Geography & Climate

Lying about 128 km west of Bangkok, Kanchanaburi (Kan or Kan'buri) is the country's third largest province after Chiang Mai and Nakhon Ratchasima with an area of 19,483 sq km. The province borders Myanmar, Tak and Uthai Thani to the north, Myanmar to the west, Suphanburi to the east and Ratchaburi and Nakhon Pathom to the south.

The province, which roughly lies along the valley of the Mae Klong River, is heavily forested (54.8% of total area) with Thailand's largest wildlife sanctuaries lying to the north. Unusual tooth-like limestone hills leading up to the border areas give the province an exotic look. Many of the country's most beautiful waterfalls and best-known cave formations can be found in Kanchanaburi. Dams have been built at the upper reaches of both the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai Rivers, creating large man-made lakes.

The town of Kanchanaburi, established during the reign of King Rama I, is located at the confluence of the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai Rivers, which merge to form the Mae Klong River in the south of the province. It was built to act as a first line of defence against Burmese invaders from the west. The town is the site of the famous railway bridge of World War II infamy that inspired the film "Bridge on the River Kwai" starring Alec Guinness. Although much of the province remains wild with some of the finest bamboo forests in Southeast Asia, vast tracts of land around the provincial seat are given over to sugar cane plantations.

Kanchanaburi has three seasons - cool, hot and rainy - as with other provinces in the central region. However, temperatures in Kanchanaburi can soar up to 40° C in the hot season, often several degrees hotter than Bangkok. The mean temperature for 1997 was 28.6° C. During the evenings, temperatures are considerably more pleasant and may be cool in mountainous areas. Annual rainfall in Kanchanaburi is also lower than most other provinces (670.0 mm in 1997).

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