We’ve been to Thailand six times but for some reason we’ve never had Khao Yai on our list of spots to visit – why?
We’re not sure but boy are we glad we made it this time. Just under three hours north of Bangkok by car, Khao Yai is one of those places locals escape to when the city gets too much. A fast train is due to launch in 2026, but for now it remains refreshingly low on international itineraries. Part national park, part agricultural heartland, part wine country, it’s a pocket of Thailand that feels unexpectedly calm and rather continental.
For Bangkok residents, it’s a weekend break. For visitors, it’s a chance to see a different side of the country entirely. The cooler mountain climate and higher elevation mean rolling vineyards, organic farms, bakeries, café-restaurants and some of the best wine Thailand produces.
Khao Yai National Park
At the heart of the region is Thailand’s oldest national park, a vast UNESCO-listed landscape of rainforest, grassland and waterfalls. Wildlife here is serious, including gibbons, deer, elephants, hornbills, bears and even rare wild cats, with tigers spotted in the area recently.
There are seven hiking routes in total. Three can be done independently, while four require a guide, which can be booked through the visitor centre. Even if you don’t hike, some of the routes are more like gentle walks through the forest. We did two of the short gentle walks solo and a longer one (trail no.5) with a guide. Truth be told we could have easily done this by ourselves but thems the rules…
Wine Country, Thai-Style
Khao Yai is huge, and even if the great outdoors isn’t your thing, food and drink alone make the trip worthwhile. The standout is GranMonte, one of Thailand’s most respected wineries, located in the Asoke Valley.
GranMonte is run by Nikki Lohitnavy, Thailand’s only female winemaker, who has spent more than 25 years mastering the challenge of growing grapes in a tropical climate. The estate was instrumental in securing Khao Yai’s geographical indication for wine, and now produces over 30 labels, including three natural wines aged in Georgian qvevri. As climate change reshapes wine regions globally, Nikki’s expertise has taken her far beyond Thailand.
The setting is beautiful, the wines genuinely impressive, and there’s a restaurant on site serving Thai dishes alongside local cheeses and charcuterie. A spicy fried chicken laab and gaeng kee lek (a pork curry made with cassia leaves) paired surprisingly well with an orange Chenin Blanc. You can tour and taste, picnic between the vines, or go all in and stay overnight in one of the wine cottages right next to the vineyard.
There’s also an excellent farm shop selling GranMonte’s own sauces and jams alongside produce from artisan makers across Thailand. Expect cheeses from Do Fann, Jartisan and The Cheese Maker; charcuterie from Vivin and Maison René; kombucha from Three Goats Brewery; coffee from 93 Army; and dried corn from 3C Fresh Farm. Honestly, it’s worth visiting GranMonte for the shop alone.
Farms, Bakeries and Slow Food
Organic farming is big business in Khao Yai, and the operations are impressively slick. Tawe Farm was a favourite: part working farm, part bakery and café. Their fresh corn and coconut muffins have the texture of a Japanese soufflé pancake, and there’s everything from cold-pressed juices to fried fish skin and banana chips. Think Daylesford, but Thai.
Elsewhere, Mango House focuses on locally grown mangoes; Khao Yai Vanilla Farm (also created by Nikki from GranMonte) produces solar-powered vanilla; and Chokchai Dairy Farm supplies milk to many Thai cheesemakers. Depending on the season, you can pick your own strawberries, mulberries, figs, lemons and avocados at farms and wineries across the region.
Where We Stayed
We checked into what can only be described as a literal train wreck of a hotel. And yes, we mean that in the best possible way.
The InterContinental Khao Yai, part of IHG Hotels & Resorts, is designed as a heritage railway station, with several rooms housed inside converted 1920s rail carriages. It sounds gimmicky, but it works. Designer Bill Bensley has turned the old carriages into plush, characterful spaces, with polished wood, brass details and just enough theatrical flair. There’s a Poirot-themed restaurant, a Papillon bar, a teahouse and even a spa, all built into former train cars. It’s playful and pastiche in a Wes Anderson kind of way.
Extra Curriculum
One of the area’s newer additions is the Khao Yai Art Forest, a large-scale outdoor art space that blends contemporary works into the surrounding landscape. Set across forested land just outside the national park, it’s less white cube gallery, more slow wander, with sculptures and installations dotted among trees, clearings and walking paths. There’s also a restaurant and occasional film screenings in the forest.
Ignore the opening times on Google Maps and check the ticket links directly before you go. It’s still early days, and while the art itself isn’t always the main draw, the setting alone is worth the entrance fee. The restaurant is a highlight too – the kind of setting you’d expect to stumble across at a Sonoma winery rather than rural Thailand.
Getting There and Getting Around
Despite a decade of development, Khao Yai remains relatively under the radar outside Asia, largely because it’s not the easiest place to navigate without a car. Most visitors either hire a driver from Bangkok or take the train part of the way and rent a car locally. The roads are quiet, distances manageable and drives surprisingly stress-free.
There’s a wide range of accommodation, from design-led resorts to farm stays and boutique hotels, making it easy to tailor the trip to your budget and pace.
Khao Yai isn’t the Thailand of postcards and party islands. It’s greener, slower and more grown-up. And for us, it revealed a side of the country we hadn’t seen before – one we’re already planning to go back to.
