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 4.75/5 based on 167 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: 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.

By: Jesper Andersen | posted Sun 24 Mar, 2024 | Phupha Waree

5/5 stars

Dejlig oplevelse og vores guide Kiem var virkelig god.

By: Mihai | posted Sat 23 Mar, 2024 | Phupha Waree

5/5 stars

This tour has been one of the top highlights of our trip to Thailand. Honestly an amazing experience in a unique place which was made possible by our fantastic guide Ruam who not only took great care of us throughout the trip and especially during the jungle trek but also shared so many interesting things about the environment there. We got the chance to see monkeys, eagles, monitor lizards, chameleons, buffalos and even an elephant coming out of the jungle at dawn. The scenery is breath taking, the Phupha Waree accommodation was clean, nice and well equipped and the food provided was fantastic.

By: Bente Skovgaard | posted Sun 17 Mar, 2024 | Panvaree

5/5 stars

What an amazing experience we would recommended to all our Friends