Thai National Parks

Private Tour | 3-days/2-nights private tour in Cheow Lan Lake

For the August dates, the rooms are rapidly getting fully booked at the average and high end raft houses. You are recommended to book earliest possible. Guide availability may also be an issue in time.

Situated between Khao Sok National Park and Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary, Cheow Lan Lake has one of the most beautiful scenic views in Thailand.

While a 2-day/1-night stay leaves less time for various activities due to check-in and check-out times from the raft houses, a 3-days/2-nights tour gives a much better opportunity to enjoy more of the attractions and activities around the lake.

Activities

With the 3-days/2-nights tour in Cheow Lan Lake you will be able to see scenic rock formations, hike to a viewpoint, visit a cave, hike in the jungle, kayak and drive around in the vicinity of your raft house for wildlife watching. The tour includes two nights stay in a raft house of your choice, a private guide and a private boat with driver.

Why to book?

While the group tours offered by most companies are conducted with larger boats, shared by 12-18 people and has a fixed itinerary, no others will share the guide or the boat with you during our tours. Our tours are strictly private and flexible.

Raft house options

500 Rai (deluxe)

500 Rai is one of the two top raft houses in the lake, with 15 houses/cabins of various sizes. The raft house is located at the far end of the lake, between Phupha Waree and Krai Son raft houses, with one of the best views in the lake.

Following are the type of rooms;

Type	Pax	Size	Info
Deluxe	4	36 ㎡	Master bedroom with double-size bed, loft with two mattresses. 1 kayak, 5 life jackets. A/c from 6 pm to 6 am. Check-in 2pm, check-out 9:30am
Villa	4	42 ㎡	Master bedroom with double-size bed, loft with two mattresses. 1 kayak, 5 life jackets. A/c 24h/day. Check-in 2pm, check-out 9:30am
Family Villa	8	72 ㎡	2 connecting villas, 2 master bedrooms with double-size bed, 2 lofts with 4 mattresses, a/c 24h/day, 2 kayaks, 8 life jackets. Check-in 2pm, check-out 9:30am
Deluxe Suite	4	72 ㎡	Master bedroom with double-size bed, loft with 2 mattresses, a/c 24h/day, 2 kayaks, 7 life jackets (2 sofa beds for additional 2 pax if needed). Check-in 4pm, check-out 1pm
Family Suite	10	86 ㎡	2 master bedrooms with double-size bed, 2 lofts with 6 mattresses, a/c 24h/day, 2 kayaks, 7 life jackets (2 sofa beds for additional 2 pax if needed). Check-in 4pm, check-out 1pm
Honeymoon Suite	4	92 ㎡	Master bedroom with double-size bed, loft with two mattresses, a/c 24h/day, 2 kayaks, 4 life jackets, private swimming pool, jacuzzi. Check-in 4pm, check-out 1pm

Panvaree The Greenery Raft House (deluxe)

While most raft houses in the lake have on average around two dozen bungalows, Panvaree The Greenery Raft House have fewer which makes it a relatively quiet place even when the place is fully booked. Quality wise it is no doubt one of the best and most popular raft houses in the lake. The raft house is located in the entrance of Khlong Long tributary.

Following are the type of rooms;

• Superior 2 pax - For 2 adults or 2 adults + small child (child to share same bed as parents but quoted half price). Room can be with either a double bed or two single beds, unfortunately can't be chosen, either one can be booked depending on availability and other circumstances.
• Family rooms; For 3+ pax

The price for rooms varies depending on week-day, week-end day or holidays.

Phupha Waree Raft House

Phupha Waree is set back in a private alcove just inside Klong Pey, compared to most basic/average raft houses in the lake it is considered a bit better option. The rooms are equipped with 2 joined queen size beds, a private bathroom, a/c, balcony and can accommodate 2-4 people. While the smaller rooms will be booked for up to 3 people, the larger rooms will be booked for 4 people.

Laguna Cheow Lan

Laguna Cheow Lan is located in Khlong Long tributary, in the middle of the lake. Each room have a king size and a single bed, private bathroom, a/c, balcony and can accommodate up to 3 people. The beds are on the floor.

Sai Chon Raft House

Sai Chon Raft House is a cheaper alternative compared to high end ones, located in Khlong Long tributary of the lake, not too far from the pier. The quality is somewhere between bamboo and high end options. The rooms can accommodate 2-4 people with king size beds, equipped with fans and has rooms with private bathroom.

