Slurpy

The lesser developed
With the differing levels of to-be-expected development concerning hot springs in Thailand, there seems to be no rule, bar one: the more remote, the less developed. But even this rule will have to thrown out of the window.

Chaiya district's (Surat Thani province) distant claim to fame is the Suan Mokkh temple. Established just 50 years ago (or earlier) this forest temple was home to Ajahn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, one of Thailand's most famous monks (source).

But besides the attraction of the road side temple complex, just a one km walk away is a hot spring; delitefully deserted and undeveloped with exception of a stair and an overflow.
Less nice is the small paved street which nearly runs over the spring. And the overflowing garbage bins which give an indication that maybe not mid-morning but certainly at other times of the day, the hot springs see their fair share of visitors.

A familiar Thai natural phenomenon: trash at scenic (soaking) spots!

Guided by spirits?
As said ,it's not too difficult to find. But chugging up or down the highway, one is once more mind-boggled by all the signs pointing to this attraction, though the final signboard indicating that you need to "stop now!" seems to have been omitted. A sudden break and a blind turn-off later we are at the rather busy parking space just outside the temple complex.

Slightly bewildered, we enter the temple site and at the first crossroad inside the busy temple complex we are accustomed by a foreign disciple, totally clad in white gowns.

"We are looking for the hot spring".
"Ah, cross the road via the foot bridge, walk up the road for 100m and then take the sideroad for another 10 minutes walk".

So we cross the busy highway and walk up along this source of noise and stench. Between two shops, follow the country road away from the highway towards the railway and beyond the sea. A not too high mount seems to be the point where this road heads first.
We continue the much longer than 10 minute walk, asking along the way, yes, yes, it's not too far. As the road comes close to the mount, the hot spring appears on the left.

Is this all?
It's a pond with embankment on the far side. From the roadside a stairway leads down which supposedly enables the entering and existing. Along the road side of the pond is an underwater sitting space. There's a huge slurping sound, coming from the overflow, in the middle of the pond. Where the overflow flows to is unknown as the surroundings are devoid of any stream.

The roadway is silent, no changing spaces, hmmm. I take a good soak, especially as I am covered in sweat from the walk here. The water is very hot, but also slightly salty.

After the soak we continue onwards hoping to find where the overflow leads to. But to avail. Further on there 's a meditation centre, whatever that may be.

More
A good source of information on this hot spring comes from a regular visitor on thaipulse blog, in which the contributor adds some more info on the surroundings. Specifically he mentions that the Dhamma Meditation Center (the center which lay beyond the springs) has it's own hot springs. Actually, it's called International Meditation Hermitage.

Em and Trev mention the existence of separate hot springs (separate from what? Oh I see, men from ladies ... (picture on men's soak) at the centre:

'The hot springs are in secluded natural settings, and are a welcome relief after evening tea, loosening up those tired back muscles just in time for one last stretch of sessions'.

Friends of Suan Mokkh describe there being two for men, one for women. A piece of advice:

'The water is slightly odorous, so you'll probably need to bathe afterwards'.

Annete mentions a specific problem with separate soaks and meditations retreats:

'We can’t walk back from the hot springs with wet sarongs as the shape of our wet thighs underneath might spur the men into thinking unutterable thoughts ...'.

Another aspect overlooked, described by Roaming Elephant:

'Had a dip in a hot spring. It was like taking a bath. Then it became annoying that we weren't allowed to speak to each other - this was supposed to be a social activity'.

Anyway, that about the other non-public hot springs.

Despite the area being a magnet for spiritualists other than a wooden cushion and a cement bunk, there's little or no accommodation nearby.

Getting there: Chaiya is 590 km from Bangkok, 140 km plus from Chumphon or around 50 km north of Surat Thani. The temple site of Suan Mokkh is 6 km south of Chaiya town along the main highway. Take a small lane towards the sea and after about 1 km you will arrive at the hot spring. More specific directions here from suanmokkh.idh.org.

Soaking experience: Aaaaah, a Thai hot spring, hardly disturbed by mankind. A luxury, a wee bit hot, for the hot and humid season ...

Overall impression: Suan Mokkh hot spring, a great enchanting place (if there were no slurping sounds from the overflow ....)

Ranong = hot spring!?

