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The twin royal pagodas of Doi Inthanon on their ridge at sunset, ranges of mountains fading behind

Doi Inthanon, the long day

Doi Inthanon, the Kew Mae Pan ridge and the highest point in Thailand

Two thousand five hundred and sixty-five metres, a ridge trail that closes for half the year, and eleven hours to fit it all in.

Full dayDoi Inthanonfrom €37
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Duration

Full day

Stops

5 on the route

Starts in

Doi Inthanon

Price

From €37

The experience

Best for
A Doi Inthanon day built around Kew Mae Pan
Not for you if
You are here in the rainy season and the ridge is the reason you were going. Check that the trail is open before you book

Doi Inthanon is the highest point in Thailand at 2,565 metres, about a hundred kilometres southwest of Chiang Mai, and the honest thing to say about the summit is that it is a car park with a sign. There is no view from the top; it is forested, often in cloud, and the moment is a photograph rather than a panorama. What makes the day worth eleven hours is everything on the way up, and one trail in particular.

That trail is Kew Mae Pan, and it is the reason to book this rather than a general national park tour. It runs about three kilometres along a ridge, out of the mossy cloud forest and onto open grassland with the land dropping away on one side, and it is the closest thing to a mountain view the country offers. Two things are worth knowing before you commit. It is only open from 1 November to 31 May, closing from 1 June to 31 October for the rainy season; and a compulsory local guide from Ban Khun Klang walks it with you, which is not a formality but a piece of park policy that keeps some of the money in the villages the mountain belongs to.

Read the rest

The rest of the day fills in around it: the Wachirathan waterfall on the way up, which throws enough spray to soak the viewing area on a strong day; the twin pagodas, built for the sixtieth birthdays of the late King and the Queen, standing on a shoulder of the mountain with gardens around them and a real view when the cloud allows; and a stop at a Karen coffee farm, where the crop is one of the substitution programmes that replaced opium in these hills. Eleven hours door to door, and every one of them earned.

The summit is a car park with a sign. The ridge an hour below it is the reason to come.

The route

  1. The Wachirathan waterfall dropping in a wide curtain onto black rock, spray hanging over the basin

    Wachirathan waterfall

    A heavy fall on the road up, throwing spray far enough to soak the viewing platform when the flow is strong. The first stop and the wettest.

  2. One of the twin royal pagodas of Doi Inthanon above its terraced flower gardens

    The twin royal pagodas

    Built for the sixtieth birthdays of the late King and the Queen, on a shoulder of the mountain with gardens around them and the view the summit does not have.

  3. The wooden sign at the summit of Doi Inthanon, the highest spot in Thailand at 2,565 metres

    The summit, 2,565 m

    The highest point in Thailand: forested, often in cloud, a marker and a shrine. Worth standing on for what it is, not for what you see.

  4. A walker alone on the wooden viewing deck at the end of the Kew Mae Pan ridge, ranges of hills fading behind

    The Kew Mae Pan ridge trail

    About three kilometres out of the mossy cloud forest onto open ridge, with a compulsory local guide from Ban Khun Klang. Open 1 November to 31 May only.

  5. A Karen coffee farm

    Coffee grown on these slopes as part of the substitution programmes that replaced opium. Drunk where it grows, which beats a bag from a shop.

Why this one

01

The Kew Mae Pan ridge

About three kilometres out of the cloud forest onto open ridge, with the land falling away beside you. The closest thing to a mountain view in Thailand.

02

2,565 metres, the highest point in the country

The summit itself is forested and often in cloud. Come for the sign and the altitude, not for a panorama, and nobody will have misled you.

03

The twin royal pagodas

Built for the sixtieth birthdays of the late King and the Queen, standing on a shoulder of the mountain with gardens and, on a clear day, the view the summit does not have.

04

Wachirathan waterfall

A heavy fall on the way up that throws spray far enough to soak the viewing platform when the flow is strong. Nobody minds.

05

Coffee at a Karen farm

Grown on the slopes as part of the crop substitution that replaced opium in these hills. Drinking it where it is grown is a better souvenir than a bag from a shop.

What is included

Included

  • Hotel pickup and drop-off in Chiang Mai
  • Transport for the whole day, about four hours of road in total
  • A guide for the day and the compulsory local guide from Ban Khun Klang on the Kew Mae Pan trail
  • The stops at the waterfall, the pagodas and the summit

Not included

  • National park entrance fees and the charge for the pagodas, unless your departure states otherwise
  • Lunch and drinks
  • Warm clothing, which is not optional at 2,500 metres in January
  • Tips, welcome but never expected

Practical detail

Duration
About 11 hours door to door. The longest single-destination day on this site
Where
Doi Inthanon National Park, about 100 km southwest of Chiang Mai
The trail
Kew Mae Pan, roughly 3 km along a ridge. Open 1 November to 31 May only, closed 1 June to 31 October
Local guide
A local guide from Ban Khun Klang is compulsory on Kew Mae Pan. This is park policy, and it keeps part of the fee in the villages here
Temperature
Cold at altitude. Single figures at dawn in December and January, and windy on the open ridge in any month
Wear
Walking shoes with grip, long trousers, and a warm layer plus a windproof one. The ridge is exposed
Fitness
The trail is a walk rather than a climb, but it is at 2,000 m and above and there are steps and uneven sections
Best season
November to February for clear air and an open trail. March and April bring burning-season haze that takes the distance away
Booking window
At least 10 hours ahead
Cancellation
Free cancellation applies; the exact terms for your booking are shown before you pay

Read the guide page: Doi Inthanon ▸

Common questions

Is the Kew Mae Pan trail always open?

No, and this is the single most important thing to check before booking. It is open from 1 November to 31 May and closed from 1 June to 31 October, through the rainy season, when the ridge is unsafe and the vegetation is recovering. If the trail is the reason you are going, confirm on the booking page that your date falls inside the open season, because the rest of the day happens either way and you would be paying eleven hours for the parts you did not come for.

Is there a view from the summit?

No, and anyone who tells you otherwise has not been. The highest point in Thailand is a forested, frequently cloudy spot with a marker, a small shrine and a car park. It is worth standing on because of what it is, not what you can see from it. The views on this day come from Kew Mae Pan and, on a clear afternoon, from the pagodas.

Why is a local guide compulsory on the trail?

Park policy on Kew Mae Pan requires a local guide from Ban Khun Klang, the village inside the park. It is partly about the trail, which is exposed and easy to leave, and substantially about keeping some of the money from a hundred thousand visitors a year in the villages whose land this is. It is included in this booking.

How cold is it really?

Cold enough to surprise people who packed for Thailand. The summit area drops to single figures at dawn in December and January and has been known to frost, and the ridge is windy in any month. A fleece and something windproof are the difference between a good walk and a miserable one.

Is the walk hard?

It is a walk rather than a climb: about three kilometres on a marked trail, with boardwalk in places, steps in others, and uneven ground throughout. What makes it more tiring than the distance suggests is the altitude, since you are above two thousand metres the whole way. If you can manage three kilometres on a hill path at home, you can manage this.

When should I go for the clearest air?

November to February. From late February into April the burning season fills the valleys with agricultural smoke and the long views simply are not there, which on a mountain day is most of what you paid for. Inside the open season, earlier is better.

Book it

Ready when you are

Dates, times and live prices come up at the next step. Booking takes two minutes, and the cancellation terms are shown before you pay.

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