Classic Thailand

This tour itinerary for Thailand introduces you to many of the main sights in the North. We have designed a balanced itinerary to visit temples & important historical sites, view beautiful scenery & countryside, and learn about local life in the cities and remote border villages. The tour begins in the busy and bustling city of Bangkok, with a tour of the Grand Palace, and an afternoon long-tail boat trip through the peaceful canals of Thonburi, in the west of the city. From Bangkok, we visit a cemetery and museums in Kanchanaburi, home of the bridge on the River Kwai and some beautiful countryside. Also included here is a train journey to the Hellfire pass, where the railway was gouged through the rock by thousands of prisoners of war. Moving on from Kanchanaburi, our next stop is to tour the magnificent ruins at Ayutthaya, one of Thailand's former capitals. These mainly brick-built temples are spread out through parkland on a large island formed by the Chao Phraya & Lopburi Rivers, and formed the heart of one of the world's great cities. We leave Ayutthaya on the overnight sleeper train, heading north for Chiang Mai, where we tour the hilltop temple of Doi Suthep on the outskirts of the city, enjoy a traditional evening Kantoke dinner, and have some free time to try a cooking course or more sightseeing. Also included is a day trip to tour the sacred Wat Phra That Lampan Luang temple complex at Lampang, which we combine with a stop at an ethically run Elephant Conservation centre. Our final destination on the tour is Chiang Rai and the famous Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet. We reach Chiang Rai by way of an exciting long-tail boat trip down the Mae Kok river, and include a day-trip to Yao and Akha hill-tribe villages, and the border town of Mae Sai as well as some free time to visit more sites or relax in the resort. The tour ends with a flight back to Bangkok. This is a sample private tour itinerary and we can customise the daily itinerary, duration and accommodation levels and styles as much or as little as you wish. 4 to 5-star hotels River camp Sleeper train