A missing French pensioner was found alive in a jungle after he spent the night in the Thai jungle.

Jacques Paul Alfred Moriceau, 72, had visited the French Consulate in Chiang Mai province on February 24, but became lost on his way home from the errand.

Concerned relatives called the tourist police after Jacques failed to return home that day. Officers traced the pensioner's route and found his phone and vehicle, which was empty of fuel, in the province's Doi Tao district. However, the man was nowhere in sight.

Police launched a search operation that lasted until late in the evening, with some 200 locals combing the area for the missing foreigner. They also deployed an infrared drone equipped with a thermal scanner to aid the search.

They finally found a fatigued Jacques early morning the next day, resting at an abandoned temple an hour's walk away from Doi Tao Lake. The septuagenarian had trekked through a difficult mountain road before finding a place to stay for the night.

Jacques had reportedly suffered a bout of Alzheimer's disease and forgot his way home in Hang Dong district. He allegedly drove until he ran out of fuel, and started to wander around after.

He said: 'I've been living in Thailand for 10 years now. On the day I visited the consulate, I suffered symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and lost my way home.

'I drove around 100 kilometres, got stuck in a pothole, and ran out of battery. I started walking around hoping to find help, but I got lost in the jungle.'

Jacques was sent to a nearby hospital to recover and have check-ups before being released.