Northern Thailand Discovery Tour
Northern Thailand Discovery Tour 7 days
This superb tour allows you to discover, in the best conditions, all the wonders of northern and central Thailand, including several highland ethnic minorities such as the Hmong, Akha, Palaung, and Padong; the country’s most beautiful Buddhist temples; isolated forest monasteries; exceptional landscapes and breathtaking panoramas; legendary rivers (the Mekong, the Ping River); the outstanding historic site of the royal capital of Chiang Saen; the famous Golden Triangle; and the kingdom’s most renowned cities (Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chiang Khong).
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Program
Day 1
- Arrival in Chiang Mai – Pick-up at the airport (time to be determined).
- Check-in at hotel - Open afternoon (relax, massage, etc.).
- Lan Na–style dinner (specific culture of northern Thailand) at Khum Khantoke with traditional Thai dances.
- Night in a 3 or 4 star hotel in Chiang Mai.
Day 2
- Breakfast at the hotel.
- Visit of the Chiang Mai region: tour of the forest monastery Wat Pha Lad, followed by the Doi Suthep temple with its golden chedi at 1,050 meters altitude (the most beautiful in northern Thailand – superb panorama!).
- Visit to the White Hmong village of Ban Khun Chang Khian and its magnificent coffee plantation at 1,500 meters altitude (arabica tasting).
- Lunch at Hmong village.
- Trip to the magnificent Huay Tung Tao lake at the bottom on the mountain (swimming is allowed). Return to hotel.
- Thaï dinner in Chiang Mai in a restaurant on the riverside.
- Night in a 3 or 4 star hotel in Chiang Mai.
Day 3
- Breakfast at the hotel.
- Day spent in our elephant camp in the heart of nature (rice fields, jungle): walking, feeding, bathing with the pachyderms, etc.
- Dinner and night at elephant preservation camp.
Jour 4
- Breakfast at elephant preservation camp.
- Drive toward the Golden Triangle. Numerous stops along the way: visit to the Chiang Dao caves with their remarkable Burmese Buddhas, Chinese villages, Doi Ang Kang Mountain, the Silver Palaung market (a Tibeto-Burmese people), high-altitude strawberry and flower plantations, and the Burmese border (former positions of soldiers fighting against opium traffickers).
- Superb panoramic views of Burma.
- Lunch at the top of Dol Ang Kan.
- Visit to a very authentic Black Lahu village.
- Arrival in the Akha Loimi village (a Tibeto-Burmese mountain people) in the heart of the Golden Triangle. Visit of the village and meeting with the Akha.
- Traditional dinner and evening in the village.
- Overnight stay in a bungalow in the village homestay.
Jour 5
- Breakfast in the homestay of the Akha Loimi village.
- Day dedicated to exploring the region (remarkable road with numerous panoramas, plantations, rice fields, etc.).
- Visit to the Burmese refugee village (Padong people, also known as the “long-neck” people).
- Lunch (Yunnan Chinese cuisine) in Mae Salong, an incredible little town built at high altitude by Kuomintang nationalist Chinese (former opium smugglers) in the 1960s.
- Visit tea plantations in altitude (possible to have a full tasting of different teas of the region).
- Drive to Chiang Khong (part of the road follows the Mekong – Stunning!). Stop at the very secluded teak forest temple (Wat Pha Sak) at the foot of the ancient wall of Chiang Saen, the former capital of the Lan Na kingdom.
- Thaï dinner in Chiang Kong on the Mékong river.
- Overnight stay in a hotel in Chiang Khong on the banks of the Mekong.
Jour 6
- Breakfast at the hotel.
- Morning: drive to the incredible forest monastery of the monkeys (a limestone site where a colony of wild Assam macaques lives and where Buddhist monks have set up meditation cells in the caves).
- Drive to Chiang Rai (99 km), along a scenic route with beautiful panoramas and many Hmong villages along the way.
- Thai buffet lunch in Chiang Rai.
- Afternoon – your choice:
- Visit to the famous “Black House,” a collection of incredible house-museums built by the eccentric artist Thawan Duchanee; or
- Rest in Chiang Rai (massage, pool, etc.). Thaï dinner and visit Chiang Rai night market. Night in a 3 or 4 star hotel in Chiang Rai.
Jour 7
- Breakfast at the hotel.
- Visit to the magnificent Blue Temple (Wat Rong Sua Ten), followed by the world-famous White Temple (Wat Rong Khun).
- Drive from Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai (186 km). Many possible stops along the way (hot springs, viewpoints, cafés, etc.).
- Thai lunch along the way.
- Dinner on your own in Chiang Mai.
- Night in a 3 or 4 star hotel in Chiang Mai.
- End of tour.
Rates
Price includes :
- * Accommodation for 7 nights (hotels + homestay in the village of Ban Loyo) in a double room
- - Chauffeur-driven vehicles
- - French speaking guide on day 4, 5, 6 and 7
- - A English speaking driver on day 2
- - All meals (except on day 7 - open dinner)
- - All activities and excursions
The price does not include :
- Dinner on day 7
- Personal insurance
- The drinks
- Personal expenses
- International and domestic flights.
Price: 43 500 THB
- - Guests wishing to have a single room must inform us in advance and pay a supplement.
