North Sumatra & Barumun Nagari Wildlife Sanctuary program

Barumun is very nice to visit with kids. The people are very kind and the animals are very approachable. It was a full day visit seeing elephants, tiger, monkeys and hornbill birds. Lunch was local and tasty. Breathtaking views. We even saw their new homestay location with stunning view. Unfortunately we didn’t book this. Highly recommended to visit or take into your itenary.

This is a place to proof that wild elephants, birds, apes can live wild and freely in a palm oil plantation. Enough is biased and baseless judgement on how bad palm oil plantation impact on wild life! You should see how elephants enjoy consuming palm oil leaves! It is a hidden gem with beautiful water fall and stunning lake. If you are lucky you can spot native rare birds. Nature lovers and wild life promoters should come and see by her/his own eyes how beautiful and harmonious is the live of these elephants family in Barumun Nagari! The guide, the driver and even the owner are absolutely amazing! One more thing, advance reservations is a must because this place is a sanctuary so they must limit number of visitors! This place is NOT touristy and definitely NOT for for big group of tourist who only carE for selfies! Only those who love nature and wild life would be rewarded by the beauty of this place!

I spent one day in Barumun Nagari Wildlife Sanctuary in August 2019. The sanctuary is located close to Padang Sidempuan. The owner of the sanctuary picked us up at the hotel to go to the sanctuary. The main objective of this sanctuary is to rescue endangered Sumatran elephants, that have been mistreated by owners or orphaned baby elephants (found alone in the wildlife. The owner (Henry) is very friendly and professional. It was both a fantastic and unique experience. Indeed, Henry is enthusiastic, fond of Sumatran elephants, and fascinating when he talks about elephants. Moreover he has exceptional level of knowledge on Sumatran elephants. He knows all details you may wish to know about Sumatran elephants' characteristics and behavior. The elephants are not stressed and kept in very healthy conditions; all of them live in a very large sanctuary, with many waterholes where they can have bath and "mud shower". We were very lucky as we saw 3 mother elephants with babies. The work of the keepers is crucial and huge for these rescued elephants. CONGRATULATIONS!!! We had lunch with the owner and his team. Food was excellent. The second objective of the sanctuary is t rescue the critically endangered Sumatran tigers. When we visited the sanctuary, there was a female tiger called Gadys (that cannot be released in the wilderness as she has an injured foreleg (due villagers' traps). She was pregant. There was also a male tiger called Monang that should be released in the wilderness When you'll come in Padang Sidempuan, I HIGHLY recommend to visit Barumun Nagari Wildlife Sanctuary, allowing you to have a wonderful experience and to support Henry and his team in continuing their fantastic work. I’ll come back for a longer stay as a volunteer in Barumun Nagari Wildlife Sanctuary!!!