Khao Sok Floating Bungalows on Cheow Lan Lake: Travel Guide

Staying in floating bungalows in Khao Sok Lake was one of our Thailand bucket-list experiences.

While Khao Sok Lake is definitely not a hidden gem as posts on social media suggest, and there will be many people, especially at the entrance to the park, it’s still absolutely worth visiting. The scenery of Khao Sok is simply out of this world, and the crowds disperse as you head onto the water, and everyone goes to their own floating bungalows.

So, to make your trip more enjoyable and with realistic expectations, here is everything you need to know before visiting Khao Sok Lake, including our personal tips!

About Khao Sok floating bungalows

Cheow Lan Lake, better known as Khao Sok Lake, is a man-made lake known for its stunning water color, high limestone cliffs, and floating bungalows which you can stay at overnight.

Khao Sok Lake is a part of Khao Sok National Park, one of Thailand’s most beautiful and diverse natural areas. Located in the Surat Thani Province, it covers an area of 739 km² and is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including many bird species, wild boar, monkeys, fish, black bears, and even elephants.

You have to be lucky to see elephants in Khao Sok Lake, but many do see them! Spoiler alert: we didn’t see them, but we heard them!

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How to visit Khao Sok Floating Bungalows

There are several different ways to visit floating bungalows on Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake), depending on your budget and time.

The most popular way to visit Khao Sok is a 2-day-1-night tour of the lake, but let’s explain all the different ways in a bit more detail so you can find a perfect Khao Sok tour for you.

1. Overnight Khao Sok Lake tour package

The most common way to visit Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake) in Khao Sok National Park is an overnight tour, which includes staying in a floating bungalow.

The minimum price for a Khao Sok overnight tour starts at 2500 THB (70 EUR) per person, although a more realistic price is from 100-150 EUR. It usually includes transportation (from Khao Sok Village), food, and activities like wildlife safari, hiking, and kayaking. Entrance fees are not included in every tour – more on that later in our blog.

If you want a more customized tour that suits your needs, you need to book a private tour, which will be more expensive.

We organized our overnight stay at a floating bungalow on Cheow Lan Lake through our stay at Our Jungle House and Our Jungle Camp (sister properties).

2. Stay in a private floating resort

If you want a nicer Khao Sok experience, we recommend staying in a private floating resort like 500 Rai Floating Resort or Panvaree Resort and organize any extra activities with them.

There is also an option to book a Khao Sok tour package that stays in the 500 Rai floating resort and has extra activities included in the price. Check it out here.

This way you can choose your accommodation and opt for something more luxurious than the simple government-run facilities.

3. Day trip to Cheow Lan Lake

If you’re short on time but still want to visit Khao Sok Lake, a day trip to Khao Sok (like this one) is the best choice. You can take a day tour to Khao Sok Lake from a few different places, including Khao Sok village itself, Khao Lak, and even Krabi.

We highly recommend booking your daily boat tour online or arranging it with your hotel in advance as availability of boats at the lake marina has become a problem in Khao Sok, especially in the high season.

If you book a day trip to Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake) at Khao Sok Village, the prices start at around 1700 THB (50 EUR) per person. This is usually without extra entrance fees, which can get up to 15 EUR per person depending on the spots you plan to visit (read more in the entrance fees section of the blog).

Cheow Lan Lake overnight tour package itinerary

Most travelers to Khao Sok visit Cheow Lan Lake on the “official” tour package that includes transport, meals, an overnight stay in a floating bungalow, and activities.

How to choose your floating bungalow on Cheow Lan Lake

There are two types of Khao Sok floating bungalows: government-operated floating bungalows or a few private floating bungalows like 500 Rai Floating Resort or Panvaree Resort.

Please note that the floating bungalows at Cheow Lan Lake are pretty basic. Though clean, the beds aren’t the most comfortable, and the power supply is usually limited to 12 hours from 6 pm to 6 am.

But we didn’t mind the basic accommodation.

Khao Sok National Park Entrance Tickets

Best time to visit Cheow Lan Lake 

The best time to visit Cheow Lan Lake (Khao Sok Lake) and stay in a floating bungalow is from December to April in the dry season.

Although the rainy season at Cheow Lan Lake is also okay to visit, as nature is very lush and there are even more animals.

So essentially, you can visit Cheow Lan Lake (Khao Sok Lake) anytime and have a great experience with plenty of activities.

• Also read: Best time to visit Thailand (Guide)

Things to do in Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake)

Staying in a floating bungalow on Khao Sok Lake is the biggest highlight for anyone coming to Khao Sok. However, there are lots of other things to do in Khao Sok Lake, and your Khao Sok Lake itinerary will probably be pretty packed.