Royal reverberation

Rated as one of Thailand's most popular hot springs (source), Raksawarin hot spring has become the province of Ranong's no. 1 natural attraction. Such that the hot spring is often referred to as Ranong hot spring.

But the real name is Raksawarin. It's claim to fame harks back to a visit by King Rama V more than a century ago. Since then, it's waters have been revered and development of the site to host ever-increasing number of visitors has gained pace.

Some science (?)
Pawanrat Saengsiriroj (2011) in his case study notes [1] that Raksawarin is

'ranked as one of the best three in the world because the water from this hot spring is pure, without the smell of sulphur. It is also considered the best in Thailand ...'.

Whether or not soakers are put off by sulphur smells and whether or not the absence of smells makes it a top 3 world soak, seems debatable. However, despite the recent nature of the study, it mostly results in opening open doors. For instance, more than half the visitors are reportedly nationals whose opinion of worldwide soaks would be deemed slightly insignificant.

A more scholarly effort was undertaken by Suwicha Komaladat (2010). He finds [2] that many tourists come to Ranong's hot spring as it was part of their journey, not a destination in it's own right; a problem which seems to stick to Ranong town. Another significant difference, foreigners are interested in spa facilities with little interest in souvenir shopping; Thai are interested in the freebies (foot bath) and the opportunity to purchase local food specialties.

Free foot bathing, a cornerstone of Ranong's wellness industry

It also notes the lack of motivation

'to improve the product and service quality'.

And

'[there is] no known successful research on the mineral water healing quality, the mineral water usage'.

Despite some websites claiming the opposite.

Newer bathing facilities? Yet to be opened.

Tourist trap
If there were a natural tourist trap, Raksawarin hot spring would rank high. It's only located a km or so from the main road south which by-passes Ranong town. Take the inland road just before the bridge and head up the narrow valley. Just before hitting the hot spring you will be required to cross a bridge.

The area around the hot spring has seen such haphazard development that the road has been deemed too congested to let cars through (there is a diversion), though parking is available. On the mountain side there are a wide variety of shops as well as something called Siam Hot Spa, what seems to be a private soaking facility.

On the river side the area has been landscaped, paved over, redeveloped and is the source of the hot springs, 3 in total, aptly named Father, Mother and Child spring. Surprisingly many facilities have been constructed as well and they are free.

Evening time, there are quite a few visitors walking around, using the foot baths or the hot floor complex, a novelty yet to gain worldwide attention.

A purposely built hot floor, where you can really sweat it out. Part of the instructions read:

'4. Should not sleep on this area more than 30 mins.'

The river itself is milky white, indicating large amounts of erosion further upstream. Continue onwards beyond the hot springs, one can visit the Ranong canyon, which sounds more than it actually is; it seemed quite boring when we visited the submerged mine.

The Ranong "canyon".

Ranong
As Ranong is the best place to stay a couple hours north or south (and has a certain charm) of the hot spring, adding some info on accommodation is by no means superfluous.

Besides this, Ranong is a good place to explore more hot springs (Phu Lum Phi, Porn Rang), waterfalls (Bokkrai, Punyaban, Ngao, Chum Saeng) and off-shore islands even with the possibility of diving.

There are also two hotels with connections to the hot springs. Jansom Hot Spa Ranong Hotel claims that it is the only hotel with a

'100% direct tap'

to the hot springs. Seeing it is located on the highway next to the turnoff to the hot springs, the claim seems credible.
On Agoda there is a photo of a mineral bath (indoor). However the guest reviews repeatedly point to the faded facilities that would require a nice renovation.

Tinidee Hotel Ranong receives better reviews (Agoda, tripadvisor, sawadee) and claims to have a mineral water pool.

We stayed at the new B Ranong Trend hotel which may have lacked the mineral connection but was so out of the ordinary ("modern retro"), that paying a visit here is certainly rewarding.

The art of folding hotel towels, just a preview of what to expect at B Ranong. What about the lights in the transparent flush reservoir of the toilet?

Getting there: Located not far from the highway, the hot spring is well signposted, not more than 2 km from the turnoff located next to a bridge.

Soaking experience: Though the focus is on hot springs, soaking is less customary practice ...

Overall impression: Despite the hype I had suspected it to be worse. in general well-developed and laid back, just wish there were better soaking facilities ...

The iconic Ranong hot spring image, wife looking for the bottom.

