Depart Chiang Mai every day with a minimum of 2 persons.
Day 01 Chiang Mai/Pai (Lunch)
Depart Chiang Mai for the picturesque town of Pai
En route listen to birdsong, study rain forest trees, and admire the impressive Mork Fa Waterfall (35 metres high). Proceed to one of Thailand’s highly respected Royal Projects, devoted to rural development through a nationwide network of village-based communities. Amongst other commendable activities is the substitution of opium production with high quality coffee plantations. Spend time discovering a small but interesting Karen village, rarely visited by foreigners, and learn about their fascinating hill tribe culture.
Lunch at a cozy restaurant.
After lunch, visit Pong Duet Hot Springs, where thermal water bubbles to the surface. Enjoy a pleasant 800 metre walk to see geysers spout jets of water up to two metres high. Continue to Pai, a small and charming district, and check in at the pleasant and comfortable Belle Villa Resort for 2 nights.
Visit Pai Canyon to enjoy the sunset, and proceed to the Walking Street Market to shop for souvenirs, handicrafts, T-shirts and local produce. Free time to enjoy dinner at a restaurant of your choice, and transfer back to the hotel.
Day 02 Pai (Breakfast & lunch)
Breakfast at the hotel.
This morning, experience a novel and highly enjoyable ‘bareback jumbo experience’ without howdah - a two hour elephant ride, including a highly entertaining swim together with the pachyderms. Conclude with a delightfully refreshing soak in a small pool fed by the natural hot spring. After a well-earned tasty lunch at a riverside restaurant, admire the temple of Wat Nam Hoo, where a sacred Chiang Saen style Buddha image is kept, called 'Lunag Po Une Muang'. The head of the image is hollow, and contains holy water. The temple was built by King Narusuan the Great as a memorial shrine to his older sister Her Royal Highness Supankalaya. Proceed to visit something rarely seen by outsiders - a KMT community (Kuomintang Chinese) who fled the communist uprising in China and settled here via Laos and Myanmar with permission from the Thai government. To end the day, enjoy a leisurely bicycle ride to explore this pleasant and tranquil area.
Dinner at the restaurant in the hotel.
Day 03 Pai/Chiang Mai (B & L)
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning at leisure for shopping, or just relaxing by the swimming pool.
Lunch at the hotel.
Depart for the 2½ - hour journey back to Chiang Mai where the tour concludes.
Price: Baht 13,900 per person in sharing twin/double.
(Valid until October 31, 2013)
The tour price includes private microbus, service of English-speaking guide throughout, one deluxe cottage with private bath for 2 nights at Belle Villa, meals as specified, and entrance or admission fees to all places mentioned in the programme.
