Mystifying Khao Yai

The hilly eastern part of Thailand hides a relative mystery to international travellers.

- Benny Teo

Set about 3 hours east of Bangkok, Khao Yai is not the easiest place to get to. For golfers travelling to the Land of a Thousand Smiles, there are plenty enough to choose from around the capital city, or even Pattaya just half that distance away.

However, for those who commit to making the commute, Khao Yai offers a resplendent panoply of golfing and surprising lifestyle pleasures not commonly found this part of the world.

Khao Yai offers a resplendent panoply of golfing and surprising lifestyle pleasures not commonly found this part of the world.

If you’re right now thinking a-go-go girls and walking streets, stop. Don’t get me wrong, Khao Yai’s a great place but not like that. With its gentle climate, beautiful national park and awesome waterfalls during rainy season, it’s a hit with visitors. The entire area is filled with little enclaves of attraction, much like film sets in Hollywood, except that they are actual places to visit, restaurants to dine in and hotels to stay at; it is kind of like a world within a world, with cowboys and horses astride waterparks, a hobbit’s lair and Tuscan village.

Our first stop was to Sir James Resort and Country Club in the Mauklek district. Named after Sir James Richard Holt, who survived a spell in an internment camp during the Second World War, the resort boasts a hilly 18-hole golf course as well as an adjoining hotel.

Designed by John Rogers, the golf course undulates through the land and the famous mountain ranges that provide a picturesque backdrop, especially for its signature par 5 14th hole; a straight downhill covering 560 yards from the pro tees with water and bunkers guarding the green.