Exploring Khao Sok Lake – Thailand´s Hidden Gem
Exploring Khao Sok Lake – Thailand´s Hidden Gem
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The location and the arrival
Ready to explore Thailand’s hidden gem in the middle of the jungle? The Khao Sok Lake, also called Cheow Lan Lake, is located in the middle of the Khao Sok National Park, a 2-hour boat ride from Surat Thani. In this surreal landscape, you will feel totally connected with nature, you will hear the sounds of the Gibbons and different hornbill birds and you will wake up in most beautiful golden light! The lake is famous for the big limestone rocks coming out of the water. You will be totally isolated and you should be prepared for a digital detox because there is no signal at all.
They picked us up at Surat Thani airport in the early morning and drove us to the head quarter. There we met our tour guide and he explained us everything about our adventure. We drove to the National Park entrance and got on our own wooden longtail boat with a personal boatsman.
The 2 day and 1 night experience on the lake:
Day 1:
1 / Arriving at the headquarter, meeting the tour guide
2 / 2-hour boat ride over the lake in a longtail boat + Stop near mountains
3 / Arriving at the Camp, lunch
4 / Freetime: kayaking, swimming, taking pictures
5 / Afternoon jungle hike: Get there with the boat
6 / Visiting a fishermen village on the water + Sunset on the boat
7 / Enjoying the evening light at the camp and dinner
Day 2:
1 / Enjoying the red sunrise on the boat or at the camp
2 / Boat ride to beautiful mountains
3 / Breakfast at the camp
4 / Freetime: kayak tour on your own + spotting animals, swimming
5 / Lunch
6 / Boat ride back to the National Park entrance
1 – Exploring the lake with a beautiful longtail boat + picture stop
We were blown away by the beauty of the wooden longtail boat and the mountain landscape around us! We felt like being part of a movie. The man-made lake was built 30 years ago surrounded by this massive National Park. After the flooding many big limestone mountains changed to little islands in the water, there are still some dead trees standing in the lake. We never saw a landscape like that!
From the entrance of the National Park to the bamboo bungalow camp in the middle of the lake, you will need around 2 hours with the longtail boat. We had enough time to soak in the beauty of the landscape. After 1 hour you will have a short picture stop at some beautiful high mountains. After arriving at the camp and after having lunch, you will have another boat ride in the sunset!
Your tour guide will try his best to show you the jungle animals, like gibbons, eagles or hornbill birds. If you are lucky you can even spot an elephant. If you have some special ideas for photo locations, your guide will make it possible.
2 – The bungalow village including breakfast, lunch and dinner
Isn´t this place beautiful? This bamboo bungalow village is located in a bay far away from the main route on the lake and surrounded by beautiful big mountains. The bamboo bungalow we booked with bamboo bliss tour is very simple but definitely enough for 1 night. You will stay in a traditional bamboo bungalow with only a mattress and a veranda. From your bungalow, you can jump right into the water. There are no dangerous animals in the lake!!
The camp belongs to the National Park and supports the locals as well as they protect the animals. There is another Praiwan guest house on the lake run by a private family. We were happy with our simple bungalow, but for a second night, we would recommend changing to a more luxury bungalow. The meals were very good, we even got a lot of fresh plant-based food!
3 – Free time: kayaking, swimming & animal spotting
After arriving at the bungalows on your first day, you will get some free time. Jump into the green water and enjoy some kayaking on your own! We were able to spot some monkeys in the palm trees and we saw some eagles. If you are lucky you can spot the only left elephant in this National Park.
We had a wonderful time kayaking around the little beautiful jungle islands. There is so much to explore! We felt very connected to nature surrounded by this beautiful peaceful landscape.
4 – Jungle hike and the fishing village
After some relaxing time, we were ready for another boat trip to explore the surrounding area. We stopped at the beginning of a jungle hike and discovered the jungle
After the hike, you will jump right back into the boat to take a ride to a floating fishing village on the water. It´s interesting to see, how people actually live here. Then we saw the most beautiful sunset we have ever seen. The light is golden and warm and the mountains change into a surreal panorama.
5 – Sunrise and sunset
We had the most fascinating views while sunset and sunrise. The bamboo bungalows are such a photogenic spot and being in a wooden boat while looking at the rising sun felt like a dream. You can hear sounds of the gibbons and hornbill birds and just enjoy the moment. In the night we saw thousands of stars and we had no mosquitos at all!
You can choose between staying at the bungalows or having a boat ride at sunrise. We prefer to shoot sunset on the boat and to enjoy sunrise at the bamboo bungalow village.
Where can I book it? How much is it?
We booked the bamboo bliss tour for 2 days and 1 night with khaosoklake.com. It costs 6100 baht (190$) per person. If you team up with two other people for the boat ride, you will pay 4000 baht (125$) per person. Additionally, you have to pay 300 baht (9$) entrance fee for the National Park. Keep in mind that the high price includes the big private longtail boat, the boatsman, your private tour guide, the bamboo bungalow, the meals and the hiking tours. For us it was enough time to relax at the lake for one night. But if you want to stay there a second night you can move to a more luxury bungalow for the second night.
Do you want to know how to get there? Read more in our 3 – Day Khao Sok Guide here.
What else can you do in Khao Sok
After your Khao Sok lake experience, there is so much more to explore at Khao Sok Riverside, for example meeting an elephant or booking a cooking class.
Read about it in our 3 – Day Khao Sok Guide here.
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