Krai Son Raft House (basic bamboo)

Krai Son is perched at the entrance to Klong Yee at the remote end of the lake. It is equipped with traditional style bamboo bungalows (2 pax, double beds), no fan, with shared bathroom facilities on land next to the raft house. It is the only raft house on the lake with a view of sunrise and sunset. Local attractions include a viewpoint hike which overlooks the entire lake, and it is close by to the Khlong Saeng wildlife sanctuary not too far from Phupha Waree.

We do not recommend Krai Son to families with kids.

Itinerary

The following itinerary is just an example. Depending on the location of your raft house, weather conditions, your suggestions or eventual shorter/longer time you may decide to spend at attractions may change the planning. Example; you may decide to do more kayaking, skip some activities for the other, or simply just decide to relax and spend some time with friend(s)/family at the raft house.

Day 1

• 10 am, Board your long-tail boat at Rajjaprabha Dam (Cheow Lan Lake Pier) enjoy the scenic tour of limestone karst formations on the way to floating bungalows
• Check in to the raft house. Enjoy a traditional Thai lunch
• Depart for a guided hike to a nearby viewpoint which has a breathtaking view over the lake
• Return to the raft house for a swim, relax and enjoy the scenery
• Afternoon wildlife safari by boat
• Enjoy your dinner

Day 2

• Breakfast
• Board long tail boat for a morning wildlife safari by boat
• Return to the rafthouse for free time
• After lunch, guided jungle hike
• Return to the raft house for a swim, relax
• Enjoy a traditional Thai dinner

Day 3

• Rise before breakfast for the morning mist safari, the best time to gibbons, macaques and dusky leaf monkeys
• Return to raft house for breakfast
• Explore the surrounding area by kayak
• Depending on the raft house and it's location, check-out from the raft house is around 9:30 am, tour ends around 10:30 to 11 am

Where & When?

The tour starts at Cheow Lan Lake Pier (Rajjaprabha Dam), 65 km from park headquarters. We can arrange transfers from/to Phuket, Khao Lak, Krabi, Ao Nang, Surat Thani and Khao Sok village on request.

The nearest airports are Surat Thani (~1h), Krabi (~2h) and Phuket Airport (~2.5h), you are recommended to arrive to the area a day before the tour start. This tour is not recommended to start the same day when arriving from the islands or to the airport far away.

This tour is operated all year round.

When to book?

High seasons months in the lake are November to April and July/August. Bookings for these months should be done far in advance, earliest possible. Even if some raft houses may still have rooms available days/weeks before, guide availability is more of a concern. The guides may get fully booked months in advance for the busiest times of the year. During the low season months there is less risk of unavailability. 

Panvaree The Greenery superior rooms should be booked at least 6-12 months in advance for the busier months of the year, even the family rooms may get room far in advance. It is one of the most popular raft houses in the lake.

Laguna Cheow Lan should be booked at least 5-6 months in advance for the high seasons months, they are constantly fully booked at least 3-4 months ahead.

Phupha Waree can be booked a couple of months ahead, but during the high seasons they may get fully booked most dates 1-3 months ahead. There is greater risk for them to get fully booked during the week-ends.

Sai Chon should also be booked earliest possible for any week-end/holiday concerned dates.

Krai Son tends to have availability for the most year even if booked days/weeks in advance but can be fully booked months in advance for long week-end holidays.

How much?

The tour will be led by a private guide which means no others will join you while exploring the lake and surrounding areas. The price for this tour package depends on the choice of accommodation and number of people, please see price per person further down.

The prices below do not include entrance fees to the national park.

Optional charges;

Coral Cave Rafthing

• From Krai Son or Phupha Waree raft houses; 1,900 Baht fixed price and 200 Baht per person entrance fee for Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary
• From Sai Chon or Panvaree The Greenery raft houses; 400 Baht fixed price and 200 Baht per person entrance fee for Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary

Wildlife oriented tour?

(from the vicinity of Krai Son, 500 Rai and Phupha Waree Raft Houses only)

Although our tour is more about visiting the attractions, enjoying the scenery and water activities in the lake, our price includes a bit of safari driving around the lake in hope to see a glimpse of wildlife around.

If you wish a more wildlife oriented tour, we can arrange it for an additional 2,000 Baht for one early morning of late afternoon session a bit further away from our main service area, then our guide could take you to Khlong Saeng tributary on the north/west end of the lake one afternoon. Please let us know in case. The wildlife oriented tour is only suitable for the 2nd day over a 3D/2N tour and for this price, only one driving session.

