Doi Luang Chiang Dao

Doi Luang Chiang Dao, Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary

Doi Luang Chiang Dao is Thailand’s third-highest peak, rising to 2,275 metres. Its nature trail is among the most beautiful in the country: on the way from the trailhead to the summit you walk through rich, biodiverse forest, see endemic flowers such as the parrot balsam (Impatiens psittacina), fossil shells in the limestone, sunset and sunrise from the top — and with luck, the wild goral. If you only do one mountain in Thailand, make it this one.

Doi Chiang Dao is one of the world’s newest UNESCO biosphere reserves, so every hiker must attend a training session before walking the trail.

How team bookings work

You sign up and we form the team while we wait for the sanctuary to announce its opening.
If the mountain is closed or does not open, your deposit is refunded in full.
Once booked, traveller names and departure dates cannot be changed.

If you are travelling as a group, we book under the sanctuary’s rules, which are one person at a time in order. If anyone in your group cannot get a place, we refund only that person’s share (places that were successfully booked cannot be refunded). Our team does everything it can so that everyone who books with Klukfoontour can travel together.

Photos

Departure dates

November 2026

1-3 November 2026
5-7 November 2026
6-8 November 2026(Fri–Sun)
8-10 November 2026
11-13 November 2026
12-14 November 2026
13-15 November 2026(Fri–Sun)
15-17 November 2026
19-21 November 2026
20-22 November 2026(Fri–Sun)
22-24 November 2026
25-27 November 2026
27-29 November 2026(Fri–Sun)
29 November - 1 December 2026

December 2026

3-5 December 2026
4-6 December 2026(Fri–Sun)
6-8 December 2026
9-11 December 2026
10-12 December 2026
11-13 December 2026(Fri–Sun)
13-15 December 2026
17-19 December 2026
18-20 December 2026(Fri–Sun)
20-22 December 2026
23-25 December 2026
24-26 December 2026
25-27 December 2026(Fri–Sun)
27-29 December 2026
31 December - 2 January 2027

January 2027

1-3 January 2027(Fri–Sun)
3-5 January 2027
7-9 January 2027
8-10 January 2027(Fri–Sun)
10-12 January 2027
13-15 January 2027
14-16 January 2027
15-17 January 2027(Fri–Sun)
17-19 January 2027
21-23 January 2027
22-24 January 2027(Fri–Sun)
27-29 January 2027
28-30 January 2027
29-31 January 2027(Fri–Sun)
31 January - 2 February 2027

February 2027

4-6 February 2027
5-7 February 2027(Fri–Sun)
7-9 February 2027
11-13 February 2027
12-14 February 2027(Fri–Sun)

Itinerary

Day 0 – Departure (overnight van)

20.30Meet at Lotus Lat Phrao (BTS Ha Yaek Lat Phrao, Exit 4), in the outdoor car park
21.00Once everyone is ready, set off for Doi Luang Chiang Dao. You can also be picked up along the main route: Rangsit Mint, Navanakorn, Lotus Ayutthaya or the Asian Highway

Day 1 – Training day (night at the resort)

06.00Morning in Chiang Mai city
06.30Freshen up and have breakfast at a local café (at your own expense)
07.30Stroll along Chang Moi Kao Road
08.30Visit Wat Umong, the 700-year-old tunnel temple and chedi
09.00Continue to Chiang Dao district
11.00Coffee and lunch (at your own expense). If you are joining in Chiang Dao, meet us at the training venue at 11.30
12.00Register for the training; the session on hiking the Doi Luang Chiang Dao nature trail runs 13.00–14.30 at the training venue
15.00Training ends; check in at the resort, 2–4 people per room (we arrange the rooms)
18.00Dinner (at your own expense)
20.00Free evening — get a good night’s sleep before the climb tomorrow

Day 2 – Up the mountain (night in a tent)

06.00Wake up, pack your bag and get ready to hike
07.00Breakfast (meal 1)
07.30Head to the Doi Luang Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary
08.00Register and collect your packed lunch (meal 2) and two 600 ml bottles of water
08.30Pick-up truck to the Den Ya Khat trailhead
10.00Start walking from Den Ya Khat, enjoying the views, forest and wildflowers along the way. Packed lunch on the trail at the Pang Wua junction
15.00Reach the Ang Salung campsite at the foot of the summit; set up camp together and sort out your tent
16.30Walk up to the summit of Doi Luang Chiang Dao for sunset and evening light, then back down to camp
19.00Dinner (meal 3), introductions and stories around camp, then rest. Clean drinking water is available at camp, and there is a toilet at the campsite used with the toilet kit