Notes:
[1] Pawanrat Saengsiriroj (2011) Hot Spring Goers: A Case Study of Raksawarin Hot Spring, Ranong Province, Thailand. Assumption University, Graduate School of Business, e-Journal, vol 4, March 2011. Assumption University, Bangkok, Thailand.
[2] Suwicha Komaladat (2010) Health tourism destination in Thailand: a case study of Raksawarin Hot Spring. International Journal of Leisure and Tourism Marketing, vol 1, no 3, pp 238-247. International Journal of Leisure and Tourism Marketing, Inderscience Publishers, Bucks, United Kingdom.

Not so samui?

Provincial bliss?
Surat Thani is a well established province for tourism, though the fact that all this tourism is concentrated on the boutique island resort of Samui and the full-moon party island of Phangan means that the mainland part of the province is often by-passed, neglected even.

Surat Thani town itself is another typical Thai provincial town: a transfer part to the rest of the province without much charm and acting as a center of purchase symbolized by the Tesco-Lotus or Big C. Nothing in common with either island mentioned before!

Anyway, there is another side to Surat Thani province; away from the coast are extensive jungles and a national park or two (including the upcoming national park destination of Khao Sok), while the coast fringe has it's own blend of fishing villages, agricultural communities and forests.

Into the unknown
Part of the provincial unknowns is the existence of quite a few hot springs. My own list had six links, most linking to the (temporarily defunct?) Thai geothermal database site.

More intense (and time consuming) searching revealed the following. There is Chaiya hot spring (or two), Kaper hot spring (at Kaeng Krung national park) , Bo Nam Ron, Khao Tok and Po Nam Ron (Kanchanadit).

Khawdee et al. (2007) actually list 9 unnamed hot springs within the province though with no names. They refer to Chaturongkawanich (2001) who studied 8 (?) hot springs in Surat Thani.

Finally, I did find a selected and translated Thai geothermal database on the Russian language site Горячие источники в Таиланде (Hot springs in Thailand). It lists seven hot spring sites in Surat Thani, three of which are in or near Chaiya, others listed are near Wat Tharnnamron (Tashang tambon, another link), Wanghin (Nasarn village) and Kauplu (Naderm village).

And then there's Tha Sathorn.

Disappearing
Complete with it's own Facebook page, Tha Sathorn is probably the best accessible hot spring, located not too far away from Surat Thani town. And it seems quite a bit of public funds have found their way to this soaking site. Entrance is free and it seems the natural spring has been transformed into a sterile park.

Other internet info from a blog entry by Andy. He adds that it also has pool, which may have evaporated since.
Bluechizont has another entry, but only in Thai language which appears to be Tha Sathorn, with pool as well. It also has more on another unnamed soak, looks a lot more pleasant too.
More photo's on panoramio, back when the site was less developed ...

Tourist information at Tha Sathorn.

Footy
One factor overlooked are signposts leading one to the hot spring. From the 401 from Surat Thani take the 4248 which tends to head to Tha Satorn town. After crossing the railroad near Tha Sathorn take a road inland for 1 or 2 km. In all honesty there are large billboards but with Thai language and hardly any pictures.

So after a couple of wrong turns and many questions asked, we arrive at the grand entrance on a hot day at a parking area with no shade, yea!

Is this it?

Possibly.

We walk to the left, past a building and something that looks like a ticket stall with no one around.

It's a Sunday and there are quite a few people milling around, an ice-cream stall is open. Beyond are changing rooms, modern but deserted, certainly none of the other visitors are using this.

Walk beyond this and there is a moat around a raised walkway. One can get on this walkway and within the circle is a large hot spring. We walk half way round this spring and once off the walkway on the opposite side is a 3m wide bassin, possibly a foot deep but shaded. Some locals are having a foot soak.

Perpendicular to this is another similar set up but with better shade and more people taking the waters.


Apparently that's all there is to this soak, a spring, two foot bassins and a walkway. Why the changing rooms?

Getting there: About 20 km from Surat Thani town down road 4248, turn away from the rails just before Tha Sathorn. Keep asking .....

Soaking experience: Apparently made for footbathing only.

Overall impression: Pro's: in general a nice place; con's: ai, it's been developed and turned into a hotspot. Not enough shade. And where are soakers supposed to soak?


