Short trips from Bangkok and Chiang Mai, Thailand

3-Day Bangkok Stopover - Operates Daily

Day 1:
We arrive in Bangkok late this evening, where we are met and transferred to our hotel in the downtown area.

Day 2:
A half-day tour of the city and some of its most important sights has been arranged for us today – including visits to the Marble Temple as well as the famous statue of the Reclining Buddha. We can join this tour either in the morning (8.30 AM to 12 noon) or in the afternoon (1.30 PM – 5 PM). This evening, reservations have been made for us for a traditional Thai Dinner and a cultural performance. A mouth-watering array of exotic food in multiple courses is served along with a show of classical and regional Thai dances.

Prices, valid until 27 December 2007, include roundtrip airport transfers, accommodation with all applicable taxes, daily Breakfast Buffet (2) and 1  Dinner, guided tours with all entrance fees. Prices are per person, based on twin-share occupancy; single occupancy carries a 100% surcharge.

4-Day Bangkok Stopover - Operates Daily

Day 1:
We arrive in Bangkok late this evening, where we are met and transferred to our hotel in the downtown area.

Day 2:
A half-day tour of the city and some of its most important sights has been arranged for us today – including visits to the Marble Temple as well as the famous statue of the Reclining Buddha. We can join this tour either in the morning (8.30 AM to 12 noon) or in the afternoon (1.30 PM – 5 PM). This evening, reservations have been made for us for a traditional Thai Dinner and a cultural performance. A mouth-watering array of exotic food in multiple courses is served along with a show of classical and regional Thai dances.

Day 3:
After an early breakfast this morning we join our full-day tour of the countryside around Bangkok. Our first stop will be at the ‘floating market’ of Damnoern Saduak, about 70 miles away from the city. Vendors (and customers) get around in narrow paddleboats, laden high with colorful produce from all around the country – an amazing sight and surely a photographer’s delight. Later, we visit the giant pagoda at Nakhorn Pathorn followed by lunch at the Rose Garden, where we have an opportunity to watch some of Thailand’s typical sports (e.g. kick boxing) and cultural performances. We return to Bangkok around 6 PM and the evening is free for us to enjoy on our own.

Grand Palace, Bangkok

Prices, valid until 27 December 2007, include roundtrip airport transfers, accommodation with all applicable taxes, daily Breakfast Buffet (3) and 1 Lunch plus 1 Dinner, guided tours with all entrance fees. Prices are per person, based on twin-share occupancy; single occupancy carries a 100% surcharge.

5-Day Tour of Bangkok & North Thailand (Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai) - Operates Daily

Day 1:  
We arrive in Bangkok late this evening, where we are met and transferred to our hotel in the downtown area.

Day 2:
A half-day tour of the city and some of its most important sights has been arranged for us today – including visits to the Marble Temple as well as the famous statue of the Reclining Buddha. We can join this tour either in the morning (8.30 AM to 12 noon) or in the afternoon (1.30 PM – 5 PM). This evening, reservations have been made for us for a traditional Thai Dinner and a cultural performance. A mouth-watering array of exotic food in multiple courses is served along with a show of classical and regional Thai dances.

Day 3:
After an early breakfast this morning we will be transferred to the airport for our flight to Chiang Mai in the North of Thailand. After being transferred to our hotel we can have a brief rest before joining our half day tour visiting some of the most interesting sights in Chiang Mai: temples such as Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Suan Dok with their traditional architecture. We then leave the city, the road winds up its way through the mountains until we reach Wat Doi Suthep, located 3000 ft. above sea level with a panoramic view of Chiang Mai and the surrounding areas. Returning to our hotel late this afternoon, we have a free evening – we can relax at the hotel or go check out the fascinating night market which is famous in Chiang Mai.

Day 4:
We leave Chiang Mai after breakfast and drive to Chiang Dao where we stop for a short break and walk around the main town-square. Our next stop will be In Thatorn, a small village just a few miles from the Burmese border. After lunch we board traditional Thai ‘long boats’ (named due to their long and narrow design) for an interesting five-hour journey down the Kok River, passing tiny hilltribe villages, bamboo huts and dense jungle. We stop at Mae Salah, a river check point, pass a few rapids and then visit a Lahu hilltribe village. Before reaching Chiang Rai we visit a cave housing several statues of Buddha. We spend the night in Chiang Rai.

Royal barges & Grand Palace, Bangkok

Prices, valid until 27 December 2007, include roundtrip domestic airfare in Thailand, all airport transfers, accommodation with all applicable taxes, daily Breakfast Buffet (4) and 1 Lunch plus 1 Dinner, guided tours with all entrance fees. Prices are per person, based on twin-share occupancy; single occupancy carries a 100% surcharge. Please note that in Chiang Rai you will be accommodated at the same hotel, regardless of the category booked. 

6-Day Bangkok & North Thailand Tour (Chiang Mai and the Hilltribe Lodge)  -  Operates Daily

Day 1:  
We arrive in Bangkok late this evening, where we are met and transferred to our hotel in the downtown area.

Day 2:
A half-day tour of the city and some of its most important sights has been arranged for us today – including visits to the Marble Temple as well as the famous statue of the Reclining Buddha. We can join this tour either in the morning (8.30 AM to 12 noon) or in the afternoon (1.30 PM – 5 PM). This evening, reservations have been made for us for a traditional Thai Dinner and a cultural performance. A mouth-watering array of exotic food in multiple courses is served along with a show of classical and regional Thai dances.

Day 3:
After an early breakfast this morning we will be transferred to the airport for our flight to Chiang Mai in the North of Thailand. After being transferred to our hotel we can have a brief rest before joining our half day tour visiting some of the most interesting sights in Chiang Mai: temples such as Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Suan Dok with their traditional architecture. We then leave the city, the road winds up its way through the mountains until we reach Wat Doi Suthep, located 3000 ft. above sea level with a panoramic view of Chiang Mai and the surrounding areas. Returning to our hotel late this afternoon, we have a free evening – we can relax at the hotel or go check out the fascinating night market which is famous in Chiang Mai.

Day 4:
In Thailand, as in other developing countries, elephants are used as ‘working animals’ – they ‘work’ as natural bulldozers or road haulers, mostly in the logging industry. After breakfast this morning, we leave Chiang Mai and drive to a site, where we can see trained elephants at work (and play, as they frolic in the river while having a bath)! After lunch at the Mae Saa Valley Resort we continue to Ban Hong Hoi Mai and Ban Meo Mae Ki, two villages populated by Hmong hill-tribes. We learn more about their local customs and life in the village before checking in at the Hilltribe Lodge, where we spend the night. After a free afternoon a barbeque dinner is served to us followed by a presentation of Hmong dances.

Day 5:
An exciting trip awaits us after breakfast today. We participate in a 2 hour elephant-back safari through the jungle surroundings near the lodge and get an excellent view of the flora and fauna from a vantage viewpoint perched on top of an elephant! We return to the lodge and after lunch leave for Ban Tawai, famous for its handicraft workshops. In the evening we return to Chiang Mai.

A young Thai dancer

Prices, valid until 27 December 2003, include roundtrip domestic airfare in Thailand, all airport transfers, accommodation with all applicable taxes, daily Breakfast Buffet (5), and 2 Luches plus 2 Dinners, guided tours with all entrance fees. Prices are per person, based on twin-share occupancy; single occupancy carries a 100% surcharge.