National parks are a great way to get off the beaten path in Thailand, but they do take some work to get to. National parks have been given their status because of natural beauty that should be left unharmed. This means that when you visit, you are seeing some of the best nature Thailand has to offer.
Getting There
Getting to most national parks takes having your own car. A few national parks you may be able to reach by public bus but also may need to walk a long distance when you arrive at the national park. One example of this is when we took a public bus from Kanchanaburi to Erawan National Park and it dropped us at the visitor center parking lot. However, driving will give you ease in timing and getting farther into the national park to see more of what it has to offer.
Another pro tip – When you are searching on google maps for a park entrance, try searching for “visitor center” or “campground” and not just the name of the national park. Google will take you to the center of the national park, even if there is no road there.
Finding Information About National Parks
The only completely updated source of information on pricing and openings of national parks we know about is the Department of National Parks website. This is where you can find out a little about the national park and make reservations for a bungalow and tent camping. We have had good and bad experiences trying to reserve a bungalow ahead of time through the website and by phone call in English. We have had much better luck arriving at the national park and renting a bungalow directly. But it all depends on availability. I have never needed to book ahead for tent camping. Even on holiday weekends at Khao Yai, one of the most popular national parks, they have enough tents, sleeping bags, mats, pillows, etc.
If you can not find the information from the website, they also have published a book in English. It is called National Parks in Thailand. You can find it on the national park website as a pdf document. However, I recommend asking at a visitor center when you visit a national park. I just had to show my passport and sign my name and they gave me the book for free. Not every national park has the book in stock. This is different than the National Park passport which is used to get visiting stamps. These cost about 100 baht.
Lastly, I google for information about the national parks, specifically looking for maps so that I can see possible hiking trails, caves, and viewpoints. This information is hit or miss in English. Often, as a foreigner, you need to look at getting off the beaten path as an adventure as you will not know everything before you arrive at the national park. It’s just part of the fun.
Simple Guidelines to Follow
Here are several guidelines that we as a family go by when visiting national parks. They may not always be true, but they have kept us from running into trouble.
- Park entrances close at sunset. I don’t know whether this is completely true, but many years ago we arrived at a popular national park after dark and they told us to turn around and come back the next day. Since that time, we have always arrived before sunset and had no problems.
- Bring your own food. Don’t expect to find food for sale. There is almost always a coffee shop/convenience store on site, but it is not always open. And often we find that even if they are open, they may be out of certain items. Because of this unknown, we will bring 2 two-liter jugs (2 liters or 4 liters?) , which you can find at 7-11 or Lotus’s, of water for our family of 6.
- Always start out early. Hikes can get busy at many of the popular national parks. The heat is also going to make it harder to hike in the middle of the day. It is best to start out early. Two examples from our experiences are Erawan National Park and Phu Kradaeng National Park. Erawan National Park’s main attraction is a waterfall that you can hike up different stages. If you want to find a place to sit down or a pool that you can swim with just your family, you need to be there early! Phu Kradaeng National Park has a main hike that many tourists do. It takes several hours and is pretty much a vertical climb. In fact, because it is so long, the hike entrance closes at 1 pm, so you need to arrive before that time.
- Assume no toilet paper. If you are not handy with a butt sprayer, found next to toilets around Thailand, be prepared with your own toilet paper. The most popular, expensive parks may have them, but in general, it’s not available.
General Directions to Follow for Checking In
- Drive up to the national park entrance. You will see a brown guard house with a car barrier down or up. Slow down and follow the directions of the national park worker. At most national parks this is where you will pay the entrance fee. Dual pricing is common in Thailand. Foreigners pay 10x the cost of locals (so if you pay B400, a local is paying B40). Foreigners who work in Thailand can try showing their Thai driver’s license. This may or may not give you a discount of some sort. It has worked at times for our family.
Approximate Pricing:
100-500 baht per adult, depending on popularity of park
½ price for children (young children are often free)
50-100 baht per car (smaller amount for motorcycle)
Once you pay the entrance fee, you do not have to pay it again, even if you camp for several nights. We have also left a national park to get more food and come back in, but the campsite gave us a sign to put in our card to show that we are staying at the campsite, so we can come and go freely. Just ask at the visitor center for instructions.
- Drive to the visitor center. Park and enter to ask for a map, specific hike recommendations, and that you want to camp for the night. Smaller national parks will have the camping gear available right there. Larger national parks will have camping gear available in a separate “house” next to the campsite.
- Go to the area where the camping gear is located. Find out what is available to rent. Different size tents are available at different locations. We have rented 2/3/4 person tents at different locations. Often the tents are already put up and you pick which one you want to sleep in. You will also pick up your own sleeping bags, sleeping mats, and pillows at the camping house. At this point, you also want to let them know how many days you plan on staying, although your plans can change and that’s ok (for a tent, different for renting a bungalow). I have paid at check-in and check-out depending on location. Be ready with cash, QR scan, or direct transfer. Credit cards will probably not be accepted.
- Enjoy your campsite!
Cooking at Your Campsite
For meals you have several options at national parks. First, there may be a small restaurant to get food from. Usually this restaurant is open for lunch only, so you still need options for dinner. To cook food at your own campsite, you have two different options usually.
- Thai charcoal stove from the national park. You can rent a charcoal stove at the same place where you rent your tent and sleeping bags. You can also buy a bag of charcoal. Usually the stove and charcoal are just 10-20 baht per item.
Camping stove from Lotus’s or Big C. These are only a couple hundred baht and it’s easy to find the gas canisters in most convenience stores around Thailand. The stove comes packaged in a case with a handle, so it is very easy to transport. It has an ignition clicker built in, so you don’t need matches or a lighter.