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Amphoe Sai Yok
Hell Fire Pass Memorial Museum
This is a part of the Death Railway that was constructed
during the Second World War using POW labor to cut through the mountain.
The site is located in a thick forest near Km. 66 of the Sai Yok-Thong
Pha Phum Road (Highway No. 323). Along a 4-kilometer walking trail
made by the Allied prisoners visitors can envision the difficulties
faced in constructing the Death Railway using simple tools. The
pass is approximately 500 meters long and 26 meters deep. In 1943
Australian POWs employing hand drills, picks and shovels, baskets
and dynamite completed it within six weeks.
There is also a museum displaying contemporary photographs, maps,
models, illustrations, etc. from the period. Open daily from 9 a.m.
to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
Lawa Cave
The cave is on the side of Maenam Khwae Noi, 75 kilometers
from Kanchanaburi City. The entrance to the cave is a bit narrow
although the interior is spacious with several chambers including
the “music chamber”, the “throne chamber”, and
the “curtain chamber” with stalactites and stalagmites
in full display. The cave can be accessed either by boat or car.
Chartered boats are available at the Pak Saeng Pier (southwest of
Namtok Railway Station), the trip takes 45 minutes and costs 800
to 1,000 baht per boat (capacity 8-10 people). Visitors traveling
by road can cross the bridge at Ban Kaeng Raboet and continue on
foot.
Prasat Mueang Sing Historical Park
Muang Singh town was built between 857 and 1157 when the
Khmer Kingdom was still prosperous. It was later abandoned until
the reign of King Rama I when Muang Singh was rebuilt as a Kanchanaburi
border town.
The only archeological site with a religious structure built in
the middle of the city is the Khmer Prasat Mueang Sing (Tower of
the City of Lions) where the heavy influence of the late Lopburi
arts is clearly visible. The ancient site is located on a steep
bank of Maenam Khwae Noi where the waterway narrows and becomes
fast flowing. The city walls, which were made of rectangular laterite,
are approximately 800 meters in width, 1,500 meters in length and
5 meters in height. The compound is believed to have been the westernmost
outpost of the Angkor-centered Khmer empire. Remains dating back
some 2,000 years have been discovered, and artifacts, including
temple carvings, religious statuary and pottery shards indicate
that the city must have been inhabited from approximately the 12th
to 14th centuries.
The historical park is open daily from 9 a.m.-4.30 p.m. Admission
fee is 40 baht. Call 0 3459 1122 or 0 3459 1334 for additional information.
Visitors can take a train from Kanchanaburi to Tha Kilen Railway
Station and continue on foot or by local transport to Prasat Mueang
Sing, which is just 1.5 kilometers away. Trains depart from Kanchanaburi
Railway Station every day at 6.11 a.m. (arriving at Tha Kilen at
7.28 a.m.), 11 p.m. (arriving at 11.59 a.m.) and 4.37 p.m. (arriving
at 5.42 p.m.). To return to Kanchanaburi, trains departs from Tha
Kilen Station at 6.22 a.m., 1.51 p.m. and 4.31 p.m.
Sai Yok National Park
The park covers approximately 300-square-kilometers and
contains several interesting caves and the nation’s famous
Namtok Sai Yok Yai. The park has dense forests, including majestic
teak trees and an abundance of small mammals such as squirrels,
bats and deer, as well as numerous bird species. IN addition, the
park is home to what is probably the smallest mammal in the world,
the two-grammed Kitti’s Hog-nosed Bat, which was first discovered
in 1973 by a Thai naturalist. The park is 104 kilometers from Kanchanaburi
via Highway No. 323 and can also be reached by chartered boat from
the Pak Saeng Pier. The park is very popular during the weekends.
Bungalow accommodations, river rafts, camping facilities, and a
daytime food market are available.
Namtok Sai Yoke Yai, which is located 104 kilometers from
the town, flows directly into Maenam Khwae Noi. Its idyllic beauty
has been repeatedly celebrated in Thai poetry and songs. A rope
bridge enables people to cross the river to view the waterfall.
Rafts are available for a river trip along the riverbank but advance
booking is recommended.
Tham Lawa and Tham Daowadung are two caves, which
house numerous stalactites and stalagmites. Of the two caves, the
Daowadueng Cave, which entails a river trip and 1-kilometer walk,
is the more popular cave.
Namtok Sai Yok Noi is also dubbed as Namtok Khao Phang.
It is situated 60 kilometers from town via Highway No. 323. The
place is best visited between July and September.
To get to Nam Tok Sai Yok Noi: non air-conditioned buses
leave Kanchanaburi Bus Station every 30 minutes from 6 a.m. until
6.30 p.m. The journey takes 2 hours and costs 25 baht.
Alternatively, visitors can take a train from Kanchanaburi to Namtok
Station and continue on foot or by local transport to the waterfall,
which is 2 kilometers away. Trains depart from Kanchanaburi at 6.11
a.m., 11 a.m. and 4.37 p.m. and return from Namtok Station at 5.25
a.m. 1 p.m. and 3.15 p.m. The one-way rail trip takes about 2 ?
hours and costs 17 baht. (Please check the current schedule from
TAT Kanchanaburi or the railway station before departure.)
Tham Krasae
This cave, which houses sacred Buddha images, is located
approximately 55 kilometres from Kanchanaburi, beside the surviving
remnants of the ‘Death Railway’ overlooking Maenam Khwae
Noi near Wang Pho Railway Station. The cave is within walking distance
from the railway tracks of Wang Pho Railway Station.
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