Level: very easy (our easiest guided tour)
Season: all year

If watching a wide variety of exotic birds and other animals is a high priority for you, our Khoa Sok National Park tour is just the ticket. It is the ultimate wildlife sanctuary in southern Thailand. Monkeys are very common, especially Dusky Langurs. These gregarious black and silver monkeys are famous for their leaping ability. Luckily for us, they have defined arboreal pathways... just like our ground trails. This means that you can bet that if you see one make a leap, there will soon be others using the same branches.

Pig-tail Macaques, Long-tail Macaques and even Stump-tail Macaques are common in the park.

If you're into photography, this means you'll have a very good chance to get one of those once-in-a-lifetime wildlife shots!

White-handed Gibbons, an endangered species of ape, are common in the park. Their wacky morning calls will certainly surprise and entertain you.

We have also seen other rare animals such as Malayan Tapirs, Gaur, Serows (a type of rare mountain goat), Yellow-throated Martens, Malayan Sun Bears, Asiatic Black Bears, Muntjac (deer) and Binturongs (a cross between a bear and a cat).

We stay in unique, low impact, floating bamboo bungalows on the massive 165 square kilometer reservoir. These accommodations are very basic. The floating walkways are in constant need of repair. It's a small step up from camping, but a small price to pay for being in such a lovely remote setting.

The Khoa Sok Wildlife Experience

Several species of hornbills are frequently seen at Khao Sok, including the Great Hornbill. This ancient bird is so big that its wings make noise when it flies. You can even hear them when they glide. Their massive yellow bills and yellow slash in their wings makes them very easy to recognize in flight. Interestingly, the way you tell the sexes is that the males have red eyes. Females have white eyes. The male also has a black area under the cask, the resonating sound chamber resting on top of the bill. The female’s cask is solid yellow.

Common sightings besides the Great Hornbill include Bushy-crested, Oriental-pied, Wreathed and occasionally the very strange-looking Helmeted Hornbill. You will hear the bizarre call of the Helmeted Hornbill even if you don’t see one. Their call is very unusual.It starts with a series of 'hoot' and finishes with a laughing sound.

Plus, there are plenty of big ficus, dipterocarpus, leguminosae, mimosoidaeae and other emergent trees, as well as a good variety of epiphytic plant to discover. Even though our primary interest is ornithology, we have a fairly broad knowledge of the plants of the Kingdom. Our knowledge of the flora and fauna of the region is unequaled; your questions about what you're seeing will be answered accurately.

There is no rainforest in Thailand. This is tropical evergreen forest to be precise. Prior to the clear-cutting of the indigenous flora Thailand was covered with rainforest; now it's covered by rubber and oil plantations. The best of what's left is in Khao Sok National Park.

Namtaloo Cave

Nam Thalu Cave that offers you a chance to see unique cave creatures. This cave trek takes about three hours to complete. The trail follows a lovely creek. It eventually reaches a large entrance to the cave system. The creek flows through the cave and you'll be in shallow water for a while, then deeper water. Click here to see an image gallery of the Namtaloo Cave.

This is a very popular trek with day trippers from the river area of Khoa Sok. We do our best to avoid seeing other tour groups.

Another interesting place to visit is the viewpoint. This hike is suitable for moderately fit adventurers. The summit of this viewpoint takes about an hour to reach. The view of Cheow Lan Reservoir and the thick jungle below is well-worth the effort to reach the top.

Click here to see a sample itinerary.

Click here to see some photos. Click here to see some wildlife photos. Click here to see our butterfly and moth photo gallery.

You can find answers to many of your possible questions on our FAQ page.

Our three-day trip costs US$435 per person and our four-day trip costs US$540 per person. Longer trips are available on request. This trip includes all transfers from nearest local airport, bus station or train station (airfare not included), all equipment, accommodations once on the trip, all meals, all snacks, all non-alcoholic drinks, and insurance. Plus, you'll get a complimentary PaddleAsia T shirt.

Binoculars are a MUST at Khao Sok. You can see the monkeys, gibbons, hornbills and everything else, but you won't be able to really appreciate them without a closer look. A cheap pair of binoculars will do. If you don't have any, you can pick up a cheap pair in Thailand for around $20. Monoculars are also easily acquired in Thailand.

Khoa Sok logistics

Fly into the Surat Thani Airport from Bangkok. It is only 1 hour from Surat Thani to Khao Sok. If you plan on being in Phuket before your Khao Sok trip, we will pick you up at prearranged times from either your hotel, Phuket International Airport, or anywhere in the neighboring vicinity.

Khoa Sok is under a three-hour drive from Phuket. Guests will be taken to Khoa Sok via our air-conditioned van.

Once we arrive at the dam, we board a longtail motorboat to get even more remote. It’s a one hour ride by boat to the floating bungalows. You'll travel through one of the most stunning limestone karst gorges in the world!

For more info on logistics, see our logistics page.