Chiang Dao Cave (Tham Chiang Dao)
A revered limestone cave temple complex tunnelling into the base of Thailand's third-highest peak, with Buddha shrines and a lantern-lit deeper network.
- Category
- Caves
- Entrance fee
- ~40 THB entry + ~100-200 THB lantern-guide for the unlit sections; as of 2026, confirm locally
- Hours
- Daily ~08:00-17:00
- Best time
- Cool season; mornings
- Time needed
- 1-1.5 hours in the cave (longer with the area)
- Difficulty
- easy (lit section) to moderate (guided lantern sections, low/uneven passages)
About Chiang Dao Cave (Tham Chiang Dao)
Chiang Dao Cave is a limestone cave temple tunneling into the base of Thailand's third-highest peak, with Buddha shrines set inside the electric-lit section near the entrance. It's genuinely atmospheric and worth the trip out.
The lit section is the easy part. Beyond it, the cave opens into a much larger unlit network that you can only explore with a hired lantern guide, and it's worth doing, both because it gets you into the more interesting, untouched parts of the cave and because it supports the local guides directly.
Be ready for low, uneven passages once you're past the lit area with a guide, so it's a step up in difficulty from just wandering the entrance shrines. Cool season mornings are the best time to go, and given the distance from the city, plenty of people fold it into a day tour.
Highlights
- Buddha shrines in the electric-lit entrance section
- Lantern-guided exploration of the deeper, unlit cave network
- A limestone cave temple built into the base of Thailand's third-highest peak
Tips
- Hire a lantern guide to see beyond the lit section, it's needed for the deeper passages and supports local guides
- Expect low, uneven passages once you're in the guided sections, wear something you can move around in
- Go in cool season, mornings are best
- It's a fair distance from the city, so many visitors combine it with a day tour
How to get there
Bus toward Fang/Chiang Dao then local transport, or car/scooter ~1.5 hr; often a day tour