Kaeng Krachan National Park extends 2914 km² from the South from Prachuap Khiri Khan Province to the north with Petchaburi Province and hugging Myanmar on the West side. The National Park is a protected rainforest that holds diverse wildlife such as leopards, elephants and gibbons just mention a few. There are also Tigers but not as common as before.

Two of the most common ways to visit Kaeng Krachan National Park is by visiting Pa La-U Waterfall about 1,5 hour drive from Hua Hin or by going North West and entering by Kaeng Krachan Dam about distance away. Both trips are recommended and should be made with a driver that knows the area.

The Road leading to Pa La-U Waterfall is stunning, as the road winds over the Kaeng Krachan National Park Mountains and it is not unusual to see trampled down trees by the side of the road after wild Elephants has walked through and if you are lucky you can even see this majestic animals idling on the road.

The Pal La-U Waterfall has 5 levels that are open to the public, the first few are easy to reach but the rest can get a bit treacherous so start with the first two levels as it gets progressively more slippery and challenging to climb. After level 2 is not recommended with young children or the elderly. There is small local stalls at the base of the Waterfall and you can do a little picnic after trekking and swimming. Please note it is very slippery after the rain so do thread carefully and note water pressure and levels are the lowest in the middle of the dry season.

Kaeng Krachan Dam can be reached through another entrance further away towards Hua Yang. The Kaeng Krachan Dam is large Dam surrounded by a small town with many beautiful small boutique resorts located on a tropical and meandering River. Further away from Kaeng Krachan Dam you can do some serious hiking but if you just want to relax and enjoy the scenery this is the place to be. At the Dam you can rent boats to bring you to see the islands, grab lunch at local restaurants with stunning views of the dam and Myanmar Mountains in the background.

But what Kaeng Krachan Dam area is really famous for is renting Rubber Dinghies to float down the absolutely stunning river, it costs approximately 1000 thb for one boat trip and includes life wests. The trip is truly magical and it shocking to realize most people visiting Hua Hin never get to see this. Booking for the Dinghy’s can be done on the spot at any of the small resorts or restaurants dotting the river. Make sure to buckle your life west tight and enjoy as you float past a rainforest. Note weekends are crowded with Bangkokians, but on week days you will have the river to yourself. After floating about an hour a car will bring you back to where you started from.

Highly recommended to hire transport to take you to Pa La-U Waterfall & Kaeng Krachan Dam as it is far off the beaten track. Do bring a swim suit & towel for a plunge in the waterfall or river and sensible shoes to trek up the Waterfall.

We highly recommend spending a day at Kaeng Krachan Dam at any of the resort for the day, where you can lay in a hammock sipping a drink, hang off a swing with your feet in the river, swim in the clear waters and taking a dinghy down the river. It’s a one of a kind experience that you won’t soon forget.

• from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm every day

• 300 baht per adult
• 200 baht per child
• 30 baht per car

• from Bangkok – 251 km (3 h 30 min)
• from Hua Hin – 65 km (1 h 15 min)

• Wat Huay Mongkol (50 km, 1 hour)
• Hua Hin Hills Vineyard (47km, 55 min)

We recommend to contact Hua Hin Cab. You can send them your own itinerary and ask for a quote or pick one of the day tour packages available on their website.