Our tour packages
Choose a tour, below.
Herping tours in Kaeng Krachan national park
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
Our herping tours in Kaeng Krachan national park are available as daytrips or multiple-day tours.
We will get around by car to travel between different habitats and hotspots. But we will primarily search reptiles and amphibians on foot. Both during the day and at night.
Why our herping tours?
With over 70 species of snakes alone recorded in Kaeng Krachan national park, what more do we need to add? Many species from the Indochinese region and the Sunda region overlap in this park. And besides the divers herpetofauna, you might even get some cool bonus mammals and birds.
The park is not far from Bangkok, and even closer to the popular tourist destination, Hua Hin. The largest national park of Thailand should be on any herping enthusiast's itinerary!
Herping tours Kaeng Krachan
Herping tours in Khao Yai national park
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
Our herping tours in Khao Yai national park are available as daytrips or multi-day tours.
During the day we will explore the national park by car, and go out on foot in areas where we hope to find snakes, lizards, frogs and other herps.
At night we will go on a night walk in an area outside the national park boundaries.
Why our herping tours?
Even though not the highest species count of any park in Thailand, Khao Yai national park is nonetheless a great location to visit. For several species this is the westernmost range, and yet it is easy to reach from Bangkok. This includes species like the Vogel's Pit Viper (Trimeresurus vogeli), Indochinese Water Dragon (Physignathus cocincinus), the Nganson's Bronzeback (Dendrelaphis ngansonensis), the Gibson's Wolf Snake (Lycodon gibsonae), and the Khao Yai Odorous Frog (Odorrana indeprensa). Also the stunning Oriental Vine Snake (Ahaetulla prasina) is not the typical green in this region, but either silver-grey or yellow-orange in colour. On the night walk there is more chance for another viper, the Large-eyed Pit Viper (Trimeresurus macrops), and of course there is more.
Khao Yai has plenty of good hotels and other facilities. And besides the reptiles and amphibians, you may see some other interesting wildlife as a bonus.
Herping tours Khao Yai
Night herping in Phuket's jungle
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
On our jungle night walk in Phuket we will be herping in the evergreen forested hills near streams.
With flashlights we will search the lower vegetation, high up trees, in holes, under rocks, in the leaf litter and so on to try and find the cool critters that call the island their home.
Why our jungle night walks?
This is your best chance to come close to the endemic Phuket Pit Viper (Trimeresurus phuketensis), the stunning Wagler's Pit Viper (Tropidolaemus wagleri), and all kinds of other snakes, frogs and lizards. Sometimes we are even lucky to see nocturnal mammals like slow loris or flying lemurs.
Do you need a break from your beach holiday? Then this herping trip is a great option for you!
Jungle night herping Phuket
Night herping in Phuket's mangroves
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
Our mangrove night walk in Phuket will allow you to explore the mangrove forest and coastal mudflats along the east coast.
Why our mangrove night walks?
Phuket has a decent diversity of snakes that occur in the mangroves. Species that are rare elsewhere, are seen relatively frequently in Phuket, like the Cantor's Mud Snake (Cantoria violacea), and the Crab-eating Mud Snake (Fordonia leucobalia). And you may even get lucky to see the Marine File Snake (Acrochordus granulatus). Well worth the visit!
Mangrove night herping Phuket
Night walk in Bangkok
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
Our night walk in Bangkok is as the name suggests, a walk in a green part of the city whilst searching the critters, especially reptiles, that thrive here.
With flashlights we scan the bushes, trees, water puddles, etc. to try and spot the nocturnal wildlife that still survives in this concrete jungle.
Why our night walks?
The mega city Bangkok is not only home to a lot of people. There is a whole natural ecosystem that has found a way to coexist and even thrive in harmony with the huge human population. And no, it is not just rats and cockroaches. There are all sorts of cool critters calling this city their home. Especially the amazing reptiles are well represented.
This night herping tour is great for anyone with interest in the natural world, as well as experienced herpers with specific snake or other herpetofauna targets.
Have you seen enough temples, shopping centres, and bars? And you want to have a cool story to tell on the next boring birthday party? This is the trip for you!
Night walk Bangkok
Tailor-made herping tours around Thailand
By: Tontan Travel Wildlife Tours
Tour description in short
Our tailor-made herping tours around Thailand have open itineraries. Our expert herping guides will take you on an adventure to search for your target species. Or simply try to find as much diversity of species as possible in the time frame you have.
We will get around by car to travel from destination to destination, as well as from habitat to habitat. And we will primarily set out on foot to search for reptiles and amphibians. Both during the day and at night.
Why our tailor-made herping tours?
