Than Bok Khorani National Park

The park headquarters at Ao Luek sits around a spring that emerges from the base of a limestone cliff and runs into a series of shallow green pools under banyan and fig trees, connected by short paths - a botanical garden more than a wilderness, laid out around the water, and used by Thai families for picnics and bathing in the lower pools. The wider park covers a large area including islands in Phang Nga Bay and, more significantly, a set of caves in the surrounding karst. Tham Phi Hua To holds prehistoric rock paintings and shell midden deposits; Laem Pho and other rock shelters in the area have produced human remains and artefacts, and this stretch of coast holds some of the better-documented prehistoric occupation in southern Thailand. The pools clear or cloud with rainfall, so the green colour is not reliable, and the caves need a boat and a guide.

What you actually see

• The spring pools - green shallow basins under the cliff and banyan trees.
• Tham Phi Hua To - the painted cave with shell midden deposits.
• The garden layout - paths and picnic ground around the water.
• The wider park - islands and karst caves across Phang Nga Bay.

When to go

November to April; after rain the pools cloud and lose their colour. Cave visits need a boat and a guide arranged from Ao Luek or Bo Tho pier.

Honest expectations

The pools are small and manicured rather than wild, and the colour depends on recent rainfall. The caves are a separate boat trip, not walkable from the headquarters. Foreign entry fees are higher than Thai.

Nearby

Ao Thalane is south; Ko Hong and Phang Nga Bay are offshore.