Itti Base (Weapon Museum)

Itti Base is an open-air weapons museum in Khao Kho district, built around recovered hardware from the Thai government’s campaign against the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT), which held parts of Khao Kho and the neighbouring Phu Hin Rong Kla area from 1965 to 1982. Entry is 10 THB, daily 07:00-17:00.

The base takes its name from Colonel Itthi Simaraksa, who led the 1981 operation that finally recaptured Khao Kho from CPT insurgents, effectively ending the district’s role as a communist stronghold. What’s on the ground today reflects that history directly: an F-5 fighter jet, armoured personnel carriers, and 105mm artillery sit in the open air, alongside tanks and bunkers positioned across the grounds. Indoor exhibition rooms hold uniforms, captured communist weapons and equipment, and information panels walking through the sequence of the Khao Kho fighting.

This isn’t a polished, air-conditioned museum experience — it’s a working memorial site where hardware sits outdoors in the Phetchabun mountain climate, and the presentation leans toward documentary fact over curated storytelling. Group visits reportedly get staff narration and a documentary screening on request; solo visitors follow marked paths between the outdoor vehicles and the indoor rooms at their own pace.

Insider Tip: Itti Base is one of three Khao Kho sites tied to the same conflict — combine it with the Haw Chinese War Memorial and the Khao Kho Sacrificial Monument for a fuller picture, since each covers a different angle: recovered ordnance here, the Chin Haw volunteers there, and the broader memorial to Thai soldiers and officials at the third.

Watch out: The outdoor vehicles and artillery sit exposed to full sun with little shade — visit early morning if you’re doing the museum on foot in the hot season, and bring water.

The museum sits within Phetchabun’s Khao Kho highland area, reached by the same mountain roads as the district’s other insurgency-era sites and viewpoints.