Pai River Rafting

Bamboo raft trips on the Pai River are one of the signature activities of Mae Hong Son, arranged by guesthouses and tour operators in town. The standard trip launches at Ban Huay Deua, 8 km outside town, and drifts downriver through jungle and past hill tribe villages. The river is calm in the dry season — this is floating, not whitewater — and the journey gives access to stretches of riverbank that are impossible to reach by road.

Full-day trips can be extended with stops at Karen or Shan villages along the way. The trip typically ends at a point where a truck returns passengers to town. Best done in the cooler months (November–February) when the water is low and the jungle most pleasant.

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The Pai River that gives Pai town its name rises in the Shan hills above Mae Hong Son and flows northward before curving east through the valley toward the Salween. The section below Mae Hong Son town, particularly between the launch point at Ban Huay Deua and downriver, passes through relatively undisturbed jungle and occasional hill tribe villages. The rafts used are traditional bamboo platforms steered with bamboo poles — less exciting than inflatable raft whitewater but appropriate for a river of this character.

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