Destinations Thailand

Kuraburi and Si Phang Nga – Welcome to the jungle!

April 13, 2017
jungle hotel in thailand

I’m fascinated by the jungle. And I’m also afraid – or let’s say – I have a healthy portion of respect for it. One of the (many, many) reasons why I love Thailand so much, is the amount of well maintained national parks that take you closer to the eye of nature without loosing contact to civilization completely. And just when I thought I’ve seen it all, the country always comes up with something surprising… The most unexpected jewel of this trip has been the little village of Kuraburi which was on our travel map “only” because it’s the gateway to the Surin Islands in the Andaman Sea. Originally planned as an short overnight stop, I’m glad we decided to spend two days there. While the village itself is really small and unspectacular, the surroundings were breathtaking. There’s only very few tourists and Kuraburi Greenview Resort is the only bigger resort far and wide. The hotel and bungalows are beautifully tucked into the jungle around an artificial, but beautiful lake. The rooms and facilities weren’t the newest, but clean and cozy. And the best thing, the rates were very budget-friendly (this is unsponsored btw). Let the photos speak for themselves! Click here to book.

As we arrived straight from Bangkok – after a non-stop sunny week – we were a bit surprised to experience such heavy rain in Southern Thailand (in the so-called “dry season”). We postponed the island trip and did a little rainforest walk instead. The Si Phang Nga National Park was only a 20-minutes drive away and is one of the lesser known National Parks in the area (like nearby Khao Sok and Phang Nga Bay), however we were even more enchanted by the lush vegetation!

The park has several trails that take you through pristine jungle and streams, but one of them leads you straight to the beautiful Tam Nang Waterfall. Again – we were surprised that we were the only ones there, except for plenty of curious fish.

Si Phang Nga National Park

These black fellows weren’t scared of all, quite the opposite – we got scared of them (some of them were really big) 😛 I was once bitten by a fish while swimming in a waterfall, ever since I don’t trust them… Basically swimming is allowed, if you dare 😉 Anyways, even without a bath we were quite happy to enjoy the peaceful scenery!

Back in Kuraburi “centre” we stopped at one of the very few restaurants for lunch. The owner was a very friendly guy (and one of the few locals I met who knew about Austria and not Australia – 100 points!!) who insisted on taking a picture of us in front of his café – so here it is! He also runs kayak and rafting tours in the rainy season, so check it out if you’re around 🙂

Directions:

The closest airport is Phuket and the best way to get to Kuraburi and the Si Phang Nga National Park is by a rental car (about 2.5 hours drive north from the airport). Alternatively, most accommodation (including Kuraburi Greenview Resort) offer a pick-up and drop-off service if you book in advance, although the fares are quite expensive. Also they organize half-day tours to the Si Phang Nga National Park and to Mu Koh Surin.

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Do you love Thailand as much as I do? Then you shouldn’t miss these articles:

Visiting Mu Koh Surin National Park

From Sukhumvit to Khao San

Bangkok food diary

Koh Yao Yai – The perfect island hideaway

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17 Comments

  • Reply SueT唐 梦 琇 April 14, 2017 at 3:40 am

    You are right Julia the surroundings are spectacular. No wonder you love Thailand so much.

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:41 am

      It is. That’s why I keep coming back 🙂

  • Reply Paleica April 14, 2017 at 10:42 am

    das grün ist einfach ganz und gar unglaublich. wahnsinn. suuuperschön!

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:42 am

      Total, es fühlt sich an wie im Palmenhaus, nur ohne Glas 😛

  • Reply Vicky T. April 14, 2017 at 5:11 pm

    What a beautiful place. It looks like it came out of a movie or a storybook. It looks kind of unreal lol

    Vicky
    https://vickysscrapbook.com/

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:44 am

      Right? I thought exactly the same 😉

  • Reply Hanna April 16, 2017 at 5:42 am

    Wow! It is so GREEN and lush!!! Hehe, never thought about that, Australia-Austria. It is usually Switzerland-Sweden and when I say Finland, everyone says ENGland… 😉

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:45 am

      Haha, I’m glad that Austria isn’t the only one that struggles with confusions…

  • Reply Miyang April 18, 2017 at 4:23 am

    I love how you immerse yourself in nature. 😊

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:47 am

      It felt great 😀

  • Reply jewels April 19, 2017 at 9:16 am

    What a gorgeous place – I haven’t even heard of it… Bookmarking it… 🙂

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:47 am

      Hehe, just too many places down there 😉

  • Reply Chiara Pannozzo (@wine_and_olives) April 19, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    Wow, what an absolutely gorgeous spot. And as always your pictures are beautiful. Unfortunately I’ve never visited a jungle. I really need to do something about that x

    • Reply sileas April 21, 2017 at 10:57 am

      Thank you Chiara! This should be added to your travel list 😉

  • Reply Tiffany. Yang April 21, 2017 at 2:29 pm

    This place looks surreal, the waterfall photos looks like something I’ll see from the National Geography channels. Lovely shots as always! 🙂

    Tiffany
    http://www.mstiffanyyang.com

    • Reply sileas April 24, 2017 at 9:07 am

      Aww thanks so much Tiffany 🙂

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