The Salween (sometimes spelled ‘Salawin’) National Park is a pretty national park with its headquarters just 8km west of Mae Sariang. It is a smallish, forested park complete with winding river, a beach, and accommodation.

The park was set up in 1994 and covers around 720 square kilometers of forests and undulating terrain between the town of Mae Sariang and the Burma border. The lazy Salween River is the main attraction, along which you can take a longtail boat tour or swim off of Hat Thaen Kaew beach.

You can also just float down the Salween River, best visited after the wet season sometime after November when it is also pleasantly cool in Mae Hong Son. This is also a time when the river is clear and fog descends on the water in the mornings.

Salween National Park also comes with a surprising covering of vegetation, including masses of teak trees. In addition, there is a wide range of wildlife in the park, including deer, antelope, bears, gibbons, loads of species of colorful birdlife, and the odd tiger.

You can rent basic bungalows near the park’s headquarters, where there are also restrooms. There are also bungalows farther afield at Ranger Station 4, and you can pitch a tent during the winter dry season. The visitor center at Salween National Park is open daily.

There is no public transport to Salween National Park, so the best way in is from Mae Sariang by songthaew, or motorcycle along Highway 1194. Longtail boats also run up from Mae Saem Laep in about 30 minutes. The easiest way to visit is to sign up for a day tour with one of the guesthouses in Mae Sariang.

  • What is it? An out of the way protected region in the Thai northwest, known for its well preserved, undulating forests and its lazy river
  • Opening hours: Visitor Center 08:30-16:30, daily
  • Entrance fee: adults, 100B; children 50B
  • Where: about 8km west of Mae Sariang