Tham Krasae Railway Bridge

Tham Krasae, also known as the Wang Pho Viaduct, is a wooden trestle bridge on the Death Railway about 55 km northwest of Kanchanaburi town, where the line curves along a sheer cliff face above the Khwae Noi River. It’s a different structure from the steel Bridge on the River Kwai in town — this one is the more dramatic stretch of track, built directly into rock rather than spanning open water.

Japanese engineers and Allied POW and Asian forced labourers built the trestle in just 17 days in 1943, part of a 415 km railway pushed through from Thailand to Burma to supply Japanese forces — a project that killed an estimated 90,000 forced labourers and over 12,000 Allied POWs from disease, starvation, and brutal treatment. The section through Tham Krasae is one of the line’s most exposed and difficult builds, the timber trestle squeezed onto a narrow ledge between rock and river.

Trains still run the route today, crossing the viaduct at walking pace several times a day — slow enough that visitors standing on the bridge have time to step to the side rail as one passes. Krasae Cave sits directly beside the tracks partway along; it was used as a shelter and field hospital during construction and now holds a Buddha image and a small shrine. From the cave mouth and the bridge itself, the view runs straight down the river gorge, forest climbing the opposite bank.

Riding the train across is the way most visitors experience it, boarding at Kanchanaburi or Nam Tok station, but the bridge and cave are also reachable and free to walk on their own outside train times.

Insider Tip: Time your visit around a train crossing rather than just the site itself — check the current schedule at Kanchanaburi station before setting out, since it’s the trestle in motion, not just the timber, that makes the stop worth it.

Watch out: There’s no barrier between the walkway and the drop to the river below. Keep clear of the rails when a train is due, and mind young children closely on the open sections.

Getting There

Tham Krasae Railway Bridge is located at Lum Sum, Sai Yok District, Kanchanaburi 71150, close to Sai Yok National Park. View on Google Maps.