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Doi Inthanon is a lush National Park home to Thailand’s highest peak, rolling green landscapes and an array of other staggering natural attractions.
Situated 65km from Chiang Mai, Doi Inthanon is easily one of the Chiang Mai Province’s most underrated destinations. With great opportunities to spend the day hiking, waterfall-chasing, admiring unique flora and sighting some of the 400 bird species that call the mountain home throughout your visit, it really isn’t somewhere to be skipped while visiting Chiang Mai.
‘Doi’ means ‘mountain’ in Thai, and ‘Inthanon’ represents a simplified version of King’s Inthawichayanon’s name, who ruled the Lanna Kingdom until 1897 and dedicated lots of his time to preserving the mountain’s natural beauty. He was the last King of Chiang Mai, so the national park and mountain were named in honour of him.
To maximise you time in the national park (and because it’s quite far and steep to go on a motorbike) I think this is a perfect opportunity to jump on an organised tour with a local guide. There are so many advantages to these type of tours, but mainly because they are completely stress-free. The only downside is they may skip a few stops because of time constraints, but rest assured it would be impossible to see everything Doi Inthanon has to offer in just one day anyway!
- Country: Thailand
- Language: Thai
- Population: 130,000
- Currency: Thai baht: £1/$1 = 42/37 THB
- Visa info: As of October 1st 2022, many countries can enter Thailand for free with a 45 day visa on arrival. If your country isn’t included you can apply for a 30 or 60 day tourist visa before arriving. After that you can extend for an additional 30 days at immigration in Chiang Mai or Bangkok for around $40. You can onlt do this once before having to physically leave the country.
- SIM cards: There are a few SIM card options that are good in northern Thailand, but the best is DTAC. They have solid reception even in remote areas and offer a great package of unlimited internet at a fast speed of 15mbps for only 200THB (£4.70) per month. It can be topped up at any 7/11 store.
Where is it
Doi Inthanon National Park is located about 65km southwest of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.
Check it out on the interactive map below.
How to get to Doi Inthanon
It’ll take around 1.5 hours to drive there from Chiang Mai.
The main way to get to Doi Inthanon is to either rent a motorcycle from Chiang Mai and ride yourself, or book a tour which will cost more but save you time and comfort while inside a minivan.
When I visited Doi Inthanon I went with a tour for convenience.
Expected costs
A motorbike from Chiang Mai for the day can cost anywhere from 150-250 THB. You’ll want to have plenty of power behind you for the mountain roads, so maybe go for a bike on the higher end of the scale for today.
Entrance to the National Park costs 200 THB and some of the stops have their own small fees, such as the 20 THB for visiting the Twin Pagodas.
An 8-10 hour day tour, like the one I did, costs around $35-$40, depending on the proposed itinerary. This will include national park entry and a buffet-style lunch.
When to go
The peak season is from November to February and it’ll be cool and dry but a bit busier in these months. This is one of Thailand’s most popular travel destinations, so travelling in the off-season is a good way to avoid the brunt of the crowds.
- Wet season: May – Oct
- Cool season: Nov – Feb (Peak season)
- Hot season: March – May
I visited Doi Inthanon in the wet season (Aug) and it only drizzled once, so the weather can be quite ‘hit or miss’. The countryside is lush and the waterfalls are gushing in the wet season, plus there’s not too many other visitors, so I personally think it’s best to come in the low (monsoon) season.
How to get around
Once you’re inside the National Park getting around is fairly straightforward. If you rented a bike you can easily drive from A to B along the main road, whereas if you’re on a tour you’ll be chauffeured around in an air conditioned minivan.
The roads are steep but in good condition overall!
Where to stay
I recommend simply visiting Doi Inthanon on a day trip from Chiang Mai where there is an abundance of accommodation choices.
The Tha Phae Gate (east gate) area is a cool mixture of lively and chilled, with all the best parts of the city just a short walk away. The Sunday Night market starts at Tha Phae Gate, there are many food and drink options nearby and lots of great accommodation choices.
- Check some out on Booking.com here.
- Alternatively, use Hostelworld to find somewhere more suitable!
My favourite hostel in Chiang Mai is Premier Hostel:
How long to stay
Although there’s lots to see in Doi Inthanon, one full day should give you enough time to visit the highlights. If you want to do it in more depth you could easily fill 2 action-packed days here too.
Thinking of visiting Southeast Asia soon? Don’t miss these essential guides to help planning your trip:
Doi Inthanon day trip itinerary
This type of tour is always great value for money. They include hotel pick-up and drop-off from anywhere in Chiang Mai, everything listed below as well as a buffet-style lunch.
After being picked up from my hotel at 7:30am we drove for around an hour to the national park entrance gates. It’s at this point you will need to pay the National Park entrance fee, unless you’re on a tour that includes it, which is 200 THB ($6 USD).
1. Wachirathan Waterfall
Wachirathan Falls is an epic 70m tall waterfall and is one of the first attractions you’ll come across once you enter the park.
This was exactly the wake-up call I needed!
The thundering falls are right beside the car park so you should definitely add this quick stop to your itinerary.