Reviews from our guests

Rated 4.74/5 based on 170 customer reviews

By: World Wild Hearts | posted Sun 16 Apr, 2023 | Sai Chon

5/5 stars

A video review from one of our guests. This clip wasn't promoted by us, nor were we informed in advance about it.

Review by; World Wild Hearts

By: Ilhaam Bheekoo | posted Mon 6 May, 2024 | Phupha Waree

3/5 stars

We had a beautiful time at Khao Sok National Park. The views, guide, and activities were amazing. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience and we appreciated how well conserved and protected the animals and forest were.

The only problems we had were the accommodations. We feel that the price we paid for our stay Khao Sok was far more expensive than any 4/5 star accommodations in Thailand, yet the Khao Sok rooms are 1 star.

For the price we paid (Phupha Waree raft house) we expected a comfortable, modern room that accommodates tourists. However, we were shocked that there was no proper shower but instead a loose shower head attached next to the toilet. It's a toilet shower. There's holes in the floors so it really does not come with 'normal' sophisticated bathroom systems.

The bed is just a low quality mattress on the ground, this was so uncomfortable that it hurts your back as you feel the wires in it. The pillows are old, the walls have not been painted in forever, it's squashed, dirty, and just not well maintained.

The temperature was about 36 degrees and one of the hottest days ever experienced in Thailand when we went.. yet the aircons do not work in the rooms due to the park not having electricity during certain times. Again, for the price we paid the lack of systems and basic services an accommodation should have was shocking. It was extremely difficult to enjoy our stay without the aircon.

The food is not well protected. Breakfast was infested with flies and bees and the staff seem to be very normal about it. The other meals are a set menu without considering if people don't eat certain things.

It's difficult to give this feedback because the park is so stunning. But I'm afraid a lot of tourists won't be able to 'rough it out' and come experience it because the accommodation is so difficult to handle. We wouldn't recommend it if you're a traveller who can't cope with less than a 3 star stay. Its tough!

It seems like what your signing on for is an authentic local experience..as a tourist you need to be the understanding one and embrace it. The guides are really amazing and they talk to you about their life in the villages and you learn a lot. But you can't expect that the staff and people running the raft houses to understand the standard that foreigners are used to with rooms, bathrooms, and food.

We made the most of it and perhaps the highest tier accommodation there is more bearable. But we would have given Khao Sok a 5/5 if the accommodations can just be upgraded.

> Tour operator's response

Thanks for your enquiry. :)

We clearly informed you this; "The rooms will have a/c powered from 6 pm until 9 am.". This is the case at all raft houses, except some of the rooms at 500 Rai provides electricity 24 h/day, but price for those are steep.

Last 2-3 weeks in the lake have been unusually too hot, those kind of temperatures are rare, you have been a bit unlucky. The temperatures has already gone down a bit now that we are entering the rainy season.

We never claimed your stay is 4 or 5 star. The quality of these raft houses, even the most exclusive ones in the lake are not comparable to 4/5 star hotels on land, because these are floating bungalows, light construction. And the price too is not comparable, because these are in a remote area, 1h 20 mins drive from the pier with logistics issues, most staff staying at the raft house longer periods.

We are saying this again and again for similar price complaints; the price is not only for 2 night stay at the raft house. A guide, a boat and a boat driver is hired for 3 days. The guides/boat drivers are off from home and staying at the raft house, at your service whenever you need.

You are saying "But we would have given Khao Sok a 5/5 if the accommodations can just be upgraded.".. And yet, you didn't go for a more high-end raft house.

By: Jacqueline | posted Sun 5 May, 2024 | 500 Rai

3/5 stars

3-Day/2-Night Stay in Khao Sok

Positive feedback:

- Communciation on the organization of the trip was excellent - quick response, friendly communication and very helpful

- The trip worked out exactly as planned / stated in the itinerary.

- Our guide was very friendly, open-minded, funny and engaged. We appreciated her company throughout the trip and interesting stories of the region, which was very authentic.

Room for improvement:

- Price-Performance-Ratio is extremely high compared to other activities and accommodation in Southern Thailand

- The safaris are quite short and could be improved with offering binoculars as seen with other operators

- Our understanding of a guide was someone with a detailed knowledge of the area and the wildlife, providing tips for dressing and proposing activities according to weather and conditions leaving us less choice as we do not have any knowledge of the area, as we booked via the official National Park Thailand site. We were less interested in being hosted and pampered. Please note, that this is not a critique of the guide, as we appreciated her a lot. As we booked via the Thai National Parks, we expected to have an offical ranger/guide from the park with insight knowledge on where to find wildlife. It’s hard to see, what the advantage is booking through this site, instead of a local operator.

