Is the Khao Lak Safari from Phuket Worth It?

The day, hour by hour

Pickup is at 06:50, and the route runs north through rubber and fruit plantations into the Khao Lak Lam Ru reserve. At 09:20 you're at the monkey cave and the Suwan Kuha temple, a temple inside a stalactite cave with bats overhead. The zoo follows at 11:20, and at 12:05 the elephant spa: mud treatment, bathing and showering the elephants, the baby elephant show and a ride, all included.

At 12:50 the group goes down the jungle river by bamboo raft or canoe. Thai lunch is at 13:50 at a local restaurant, after a stretch past the plantations with the guide explaining what grows there. The afternoon is the turtle farm at 14:50, a waterfall at 15:00, and the Sarasin bridge viewpoint and the fruit market at 16:20, where the guide makes you taste things. At 16:50 you head back to the hotels. Khao Lak beyond the safari, the Similan pickups included, is on Khao Lak from Phuket: what to expect.

Why it's worth it

Variety, and an elephant ride already in the price. The elephant programme here is complete: mud treatment, bathing, a shower, the baby elephant show and the ride, with nothing to add on the spot. Not every land day has the ride; on the Avatar world day, for example, you bathe the elephants but don't ride them.

The other reason is the pace. Nothing lasts long enough to drag: a cave, animals, a river, lunch, a waterfall, a market. The card calls it one of the easier days for a family, with no early start, and the 06:50 pickup is indeed late next to the sunrise boat days, which collect people between 04:00 and 05:00.

Why it might not be

You will get wet. Between the elephants, the raft and the waterfall you'll be soaked at least once, so a change of clothes is not optional. It's also about ten hours, with most of the movement by road, and there's no beach on this route at all.

Some things aren't covered: drinks with lunch, extra food and snacks, souvenirs, professional photo and video, and temple clothing hire if you need it. The card also asks you to bring your own rain jacket in the wet season. And if you'd rather spend quiet time with elephants than ride one, the elephant beach day or the Avatar world day fits better.

What's included, and what you pay on the day

Included: hotel transfer both ways, the guide, insurance, Thai lunch, national park entrance fees and the full elephant programme with bathing and riding. The card's list of extras has nothing else that you would pay for at the zoo, the turtle farm or the raft.

Not included: drinks with lunch, extra food and snacks, souvenirs and personal spending, professional photo and video, and temple clothing hire. Bring a towel and swimwear, sunscreen and a hat, a change of clothes, a camera, and something covering shoulders and knees for the temple. The tour price is in the table on this page, in baht.

Who it suits

Families with children, first: the elephants, the zoo, the turtle farm and the raft are what kids talk about afterwards. Children aged 4 to 9 pay the child price, and from ten the adult price applies. It also suits a first trip to Thailand, when you want to see what the mainland looks like beyond the beaches, and anyone who gets seasick, since nothing on the route goes out to sea. It also works as the day after Phi Phi; the other options are on day trips from Phuket after Phi Phi.

• →You want an elephant ride included — Khao Lak safari
• →You want proper river rafting — Rafting and the elephant spa
• →You want the bay from above, with elephants — Phang Nga and Samet Nangshe
• →You want hot springs at the end of the day — the Avatar world day
• →You want only half a day — Phuket sightseeing

Khao Lak safari or another jungle day?

The closest match is the Avatar world day, and we put the two side by side on Khao Lak safari or Avatar world. If you're torn between animals and scenery, elephants or Cheow Lan lake weighs the safari against the lake day, and Phuket jungle tours lists the rafting, elephant and ATV days together. The cave temple from the first stop has its own page: Suwan Kuha cave temple.

Guide, children and booking

Every tour in our catalogue runs with an English-speaking guide. The temple asks for shoulders and knees covered, and cover-ups can be hired there for a small fee. The programme can change with the weather.

Payment is agreed in the chat after the booking is confirmed. Send the tour, the date and your hotel, and we confirm the pickup time. If you move to Khao Lak for the Similans, Similan Islands from Phuket or Khao Lak shows what changes in the morning.

Questions people ask