Our flexibility will allow to maximize your chances within the time frame you have. On a day-to-day basis we will look at the conditions, and the success we did or did not have in finding the species you would hope to see. From there, we discuss if we wish to stay in the area where we are, or go herping in new terrain with new possibilities. This way of operating has resulted in many successful herping tours we have done over the years.
Thailand has so much to offer with its great diversity of herpetofauna, you do not want to miss this. And we will go the extra mile to get the most out of your trip.
Tailor-made herping tours
Our herping tours in Thailand
Thailand has a great diversity of herpetofauna. Over 230 species of snakes, almost 200 species of amphibians, and more. Some of the most charismatic snake species in the world like the King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) and the Reticulated Python (Malayopython reticulatus) occur in Thailand. Herping in Thailand can be challenging, but very rewarding.
Some packages are solely focused on the nighttime, others include both daytime and nighttime herping. We primarily go out on foot to search for reptiles and amphibians, but sometimes we might search by car too.
We have experience in every corner of the country and can organize tailor-made herping trips well beyond the tour options we mention on this page. Tours of one or more weeks also belong to the possibilities.
Click the following button to explore our tour packages, or continue reading, below.
Why our herping tours?
Herping is a major passion for us. Over the years, we have travelled to every corner of the country to look for snakes, frogs, and so on, and that experience will certainly make a difference.
Each individual tour package will have more details on why it is a worthwhile option.
What are the available tour activities in Thailand?
Our herping tours usually consist of primarily searching on foot. Both day and night. Most trips we move around by car from a to b, and will probably use that driving time to search too, but we believe herping on foot is the most successful and the most fun.
Night walking tends to be the most successful part. Though some trips we have seen more in daytime than at night. A large number of species tend to be more active at night, and a fair number of diurnal species roost off the ground in bushes and are in some cases easier to be found at night than during the day.
We can organize tailor-made trips of one or more weeks for those interested to see a high variety of species. Though, that usually means we need to drive fairly long distances regularly throughout a trip to get to places with a good chance to see species that are not or less likely found elsewhere. Even though spending more time in the car results in less time in the field, it quite certainly results in higher diversity of species.
For more specific details on the activities included in each of these tours, please, click the tour package to learn more.
Where are the tours taking place?
We might not have a huge list of tours on this page. But our tour options do not stop there. We can organize tailor-made trips anywhere in the country. Contact us if you have specific target species and we can discuss what areas are best to be visited to increase the chances of success.
Thailand is a big country, we might not be able to organize short trips in locations far from where our guides are based. Usually such the more distant destinations are part of longer trips (one week or more).
When is the best time for tours in Thailand?
Typically, the wet season is the most consistent time of the year. The wet seasons vary based on where in the country you are. For example, in the deep south most rain falls around the end of November/beginning of December. Whilst in northern Thailand the peak of rainfall tends to be around August.
On much of the peninsula the herping tends to be a bit more consistent throughout the year. Though parts of that region also do have drier periods, at least the nights do not cool down as much as they can in northern Thailand.
Obviously species vary throughout the country, so depending on your target species we can decide which part of the country is best to be visited and what time would be most suitable.
Even if the wet season tends to be most consistent for most species, there are certainly exceptions to that. Some species have specific breeding seasons which increase the chance of sightings quite significantly. As an example, The Siamese Russell's Viper, (Daboia siamensis) tends to be most active around November/ December which in their range and the local climate is actually the start of the winter.
Some other species often high on the wishlist, are the King Cobras, (Ophiophagus spp.). For as far as one can speak of a peak, February - April - the hot, dry season - tends to be a bit of a better time. The mating season. Though we have seen them in every month of the year, and even in peak season, you still need a ton of luck. A very hard species to target, just like most of Thailand's elapids actually.
Extra information about herping in Thailand
Herping in Thailand can be hard especially if it is the first time you visit Asia. In much of the world herping is very much an activity of looking down on the ground. Sure, that works partly in Thailand too. But there is also a lot happening up in the trees. Sometimes way up high. It can be a bit overwhelming having to look everywhere from basically below ground level to high up trees and anywhere in between.
Also, in some parts of the world, many reptiles really need to bask at the most optimal spot. Often on a south facing hillside or something like that. In Thailand you do not see much of that. Temperatures are even fairly high in a dark forest. Learning more about micro habitats that each species prefers is very useful. For example through in situ images online.
But it will be a great experience. Herps are everywhere in Thailand. Retics, the longest snake species in the world, even occur right in the centre of Bangkok. So, no matter where you go in Thailand, always keep your eyes peeled.
How much does a tour cost?
The rates can be found on the tour package webpages. All the herping tour packages can be found at the top of this page. The button below will take you there.
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