Khao Yai National Park is Thailand’s oldest national park and one of six UNESCO World Heritage sites in the country. Along with Kui Buri, it’s one of the few places in Thailand where you can still spot wild Asian elephants, leopards, and various monkey species in their natural habitat. Take a look at what it’s like inside.
Elephants are Thailand’s most significant animals. Read more about seeing them responsibly in our Thailand with Kids post.
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Khao Yai – Thailand’s favorite getaway
…But mostly for the locals. Thanks to its proximity to Bangkok (about 200 km) and easy access, Khao Yai is the ultimate long-weekend escape for city dwellers looking to recharge. You’ll see some tourists too, but they’re definitely in the minority—mostly because the park isn’t exactly “on the way” to any other major destination.
What to do in Khao Yai
No big surprises here: like most national parks, Khao Yai is all about getting close to raw, tropical nature. We’ve talked plenty of times about how much good an active day outdoors does for your health. If you’ve got the time, Khao Yai can easily keep you busy for two or three days.
The park is mainly about trekking. There are seven official trails, ranging in difficulty and duration. Just a heads-up: if you want to hit the most spectacular one—Trail 6 to the Heo Suwat waterfall—you need to be at the visitor center around 8:00 AM. We didn’t get the memo and rolled up well after 11:00 AM.
There are two entrances and two ticket offices. Entry is 200 THB for adults and 100 THB for kids, plus a 30 THB fee for the car. Pro tip: Prices can vary depending on where you enter. The visitor center sits in the middle of the park, and that’s where all the tours kick off. Most trails require a guide (except for trails 1 and 4), and you pay a flat fee per group, not per person.
New kind of “leechy” experience in Khao Yai
Since we arrived late, our trail options were limited. After chatting with the staff, we picked the 5 km (one-way) trek to the Nong Pak Chi observation tower. But before we could set off, we had to get the right gear.
The first thing our guide asked was: “Do you have leech socks?” Of course, we gave the only answer we had: “Nope.” He suggested we buy some at the center for 40 THB. At first, we just shook our heads—we had long pants, after all, and figured we’d be fine. Our attitude shifted the second we saw the guide pulling on these white, “Santa-style” over-socks and tucking his pants into them. We realized the leeches here might be a bigger deal than we thought. Minutes later, we were tying our own leech socks just below the knees.
We realized it was a smart move about 10 meters into the jungle. Suddenly, our white socks were crawling with tiny black bugs heading upward, looking for a patch of skin. We had a totally different image of leeches in our heads. We didn’t expect them to be the size of a fingernail, thin as a thread, and lightning-fast. If they manage to latch on, they triple in size in about a minute.
Trekking Trail 5 in Khao Yai: The road to the tower
The hike itself isn’t too demanding, though you have to account for the heat and humidity. Most of the path winds through thick rainforest and incredibly lush jungle. Our guide was keen on showing us everything, so we went off-trail quite a bit. At times, standing in the wild jungle searching the canopy for a family of gibbons, we felt like David Attenborough.
The bear claw marks on a tree trunk probably left the biggest impression on us. An Asian black bear was likely resting somewhere right above our heads! We also came across an “elephant camp”—no elephants in sight, but the flattened grass and… well, “bathroom evidence” left no doubt that these majestic animals had recently enjoyed a feast there.
After 6.5 km and nearly 3.5 hours, we hit the main road leading back to the visitor center. This is the tricky part: you either have to hope for a bit of luck to catch a ride or walk another 3.5 km on hot asphalt. Luck was on our side! Just a minute after stepping out of the woods, a Thai family pulled over and gave us a lift back to our car.
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