- A booklet of the area with the respective wildlife, would be amazing to receive as it would serve as a guide and souvenir for guests and a basic guideline for guides.

> Tour operator's response

Thanks for your feedback.

It sounds like you are after a wildlife tour. If you click “Tours” in our main navigation, you will see several tours in Khao Yai, Kaeng Krachan and Kui Buri national parks with “wildlife tour” in the tour title. Those tours are focusing on wildlife search with more or less expert guides in wildlife search. Our Cheow Lan Lake tours are mainstream, a bit balanced between various activities, sightseeing and a bit of wildlife search. They are not pure wildlife tours, we haven’t claimed that in our Cheow Lan tour details pages.

Unfortunately, there are not enough guides in the lake who have good wildlife knowledge, the reason we don’t offer any pure wildlife tours.

Regarding the price; You chose the most expensive room option in the lake, there are considerable cheaper rooms with other raft houses. The room price is for your booking (the tour bit with transfers excluded) is around 60% of the total tour price.

It is not a fair comparison to other tours elsewhere in the country as these include a guide/boat/boat driver to be booked for 3 days, and they are staying at the raft house overnight. The other tours in the country are mostly a few hours or at most a "day tour".

We are not the officials, in the footer of every page in this website it states clearly that this website is managed by GibbonWoot Limited Partnership, a private company. We built this website 12 years ago because it was impossible to find information in English about the parks and about how to get to these in Thailand. Please google the official website of the national parks in Thailand, you will see it still looks like a website from the 90s, nearly impossible to find answers to questions about the national parks.

By: Kasia Turlej | posted Wed 1 May, 2024 | Phupha Waree

5/5 stars

the stay was wonderful, the views were wonderful, our guide was wonderful! the food was also very good. great organization and a great time! perfect time

contact regarding the organization of the entire event was also at a high level - thank you!

By: Geoff Sage | posted Fri 19 Apr, 2024 | Phupha Waree

5/5 stars

What a fantastic and beautiful time! While the accommodations were a bit primitive, the surrounding park is breathtaking.

Our guide, Ruam, was great! We could not have asked for better. We highly recommend this tour.

By: Sandi Joffe | posted Mon 15 Apr, 2024 | 500 Rai

5/5 stars

Outstanding service from Rushen on line. So helpful. Especially as we had one person from our party who had to cancel due to emergency surgery before the trip

Our guide Junn couldnt have been nicer

A small suggestion is to have some nature books on the Khao Sok birds, butterflies, reptiles etc available on the boat or at the raft hotel for guests to look at. After all, the people that come here are surely interested in nature

Thank you for unforgettable experience!

By: Diya Bhatnagar | posted Fri 12 Apr, 2024 | 500 Rai

5/5 stars

We had a wonderful experience from start to the end. At the booking stage, the team was very informative, helpful and professional. We discussed various options and they helped curate a tour incorporating our interest in wildlife.

Our guide Bee was extremely knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. We thoroughly enjoyed his attention to detail and going above and beyond to ensure we had a memorable time.

The team even helped us arrange an onwards transfer, saving us time and stress.

Overall, it was well managed and organised, we could focus on the experience and had a great time. We will be booking with them again. Have no hesitation in recommending them.

By: Teresa Gerber | posted Thu 11 Apr, 2024 | Phupha Waree

5/5 stars

We had a very nice trip. It was so relaxing and beautiful to explore this exceptional scenery. Dong was a perfect guide and we were lucky to see various animals, due to his perfect knowledge and ability to spot them.

By: Manu Ku | posted Sat 6 Apr, 2024 | Phupha Waree

4/5 stars

The 3D2N tour was great. Our guide On is smart and always there to help.

Pupawaree raft house was expected to be better: staff really Stressed by the tourists and not friendly, it was a mass processing, nothing special.

The rafthouses very old. dangerously many nails and loose wooden boards.(one star less because of the rafthouse atmosphere and conditions).

We enjoyed the morning safari by kayaking, the hiking trip and On made the tour a very special one for us.

By: Billy Cina | posted Wed 27 Mar, 2024 | Phupha Waree

4/5 stars

Lovely park and excellent guide and boatman. They made our trip very special.

The accommodation was far more basic than I imagined. The huts need to be fixed and the lack of aircon is a huge issue.

> Tour operator's response

Thanks for your feedback. To this date, we never got any feedback about a/c not working at Phupha Waree. We will forward your review to them.