Some of the best things you can do there are hiking, exploring caves, boat safaris, kayaking, and swimming.

1. Swimming in the lake

The top thing to do while staying in a floating bungalow on Cheow Lan Lake of Khao Sok National Park is swimming. We loved jumping into the water!

Use your chance at the lake to cool off in the water, which is, surprisingly, not really cold.

It feels like you are on the seaside, and it reminded us a lot of Ha Long Bay in Vietnam. But you will notice that you’re not on the seaside when you jump in the water, and you do not float. 😁

2. Guilin Rocks – Three Brothers Rocks

Something that’s on every Cheow Lan Lake itinerary is a short visit to the famous Three Brothers Rocks, also known as Guilin Rocks. They’re named Guilin Rocks because of their similarity to Guilin in China.

It was our first stop before checking in at our floating bungalow.

3. Kayaking

Kayaking on the Khao Sok Lake is among the absolute top things to do. The scenery is absolutely beautiful, and with kayak you get a chance to explore it at your own pace.

We loved the silence once we kayaked a bit further from floating bungalows.

Kayaking just before sunset and right after sunrise was the highlight of our Khao Sok Lake experience.

4. Wildlife watching on a night or morning safari

Boat safaris on Khao Sok Lake are another must do thing in Khao Sok. Khao Sok National Park is home to a wide range of wildlife species, making it the ultimate destination for wildlife safaris.

Taking a boat ride around the lake at dawn and dusk is the best way to spot several animals as they approach the lake to drink water.

Most overnight trips to Cheow Lan Lake include a morning or night safari to see animals like monkeys, many variations of birds, wild boar, and deer. And, if you’re super lucky, free-roaming elephants or even more rare, tapirs.

Of course, you must be lucky to see the big animals, but at least you might be able to see some monkeys and birds.

During our visit, we decided to skip the night and morning safari because, on arrival, our guide told us that elephants had moved to higher ground and away from the lake’s shore. And we already got a bit of a safari preview on the way to the floating bungalows and cave hike.

Instead, we used our free time to go kayaking both at sunset and just before sunrise.

But we heard the elephants while we were kayaking!

5. Hiking and trekking at Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake)

Another thing to do while staying in floating bungalows in Khao Sok Lake is to hike, the main activity on every Khao Sok Lake itinerary.

There are quite a few hiking trails around Cheow Lan Lake that you can do, like the Nam Talu Cave hike, the Coral Cave hike, the hike to Kri Sorn Viewpoint, or the waterfall hike.

TIP: Try to decide which hike you want to do beforehand, as that may affect which raft house you’ll stay in. However, this also depends on the availability of Khao Sok raft houses and weather conditions, so nobody can guarantee the exact activity and floating bungalows. For example, we wanted to do the Kri Sorn hike the most, but that wasn’t possible on our visit, so we did the Coral Cave hike instead.

NOTE: Some hikes around Cheow Lan Lake require buying an additional ticket, like the Coral Cave hike, which costs an additional 200 THB or 6 USD per person.

5.1. Hike to Coral Cave

The Coral Cave hike in Cheow Lan Lake is an easy, 40-minute hike suitable for all ages.

The Coral Cave hike takes you through a beautiful forest trail where you can learn more about the flora and fauna of this area. This is perfect if you didn’t choose to do a night safari in Khao Sok Village, as you can see and learn more about animals here.

The hike leads you through a forest towards a lagoon tucked in between mountains. And then, you board a bamboo raft that takes you to the cave’s entrance.

The total duration of the hike to Coral Cave, the bamboo ride, and exploring the cave lasts between 1.5 and 2 hours.

5.2. Kri Sorn Viewpoint hike

Kri Sorn Viewpoint hike is a challenging 1 and a half hour climb up to a mountain that offers a stunning view of Cheow Lan Lake.

We didn’t manage to go to the Kri Sorn Viewpoint this time, as you can only do one activity if you stay for 1 night. But we would definitely return for it!

5.3. Hike to Nam Talu Cave

The hike to Nam Talu Cave is another challenging hike perfect for adventurous souls. It leads you inside the cave, where you’ll have to wade and swim in the water.

The hike to Nam Talu Cave should take around 3 hours in total.

NOTE: The Nam Talu Cave hike is usually available only in the dry season. And it’s not suitable for non-swimmers or children under 12 years old.

5.4. Hike to Bang Hoi Waterfall

The 2 to 3 hours hike to Bang Hoi waterfall is easy and suitable for all ages.

NOTE: The hike to Bang Hoi waterfall is recommended in the rainy season when there’s more water flowing down the cascades.

