Emerald Pool, Blue Pool and the Hot Springs: Is the Inland Day Worth It?
8 min read
If you want a break from the sea, consider the inland day: Emerald Pool, the Blue Pool, a hot spring waterfall, and usually the Tiger Cave Temple on the way home. It is the standard counterweight to the island trips, and it is sold everywhere.
The advertised price can exclude entry fees and meals, and a named stop is not a guarantee of access. Both problems are easier to avoid once you read the selected option’s inclusions and check access for your date.
The pools are inland in Krabi province
Emerald Pool – Sa Morakot on Thai signage – sits inside the Khao Phra Bang Khram protected forest in Klong Thom district, well inland from the coast. The Blue Pool, Sa Nam Phut, is a few hundred metres further along the forest path. The hot spring waterfall is a separate site again. The Tourism Authority of Thailand confirms the Khlong Thom location and foreign-visitor entry fee.
None of this is near the beach. On the Tiger Cave Temple, Emerald Pool and Hot Springs Tour, the operator’s own itinerary lists one hour in the vehicle each way. The whole thing runs 9 hours, from €42.61 per person, and it carries 4.8 stars from 4,264 reviews.
That length is the honest headline. You are buying two hours of driving, scheduled stops at the pools and temple, and a lunch break. Lunch is not included in this TripGuru tour. If your idea of a good day is unhurried time in one spot, this is not that day.
The money: the fees are usually not in the price
This is the part that surprises people at the gate, and it is written plainly on the booking pages if you read the exclusions.
On the Tiger Cave, Hot Springs and Emerald Pool Jungle Tour – 8–9 hours, from €39.95 per person, 4.3 stars from 2,867 reviews – the “not included” list names them:
- Emerald Pool: 400 THB per adult, 200 THB per child
- Hot Springs: 200 THB per adult, 100 THB per child
That is 600 THB per adult and 300 THB per child on top of the tour for those two entries. For two adults and two children charged at the child rate, the total is 1,800 THB. Lunch is included on this jungle tour.
Not every operator handles it the same way. On the nine-hour TripGuru tour, entry fees are included only if you select that option. The Hot Spring, Emerald Pool & Tiger Cave Temple Tour costs from €39.95 per person, with 729 reviews, and includes lunch. Its exclusions list 400/200 THB for Emerald Pool, 200/100 THB for the hot springs and 50 THB per adult or child for Tiger Cave Temple: 650 THB per adult or 350 THB per child extra. Compare the selected options with all fees and meals accounted for.
Before you book, open the listing, read the inclusions and exclusions, and compare the total. Bring cash for local expenses and confirm how any excluded tickets will be paid.
Check Blue Pool access before you go
A stop in an itinerary does not guarantee that every path or pool is open on your date.
Confirm seasonal access locally. We could not verify a current official annual closure calendar for Blue Pool. TAT lists general Emerald Pool site hours of 8:30 am–5:00 pm; do not assume those hours apply to the path to Blue Pool. Ask the site or your operator whether that section is open before making it the reason for the trip.
Plan Blue Pool as a viewing stop. The TripGuru itinerary assigns swimming to Emerald Pool and a visit to Blue Pool. The blue water is a place to look at and photograph; follow the rangers’ access and swimming instructions.
If Blue Pool is the reason you are booking, ask the operator to confirm access for your date before paying. A message through the booking platform gives you the answer in writing.
When it is genuinely good, and when it is not
It is a good day if you have had enough salt water, or if you want forest, freshwater and shade. Ask which stop comes first and how long you have there; an early departure alone does not tell you when the tour reaches Emerald Pool.
It is a poor day if you have young children who will spend two hours in a minibus for one hour of paddling, or if you are only in Krabi for three days. With three days, the boats win. The island tours are what the province is actually famous for, and the inland sites will still be there next time.
Do not choose this day solely for a promised shade of blue in photographs. Confirm access and the day’s weather before setting off.
Doing it without a tour
You can visit independently. Arrange transport between the separate sites and compare a rental or a driver’s quote with the total tour cost for your group, including entrance fees and meals.
If you are already planning to drive elsewhere in the province, it is worth comparing car hire for Krabi against the tour price for your group size. Include fuel, rental conditions and any parking costs. Driving lets you choose the length of each stop within the site’s opening hours.
All three tours offer English-speaking guides. The TripGuru pickup option covers Ao Nang; outside that area, its meeting point is McDonald’s on Ao Nang beach road. The jungle tour offers pickup options around Krabi, Ao Nang, Ao Nam Mao, Klong Muang and Tubkaek; Railay guests must arrange the pier meeting. The eight-hour Hot Spring tour excludes hotel pickup at Railay: guests take their own boat to Ao Nam Mao Pier. That tour excludes wheelchair users and people with mobility impairments; the jungle tour excludes wheelchair users and pregnant travellers.
What to take
Long enough clothing for the temple stop, if your trip includes one: the Tiger Cave Temple has a dress code, and one operator’s “not allowed” list simply says sleeveless shirts. Shoulders and knees covered, or a sarong in the bag.
Beyond that: cash for the gates, a towel, something to change into, and insect repellent for the forest path. Swimwear under your clothes saves you a queue at the changing rooms.
If the temple is on your itinerary and you want to know what the climb involves before you commit to it, that is its own question – and the answer is more than 1,200 steps.
