The mountain
Doi Inthanon (ดอยอินทนนท์) stands at the southern end of the Thanon Thong Chai range, the hills that run down from the Himalayan foothills into northern Thailand. It used to be called Doi Luang, the big mountain, or Doi Ang Ka. Its present name honours King Inthawichayanon, one of the last rulers of Chiang Mai, who cared for these forests and asked that part of his ashes be placed on the mountain; a small stupa near the summit holds them.
The national park was founded in 1972, the sixth in Thailand, and enlarged in 1978 to about 482 square kilometres, from 400 metres above sea level to the summit at 2,565 metres. Climbing it is a lesson in climate: tropical forest below 1,000 metres, cooler evergreen forest higher up, and above 2,000 metres a cold, wet forest of mosses, ferns and rhododendrons that sits in cloud for much of the year. Karen and Hmong villages farm the middle slopes, among them rice terraces and the gardens of a royal agricultural project.
Getting there
By car from Chiang Mai, take Route 108 south through Hang Dong and San Pa Tong for about 56 kilometres; just before Chom Thong, turn right onto Route 1009, which climbs 48 kilometres to the summit. The park entrance is at the Mae Klang waterfall, at kilometre 8 of Route 1009, and the headquarters at kilometre 31. Allow about two hours each way. The road is steep and winding near the top: hire a car with a driver if you are not used to mountain roads, and ride a motorbike up only if you are experienced and have warm clothes.
Without a car, tour companies in Chiang Mai run day trips, and red songthaews can be hired from Chom Thong.
Fees and hours
| Visitor | Adult | Child |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign visitors | 300 baht | 150 baht |
| Thai visitors | 60 baht | 30 baht |
These rates have applied since June 2022; cars and motorbikes pay a small fee of their own. Keep your receipt, because rangers check it further up the road. The Tourism Authority of Thailand gives the park’s hours as 05:30 to 18:30. The pagoda gardens may charge a separate entrance fee.
The summit and Ang Ka
The summit itself is a clearing in the forest with a marker for the highest point in Thailand, the stupa of King Inthawichayanon and, next to it, a military radar station. Beside it starts the Ang Ka nature trail, a boardwalk of a few hundred metres through cloud forest hung with moss, around a small upland bog. It is the easiest walk in the park and, on a misty morning, the most memorable. Take a jacket: in December and January the temperature before dawn can fall to between 0 and 4 °C, with frost.
The two royal pagodas
A few kilometres below the summit, two modern pagodas stand side by side on a ridge. Phra Mahathat Naphamethanidon was built for King Bhumibol’s sixtieth birthday in 1987 and Phra Mahathat Naphaphonphumisiri for Queen Sirikit’s in 1992. Their terraced flower gardens and the views over the ridges are the most photographed sight on the mountain, best early in the morning before the cloud rises.
Trails and waterfalls
- Kew Mae Pan (กิ่วแม่ปาน): a trail of about three kilometres along a ridge of open grassland and cloud forest, with wide views in clear weather. It closes each year for the rainy season, from June to the end of October or into November.
- Wachirathan: a tall, powerful fall right beside the main road, loudest in the rainy season.
- Siriphum: twin falls near the royal project, seen across a valley of gardens.
- Mae Klang: wide, low cascades near the park entrance, popular with families for picnics.
The park lists thirteen waterfalls in all, and is one of the best places in Thailand for birdwatching, with species that live nowhere else in the country.
When to go
- November to February, the cool season, is the best: clear mornings, mist in the valleys, flowers at the pagodas and the coldest weather in Thailand. Weekends and the New Year holiday are crowded; go on a weekday if you can.
- March to May is hot and, in March and April, hazy from the burning season; the views suffer most.
- June to October is the rainy season: the waterfalls are at their fullest and the forest at its greenest, but the summit is often in cloud, the trails are slippery, leeches come out, and Kew Mae Pan is closed.
Whatever the month, bring warm layers and a rain jacket, cash for the fees and food stalls, and water. Stay on the trails and boardwalks, and leave the plants and the villages’ fields as you find them.
Sources
Checked against the sources below. Rules, fees and dates change, sometimes at short notice: confirm with the park or the Department of National Parks before you rely on them.
- Doi Inthanon National Park: history, climate, route and attractions, Department of National Parks
- New national park entrance fees from 7 June 2022 (Thai), Department of National Parks
- Doi Inthanon National Park and its sea of mist reopen to visitors, Tourism Authority of Thailand