In 2018, 12 young footballers and their coach were trapped by rising water in the twisted depths of Tham Luang cave, triggering a drama that drew worldwide attention.
Experts from around the globe flew in for a rescue mission that lasted 17 long days, before the boys were finally found by two British divers.
Now, a new tourist attraction in Tham Luang National Park will offer visitors an immersive experience of that heroic mission, taking them deeper than any simple museum memorial.
Index Creative Village Pcl has invested over 1 billion baht to create “THE CAVENTURE” on a 20-rai plot, aiming to draw more than 500,000 Thai and foreign tourists throughout the year.
The project is set to become a new tourism landmark in the Tham Luang National Park-Khun Nam Nang Non area, generating over 300 million baht per year.
“In June 2018, the incident at Tham Luang in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province became world famous for the rescue mission to save 13 lives,” said Kriangkrai Kanjanapokin, founder and CEO of Index Creative Village Group.
“The mission was difficult and dangerous, requiring the cooperation of the Thai government, private sector, and international experts from many countries. The world was watching this rescue mission and desperate to see all 13 lives saved.”
Kriangkrai said the cave drama had turned Tham Luang National Park into a tourism magnet in Chiang Rai. Its popularity was boosted further by the recent release of ‘Thirteen Lives’, a movie based on the true story.
“However, the national park does not allow people to visit inside the cave due to limited parking facilities to handle the high tourist demand,” he added.
Instead, tourists will be able to plunge into the depths of the Tham Luang drama at THE CAVENTURE, where the clothes, bikes and other objects from the rescue mission will be on display. Tourists will experience what the 13 boys went through amid the rising water level and pitch-black darkness of the cave. They will also experience the mission through the point of view of the Navy Seals and divers, learning about rescue methods and the high-tech equipment used to locate and rescue the boys.
THE CAVENTURE is located an hour’s drive from Chiang Rai international airport in Pong Pha, Mae Sai district and is due to launch at the end of 2023.
