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On an adventure in Khao Sok National Park
Posted on December 16, 2022
Are you planning to go to Thailand? Then don't miss Khao Sok National Park! Escape the crowds and go on an adventure in the park. There is plenty to do, so it is useful to prepare well. Below you can read our tips for a visit to Khao Sok.
How do you get there?
To get to Khao Sok you can take a (private) bus from various places. From Surat Thani you can get there by bus in about 2.5 hours for €7. The bus does run at certain times, so keep this in mind. By taxi you are faster and more flexible, but it is also a lot more expensive. You can also take the bus from Krabi for €10. Please take into account an additional hour of travel time. Finally, it is even possible to take the night bus from Bangkok to Khao Sok.
We flew from Chiang Mai to Phuket and took a private bus from there. This was arranged by our hostel in Khao Sok and cost us €66. The journey took two hours in total. From Phuket you can also take a shared bus for around €25 per person. You can buy the tickets via 12go.asia .
Where is the best place to sleep?
If you go to Khao Sok, there are several options to stay overnight. We chose to sleep in the village where most accommodations and restaurants are located, Khlong Sok, but you can also stay in a more remote accommodation. It's really about the park and you can book a tour in most hotels or hostels where you are picked up and taken to the park by van.
We slept in a double room at Chillax Khaosok hostel and we thought it was a very nice place! You can also sleep in a mixed dormitory here and this is slightly cheaper. Mooky, the owner, can arrange everything for you and you can also have breakfast at your hostel before going on the tour.
Types of tours
There are many different tours offered to the national park. So it is sometimes difficult to make a good choice. Fortunately, you can book a tour a day in advance, so there's plenty of time to decide!
First of all, it is important to consider whether you want to go to Khao Sok National Park for a day or whether you want to spend one or more nights there. If you choose a day tour, like us, the program will look something like this:
Around half past eight in the morning you will be picked up by a van to go to the park. You will arrive at the pier about an hour later. From here you leave by longtail boat to explore the lake. Then you head to a cave that you walk through in about half an hour with a guide. Don't forget to bring a flashlight for this!
Then you leave again by boat to a part of the park where you will walk through the jungle for about an hour. Then it's time for lunch at a floating restaurant! After dinner you have about two hours to sunbathe, swim or kayak. Then it is time to sail to the most famous spot on the lake, where three rocks stick out of the water. Here you will have time to take beautiful photos. You then sail back to the pier and are taken to your accommodation by van.
We have looked at several tours and compared them with each other. The tours are often similar, but sometimes you can opt for a longer hike through the jungle. For a one-day tour you pay approximately 1,500 baht per person. This is about €40. If you choose a tour where you spend a night on the lake, you should keep in mind that the huts are very basic. You will get to see more of the park on this tour. This tour costs approximately 2500 baht per person. This is €67. Make sure that you also bring 220 baht per person in cash for entrance to the park.
How many nights to stay in Khao Sok?
This is of course completely up to you, but we chose to stay for two nights and thought this was enough.
Where can you get a good meal?
Don't expect streets full of different restaurants, but there are plenty of options for good food in Khao Sok! We can recommend the following restaurants in the village where we stayed.
Bamboo bistro
Bamboo bistro is a cozy restaurant where you can enjoy Thai and Western food. If you are gluten and lactose intolerant you can eat many Thai dishes and all the ingredients were listed on the menu. Furthermore, the map shows in red where nuts are contained.
Pawns restaurant
Pawn's is a nice little restaurant where you can enjoy delicious Thai food. They also have Western dishes on the menu, if you fancy that more, but be sure to try the banana flower curry and mango sticky rice!
Little wild cafe
A very nice hip cafe where you can have breakfast and lunch. We got an iced coffee and mango shake to go here, because we didn't have much time. Both were very tasty and the food looked good!
What to bring to Khao Sok?
To ensure that you don't forget anything when you visit Khao Sok, we list what you should definitely take with you:
a poncho (it remains a rainforest and the weather can be unpredictable)
a flashlight for the cave
small towel or hammam towel
deet
high socks for the jungle tour
bikini/swim trunks
clean clothes
sturdy shoes/sneakers
slippers if you like for relaxing
waterproof bag
Waterproof bags, ponchos and water shoes are widely sold in the town, so you don't have to carry them with you for the entire trip, but you can buy them there.
Are you going to Thailand and are you curious about other destinations? Then read our other blogs ! And do you have questions about Bangkok? Then reassure us!
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