Laguna Cheow Lan Raft House
Also called The Laguna Chiewlarn, Laguna Cheow Lan Raft House is located in Khlong Long tributary, in the middle of the lake in 35-40 minutes boat ride from Cheow Lan Pier. The floating resort has total 31 regular rooms and 8 panorama/see view rooms with better view.
Each room features a king-size bed and a single bed, an en-suite bathroom, air conditioning, and a private balcony, accommodating up to three guests. Electricity is available from 6pm to 6am. However, daytime electricity can be provided at an additional cost due to generator usage. Complimentary amenities include blankets, pillows, towels, shampoo and soap.
Nearby attractions and activities, all within a 30-minute boat ride, include:
- Hiking and bamboo rafting to Coral Cave
- Khao Sam Kloe (The Three Rocks)
- Diamond Cave
- Khlong Ka Peat Swamp Forest Trail
Attractions over an hour boar ride, include;
- Bang Hoi Waterfall
- Kri Sorn Viewpoint
- Nam Thalu Cave
Tours with Laguna Cheow Lan
Activities
With the 3-days/2-nights tour in Cheow Lan Lake you will be able to see scenic rock formations, hike to a viewpoint, visit a cave, hike in the jungle, kayak and drive around in the vicinity of your raft house for wildlife watching. The tour includes two nights stay in a raft house (floating bulgalows/floating resorts) of your choice, a private guide and a private boat with driver.
Why to book a private tour?
While the group tours in the lake are conducted with larger boats shared by up to 18 people and has a fixed itinerary, no others will share the guide or the boat with you during our tours. Our tours are strictly private and flexible, our guests can decide their day-to-day activities with the their guide.
Itinerary
There is no strict itinerary with our lake tours, the following itinerary is just an example. Depending on the location of your raft house, weather conditions, your preferences the itinerary may be much different. Example; you may decide to do more kayaking, skip some activities for the other, or simply just decide to relax and spend some time with friend(s)/family at the raft house.
Day 1
- 10 am, Board your long-tail boat at Rajjaprabha Dam (Cheow Lan Lake Pier) enjoy the scenic tour of limestone karst formations on the way to floating bungalows
- Check in to the raft house. Enjoy a traditional Thai lunch
- Depart for a guided hike to a nearby viewpoint which has a breathtaking view over the lake
- Return to the raft house for a swim, relax and enjoy the scenery
- Afternoon wildlife safari by boat
- Enjoy your dinner
Day 2
- Breakfast
- Board long tail boat for a morning wildlife safari by boat
- Return to the rafthouse for free time
- After lunch, guided jungle hike
- Return to the raft house for a swim, relax
- Enjoy a traditional Thai dinner
Day 3
- Rise before breakfast for the morning mist safari, the best time to gibbons, macaques and dusky leaf monkeys
- Alternatively explore the surrounding area by kayak
- Return to raft house for breakfast
- Depending on the raft house and it's location the tour ends around 9:30 to 10 am at the pier
Where & When?
The tour starts at Cheow Lan Lake Pier (Rajjaprabha Dam), 65 km from park headquarters. We can arrange transfer from/to Phuket, Khao Lak, Krabi, Ao Nang, Surat Thani and Khao Sok village straight to tour start in the morning or transfer to the mentioned towns after the tour.
The nearest airports are Surat Thani (~1h), Krabi (~2h) and Phuket Airport (~2.5h), you are recommended to arrive to the area a day before the tour start. This tour is not recommended to start the same day when arriving from the islands or the airports.
This tour is available throughout the year.
When to book?
High seasons periods in the lake are November to mid April and mid July to end of August. Bookings for these months should be done well in advance, earliest possible. For the some high season dates Laguna Cheow Lan should be booked at least 3-4 months but for most dates rooms may be available even if booked in the last minute.