How long to stay at Khao Sok Lake?

Most travelers to Cheow Lan Lake stay for one night in the floating bungalows as part of an organized overnight trip involving activities.

That’s what we did as well. On top of that, we had 2 nights at Khao Sok Village before the lake trip. Check the best hotels in Khao Sok Village.

One night is the perfect amount of time to see the highlights of Khao Sok Lake.

However, if you would like more free time to swim and kayak around or just relax in a bungalow, we recommend at least 2 nights. This is easier done if you book just a stay at Panvaree Resort or 500 Rai Floating Resort than if you book a Khao Sok overnight tour.

Khao Sok Lake Travel Tips

Here are some useful tips you should know before staying at Khao Sok floating bungalows.

• If you’re traveling with big suitcases or backpacks and plan to go to government-owned floating raft houses on a shared tour, we suggest leaving a bag with your hotel or a company you’re booking a trip with. Space in rooms and boats is limited.
  
  
• If you’re on a shared tour and don’t pay for a room upgrade, you’ll most likely be assigned a room randomly by ‘lottery’ – picking a paper with the number of the raft house on it. That was the case with our tour.
  
  
• Take cash. On the way to the lake, there’s a stop at the store if you wish to buy anything for your lake stay. Our raft house also had a small shop with essentials like candy, chips, soft drinks, and even toothbrushes.
  
  
• You need to pay the deposit for the kayak rental. Usually, that’s somewhere between 500-1000 baht.
  
  
• There is a possibility there won’t be enough kayaks for everyone. Usually, there should be one kayak per bungalow, which wasn’t the case at ours as many were out of service. That meant that we needed to plan our kayaking accordingly. If this happens to you, make sure to be the first one to kayak after daily activities. Otherwise, you might miss it!
  
  

• Overnight tours to Cheow Lan Lake usually have a pretty packed schedule. You’ll likely have little time to peacefully enjoy the scenery at your raft house. Of course, you can always skip some activities like we did if you wish. Or try to book a 2-night stay on the lake if you can. 🙂
  
  
• Don’t forget a power bank! If you stay in a government-owned floating bungalow in Khao Sok, electricity is only available at night.
  
  
• The weather in Khao Sok can be unpredictable, so pack a raincoat just in case!
  
  
• If you’re finishing off your visit to Khao Sok with the overnight trip to Khao Sok Lake (Cheow Lan Lake), you can continue your journey from the Ratchaprapha Marina (if you have all your bags with you). But we highly recommend booking your transport in advance online.

Khao Sok Lake packing list

While there are different seasons in Khao Sok National Park, the packing list is about the same for all seasons.

These are the main things you need to pack for an overnight stay in floating raft houses in Khao Sok:

• swimsuit
• beach towel (we recommend a microfiber towel)
• waterproof bag
• reef-safe sunscreen
• mosquito repellent
• light, breathable clothing that dries fast – our favorite clothes from Unbound Merino (Use code SHIPPEDAWAY for a special 10% discount)
• power bank (A MUST)
• universal plug adapter
• camera – we recommend an action camera (like GoPro or Osmo) or a waterproof phone case for your phone
• reusable water bottle
• raincoat
• sunglasses

Frequently asked questions

Is Cheow Lan Lake safe to visit?

Visiting Cheow Lan Lake and staying in a Khao Sok floating bungalow is safe for all travelers.

The longtail boat ride is calm as this is a lake. So there are no real waves, and you’re not going fast, unlike in some destinations that you reach with a bumpy speedboat ride.

Also, while hiking, you are always joined by an experienced guide.

Is staying in the Khao Sok floating bungalow on Cheow Lan Lake worth it?

An overnight stay at the Khao Sok floating bungalow on Cheow Lan Lake is absolutely worth it! It is a unique experience of staying in a floating bungalow on this vast lake surrounded by high limestone cliffs.

The scenery is stunning, and while it does cost a bit of money, it’s really worth it. And especially if you decide to give yourself more free time there by staying for two nights and not only one.

The floating bungalows on Cheow Lan Lake are exactly what’s advertised: a simple stay in beautiful surroundings. We can highly recommend a trip there to everyone.

Final thoughts

Hopefully, our detailed review of the trip to Cheow Lan Lake and staying in the Khao Sok floating bungalows has given you enough information to plan a fun visit.

If we missed something and you have any questions, leave a comment. We will try to answer to the best of our knowledge. And make sure to read our other Thailand guides, including a detailed Khao Sok National Park guide. (Yes, there’s more to Khao Sok than just Khao Sok Lake, although that is the best part! 😁).

Continue planning your Thailand trip