5 days 4 nights
Specific Tour
14 people
English
Quick answer
A five-day private tour of northern Thailand starting and ending in Chiang Mai. It includes the Mae Ping River, Doi Suthep and Wat Pha Lat, a monk chat, craft villages, Singha Park, Chiang Rai by tuk tuk and a Mekong boat ride at the Golden Triangle.
From US$890 per person for the whole tour, based on 5-6 travellers sharing double rooms in 4★ hotels as listed (couples travelling alone pay a little more). It changes with hotel level, season and group size, and is confirmed in your tailor-made quote.
| Day | Route and highlights | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive in Chiang Mai, Ping River boat and Khantoke dinner | Chiang Mai |
| 2 | Botanic garden, Doi Suthep and a monk chat | Chiang Mai |
| 3 | Craft villages, Singha Park and Chiang Rai by tuk tuk | Chiang Rai |
| 4 | Golden Triangle, Mekong boat ride and Mae Sai | Chiang Rai |
| 5 | Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai airport | — |
Private tour with your own English-speaking guide · 5 days / 4 nights · Chiang Mai – Mae Ping River – Doi Suthep – Mae Rim – San Kamphaeng – Singha Park – Chiang Rai – Golden Triangle – Mae Sai – Chiang Mai
This Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai private tour covers the best of Thailand's north in five unhurried days. It begins with a bowl of khao soi, the region's famous curry noodle soup, and a longtail boat ride along the Mae Ping River, stopping at a farmer's house and its herb and fruit garden before a walk through Warorot, Chiang Mai's oldest market.
Over the next days you climb to the hilltop temple of Doi Suthep, find the quiet forest temple of Wat Pha Lat beside its waterfall, and sit down with monks at Wat Suan Dok to talk about Buddhism and meditation. You also visit the Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden and the craft villages where umbrellas, silver, silk and wood carvings are still made by hand.
In Chiang Rai a tuk tuk carries you past the golden clock tower and into the night market, and a full day on the Mekong takes you to the Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, and on to Mae Sai, the country's northernmost town.
Easy to moderate. Days are well paced, with light walking at temples and markets. The two road transfers between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai take about three hours each. Suitable for families with children over 10, couples and older travelers.
Four nights at 4-star hotels: Eurasia Chiang Mai (Cottage room) or similar for two nights, and SANN Hotel Chiang Rai (Superior room) or similar for two nights.
November to February is the best season in northern Thailand, with clear skies, cool mornings and comfortable days. March and April are hot and often hazy from agricultural burning. The rainy season, June to October, brings lush green hills and fewer visitors, with showers mostly in the afternoon.
Your guide and driver are yours alone for the whole trip, so the pace, the stops and the start time each morning follow you. The standard version has an English-speaking guide; guides who speak French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese or Vietnamese can be arranged on request.
More ideas: All private tours in Thailand · Rejuvenating Thailand: Bangkok Temples and Chiang Mai Spa Days in 6 Days · Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai: Tea Hills, Temples and Doi Inthanon in 8 Days · Unusual Thailand: Isan, Khmer Temples and the Mekong in 8 Days
Photos: Slleong, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons; Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; ผู้สร้างสรรค์ผลงาน/ส่งข้อมูลเก็บในคลังข้อมูลเสรีวิกิมีเดียคอมมอนส์ – เทวประภาส มากคล้าย, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Ddalbiez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Your guide meets you at Chiang Mai airport and takes you for a lunch of khao soi, the northern curry noodle soup. From Wat Chai Mongkol pier, ride a longtail boat for about 30 minutes along the Mae Ping River, past wooden houses and riverside gardens, and stop at a farmer's home to see the herbs, vegetables and fruit grown for the kitchen. Then walk to Warorot Market, the city's oldest and largest, for flowers, local food and daily life. In the evening, enjoy a Khantoke dinner with Lanna dances.
Overnight: Chiang Mai · Meals: L, D
In the morning, drive north to Mae Rim and the Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, Thailand's first international-standard botanic garden, with glasshouses of orchids and tropical plants and a canopy walkway through the treetops. After lunch at leisure, wind up the mountain road to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai's most sacred temple. Visit the quiet forest temple of Wat Pha Lat next to a waterfall, then sit with monks at Wat Suan Dok to learn about Buddhist life and meditation. In the evening, explore the Night Bazaar on your own.
Overnight: Chiang Mai · Meals: B
Visit the handicraft villages east of Chiang Mai, where artisans paint paper umbrellas, carve wood, work silver, weave silk and make jewelry. Then drive about three hours to Chiang Rai, stopping at Singha Park, a wide landscaped estate of tea plantations, lakes and flower gardens that you explore by electric tram or bicycle. In the evening, a tuk tuk takes you past the King Mengrai Monument and the golden clock tower, with its light-and-sound show, to the fresh market and the night market.
Overnight: Chiang Rai · Meals: B
Drive to the Golden Triangle on the banks of the Mekong, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. Visit the House of Opium museum, whose old pipes, scales and weights tell the history of the region. Then take an hour-long boat ride on the Mekong to enjoy the riverbank scenery. After a Thai set lunch at a local restaurant, continue to Mae Sai, Thailand's northernmost town, for a stroll through its busy market before returning to Chiang Rai.
Overnight: Chiang Rai · Meals: B, L
Enjoy a relaxed breakfast and free time until check-out at noon. Your private van then drives you back to Chiang Mai airport, about three hours, for your onward flight. If you have time, ask us about a stop at the White Temple on the way out of Chiang Rai.
Meals: B
No. The tour starts and ends at Chiang Mai airport, and flights to and from Chiang Mai are booked separately. We are happy to arrange them for you.
The two transfers between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai take about three hours each, broken up with stops. The Golden Triangle day includes about one hour of driving each way from Chiang Rai.
Yes. The longtail boat, the tuk tuk night ride, the Mekong boat and the monk chat keep the days varied, and there is free time each evening.
Yes. This is a private tour with your own English-speaking guide. We also arrange private guides who speak French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese or Vietnamese: tell us when you enquire and we confirm your guide in the quote. Book early for the December to April high season.
Nothing is payable until you approve your written quote. We then ask for a 30% deposit to confirm, and the balance 45 days before arrival, by bank transfer or card. Bank details come with your booking confirmation; always confirm them with us by phone or WhatsApp (+84 812 247 572) before any transfer.
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