Tour details in short:
- Duration: 3 days/2 nights
- Type: Private tour
- Price: * see the pricing table *
- Group size: 2 or more people
- Grade: Easy
- Transport: Long-tail boat
- Start: 10am (day 1)
- End: around 9:30 to10 am (day 3)
What to bring:
- Rain clothing, specially on the rainy seasons (no rain protection on longtail boats)
- Waterproof bag/cover for all your electronics in case of rain
- Sneakers for hiking, sandals for waterfall/cave visit
- Personal toiletries
- Swimming clothing & towel
- Hat
- Flashlight
- Insect repellent
- Sunblock lotion
How much?
The tour will be led by a private guide, ensuring that no other groups will join you while exploring the lake and surrounding areas. The price of this tour package depends on your choice of accommodation and the number of participants. Please refer to the per-person rates listed below.
Note: The prices do not include entrance fees to the national park.
- Phupha Waree Raft House – Lower rates apply for 2025. From 1 January 2026 onwards, higher prices will be in effect, with the newly renovated rooms charged at the highest rate.
- 360° Issara Floating Resort – Offers three seasonal price levels: November–April (high season), July/August/October (mid season), and May/June/September (low season).
- Panvaree The Greenery & Panvaree Resort – Prices vary depending on weekdays, weekends, and public holidays.
- 500 Rai Floating Resort – New, higher rates apply from 1 November 2025 onwards.
Optional charges;
Coral Cave Rafthing
- From 500 Rai or Phupha Waree; 2,900 Baht fixed price and 200 Baht per person entrance fee for Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary
- From Sai Chon, Panvaree Resort or Panvaree The Greenery; 1,400 Baht fixed price and 200 Baht per person entrance fee for Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary
Wildlife oriented tour
Although our tour is more about visiting the attractions, enjoying the scenery and water activities at the lake, our price includes a bit of safari driving around the lake in hope to see a glimpse of wildlife around.
If you wish a more wildlife oriented tour, we can arrange it for an additional 2,500 Baht for on early morning of a late afternoon session a bit further away from your resort area. Please let us know in case. The wildlife oriented tour is only suitable for the 2nd day over a 3D/2N tour and for this price, only one driving session.
| Price per person | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pax | 2D/1N | 3D/2N |
| 2 | 8,000 THB | 13,700 THB |
| 3 | 6,400 THB | 11,200 THB |
| 4 | 5,800 THB | 10,100 THB |
| 5 | 5,300 THB | 9,400 THB |
| 6 | 4,900 THB | 8,900 THB |
| 7 | 4,700 THB | 8,500 THB |
| 8 | 5,000 THB | 8,700 THB |
Displayed prices are per person
Tour rates include:
- Lodging
- Private guide
- Tour around the lake
- Private long-tail boat from the moment of tour start until the tour ends
- Lunch and dinner on day-1, all meals on day-2 and breakfast on day-3
- Drinking water
- canoeing (not included at Sai Chon Raft House)
- Insurance for incidents during the tour (covering eventual hospital costs)
Tour rates doesn't include:
- Entrance fees to the park
- Transfer to the lake from the nearby hotels/towns
- Parking fee (if you have your own vehicle)
- Canoeing at Sai Chon Raft House (the fee is included at the all other resorts we offer)
Reviews from our guests
By: Marijke Roelse | posted Fri 1 Aug, 2025 | 360° Issara
We booked a 3 day tour plus accommodation with the national park and everything was excellent. Both the guide and captain of the long tail and the 360 issara floating houses where perfect!
By: Yule Balster | posted Fri 1 Aug, 2025 | Phupha Waree
Stunning nature. Accommodation is extremely chabby. Food is basic and three of us got food poisening. My son is still ill at this point.
Since we paid €1200,- feels like it’s overpriced.
> Tour operator's response
Very sorry to hear about the food poisoning at the resort. This is a resort we very rarely get food poisoning reports from, perhaps once in every few years. It can happen more on the other more basic resorts.