Notes:
Khawdee, P., W. Lohawijarn, H. Duerrast (2007) Geophysical model of Ban Na Doem Hot-spring in Surat Thani Province, Thailand. Seventh National Graduate Research Conference. Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Thailand.

Thermophiles challenged

Directing development
Directing funds to tourist adventures sometimes leads to strange situations. Raksarawin hot spring of Ranong, Thailand, is an example of incessant funding, in this case leading it to be a tourism highlight. However, just down the road, Phu Lum Phi hot spring is left forlorn and undeveloped.

Untouched it's not, as there is evidence that some money might have flown here in the past. But as is very common in Southeast Asia the development was overestimated and whatever was dreamed of, didn't materialize. 

It would be interesting to see why some hot spring sites seem not to be too worried about financial inflows (for investment purpose's) whereas others are starved. Failure to adhere, initiate, political patronage?

D.I.Y.
Internet fails to shed some light on this hot spring, an odd case, as Ranong is synonymous with hot spring, note the singular use of the term.

Situated just off Ranong's major highway heading south, it is about 6 km from the city center on the inland side of the road. A blink and you will miss the turnoff (and signboard). Up this road it's only a km or so before one comes to a large grassfield with some scattered buildings around.

It is late afternoon and what seems like a pond has a few locals hanging around. Apparently some have just finished their bath, others have waited their turn (= joke). Other than these half dozen soakers there is not much to proof that this place is located near one of Thailands most visited hot springs. 

In front of us is a circular pool, to the right a toilet block with behind it a solid locked building. A fair walk away over the grassy field are some sala's while to the left are some more buildings without intention (?).



The toilet block functions as changing room. Local custom then implores one to squat around the hot pond and scoop water over oneself shower style. Oh and do remain dressed. Having a bucket give's the showeree (what's a soaker who only showers called?) the ability to let the hot water cool down before immersing oneself.

Getting there: Take the major highway south out of Ranong town and pay attention to tiny blue signboards along the road heading inland. Roughly 5-6 km outwards there's a small road which heads around a to be developed plot and heads into some secondary growth and straight close to the hot spring.



Soaking experience: A soak in the general sense is not to be had, a bak mandi (large scoop) enables a shower of sorts. Different but not necessarily rewarding.

Overall impression: A very rustic, down to earth place. The lack of development and visitors gives it an extra cachet, but in all honesty a visit here is only for thermophiles and even they might be challenged.

Soaking in the Shade

On the edge
Chumphon is a touristically underrated province in Thailand. Too far away from Bangkok to warrant a weekend trip, too close to make flying there practical. Back (and flash) packers are all on their way to Ko Tao, a veritable divers paradise slowly edging to high end boutique-ness.

However Chumphon sits on a deserted and sometimes exposed coast line. Far from the crowds, the beaches and islands are still mostly silent, falling victim to shrimp farms. But still there are enough places to get away from it all. The beaches of Thung Wualaen, Sairi, Tawan Chai, Thung Makham, Arounothai to name a few.

The hinterland is covered in lushly forested mountains with probably many great waterfalls but as of yet Chumphon's main accessible natural attractions are it's beaches and caves.

Tham Khao

Line up
And here we come to the hot springs. The hot springs of Tham Khao Plu are located at the foot of a limestone outcrop just short / past of the Chumphon's southern most district town of Lamae.

Most web sites dedicate their entries of this hot spring as follows:

'There are 3 hot spas here at the foot of the mountain slope. In the vicinity, there are also 4 caves with beautiful stalactites and stalagmites. Wildlife such as squirrels, pig-tailed monkeys and birds of different species are scattered around the area'.

Others add:

'Available of the private cabin to relaxing in the hot spring bathtub and pool area in the shade of trees'.

Though only a couple of hundred meters from the audible southern highway (no. 41), the double billing of caves and hot springs fails to draw in any crowds of substance (despite it's popularity) as the well-signposted attraction fails to even have a car park.

Raining, pouring, soaking?
Instead there's a rough terrain next to the entrance which functions as a sort of a place to leave behind your vehicle. It's raining. Pouring. No sign of letting up, nor whether or not a soak exists. Someone has to scout the area as we have only one umbrella. The umbrella is falling apart. Seeing that I'm the expert and the only willing volunteer, it's quickly determined that I will have to leave the dry car and trudge through puddles and seek a soaking place.

The spring in the forest. One of the three.

