Wander Women Thailand:
Elephant Extension
Koh Samui
April 16-18, 2023
Not ready to head home yet? Join us for a three-day post-retreat extension to neighboring island Koh Samui!
We’ll hit the ultimate Thailand bucket list moment of meeting elephants, Thailand’s national animal, and slip into ultimate bliss for an afternoon at the trendiest Koh Samui beach club to toast to the trip of a lifetime!
We can’t think of a better way to round out an adventure to the Gulf of Thailand!
The Details
The Islands Extension takes place immediately following both Wander Women Koh Tao: Dive + Yoga and Wander Women Thailand: Aerial + Adventure from April 16-18th, 2023. The cost, including just about everything, starts at $800.
What’s Included
• Two nights accommodation at a chic boutique hotel
• Two breakfasts + two lunches
• Elephant Sanctuary tour
• Entrance to a trendy Samui Beach Club
• Daily yoga
• All local transportation, including ferry transfers between islands
• Professional photos
What’s Not Included
• Alcohol
• Meals not included in the itinerary
• Transport back to Bangkok
• Mandatory travel insurance
The Itinerary
Subject to change, and expect surprises, but here’s the general idea.
Day 1: Time to combine forces! Those on Wander Women Koh Tao: A Dive + Yoga Retreat will bid farewell to their new dive buddies before heading down to the pier and hopping a boat to the next island, Koh Samui. Those on Wander Women Thailand: An Aerial + Adventure Retreat will hug goodbye to their new fellow flyers, and extension travelers of both groups will rendezvous on the boat to Koh Samui. We’ll indulge in the most Instagrammable lunch of the trip before heading to our hotel to spend the afternoon in chill mode poolside — or indulging in an optional onsite spa treatment, or a nap! Stay zen with a yin yoga class in our onsite studio.
At sunset, we’ll cheers to an epic final few days in Thailand and head to dinner in the charming Fisherman’s Village in Bophut, a great place to do any last minute shopping before heading home.
Day 2: Start today with an animal-themed yoga class and a delicious breakfast before we spend the morning at a sanctuary for elephants rescued from the logging industry! This is a cruelty-free experience where no riding will take place — but we promise, it’s so much more meaningful to connect face-to-trunk! We’ll have the opportunity to see these gentle giants in their natural habitat, hear about the amazing work the sanctuary is doing and even feed them their lunch. After we have had our lunch, it’s time to celebrate. Spend your last afternoon sipping cocktails at a chic beach club and topping up that tan. Our final stop is dinner and a fire show on our favorite beach on the island.
Day 3: Farewell breakfast and pool-time before checkout — and planning the next adventure.
Where We’ll Stay and What We’ll Eat
We’ll stay in a stylish boutique hotel with pool and plenty of places to luxuriate at the end of an active trip! Shared rooms have a large queen or bed for sharing.
For meals, we’ll mix it up. We’ll be treated to a trendy fusion meals in the Fisherman’s Village in Bophut. For lunches, you’ll dine with elephants and enjoy the cutest custom smoothie bowls you could ever imagine. Breakfast will be daily at our hotels. All diets can be accommodated.
Meet Your Hosts
For this retreat you will get to experience the perfect trifecta of hostesses! You’ll be joined by yoga teachers, travel enthusiasts and hostess with the mostesses Alexandra Baackes, Shannon Stevens, and Jessica Lubin.
Alexandra Baackes, founder of Wander Women Retreats, called Thailand home for the better part of seven years — it’s where she met Shannon Stevens, Wander Women Retreats coordinator, who runs retreats with us in Thailand, Egypt, the Maldives, and beyond! Jess Lubin is the founder of Good Karma Studio in Upstate New York and a frequent host at Wander Women Retreats, working with Alex on aerial trips to St. Pete Florida, the Dominican Republic, and now Thailand.
You’re in for a treat of unique and original yoga classes with these ladies at the helm.
Join Us
A $150 deposit is required upon booking and final invoices will be sent 90 days before departure. Don’t hesitate to email us at retreats@alexinwanderland.com with any and all questions regarding this extension!
Wander Women Thailand: Elephant Extension
$800.00 – $900.00
F.A.Q.
How do I get home from Koh Samui?
There’s an airport right on Koh Samui with several daily flights back to Bangkok, making it seamless to reach your international flight.
I’ve heard warnings about elephant experiences in Thailand. Is this one really ethical?
The park we are visiting is a partner to Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, largely regarded as the gold standard for elephant rescues worldwide. It does not offer elephant rides or elephant bathing, both of which are understood to be disruptive or harmful to the creatures we are so honored to meet! Instead, we will feed, observe and walk with these beautiful animals up close.
The elephants we will visit have previously endured a hard life working for tourist’s entertainment or in the logging industry; a stark contrast to the dignified, peaceful lives they now enjoy. The goal of the sanctuary is to provide a happy home in nature for the herd where they are free to express their natural instincts and receive the care and respect they deserve. Visits like ours are what fund the care these elephants receive to live out their life in peace.
The concept of elephant care and welfare at this rescue was created by Lek Chailert, world renowned elephant conservationist, founder of Save Elephant Foundation and the world famous Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai. Lek is at the forefront of ethical elephant tourism in Thailand and throughout Asia, was named one of Time Magazine’s Heroes of Asia for her work in conservation in 2005, and was invited to Washington DC in 2010 by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to be honored as one of six Women Heroes of Global Conservation. Alex was lucky enough to meet Lek personally in 2015 — a true Wander Women if we ever met one!
Who exactly will be traveling on this extension? How large will the group be?
This extension will be available to guests from both Wander Women Koh Tao: A Dive + Yoga Retreat, and Wander Women Thailand: An Aerial + Adventure Retreat. If every single guest from both groups joins this extension, there will be 24 of you — party! After spending Songkran and some special dinners together in Koh Tao, we’ll all be besties! However, we expect it will be a more intimate crew than that.
Is it possible to have a private room?
Depending on how many guests book the extension, this may be possible! We will offer it as an upgrade opportunity closer to the time, if available with the limited nature of accommodation on the islands.