Does anybody know how I can visit the Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary in Thailand? It seems like you need to get a permit to get in, but how do I manage to get it?

I'm not familiar with the area myself but had a bit of a scout and hope this info is of use:



I take it from that you are off to Thailand. Hope you have fun; it is really well set up for travellers, not just in the backpacker enclaves in Bangkok.

Would recommend heading up to Chiang-Mai, that was my favourite place, especially the surprisingly hip Nimmanhaemin area to the North West of the old city.
And the Khao-soi was delicious, if you hunt there is a veggie option to.

Just had a look in my Lonely Planet guide and they recommend thaicountrytrails.com as a good source of information and as tour guides.

There also seems to be an official website here: www.fwfcc-thai.org

Hope that helps.

Thanks for the info. You can only reach the designated points when you hire a 4WD driver. Apparently there's not a lot of people/businesses there who speak English, so it's going to be a bit of an adventure to get there. But that only makes it fun.
Thai country trails was helpful so far, but they do not organise any tours (anymore).
I am going in March so fortunately I still have some time to do more research.
Any other info is welcome :-)

The reviews of Masayuki and Frederik of Thungyai - Huai Khakheng is good for further google reserch :) I went to Thailand in 2006, and hire a car from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, on the way from Ayutaya to Sukotai, I ask my driver to go to Huai Khakheng tourist center, if you have Thailand map, you can see there is a road that used as a boundery of the park, I used that road to see the park and one waterfall (not sure it is Cyber Fall as Frederik mention or not). I remember that there is a monument of an officer who commit suicide in order to protect the forest from bad people in front of the tourist center, a very interesting place to learn how Thailand protect its forest.

Just to let you know, and for future reference for anyone who wants to visit: I also hired a car (just a very standard small car) for a few days from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and I went to the Amphoe Lan Sak ranger station (unpaved road for the last few kilometers but doable although probably not very good for the car). On this road and at the ranger station are some clearly marked trails where you can walk without a permit.
From the ranger station I drove south towards Ban Rai and drove towards the Cybor fall (there are a lot of different spellings around). I drove on an unpaved road and at the sign of the waterfall I stopped and walk up a very steep dirt road. A villager told me to get on the back of his motor bike and the start of the real trail to the waterfall turned out to be another 5 kilometers ahead! 'There was a paved road a bit further up though. I had to walk another kilometer or so to get to the waterfall, which wasn't that impressive. Fortunately the friendly man brought me back to my car again.
I stayed overnight at the nearby Country Home Resort (no English sign on the road but you can recognize it by a porch decorated with all kinds of animals) where there somebody who spoke English and who was very happy to see a foreigner.

It's really out of the way but it is very good to do by car and you get to see rural Thailand where nobody speaks English and nobody will try to rip you off.

Reposting this here from the 2023 WHS topic:

Any updates on that? And has Si Thep submitted the nomination file to be in time for 2023?

elsslots

Really frustrated to inform that no news at all. There was a scandal on budget management on archaeological study of Si Thep Historical Park, so government prefers to keep silence on any progress of Si Thep to avoid media attention.

Phra That Phanom, its related historic buildings and associated landscape

From article in Thai newspaper: Thai government is considering to drop this nomination from problem of authenticity and will change it focus to nominate "The Legend of That Phanom" which is about history of Phra That Phanom, the core reason of the WHS nomination, in Memory of the World program instead.

But in the eyes of provincial authorities and local politicians if "The Legend of That Phanom" is successfully listed in Memory of the World, it will support the whole Phra That Phanom WHS nomination, so they still want to keep the site in the tentative list.

Andaman Sea Nature Reserves

New development project to link Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand called "Land Bridge" will cut through core zone of proposing WHS area.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2282263/six-locations-eyed-for-land-bridge

Chiang Mai

Latest Update

- Nomination Dossier is already submitted to the Government on June 2022
- Target date to UNESCO is now 2026, after Si Thep and Phu Phrabat

https://mgronline.com/travel/detail/9650000073866

Good news, Chaing Mai was my favourite place in Thailand so very happy to see it moving forward.

In the article it seems to have different boundaries to the ones in the current T-list nomination


I'm not sure if this is just an issue of AI translation, non comprehensive journalism or just a change in approach but these are the only listed components
Old city of Chiang Mai 5.13 km² - Main focus and I assume it is the same as on t-list
Wiang Suan Dok District 0.32 km² - around the eponymous temple on the western edge of the city centre but only mentioned in the current t-list nomination as one of several such locations
Wat Chet Yot, Phra Aram Luang, 0.05 km² - North West of the old city walls (google maps has it as Wat Jed Yot and not mentioned in the t-list nomination
Doi Suthep-Wiang Chet Lin area 12.61 km² - I assume it is the same as on t-list

So I'm not sure if they have shifted the boundaries or not, but the old city and Doi Suthep-Wiang Chet Lin are the main sites and to be honest for the casual visitor the bits that really matter.

meltwaterfalls

Indeed, a lot of change from original t-list nomination. The most obvious one is to exclude all western structure outside old city that built shortly before of after Siam annexation and refocusing only on sites that representing Chiang Mai at its peak as Lanna political and cultural center. But as meltwaterfalls already mentioned as casual visitor this really not a matter as the main sights of Chiang Mai, Doi Suthep, old royal temples, are still in the revised nomination.

Thanks for that Durian, I had missed the reason for the change of focus, thanks for laying it out.

Wat Mahathat Nakhon Si Thammarat WHS nomination update

The governor of Nakhon Si Thammarat told reporters that he will not continue the nomination as there is no money after being TWHS for 10 years. Wat Mahathat nomination is the work of local government with no support from Bangkok but rely on local government distribution but after many corruption scandals on beautification project of the temple, there is no hope to get more fund from local government. The Governor informed that they need 15 Millions Thai Baht more, but cannot find the way to get such money.

https://www.thaipost.net/district-news/325371/