Day 3 – Down the mountain and back to Bangkok

05.00Early start up to the summit for sunrise and the morning view
07.30Simple breakfast at camp (meal 4)
08.00Break camp, pack up and walk down to Den Ya Khat
11.00Pick-up truck from Den Ya Khat back to the sanctuary office
12.00Back at the resort: shower and change
13.00Lunch (at your own expense)
14.00Leave for Bangkok
18.00Stop for dinner on the way (at your own expense)
23.00Arrive safely in Bangkok around 23.00–24.00. The main drop-off is BTS Mo Chit; if you want to get off earlier along the route, let the staff and driver know

Price

6,590 THB / personJoin on the day 5,590 THB / person

VIP van, return Bangkok–Chiang Dao, with fuel and driver
Four meals, as stated in the programme
Resort accommodation, 2–4 people per room depending on room size
Doi Chiang Dao Biosphere Reserve training
Nature guide (trail guide) and staff fees
Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary entry fee (foreign nationals pay 400 baht more)
Camping fee inside the Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary
Contribution to the Doi Chiang Dao Biosphere Reserve fund, 500 baht per person
Toilet bag / toilet kit (1 set per person)
Four-wheel-drive transfer to and from the trailhead
Two 600 ml bottles of drinking water handed out before the climb for you to carry
Clean drinking water at camp
Porter fees for shared gear (camping equipment, fly sheet, ground sheet, cooking equipment and food supplies)
Accident insurance under the policy
Waste management fee
Sanctuary booking fee
Booking and system maintenance fee
Administration, paperwork and booking fees
Staff who cook and look after the group throughout the trip

Not included

Any meals not included in the programme
Rubbish deposit, 500 baht per person, paid at the sanctuary on registration and refunded when you bring your rubbish back to the rangers

Notes

Before you decide

Training: Doi Chiang Dao is a biosphere reserve, so everyone must attend a training session before the hike, on day 1 (registration, session 13.00–14.30).
Difficulty: A 2-day, 1-night hike from Den Ya Khat via the Pang Wua junction to the Ang Salung campsite, then up to the summit for sunset and sunrise. You need to be fit and well prepared, and honest with yourself about your ability.
Conditions: The summit drops to 4–8°C at night. There is no water source at the top, so there is nowhere to wash, and drinking water has to be carried up from below (we hand out bottled water and there is clean drinking water to refill at camp). There is a temporary toilet, used with the toilet kit required by the sanctuary.
Accommodation: One night at a resort (2–4 people per room depending on room size; we arrange the rooms). Anything you are not taking up the mountain can be left at the resort. If you join in Chiang Dao, you will need your own transport.
Getting there: The trip runs with a minimum of 9 travellers. Seats in the van are allocated in the order deposits are received.
Camp life: Everyone helps out: setting up camp, pitching tents, cooking and washing up.
Food: Tell us in advance about any food you do or do not eat. Halal, vegetarian and vegan diets are all fine — we just need to know.
The schedule and timings may change where sensible — weather, safety, traffic and the trip leader’s judgement all come into it, always with the group’s interests first.

Preparation

What to bring

Quick-drying hiking shirt and trousers (jeans are not recommended)
Hiking boots or trainers, plus sandals to change into at camp
Warm layers: down jacket, gloves and a warm hat
Rain jacket (in the rainy season)
Any personal medication, insect repellent, electrolyte powder
Torch, power bank and charging cable
Dry tissues and a bag for your own rubbish
Personal items you need, snacks and drinks as you like
Tent, sleeping bag and sleeping mat (if you do not have them, rent from us — see the table below)
A change of clothes for the journey home — anything you are not using can stay in the van

Gear rental (porterage included)

Tent, 2-person set	500 THB
Tent, 3-person set	600 THB
Sleeping bag	150 THB each
Sleeping mat, large (1 mat / 2 people)	100 THB
Sleeping mat, roll-up (1 mat / 1 person)	100 THB
Sleeping mat, egg-crate foam (1 mat / 1 person)	150 THB

Porters

Private porters are available at 100 baht per kilo (tell us the weight on registration day).
Your own backpack, hammock, tent and sleeping bag count as personal gear — if you bring them, you carry them.

