Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park, Northern Thailand

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park, Northern Thailand

MONTH VISITED:  Mid-February

WEATHER: 52 F at Sunrise ☁️💨

BUSY ? Yes

LENGTH: 3 KM Round-trip (viewpoint is about halfway)

TIME: Takes 2-3 hours

DIFFICULTY: 4/5 out of 10

Make sure you check your travel dates! Doi Inthanon National Park, (including the Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail) is closed during rainy season so it’s only open May to November. Also, check the weather before you go because it can get quite chilly! The nature trail opens at 6 AM and is open until 4 PM. It’s 300 BAHT ($9 USD) to enter the national park and then you must take a local guide on the trail with you, which is 200 BAHT ($7 USD).

HOW TO GET TO KEW MAE PAN NATURE TRAIL?

Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail is located in Doi Inthanon National Park in Northern Thailand. I made private arrangements from The Chai Lai Orchid ($70USD) and it took about an hour to get there. If you are coming from Chiang Mai city center then plan for about two hours getting there. Keep in mind you will be driving on many winding roads through the mountains so if you get car sick, make sure to take medication before. The views when you arrive are SO worth it but I wish I would have known beforehand because I definitely got sick. I definitely recommend getting there for sunrise, there will be crowds but it’s for good reason. I went on a Saturday because it worked best with my schedule so of course plan for more crowds on the weekend, but I would recommend going on a weekday to skip the crowds if possible.

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

I met Ning at The Chai Lai Orchid and was so excited she could get her shift covered because we got to experience this magical place together!

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

FACTS ABOUT KEW MAE PAN NATURAL TRAIL

  • Kew Mae Pan is just over 7,000 feet high (2,200m above sea level) and although it is the second highest peak in Thailand it is still a pretty easy hike overall!
  • The viewpoint is also known as “The Roof of Thailand” or “Sea of Clouds” the clouds are best viewed November to early February so I just missed them!
  • If you visit in December, you will see red azalea, also known as the Thousand Years Red Rose, these bloom all along the cliffs and are gorgeous!
  • This area used to be used for hunting but now it’s protected for tourism which in some ways is great but in others not so much. I learned from my guide that he and fellow locals in the surrounding areas used to get a lot of meat from this area to provide for their village, but now they drive 35 minutes to be tour guides so they can at least continue to get something from this area. Apparently there even used to be bear here.

ONCE YOU GET ON THE TRAIL

I recommend tennis shoes or hiking boots but either way, just make sure you are in comfortable footwear! The path is clear but there are a lot of roots sticking out from the trees, a lot of stairs at the end of the trail and some steep areas. When you start the hike you will walk through a forest for about the 30 minutes.

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

When you reach this area (grasslands) is when you are getting close to the lookout and the wind really starts to pick up. What was the hardest for me was that it was very dusty so I slipped a few times!

KEW MAE PAN NATURE TRAIL LOOKOUT

We made it to the viewpoint in about 40 minutes but plan for an hour especially if you want to take a lot of pictures along the way. You’ll reach the viewpoint halfway through the trail. BE PREPARED FOR SOME CRAZY WIND! But also for some stunning views…

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

Now on to the second part of the trail! The path gets very narrow here and with the wind, it can get a little crazy. I recommend walking single file and just be careful where you step. One wrong step and you could be off the trail and down the mountain!

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

The views somehow keep getting better and better!

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

SECOND VIEWPOINT ON KEW MAE NATURE TRAIL

This is technically isn’t a noted viewpoint but I thought it was just as beautiful as the main one so I recommend taking some pictures here as well.

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

After you finish the trek, you can stop at The Great Holy Relics Pagoda Nabhapolbhumisiri to see the “High Temples”. You can see the top of one of them behind me in the next picture.

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

The last 30 minutes of the hike is back through the forest and this is where most of the steps are.

Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park
Kew Mae Pan Trail in Doi Inthanon National Park

If you have the time to make the drive to Doi Inthanon National Park and do the Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail I couldn’t recommend it more. I had a blast visiting and learned a ton about the area from my guide. If you want to keep updated on the trail you can check out the national parks official website, HERE. And you can also click the next link to read about my other Thailand Adventures!