By Landolfo Mancini 
One of the best places to see nature and animals in Thailand is Khao Sok National Park, which is located not far from Phuket and Krabi.
We spent 3 days in Khao Sok and had fun. The turquoise lake is really beautiful, and it’s easy to see animals in the park. We even saw wild elephants!
The best way to experience Khao Sok is to spend several days in the park, explore the lake by boat, see animals and caves in the jungle, and spend at least one night in a floating bungalow on the lake.
In this travel guide I will explain to you how to visit Khao Sok with or without a visit and the best things to see and do there!
How Many Days To Spend In Khao Sok
The first thing you need to determine is how much time you want to spend in the park.
Here are your options:
Day Trip-You can take a day trip to Khao Sok from a tourist area such as Phuket, Krabi, Khao Lak or Surat Thani. This is the fastest and easiest option, but you will not have so much time to see the park. In my opinion, this is too short.
Package tours (2-4 days) – this is another simple option, as it includes everything: transport, guide, meals and accommodation. This can be a good option for some people, as it is convenient and gives them enough time to see the main highlights of the park.
Stay in the village of Khlong Sok – this option will give you the greatest flexibility, and it will also be affordable. If you settle right in the village of Khlong Sok, near the park, you can stay as long as you like and go on excursions to the things that interest you most. This is the best way to visit the park if you are not limited in time.
In our experience, you need at least two days in the Khao Sok region to get the most out of it, and three or four days is better.
Best excursions in Khao Sok
GetYourGuide offers 2-day Khao Sok excursions from Phuket or Khao Lak, which include hotel pick-up and drop-off, meals, accommodation and park visits.
Or, if you are really limited in time, they also offer day trips to Khao Sok from Phuket, Krabi or Khao Lak.
Alternatively, if you stay in the village of Khlong Sok, right next to the park, they offer day trips to the lake, jungle hikes, elephant rides and much more.
We have used GetYourGuide for many tours and activities around the world, and they are great. Highly recommended!
How To Get To Khao Sok National Park
* From Phuket
It’s easy to get to Khao Sok on your own if you don’t want to use a tour package.
From Phuket, you can get to the village of Khlong Sok by public bus, shared minibus or private taxi.
The bus has 5 departures per day and it is a 4-hour journey. The minibus has up to 8 departures per day, and the journey takes from 2.5 to 4.5 hours, depending on where you start in Phuket. A taxi ride takes 2.5-3.5 hours.
Here you can view the timetables and book tickets for one of them online.
We took a private taxi and had a good experience. They took us from Phuket Airport to Khao Lak, where we stayed for a few days, and then from Khao Lak to Khao Sok National Park. Everything went well.
After finishing in Khao Sok, we took a shared minibus back to Phuket, which was arranged by our hotel in Khlong Sok.
* From Krabi
From Krabi you can get to Khlong Sok by minibus or taxi. There are no big buses.
They have many minibus departures from Ao Nang or Krabi City every day, and the journey takes about 3-4 hours. You can book here.
* By Khao Lak
From Khao Lak you can get to Khlong Sok by bus, minibus or taxi.
The trip by bus takes about 2 hours, while the trip by minibus or taxi takes a little more than an hour. You can book here.
* By Surat Thani
From Surat Thani you can get to Khlong Sok by bus, minibus or taxi. This is the nearest airport and starting point to visit the park.
The bus ride takes about 2-3 hours, while the minibus takes 2-2.5 hours. A taxi will take 1.5-2 hours. You can book any of them here.
* From Bangkok
From Bangkok, the fastest way would be to fly or take a train to Surat Thani and get a ground transport to Khlong Sok from there.
Getting Around In The Khao Sok Region
Once you reach Khlong Sok village, there are several ways to get around. You can arrange tours of the park through your hotel or one of the local agencies, or do some things independently, as we did.
Most of the hotels in Khlong Sok are located within walking distance from the entrance to the national park (map here), so it’s easy to wander through the jungle. For transportation outside the village, we rented a motorcycle through our hotel.
Access to the lake is a 1-hour drive from the village and the headquarters of the park and can only be explored by long-tailed boat, so your options there are more limited. You can see it without visiting, but you will still need a boatman.