A wild elephant calmly walked by tourists who were hiking in Thailand.

The holidaymakers were trekking toward the summit when the majestic creature suddenly appeared, running out of nowhere in Phu Kradueng, Loei.

The group reportedly heard the sound of branches breaking. One of them initially thought it was from a monkey, but when she turned around to check, she discovered a wild elephant.

The woman alerted her friends, prompting them to stay still.

They speculated that the seemingly startled animal was distressed by the presence of people and let out a loud trumpet before stepping over a fallen tree and charging out of the forest.

A hiker said: 'We panicked when we heard there was an elephant, and we scattered everywhere to hide from it. We were afraid of getting hurt.'

Fortunately, no one was reportedly injured during the encounter, and the vacationers managed to continue their hike safely.

Thailand has up to 3,500 elephants in the wild. The population has been increasing in recent years, but it is still a fraction of the estimated 300,000 wild elephants that lived in the country at the beginning of the 20th century.

The main threats to wild elephants in Thailand are habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching, and conflict with humans.