Past the empty entrance building, past a number of shop fronts, one comes to the foot of the karst. To the left is an enclosure which is a hot water source. Following the path one passes a toilet building next to a smaller bathing pool for which entrance may well cost 10 THB (US$ 0,30).

Hot pool

Beyond the pool is another hot spring well. The path continues and one can go up and into the mountain where a small shrine is in the cave mouth.
Further along the lower path is another pool, abandoned and another source. The path continues most probably to more caves but the rain remains relentless, so I choose to return.

Private
There is mention made of a private pools but I didn't see any. Probably one of the best web references is a Japanese language website (soma-samui) which has an entry on Tha Satorn hot spring in Surat Thani, Porn Rang in Ranong and Tham Khao Plu. It also has a reference to a flickr site. Which includes a photo of a private bath, not at all bad ...

The source

Getting there: Just 7 km south of Lamae trown, Tham Khao Plu is a not to be missed turnoff eastwards from the southern highway 41. From the turnoff it's about 500m followed by another north turn. Well signposted (for Thailand).

Soaking experience: Overall there's quite some effort has been put into the soaking facilities, let's make it a passable.

Overall impression: A nice break on a long journey, but the experience isn't special enough to warrant special attention, other than another opportunity to take a break rather than lounging at a petrol station.

p.s. the lead photo is of an abandoned pool ...

Wellcome

Wow
In all honesty there's not much to distinguish visit's to some of Thailand's hot springs from each other. Sometimes well signposted, sometimes not at all. They are all are designated to 'wow' the visitors, attract more tourists and line the pockets of local entrepreneurs and governments. That's the theory. In reality very low costing improvements have been put through, often resulting in nothing really enhancing. Or money has been thrown into sterilizing the surroundings resulting in high maintenance costs with no corresponding budgets.

Arguably it are those that develop organically that contain the most charm.

Election day
Nong Ya Plong is the name of a district in Phetchaburi province, southwest of Bangkok. Fifteen kms away from the sleepy district town, up towards the mountains along a winding and twisting road one arrives at a graveled car park flanked by a number of food stalls who on this July election sunday are looking forward to the visitors despite not being able serve alcohol. There is a sign saying

"wellcome to hotspring",

so this is it.

As the road was also heading to a waterfall, (7 km yonder), I inquire what happened to the road, believing a visit to a waterfall followed by a soak is an even better prospect, better than a soak alone. The road has a barrier gate over it and the answer given is that this is to avoid allowing cars like mine, non-four-wheel drive, entrance to the waterfall as the road is apparently too steep.

Star
Well, part of the plan shelved, let's look at the soak. A track leading down passes the amenities building and leads to a large star-like formed bassin which looks aesthetically nice if not for the large blue pipe hovering above the pool. The tap to this pipe is closed and as could be expected the water in the bassin is not warm.


Returning we quickly have a look at the bathing house, which in fact is a couple of tubs.

Bath building

Tag
Heading upwards from the car park is another cement path. We have hardly made it a couple of meters on this path after we are attached on by half a dozen small kids who, by the looks of it, are interested in selling us flower garlands. With no communication possible we continue with our taggers running around and between us.

The path goes up and over a hillock, then drops to a streamlet. Two large pipes are to be seen and both fell very hot.

We continue onwards and arrive at the actual springs. A wooden fence around a meter high wall with a tree in one point of the triangular shape fencing. Beyond are two small temples covered in flowers while down stream of the pond, underneath a tree, a small section of the stream has been cemented, cement stools added and thus one can soak one's feet in the very hot water.

The small temples add an unknown quantity / quality to these springs, as well as the fact that with the exception of some washing on the wooden fence, the area around the springs are immaculately clean.

The hot pond with temples beyond.

On a picnic table there's even an honesty box which the caretaker takes considerable effort to communicate this to us.

Captain says
On internet, the Phetechaburi travelguide mentions this as Punmaron hot spring:

'People have used the hot spring water in therapeutic baths to treat rheumatism and other ailments. The reservation eventually developed into a well-known resort because it attracted many health seekers all year round. Also, the hot spring area and surrounding mountains give a spectacular example of the forest ecosystem.Today there are two bathhouses and a service center to provide visitors with hot spring baths ...'.

Then there is Panoramio. A photo road trip by Captain Slash.

And? Your votes?