Sanctuary rules

No wet wipes on the mountain
All rubbish must be carried back down (there is a 500 baht rubbish deposit, refunded when you bring it back)
Food on the mountain is simple, ready-to-eat fare, as required by the sanctuary

Booking terms

Payment

Pay the full trip price of 6,590 baht, or 5,590 baht if you join on the day, and send us your proof of payment
Places are listed strictly in the order payments are received
Transfer to Krungthai Bank 017-0-3460-9-9, account name Klukfoontour (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

Cancellations and changes

Once booked, the traveller’s name cannot be changed under any circumstances.
If you do not get a confirmed place (the sanctuary booking is unsuccessful), you may move to another departure once.
Cancellations are non-refundable in all cases.
When booking for more than one person, we book under the sanctuary’s rules, one person at a time in order. If anyone in the group cannot get a place, we refund only that person’s share (places already booked cannot be refunded).
If we cannot get you a place, we refund you in full (refunds take 2–4 working days).
If the mountain is closed or does not open, we refund you in full (refunds take 2–4 working days).
If Klukfoontour cancels the trip because circumstances make travel impossible, or because of a government-declared lockdown, the deposit is refunded in full or held as trip credit.
There is no cancellation or name-change policy for travellers who catch COVID-19 before departure.

Klukfoontour treats the interests and safety of its members as the priority. If a member is unable to travel at the time or to the place set out in the itinerary, or does not use any part of the service, no refund can be claimed for that part.

Please read and make sure you understand the booking and cancellation conditions in full before booking.
The company reserves the right to change these conditions without prior notice.

Terms and conditions

The itinerary and the trip price may change where sensible, without prior notice, always with the group’s interests first.
Klukfoontour cannot accept responsibility for costs arising from events outside our control — for example the cancellation or delay of your own journey to the meeting point, flight delays or cancellations, protests, strikes, civil unrest, natural hazards, traffic and accidents, political events in Thailand or abroad, war, and anything else beyond our control.
If a government-declared lockdown closes the country or makes travel impossible, deposits and trip payments are held as credit towards the same trip once travel resumes.
If you are unable to travel at the time or to the place set out in the itinerary, or you do not use part of the service (skipping an activity or a meal, for example), no refund can be claimed for that part.
We cannot accept responsibility for a medical emergency arising from a pre-existing condition that was not caused by an accident on the trip.
We cannot accept responsibility for belongings lost to theft, for accidents caused by a traveller’s own carelessness, or for baggage lost or damaged by an airline.
If immigration in Thailand or abroad refuses you exit or entry, no refund can be given under any circumstances.
Once you pay a deposit or the full amount, we take it that you have read and accepted the conditions set out above.

Groups can choose their own travel dates — Klukfoontour plans and runs trips in Thailand and abroad.

Booking a trip

Bookings are made through our official channels: the Facebook page Klukfoontour – Klukfoontour Thailand and LINE @klukfoontour.
A booking becomes valid once we have confirmed it and the deposit has been paid.
Your booking must state the traveller names, the departure date, the number of people and any other details we need.
Seats in the van are allocated strictly in the order deposits are received — book earlier, choose first. If you do not tell us your preference, we will seat you in row order.

Booking conditions

Cancellations are non-refundable in all cases. Any change of traveller name must be notified to us at least 15 days before departure, and only on trips whose conditions allow the traveller to be changed.
Cancelling before the departure date is non-refundable in all cases.
If Klukfoontour cancels the trip because circumstances make travel impossible, or because of a government-declared lockdown, the deposit is refunded in full or held as trip credit.
Once booked, departure dates cannot be changed and bookings cannot be moved to another date or another trip under any circumstances.

Please read and make sure you understand the booking and cancellation conditions in full before booking.
The company reserves the right to change these conditions without prior notice.

Lost and forgotten property during a trip

Please look after your own belongings throughout the trip.
The company cannot accept responsibility for personal property lost or damaged during the trip.
If you leave something in the van, tell your guide or a member of our staff the same day.
We will help where we can: we record what happened and try to trace the item, but we cannot be held responsible for the loss.
Please check your belongings every time you leave the van.
Items left in the van are kept for up to 15 days. After 15 days they become the property of the company and may be disposed of or donated.
If the owner is identified and wants the item back, we will send it on. Where postage applies, the shipping and packaging costs are charged to the owner.