This bit here is not to inform/remind you as you have already read that, but rather for the visitors reading your review, we inform all our guests about this during the enquiry process;
"We are not managing any of the floating resorts, we are booking these on behalf of our guests. With that said, any issues/disputes you may have with the rooms, please bring it up with the resort to sort it out. Our assigned guide can only help with the communication if needed.".
Regarding the "overpriced" bit. We have to remind you that there were 5 of you, 2 rooms booked for 2 nights, a boat, a guide and a boat driver at your service for 3 days. That would make €240 per person.
A while ago we had made an estimate about how much a similar tour could cost in Europe, we landed up at around 3 times the price we are offering.
Again, very sorry for what happened at the resort.
By: Marco Limpens | posted Thu 24 Jul, 2025 | Phupha Waree
Au was a very pleasant an knowledgeable guide. She kept us safe in the boat an the jungle and showed us the wildlife. I wish others a guide like her.
By: Kayla Sanchez | posted Sun 20 Jul, 2025 | Phupha Waree
Our stay at Khao Sok National Park was absolutely incredible. From start to finish, we were completely immersed in the natural beauty of this amazing place. The views were stunning towering limestone cliffs, lush jungle landscapes, and the most serene lake we’ve ever seen. Swimming in the lake was one of the highlights of the trip; the water was crystal clear and refreshing, surrounded by the breathtaking scenery of the national park.
What truly elevated our experience was our private guide, Tham. Tham went above and beyond to make us feel at home and completely taken care of. He was extremely kind, warm, and incredibly knowledgeable. Thanks to him, we got to explore so much of the park without ever feeling overwhelmed by crowds. His insight into the area’s nature, culture, and wildlife made every part of the journey meaningful.
One of the small but deeply appreciated touches was how Tham brought us local fruit with every meal, always explaining the dishes and making sure we experienced the best of Thai cuisine. The food throughout our stay was absolutely incredible fresh, flavorful, and clearly made with care.
We were lucky enough to see monkeys swinging through the trees, along with other wildlife that made us feel like we were in the heart of something truly wild and alive.
We can confidently say that our experience wouldn’t have been the same without Tham. His passion, care, and attention to detail truly made this trip special and one we’ll never forget.
By: Els Van Laere | posted Sun 20 Jul, 2025 | Panvaree Resort
Very smooth service. Questions were answered immediately. The guide was very friendly and enthusiastic. The boat driver and the guide really did their best to spot an elephant or bear, but unfortunately, we didn't see any. We did see monkeys, an eagle, and a large lizard... We thoroughly enjoyed this private tour.
By: María Belén Ronnau | posted Tue 24 Jun, 2025 | Panvaree Resort
Au was a great guide! She was súper profesional and knew a lot about the fauna and flora of the park.
It was a really nice experience to sleep at the lake.
By: Pascal E. | posted Tue 10 Jun, 2025 | 500 Rai
We had an amazing trip with our tour guide Au.
Altough it did rain sometimes (we went in the raining season), our stay at 500rai, our hiking trip and the safari was really beautiful.
There were few people which made the whole experience unforgetable.
By: Stijn Smit | posted Tue 3 Jun, 2025 | Panvaree T. G.
We had an amazing stay at Panvaree the Greenery with the most friendly tourguide June and captain of our own private boat! What an amazing experience with just the two of us! I would highly recommend this to everyone who wants to visit Khoa Sok. 10/10.
By: Sandra | posted Thu 15 May, 2025 | Phupha Waree
everything worked the way it was supposed to. accomodation was good, the food was plenty and delicious. Our guide was friendly and had a good eye for animals.
only critique: it would have been nice if the guide spoke better english, now it was basically not possible to ask questions about the animals or the forest.
overall we enjoyed our trip, thanks!
By: Gabriella Martinotta | posted Mon 5 May, 2025 | 360° Issara
Tour well organised in every single detail! 10 stars to our guide Junn and our Captain that made every second of our stay memorable, trying to find all the animals for us!
Experience highly recommended!