Million Years Stone Park and Pattaya Crocodile Farm
One of the best things about Pattaya is the many places of interest to visit in and around the city. That may surprise some who think Thailand’s wild child resort is all about sex. The city has some outstanding tourist attractions and Million Years Stone Park and Pattaya Crocodile Farm is one of the most popular places for people to visit.
Things To Do In Pattaya – Million Years Stone Park and Crocodile Farm
The sites’ sat on over 100 rai of land and opened to the public in February 1992. After walking through its entrance gates a beautifully sculpted rock, plant and flower garden greets you. The garden has giant animal-shaped rocks, exotic plants, 200-year-old Thai-style trained trees and here’s where the Million Years Stone Park name comes from; Petrified trees (fossilized tree trunks, dating back millions of years and now fossilized stone) too.
The park has a wildlife zoo with elephants, tigers, camels, bears, giraffes, horses, zebra, deer, emus, ostriches, crocodiles and many more animals, birds and fish on view.
Safe compounds house Bengal and white tigers at Million Years Stone Park. Visitors can also have their picture taken with a tiger (chained) on public display. Despite the tiger’s chilled look, it’s good advice to pose for your picture behind its head.
The park offers elephant rides and a tram tour around the site. There are food and refreshment stalls, picnic areas and restaurants on the grounds.
One of the most popular attractions at the park is a large lake filled with hundreds of crocodiles. Visitors can feed the reptiles from a raised platform above the water’s edge.
The experience is not for the faint-hearted because the crocodiles lie in the water seemingly uninterested in the bait dangled before them. Then suddenly, one will leap out of the water and firmly yank the line and bait. It can be a scary moment if you’re holding on to the snared pole and line.
Pattaya Crocodile Show
Even more popular than feeding the crocodiles are the almost hourly crocodile shows performed throughout the day in an enclosed water pool arena.
The show’s crocodile performers take a significant risk each time they step into the pool with the reptiles and the show is fantastic to watch, albeit, from a very safe distance on the arena’s stone wall and steps.
The most ‘jaw-some’ part of the performance happens when the showman puts his head into a crocodile’s wide-gaping razor-sharp mouth. How does he do that? Here’s my theory on how.
The showman uses a tickling stick. You read that right. He tickles the roof of the crocodile’s mouth with the rod, and the reptiles’ jaws open more and more until they dislocate and open fully. The crocodile then takes a few seconds to unlock its jaws during which time the performer sticks his head inside the crocodile’s mouth and counts a set time. Then he quickly withdraws his head before the crocodile’s jaws snap shut.
Have you got a better theory?
If you’re relaxed and calm enough like this Thai tourist is, you can strike a pose and have your picture taken on the back of one of the show’s crocodiles. I’m not brave enough to try that myself, but the show is very entertaining and well worth watching.
Summary and Map
Million Years Stone Park and Crocodile Farm rates as one of the best things to do in Pattaya and is a welcome change for anyone seeking an alternative to the crocodile tears that soak Pattaya’s bar girl scene.
How to get there
Million Years Stone Park and Pattaya Crocodile Farm is approximately 15 minutes drive from the city centre. Click on the map to enlarge.
Opening Hours: Daily from 08:00 am. – 06:30 pm.
Crocodile Shows: 09:00 am, 10:00 am., 11:00 am., 12:00 pm., 01:00 pm., 02:20 pm., 03:30 pm., and 05:00 pm.
Admission: Adult 300 Baht, Child 150 Baht (Prices are subject to change)
Contact: Tel. 038 24 9347-9 [dublin-core-metadata]
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“I’m not brave enough to try that myself” … me neither – I’d rather pet tigers!
Catherine – I’ve petted a tiger before, but cub would be a truer description.
Nice article, but i’m not a big fan of visiting zoos or places where they parade animals in Thailand, just because they are usually not so well treated or drugged.
I guess that was the case for the White tiger?
Harvie – I reckon the white tiger would be a good stand-in for one of Snow White’s seven dwarfs.