Calling all animal lovers! Did you know there is a husky cafe, Truelove at Neverland, located in the heart of Bangkok where you can play with over 20 friendly and playful huskies, 2 sheepdogs and the king of the pack, Momo?
It’s literally a dream come true *for me! And I know, I know! Why travel to Bangkok and visit a dog cafe of all places? My argument is…. why ever not? It’s a different fun experience especially if you adore dogs, and might I add that it’s very feasible to work into your itinerary.
It’s almost the norm now for cafes and restaurants to have a theme of some kind, it can excite the customers and add a certain atmospheric tone to your experience. And yes, if that theme includes live animals, it can be exciting and sometimes worrying but overall if the animals are well looked after, it brings so much joy to everyone! Especially those who are animal lovers and don’t have pets like me!
If you tell me that you wouldn’t be totally excited about visiting a husky cafe, well, I don’t believe you! Truelove@Neverland has blown up the last few years and is widely popular with the locals and tourists alike. Not hard to see why!
Don’t believe me? Watch this video, and you can’t miss the ending
How to get to the Husky cafe, True love@Neverland?
The husky cafe is located, of all places, in a residential area!
Space is massive, and I’m grateful for it considering how big the dogs are, they need space to run around. The cafe is about 10 minutes by a tuk-tuk or a taxi if you prefer from the nearest BTS Ari Station. You can walk but in this heat, it’s easier to negotiate a price with a tuk-tuk plus it’s a fun ride! I negotiated to approximately 30 Baht to the cafe from the BTS. After your session, the cafe will organise a tuk tuk for you which is a set fee of 50 Baht to the driver.
Address:
153 Soi Ari Samphan 2, Khwaeng Samsen Nai, Khet Phaya Thai, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10400, Thailand
Session time, price and what to expect
The cafe is open, with huskies, sheepdogs and Momo (you can see him in the video) everyday and closed every last Sunday of each month.
There are two sessions per day, one at 1 pm and the second at 4 pm.
Here’s the thing, you cannot book or reserve a slot in advance and it’s only on a first come and first serve basis. Therefore, if you are keen, you may have to allocate at least 4 hours of your day for this.
Doors open from 10.30 am and the first session will commence at 12.30 pm and playtime is from 1 pm to 2 pm. The second session commences at 3.30pm and playtime is from 4 pm to 5 pm. (Times are correct as checked in May 2019).
Opening hours: Monday to Sunday 10.30am to 5 pm (Closed every last Sunday of each Month.
My experience was from November 2018.
Arrived here at 10 am and signed a disclaimer form before paying 500 Baht for a ticket.
Each ticket includes an hour of playtime with the dogs plus all the pictures you want with them. Each ticket included a cake and a drink of your choice.
You have a choice of either an Ice cream cake which I highly recommend, it’s utterly refreshing and a delicious combination of cake and ice cream. Or you can opt for a sponge cake, the strawberry vanilla cake is so good, moist and not too sweet!
Important Tip: There is a possibility of waiting at least an hour or two between receiving your ticket and entering the cafe. No fear, instead of waiting outside with no shade, you can walk down the road (turn right as you leave the Truelove at Neverland main gate) and at the end of the road, turn right and there is a restaurant that is open from 11 am. Grab a drink here with AC and toilet, their prices are fairly reasonable. Remember it takes at least 10-15 minutes to walk back.
While in Bangkok, you may find this list of places to visit worth a visit – “Discover the top 7 fun and unique places to visit in Bangkok”
Playing with the dogs
It’s almost time to enter the cafe. The anticipation is building! They tease you with the dogs running outside waiting for us to come in and play with them.
And we are in! There’s an option to sit indoors or outdoors next to the play area, no AC though. Have your cake and drink, and watch the cutest introduction and safety video!
Take off your shoes and put on your protective feet coverings. Wash your hands, add in a spray of alcohol before you enter and you’re all set to play with the dogs!
There will be at least 20 people in there with you, and the dogs are freely roaming around, chilling under the fan and indulging with their favorite treats – ice cubes and carrots! It’s amusing how they are healthier than I am!
There are 3 areas in the play area, the big open space surrounded by fans, some seating area, and 2 separate caged areas. One area where they let in a few people at a time and take pictures with the 3 dogs there. The other is where you queue to get their infamous group photo with the dogs!
Oh and just remember, no feeding the pups with your treats and forcing them to hug or pick them up.
Pictures with the dogs
Pictures are free to take with the dogs. The staff are excited to take them for you and they will ‘catch’ one or two pups for you to take a picture with!
You must queue for the group photo and this is a must do! Imagine a picture surrounded with 10 huskies!
The only caveat is, it’s a minimum of 2 people allowed for one photo. For solo travelers, a staff member will be happy to take a picture with you or find a mutual friend in the crowd.
Find a good spot for the end run! Trust me, you wouldn’t want to miss this one!
The dog’s wellbeing
The dogs are personally owned and cared for by the owner of this establishment with help from her staff. All of them are her babies and some sleep with her at night in bed.
During my time here, I notice they take a lot of measures to ensure the safety of the dogs – The play area was cleaned frequently even during sessions. Plus always wash hands and no outdoor shoes allowed in the play area.
And the dogs? Their coats are incredibly soft, looked very happy, mostly trained and no odour! And their main living area is air conditioned!
For someone like myself who don’t own a dog, this was a dream!
Have you visited or want to visit a dog or cat cafe?
Courtney xx
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Fae Celine says
OMG!! all these huskies are so adorable. I love dogs, they are just the best! I have visited a dog cafe in Manila and enjoyed it but a husky cafe sounds even better. I did not even know there’s a husky cafe. Definitely going here when I get the chance to travel to Bangkok, I would love to take a photo with all the huskies
Kelly says
I’ll be in Southeast Asia soon and definitely need to stop by! I had a husky growing up and this brings back such great memories!
Courtney says
Ah that’s amazing! Husky is my dream dog:). Whereabouts in South East Asia are you visiting?
Aditi Sharma says
This post just melts my heart…love it. I hadn’t even known about the Husky Cafe until I read your post and can’t wait to visit. Will definitely keep your post in mind for a future visit to Thailand. Thanks for sharing.
Kate Ballamy says
Ahh wow this is a dog lovers dream, I bet it was so much fun! It sounds like they’re all so well looked after and loved too 🙂
Kate | http://www.katelovesx.co.uk/
Courtney says
Was sooo much fun! Wish we had more than an hour haha. Ah I’m glad that came across because from what I have seen and spoke to the people there, the dogs are well loved and very taken care off:)