MAE FAH LUANG ARBORETUM
On Doi Chang Mub

Doi Chang Mub, the site of the Mae Fah Luang Arboretum, is the highest peak of the Nang Non mountain range on the Thai-Myanmar border. It provides an ideal vantage point from which to enjoy a spectacular 360- degree view overlooking the Doi Tung project area, the Golden Triangle and the Mekong River as it winds its way through the valley, bordered by the mountain ranges of Myanmar, Lao PDR and Thailand.

Prior to the establishment of the Doi Tung Development Project, Doi Chang Mub had been stripped bare of its primeval forest cover. The cross-border ‘opium trail’ also led through the area. Hence in 1992, as part of a strategic plan to address these problems, the development of the Mae Fah Luang Arboretum was initiated in an effort to halt and eradicate the trade in opium and opiates and restore the environment.

Conceptualised as a place for visitors to study the native flora and a nature-based ecotourism attraction, the site of the 250-rai arboretum is situated in the midst of indigenous evergreen mountain pine forests and planted with a great diversity of plant species including a variety of rare plants, Rhododendrons from Asia, Europe, North America and Australia, Nang Phraya Seua Krong or Prunus cerasoides sp, a rosaceae tree, Mountain Ebony or St Thomas tree, and other cool climate and temperate zone flora that thrive at an altitude of 1,500 metres above sea-level.

Following the rehabilitation of forestlands, native birds and mammals have now returned to their former natural habitats. In the shade of the forest cover, wild orchids and a variety of other epiphytic plants, such as the Euang Ta Hen, Euang Ngoen and Mon Kai, attach themselves to branches and flourish. Fresh air and the scent of mountain pine and other flora linger in the air.

A spring, named Tan Nam Pra Tai or Her Royal Kindness, flows down Doi Chang Mub, and is symbolic of the infinite kindness and benevolence of HRH the Princess Mother; the benefits of her work spread far and wide like the streams that flow from the Doi Tung watershed to nurture the lowland plains.

The Arboretum is open daily from 07.00 - 17.00.

Phra That Doi Tung
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