ritual the elephants seem to particularly enjoy!
Day One
Thomas Leaf Monkeys are very inquisitive.
Your friendly English-speaking guide and driver will meet you at your accommodation or the airport in Medan.
Drive 2.5-3 hours to Bukit Lawang in private air-conditioned transport.
Ana and family making lemang (sticky rice soaked in coconut milk, wrapped in a banana leaf and stuffed inside bamboo and slow-cooked over an open fire).
Arrive in Bukit Lawang and be transferred to your accommodation (see Accommodation). Enjoy some light refreshments while discussing the plan for your trek on day 2 with our guide.
You are free to spend the day enjoying the atmosphere in Bukit Lawang and the surroundings. You may enjoy a refreshing swim in the river, wander around the cafes and curio shops or just kick back and relax in your accommodation. We can also arrange a variety of short cultural tours in the local area. If this is something you may be interested in check out our cultural tours and contact us to discuss the options.
Day Two
After a relaxing night at your guest house or homestay and an early morning breakfast, your guide will collect you to begin your adventure into the Gunung Leuser National Park.
Entering the National Park by the community forest
Your trek begins at the park boundary where the terrain consists of gentle sloping foothills. Depending on the time of year you may encounter wild orangutans and other primates such as long-tailed macaques, pig-tailed macaques, silver langurs and white-handed gibbons. While your guide will happily discuss the human-wildlife conflicts that happens in the area, we encourage you to move through the Park boundary area swiftly as this is where a large majority of tourists are taken to see orangutans and often becomes crowded.
We will lead you away from the main tracks to maximise your chances of seeing the wildlife in their natural states. As with all of our treks we adhere to strict wildlife watching guidelines, which you can read by clicking here. Along with the orangutans and other primates, you may also encounter the endangered Siamang, Great Argus pheasant and various hornbill species.
As you enter the National Park itself your guides will point out fauna and flora of interest, including tracks and signs of wildlife and stories passed down over the generations of our family.
During your trek you will want to stop frequently to watch wildlife but please remember we enforce strict rules on maintaining a safe distance and time in close proximity to the orangutans and other primate species in the area (read the wildlife watching guidelines here).
Orangutans and siamangs are frequently seen and heard around Bukit Lawang
The road between Bukit Lawang and Tangkahan is one to remember
Bintang beer - You might need one after your adventure to Tangkahan!
Around 1pm you will return to the village and your accommodation, where you can relax at the river and enjoy a delicious lunch at a restaurant of your choice before packing up.
Around 3pm, your guide will collect you from the accommodation and take you to your private transport where you will be driven along the bumpy back roads for a 2.5 hour journey to Tangkahan, known as Leuser’s ‘Hidden Paradise’. Along the way, you may want to stop for photographs of the remote Karonese villages or oil palm industry which lines the route.
On arrival in Tangkahan your guide will take you to your accommodation at Jungle Lodge where you will be welcomed with a refreshing drink. Spend the rest of the day and evening relaxing at a local restaurant, enjoying a refreshing swim in the beautiful river or soaking in the hot spring.
Day Three
Wake up feeling relaxed and refreshed and listen to the sounds of the rainforest far away from civilisation. After a delicious breakfast prepared by your guides, you can choose to walk again for around 2-4 hours or take the exhilarating raft back to the village on the inner tube raft made by your guides. What a fantastic way to end the adventure of a lifetime!
Bathe in the shallows with Earth’s most gentle giants
Have you ever scrubbed an elephants toe nails?
As a responsible tour operator, we do not support elephant riding at Tangkahan but we are happy to contribute to the feeding and upkeep of these hugely important animals with the bathing ritual.
Following the bathing, you are free to enjoy the river and atmosphere in Tangkahan before leaving for your onward journey to Medan, which takes around 2 hours.
All of our tours are flexible and can be altered to suit your requirements and budget. Contact us to discuss your options.
Be a Responsible Tourist
Please be aware that as ecological experts with over 30 years’ experience in the area, to reduce the risks of disease transmission we strictly follow the IUCN Guidelines for viewing wild primate populations (please read the wildlife watching guidelines here). Orangutans and other primates are extremely sensitive to common human illnesses and so joining a trek while you are experiencing any sort of cold, flu or gastrointestinal sickness puts the whole local population at risk. Please let us know if you are experiencing any symptoms before you embark on any trek.
Our guides will never feed, touch or encourage our guests to touch or feed orangutans or any other wild animal, so please do not ask and if you witness other tourists doing so, please share the guidelines with them.
Oil palm being transported to the refinery between Bukit Lawang and Tangkahan
-
Private air-conditioned transport from Medan to Bukit Lawang, Bukit Lawang to Tangkahan and Tangkahan to Medan.
-
Expert, English-speaking guide and assistant.
-
One-night accommodation in Bukit Lawang.
-
One-night accommodation in Tangkahan (all room requirements will be discussed at time of booking).
-
Welcome drink at Bukit Lawang and Tangkahan.
-
Half day trek in Bukit Lawang with fresh fruit snack and 1.5L mineral water.
-
Entrance and camera permits to Gunung Leuser National Park.
-
Entrance fee for Tangkahan.
-
Tickets for elephant bathing in Tangkahan.
- Food and drink at your accommodation (except welcome drink on arrival).
-
Bottled water (aside from the 1.5L provided on the trek).
- Clothing suitable for hot, humid jungle.
- Sturdy walking shoes or boots.
- Two or three changes of lightweight clothing.
- Long socks.
- Small backpack to carry camera.
- Sun block
- Insect repellent.
- Extra water.
- Rain gear if bad weather.
- Swimwear.
- Towel or sarong.
- Plastic bag for wet clothes (you will get wet bathing the elephants!).
-
Minimum of 3 people up to a maximum of 6.
-
Single supplements apply so we may recommend joining with other solo travellers.
Contact us for more details and read our frequently asked questions section for information on what else to bring.
Click below to see individual trek itineraries or contact us for more options