Getting there: From the main highway south take the 3340 towards Nong Ya Plong but just before town head west again. From here there are only about 100 signboards!

Soaking experience: No big tubs, sort of distracts from the soaking experience. Still are not fond of prisoner situations, 4 large walls, not even someone to talk to!

Overall impression: The place is very relaxed and down to earth. A soak is to be had as well as some insight in local life. A worthy stopover.

Thai's Top Ten

Having published a Top 10 list 18 months ago, I thought looking into whether or not much change has occurred might be worthwhile. With the usual nonobjective measurements (correct spelling / choice of web sites used / relative count) the following came out of the hat:

1 Fang (2)
2 Sankampaeng (3)
3 Betong (4)
4 Chiang Dao (-)
5 Tha Pae (1)
6 Hin Dat (5)
7 Klong Thom (10)
8 Chaiya (-) and Pong Duet (8)
10 Kapong (-) and Pha Bong (8)

Gone are Phra Ruang and Rock Valley; Phra Ruang is just outside the top 10, whereas I choose not to include Rock Valley as it has a very western name as opposed to all others having Thai names; it might just give it an unfair advantage.

Newcomers are the hot springs of Chiang Dao, Chaiya and Kapong, the latter two are certain surprises. The Chiang Dao area is getting more publicity lately and is near an unnamed hot spring.

Tha Pae drops considerably, while Klong Thom climbs a little.

Independently, Thai language magazine Places & Prices includes as it's best the hot springs of Fang, Sankampaeng, Tha Pae, Pong Duet, Jaeson and Raksawarin (Ranong), though they fail to share why they are the best.

My own top 5 visited would include Bor Klueng and Hin Dat, others I am not so sure of. To be honest, Thai hot springs are not really well tuned to either being natural/undisturbed or accustomed to soakers who might just want a hint of hygiene.

Certainly in my most desired would be Klong Thom, Jaeson, Sai Khao, Namki and Phu Klon. Let's see what the future will bring ...

Where else?

The baths of Nam Rong, Phetchabun

Phetchabun
Phetchabun province is not really well-known by foreign tourists, for instance the Lonely Planet has failed to include it at all!
That seems to be not so fair, in general it's a quiet, laid-back part of the country, fringed with some seriously beautiful mountains. Take an example of Tat Mok / Song Nang waterfalls. Elsewhere there is the historic park of Si Thep.
And of course some hot springs.

Besides Phu Toei 'hot' spring, Thailand Energy and Environment Network (TEEN) list a number of other hot springs in Phetchabun province, totallying 5, whereas Ramingwong et al. (1990) mention 4:

'The surface temperatures range from 35 to 47 C. and the discharges are generally small'.

Phu Kham hot spring
Despite traveling through the town of Phu Kham (or Pukham) there was not much evidence of a hot spring despite the TEEN listing. However this Thai language website begs to differ and translated it reports:

'This hot spring. Temperatures around 45-50 degrees Celsius does not smell of sulfur. Now being updated to a water supply system. In winter the village is taking a hot shower. Loosen the winter very well. Villagers believed that This is a hot spring wells from the holy fire.
...
Travelling by car
Si Thep from the Highway 21 straight through the intersection District Wichienburee Ban Phu Kham. Turn left and go 50 meters to the small junction. Turn right to the Thong Chai Wat Si. Will see a fountain'.

Wangkhasm hot spring
Despite TEEN listing no less than 2 hot springs (well, temperatures above 30C) in this village, they are the only reference. Could also be Wang K(h)am, though this also has no leads.

Nam Ron (Phetchabun) hot spring
Nam Ron translates as hot water and is an often used name in Thailand for a village with a hot spring. To distinguish itself Phetchabun is added, this village falling administratively under the provincial capital district.

TEEN notes it having waters with 50C, which would make it a hot spring.

The village is located on the crossroads of road 2385 and 2275, blink and you will miss it. There's a very small market and a bridge. On the west crossroads side of the bridge, there are two houses directly next to the stream. The back one has a large Welcome sign and is the hot spring.

However when I visited the facilities they were open despite there not being a soul around. Directly behind the entrance were about 7-8 bathrooms each with it's own tub.
A certificate was displayed concerning the presumed mineral quality of the waters (see photo below). Presumed, as the list contains no reference other than pH and chloride.

