TOUR OVERVIEW

Price From : 7,800 - 24,400 Baht 

Four days should be just enough to take in all the main attractions of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.  Do a mini trek through the jungle, visit a Karen hill tribe village, and the famed Golden Triangle meeting points of Laos, Burma, and Thailand!

TOUR DESCRIPTION

Day 1 - Chiang Mai City Culture Tour

Prepare to get up early because we'll need to catch the monks on their alms rounds first thing in the morning. Our guide will walk you through the steps of giving alms to the city's monks as they make their way around the old city collecting from the locals.  Following the almsgiving, we'll go west of the city climbing the mountain road to Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai's most famous temple. You'll be able to enjoy this temple in the cooler morning air, away from the crowds of the day. The grandeur of the numerous golden Buddha images and the majestic golden stupa may be found at this mountain temple. If the weather permits, you will be treated to breathtaking views of the city and beyond. We'll return down the mountain after Doi Suthep to sample a Thai-style breakfast at a local eatery. Later in the morning, we'll visit Wat Chedi Luang, which has one of the city's largest and most impressive stupas, and Wat Sri Suphan, which is located in the heart of the city's silver-making district on Wualia Rd. The Warorot Market (also known locally as Kad Luang) will be our final visit of the day. This commercial area has been home to market traders for hundreds of years. Among the profusion of products for sale, you will discover fresh and dried food items of all kinds. You may be happy to be returned to your hotel because you were awake so early; however, if you would want to continue your tour into the afternoon, we may arrange a visit to the Chiang Mai Art and Culture Museum. Chiang Mai's local museum is located in the city's center. This fully renovated museum features a number of exhibits that detail the old Lanna way of life.

Evening

The first evening will be spent at Chiang Mai's Old Cultural Center, where you will be treated to traditional northern Thai cuisine as well as traditional Thai and hill tribe dance performances.

Day 2 - One Day Mini Trek Mae Wang with elephant interaction

On day two, we'll pick you up from your Chiang Mai hotel and head out of town, up into the Mae Wang hills. If you are doing this trip on a Saturday we will of course stop by the colorful weekly Sanpatong Buffalo Market. The elephant camp will be our first stop in the Mae Wang area, where you will spend an hour with the elephants. You will be able to feed and bathe the elephants in the river. We will then travel to a Karen village (not long neck) where you may spend some time exploring before beginning our hike through the rice paddies and forest to Mae Wang Waterfall, which will take approximately 1.5 hours. If the water conditions allow, you are welcome to swim in the waters at the base of these falls. It will be time to head to the river after lunch so be prepared to take a wetting as the bamboo rafts make their journey down the river. You will be picked up by the waiting bus and brought back to Chiang Mai at the end of the rafting.

Day 3 - Doi Inthanon National Park

Doi Inthanon National Park will be visited on the third day of this tour. We will stop at Wat Prathat Sri Chom Tong, an important temple in the area that houses Buddhist relics, before beginning our journey into the park and up to the peak of Doi Inthanon, Thailand's highest mountain, where we will pause at the King and Queen Chedi's to take in the spectacular views of the park that these mountaintop chedis provide. You'll visit two of Inthanon's most stunning cascading waterfalls (Siritharn and Wachiritharn), a Karen hill tribal community, the Royal Project Research Station, and a rejuvenating nurturing walk around the Angkha Nature Trail at an altitude of roughly 2500 meters, where the flora and fauna are unique and the air is pleasantly cool. On the way down the mountain, we'll stop at a small Hmong hill tribe market to see some of the produce grow within the national park's boundaries.

Day 4 - Chiang Rai and Golden Triangle

On the fourth and last day of this 4-day package, we will travel north from Chiang Mai to see the famed sights of Chiang Rai.  Our first visit will be at Mae Khajan hot springs for some morning coffee and to boil an egg or two in the steaming hot spring water. The beautiful Wat Rong Khun, an immaculate ornate white temple inlaid with mirrored glass, will be the next destination. We'll then travel to Chiang Saen, which was formerly a significant northern Thai kingdom and trading post on the banks of the Mekong River. We'll stop at Wat Chedi Luang, one of the Chiang Saen period's oldest and best-preserved temples. From Chiang Saen, you can take a long tail boat ride down the Mekong to get a closer look into Burma, as well as a stop on Don Xao Island on the Laos side of the border. At the  Golden Triangle, you can take in the vista across the Mekong, to Laos and Myanmar (Burma). Following our visit to the Golden Triangle, we'll go to Thailand's furthest northern point, Mae Sai, for a wander through the bustling Mae Sai border market. On our trip back to Chiang Mai, we'll stop to view Yao, Akha, and a Karen long neck village if you choose that choice.

Note: You will be required to show your original passport if you want to take the boat ride on the Mekong to the Laos side. Please bring this with you if you want to take this option.