Bangkok – Chiang Rai – Chiang Mai – Phuket

This subtle journey allows you to discover the wonderful Land of Smiles, learn about the life of the villagers lost in the hills north, admire the bamboo forest from the back of a mighty elephant, navigate a maze of river channels, the capital of the Kingdom of Thailand and visit the holiest place of the Rose of the North, hidden among the mountains of Chiang Mai.

This trip around Thailand is crowned by a stay on the island of Phuket, known as the pearl of the Andaman Sea, the wonderful beaches will allow guests to experience a rest before saying goodbye Land of Smiles.

Day 1. Arrive in Bangkok
After arriving in Bangkok, guests will be greeted by a guide and transported by an air-conditioned car to the hotel. The rest of the day is devoted to rest. Overnight at Hotel Oriental in the Thai capital.

Day 2. Bangkok
After breakfast, guests venture to the south of the province of Samut Songkram Bangkok. The first stop on the trip will be a remarkable country market stretching along the railway tracks, and then market Tha Kha, one of the many floating fairs in the area.

Guests will flow along river channels to meet a friendly local family with whom they drink a glass of coconut sugar syrup. The they continue the cruise through the maze of canals to the capital city of Thailand, and will visit several Buddhist temples, before they reach their destination – the King Rama II Park, where a traditional Thai pavilion houses a museum.

Warning: local fairs are held only four or five times a month, depending on the phases of the moon. If the second day of the expedition fair will be closed, the organizers will offer other attractions.

After the tour, guests return to the hotel Oriental in Bangkok, where they will spend the night.

Day 3. Bangkok
After breakfast, the expedition will travel north to the ancient city of Ayutthaya, where they will watch the ruins of the three major temples in Ayutthaya historical park. Then they will visit the royal summer palace of Bang Pa Inn, built by King Rama IV in times of rising influence of Europe.

With the royal residence, guests will go on board the ship “Horizon Cruiser”, owned by the hotel chain Shangri La, where, during the return trip to Bangkok delicious lunch will be served. Late in the afternoon, after reaching the capital city of Thailand, guests return to the hotel Oriental, where they will spend the night.

Day 4. Bangkok – Chiang Rai
After breakfast, and ample time for rest, you will be taken to the airport in Bangkok, where you will fly to Chiang Rai. Spend the night at Anantara Resort & Spa Golden Triangle.

Day 5. Chiang Rai
In the morning, after breakfast, guests will ride elephants with a guide, and will traverse the bamboo forest and pasture, to observe the animals that live there. The aim of the trip will be Ruak River on the border of Burma, where guests board a long boat. Guests will sail the Ruak River, which flows into the mighty Mekong to the Laotian island of Don Sao. There they Can take the wagon drawn by oxen and set off on a 40-minute ride through the rice fields and farmland. They will stop for a picnic, and then will go to the Akha mountain village on the top of Doi Sa Ngo, where they will be able to observe local people’s lives, as well as enjoy the magnificent view of the Mekong.

Another point of interest is located on the steep banks of the Mekong River in Chiang Saen city, the former capital of Siam from the year 1260. After visiting Chiang Saen, guests return to the hotel Anantara Resort & Spa Golden Triangle, where they will spend the night.

Day 6. Chiang Rai – Chiang Mai
On this day, after breakfast is planned is a trip to an altitude of 2,000 m. above sea level, the Doi Tung region, and along the way a visit to the mountain villages. In the past the area around Doi Tung was forest, it was destroyed by cultivators.

In 1987 the will of the monarch’s mother established the Doi Tung Development Project to protect the environment of the region, eradicate the cultivation of opium and encourage farmers to more intelligently till the soil. Guests will visit the gardens full of flowering plants Mae Fah Luang, where they will go to a temple on a hilltop temple Wat Phrathat Doi Tung, considered by residents of Chiang Rai and nearby provinces as the most sacred shrine. The temple was built 911 years ago, it is believed inside it rests the collarbone of the Buddha. In the evening, guests will travel to Chiang Mai, where they will spend the night.

Day 7. Chiang Mai
After breakfast, guests will go on a half-day trip to the studios Naenna to see an exhibition of the foremost fabric of Southeast Asia. Studio Naenna is a promotional group of weavers formed in 1986 in northern Thailand. This group, known as the Weavers for the Environment, was organized by Patricia Cheesman Naenna, an expert on ancient Thai and Lao fabrics.

The next point of the trip will explore Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, built in 1384, surrounded by the greatest reverence temple of northern Thailand, where guests will see one of the holiest shrines in Thailand. Situated on a hill (1,050 m. above sea level), the temple offers panoramic views of the entire city, turning it into a great place to take pictures. In the afternoon, members of the expedition will be able to explore at their own pace the northern capital of Thailand. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 8. Chiang Mai
In the morning, after breakfast, guests will travel through the picturesque countryside of Chiang Mai to Mae Kampong village in the Mae On district. Along the way, they will stop at the local market to select ingredients for their lunch. In the village of Mae Kampong they will be welcomed by the people, and then they go for a walk on the forest paths near the plantations of coffee and tea.

After returning to the village guests will observe the local family preparing for their traditional country meal with their previously purchased ingredients. After lunch, rest and traditional Thai massage and then walk around the village, during which guests will be able to observe the processing of fermented tea leaves and the formation of local handicrafts. Late in the afternoon you will venture back through the mountains to Chiang Mai, where you will spend the night.

Day 9. Chiang Mai – Phuket
After breakfast, provided time to rest. Then you will be taken to Chiang Mai Airport and fly to the island of Phuket. After landing you will be taken to the hotel where you will spend the night.

Day 10 – 13. Stay on the island of Phuket
These three days of the expedition you will pass resting on a wonderful beach, where guests spend the night in a hotel on the island of Phuket. Every morning, breakfast will be served.

Day 14. Departure from the island of Phuket
After breakfast, guests will be transported to Phuket Airport.

The price includes accommodation in selected hotels, all of the meals, tours and transport by air-conditioned car in the care of an English-speaking or French-speaking guide and entrance fees to those in the program.

In price are not included meals and services other than those mentioned, laundry, telephone calls and personal spending, tickets for domestic flight connections from Bangkok (BKK) – Chiang Rai (CEI) (Thai Airways) / Chiang Mai (CNX) – Phuket ( HKT) (Thai Airways), as well as tips and travel insurance.