I nosed around but couldn't find anything that would help ascertain where or how there is a hot spring here, though locals distinctly pointed to this as being the place for a soak.

Additional info from Ellis (2011):

'In 1999 Dean Smart found several small hot springs in the river bank around the bridge in Ban Nam Ron. The water is very hot, but no holes were visible due to the muddy river water'.

Btw, not so far away (national park entrance @ 10 km) are the delicious waterfalls of Song Nang and Tat Mok in the Tat Mok National Park. Oh, I see I have already mentioned them ...


Nam Ron (Wichian Buri) hot spring?
Not on the TEEN list is another Nam Ron village.

Independently I went all the way to this Nam Ron village, 18 km of potholes east of Wichian Buri only to discover that the name had nothing to do with there actually being a spring despite Nam Ron translating as hot water. Huh?

Notes
Ellis, M. (2011) The Caves of Phetchabun. Takobi, Lom Sak, Phetchabun, Thailand.
Ramingwong, T., F. Suvagondha, W. Uttamo, S. Lerdthusnee, K. Wattananikorn, L. Jurasai, & C. Singhasenee (1990) Geothermal pre-feasibility study in the Phetchabun area of northern Thailand. Nippon Chinetsu Gakkaishi (Japan); 12: No. 3, 229-237 (25 Jul 1990).

Cool

Is it a spring?

ABC
Spelling Thai hot springs gives it's own problems. Phu Toei is just one of the many problems encountered with finding a hot spring. Alternatively I've seen this as Puteuay, Pu Toei, Puteu and Phu Thoei. Luckily it's a larger village and as such not so difficult to find (I wish).

Having had the opportunity to visit Phetchabun (or Phetchaboon or either without the h) over the past week, I decided to visit this hot spring, if only because it's along the main highway to the provincial capital. I actually was expecting some directions on how to find this place, but instead drove straight through the village and when asking around was eventually lead to a different village altogether (see upcoming blog entry). So I stopped on my way back to Bangkok.

Spa
The springs are apparently smack bang in the center of the large village, just behind a Chinese temple.

About half a hectare in size, a public park has been created and only recently renovated as it included many new-looking play and fitness apparatus. Well-maintained, there are a couple of ponds, none of which looked very hot.

At the back of the park is a modern looking spa and early morning I inquired if it was possible to bath. It was, but only if I would like to wait for 20 minutes. Probably so they could fill the tub? Flow must be a trickle. Anyway, no worries and 20 minutes later the tub was ready.
I was taken inside, received towels and disposable underwear (?) was directed to changing cubicle. Before changing though, showers were pointed out as well as a big modern jacuzzi, all inside and very clean and modern.

Well after donning the disposable underwear I had the jacuzzi for myself. Low and behold, it was cool water! Weird, maybe should have waited longer? Anyway nothing to be done about it, but to enjoy the bath.

Behind the veil

Cold?
Phu Toei certainly is noted for it's hot spring. That said, the Thailand Energy and Environment Network mention that the temperature of this spring as 32 C, which it wasn't. Elsewhere on their site they also imply the temperature as being 30 C, who knows maybe after more research they would have found out it was closer to 20 C which was what it felt like.

According to Erfurt-Cooper & Cooper (2009) this would mean it to be a cold spring, at best tepid (25-34 C).

Spring with pipes

There is not much real info on internet most seem to use the following text:

'It is a natural hot spring, emerging to the surface. The area has been developed into a health tourism attraction and a relaxing venue. There are daily services of mineral water bathing, spa, body massage, and foot massage provided from 9.00 a.m. – 8.00 p.m'.

This site includes at least a picture of the baths.

Getting there: From Bangkok take highway 21 towards Phetchabun from Saraburi. Phu Toei is located 44 km from the Chai Badan turnoff. The hot springs park is in the middle of town on the eastern side of the highway, partly hidden by a Chinese temple.

Soaking experience: This is the first place in Thailand where I have seen that facilities have been created expressly for bathing (and wellness) and run by a private company. The facilities were excellent as was the surrounding park. Pity that the water was not warmer ....

Overall impression: Excellent, if only the water had been hotter ...

Notes:
Erfurt-Cooper, P. & M. Cooper (2009) Health and Wellness Tourism. Spa and Hot Springs. Aspects of Tourism: 40. Channel View Publications, Bristol, United Kingdom.