There are a couple of different viewpoints, high and low, and around 20 minutes is probably enough to see every angle. Further up stream the waterfall actually has a few different tiers, making it roughly 200m long, but requires a small hike up through the forest to see.
Be prepared to get soaked from the spray at the foot of the falls in the wet season, and keep an eye out for the rainbows!
2. Royal Twin Pagodas
The Royal King and Queen’s Twin Pagodas, or “Phra Mahathat Naphamethanidon”, and “Phra Mahathat Naphapholphumisiri” to call them by their proper names, are a 20 minute uphill drive from Wachirathan Falls.
The King’s Pagoda is 60m high and Queen’s is 55m, with the 5 metre difference representing the 5 year age gap between the two.
Very close to the highest point in Thailand, these pagodas are probably the most famous location in Doi Inthanon National Park and are the highlight for many visitors.
Normally, you can enjoy awesome views over the valley and lush mountainous area from the many viewpoints, but as you can see, it was really misty when I visited.
Wander around the picturesque gardens and ponds within, admire the different types of flora and listen for the sounds of various bird types.
The entrance fee for the Twin Pagodas is just 20 THB unless you’re on a tour, in which case it should be included.
3. Doi Inthanon summit
After the Twin Pagodas, a short 5km drive will take you up to the top of Thailand’s highest mountain, standing tall at 2565m above sea level.
Stroll along the easy 200m woodland walk to the true summit of Doi Inthanon where you’ll find a small Buddhist shrine and a sign marking the highest spot, which is a good time to take a selfie or two. Apart from the sign, there honestly isn’t really anything else here.
I mean, you can’t simply come to the highest point in Thailand and not take a couple selfies, right?!
Note: It’s always very cold up here, averaging 16 Celsius year round, so perhaps bring something warm just in case!
4. Mongkud market & lunch
After a brief stop at a roadside Hmong Mongkud market where they sell homemade wines, it’s time for lunch!
Included in the price of most tours will be a buffet style lunch, consisting of an assortment of Thai dishes like noodles, rice, fried chicken or pork and some vegetarian options. It also usually includes some fresh fruit for desert and drinking water.
After around an hour here, it’s time for the highlight of the day…
5. Pha Dok Siew Nature Trail
The Pha Dok Siew Nature Trail is a beautiful jungle hike that takes you 3km along a mostly flat path, passing thundering waterfalls, trickling rivers and some seriously beautiful views.
This was my personal highlight of Doi Inthanon and the main reason why I booked this specific trip in the first place!
Follow the jungle path as you pass orange trees, snakes, noisy insects, coffee trees, mountain views, rice paddies and multiple waterfalls along the way.
The first half of the trail is mostly in the forest alongside the river, whereas it begins to open up into a more sprawling landscape in the second half , with lush rice terraces and stunning mountain views dominating the landscape.
By far the highlight of the hike is Pha Dok Siew Waterfall which is just an awesome place to see with your own eyes. There’s a bamboo bridge stretching over the river which is perfect for photos and adds immensely to the vibe.
The whole hike takes around an hour depending on how often you stop, before arriving at a White Karen village called Baan Klang Luan.
Note: This is not a circuit and you will finish 3km away from where you started, so best think about transport options beforehand if you aren’t on a tour.
6. Mae Klang Luang Hmong village
My experience at Doi Inthanon
Doi Inthanon is awesome and should definitely be visited while in Chiang Mai, ideally multiple times!
It briefly spluttered with rain at the mountain’s summit (hence the umbrella) but in general I couldn’t of asked for better weather, or for the waterfalls to be more full! Safe to say; I was a happy chappy all day!
As good and efficient as the day tour was, part of me wishes I’d gone on a solo motorbike mission though, because there were a few additional stops I really wanted to see and there was definitely time in the day to see them. We were really close to some amazing-looking waterfalls at some points of the day and could of easily stopped, but I guess that’s the price you pay for taking a day tour!
In somewhere as beautiful as Doi Inthanon there’s almost too much to see in one day, but it certainly won’t be the last time I ever come here so it’s all good
My recommendation to you is to leave early and stay until sunset to get the most done!
5 Doi Inthanon packing essentials
- Dry bag: Dry bags are great for water-based activities to keep everything safe and, you guessed it, dry. Try one of these.
- GoPro: Capture the surroundings in stabilised high quality with a trusty waterproof GoPro, perfect for wet adventures. Get the new GoPro HERO 11 here.
- Travel towel: Having a compact travel towel is essential here, especially in the wet season. You never know!
- Waterproof phone case: Get a waterproof phone case to be prepared as well.
- Portable charger: Charge you tech on the move with one of these long lasting, high speed portable chargers.
Best tours of Doi Inthanon
Thank you for reading this travel guide – I hope you found it helpful! Feel free to leave a comment below if you have any questions and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible 
Happy travelling!
HELPFUL RESOURCES FOR PLANNING YOUR TRIP
Accommodation: Booking.com, Hostelworld
Tours: GetYourGuide, Viator, Klook, TripAdvisor
Transport: 12Go, Omio, Trip.com, Rome2Rio
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