Day 1: Arrival in Chiang Mai – Doi Suthep Temple tour (D)
Upon your arrival at the airport, meet our representative depending on destination – they will be holding a sign with your surname. Enjoy a convenient, hassle-free transfer to your accommodation.
Today, head half-way up Doi Suthep – the mountain that towers over the city of Chiang Mai – to find the highly revered Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. A visit here is an absolute must for first-time visitors, and part of the allure is in the journey getting here. Make the exciting drive up along the long and winding road to enjoy a surprisingly cooling of the surrounding air as you ascend. Arrive at the temple and leave the car behind to start the walk up to the top. Opt to conquer the 300 steps, or swap two feet for a cable car instead. At the top, explore the central chedi adorned in golden flakes, renowned for its glittering façade under the mid-day sun. The architecture, statues, murals, and shrines seen here are nothing short of breathtaking and promise commanding views over the surrounding wilderness.
Late afternoon, drive to the Old Cultural Centre to get a taste of what makes northern Thai food distinctive and famous even among Thailand’s iconic cuisine. Tonight’s outing is your chance to experience a unique and rather delicious Thai custom, the ‘Khantoke’ dinner. Served in large platters on low tables, enjoy a selection of iconic Northern-style dishes, including spicy chili dip with steamed vegetables, crispy pork skin, fried chicken wings, spicy sausage, and the classic Burmese-inspired pork curry. During your meal, enjoy a line-up of live dance and music performances by members of surrounding ethnic hill tribes, including Karen, Hmong, Lahu, Akha, Mien, and Lisu. To cap off a memorable night, you’re invited to join in with the final act called ‘Ramwong’, where you can dance, smile, and laugh alongside the local performers.
Day 2: Chang Chill Elephant and Chiangmai Night Bike tour private (B/L)
Spend an enlightening day at an ethical elephant camp. Drive an hour and a half from Chiang Mai to Chang Chill, a sanctuary that has spent the last few years working with World Animal Protection and leading travel companies to transform into a truly elephant-friendly venue. Upon arrival, staff members will present an introduction of the sanctuary’s past, its transition process, its current programs, and its vision for the future. Follow the guide on a path through the forest to watch the elephants from a safe distance. For ethical reasons the guides will explain that visitors here aren’t allowed to interact with the elephants, instead observing them in their natural habitats, grazing and socialising without human disruptions. Listen to a “live lecture” along the way to learn some new facts about the needs, behaviours, and conservation of Asian Elephants. Stop at a rest station to enjoy some traditional Thai refreshments. Just below the rest station is a mud pit where the elephant’s bath and play during hot days. Enjoy the snacks and watch the elephants splash around in the mud. Move on to the riverside sala to learn about elephant enrichment and assist staff with filling feeding tubes up with yummy healthy treats and supplements like bananas, corn, and grass. After preparing food for the elephants, dig into a human lunch of Thai vegetarian food on the elephant observation deck. Enjoy the view from here of the elephants eating their own meals. Visit the Karen Cultural Centre after lunch to get to know the history and culture of the Karen community. Finish the epic day with a recap of elephant conservation and an illuminating brainstorm session about how to continue the mission outside of Thailand.
Your evening tour begins at our meeting point at Grasshopper shop at 6:00 pm. After a quick fitting and briefing, we pedal away in the sabai way (Thai for ‘being chilled out’). On the way towards Chiang Mai’s old city eastern gate, Tha Phae Gate, we will cycle the old city’s quaint lanes. At the beautifully restored gate, you will learn about Chiang Mai’s fascinating history as a trading hub. Pedaling the twisting streets of the old city, the next stop is Wat Intakhin. Here you can admire its serene 700-hundred-year-old white Buddha and the Three Kings Monument and learn about Chiang Mai’s founding fathers. From here, cycle to the city moat. Leaving the bikes by the side of the moat, walk across to Wat Lok Molee, visiting its beautifully illuminated stupa and ornate wooden prayer hall. At this time of day, you have a good chance of hearing the monks chanting their prayers. The next stop is Chiang Mai’s grandest monument, Wat Chedi Luang. It was built to house the ashes of a king and was once the home of the Emerald Buddha. It is now the home of the City Pillar and three auspicious trees, which are believed to provide protection to the city. For the last stop, we will delve into a little food tour of the Chiang Mai Gate Market. As you walk through the market, your guide will point out the different types of street food available. After selecting a few dishes to sample, sit down for a drink and snack with your guide and enjoy the night market atmosphere. It is just a hop, skip and jump from the Chiang Mai Gate Market back to the meeting point, but we will ride our bikes anyway. After finishing the tour, you can always go back to the market to explore more of the street food delicacies. Please Note: Thailand day tours will not operate April 13th to 15th over the annual Songkran (water festival) holidays. We will resume tours April 16th after our guides have enjoyed a well-deserved break. Sorry for any inconvenience and enjoy the celebrations.
Day 3: Chiang Rai Day tour (B/L)
This one-day tour will take you to drive up to the part of northernmost in Thailand which known as a land of outstanding natural beauty. Start with departing to Chiang Rai in the early morning and make a short break at Mae Khachan Hot Spring, stretch your legs and relax with the greenery scene behind you. Continues to visit a breathtakingly Wat Rong Khun which is known as White Temple where this completely white and majestic temple was designed and constructed by Thai famous Artist. Afterward, let’s find out the history’s Ancient City of Chiang Sean located on Golden Triangle area, you will pass through Wat Chedi Luang which you can walk and explore the temple in traditional Chiang Saen style. After lunch, visit the Private Opium Museum with the story and display about the opium trade in the past, plus you can absorb the panoramic view of Laos and Myanmar from boarding on the long-tailed boat along Mekong River.
Day 4: Departure from Chiang Mai (B)
Meet our representative at the lobby of your accommodation, pick-up time will be confirmed beforehand but is typically 2 hours before departure for domestic flights.
*Exclude Flight ticket
Tour Price Inclusions:
- Admission fees, transportation and licensed tour guides as specified in the itinerary.
- Accommodation & meals as listed.
- Tour insurance, service charges and any government taxes
Tour Price Exclusions:
- Any airfares (domestic and international)
- Meals other than mentioned in the programme.
- Drinks with meals unless specified in the itinerary.
- Visa fees (if required)
- Early check-in and late check-out at hotels,
- Any optional tours and services
- Tips and gratuities
- Expenditure of personal nature such as drinks, tips, souvenirs, laundry, etc.
- Travel insurance (cover against all cancellation costs, medical expenses, including repatriation, in the event of accident or illness)
Trip Notes:
– Travelers are highly recommended to purchase Travel Insurance upon commitment of the booking in case of force majeure. Travel Insurance covers such costs as emergency and medical evacuation, hospital fees, property loss, etc. which could possibly happen during the trip.
– Rooms at hotels are available only from 1400 on arrival day till 1200 on departure date. A supplement will be added if early check-in or late check-out is desired.
– The itinerary may subject to change depending on weather conditions and the local situation.
– Reservations during peak times such as Christmas, New Year, Vietnamese Lunar New Year, National Holidays may be subject to supplementary charges.
– If any proposed service is not available at the time of booking, we will try to find alternative and similar option and minimize changes to the program.
– Domestic flights may subject to change or reschedule before departure date
– Vietnam Travel and Cruise is not responsible for any injury, loss, death, inconvenience, delay or damage to personal property in connection with the provision of any goods or services whether resulting from but not limited to acts of God or force majeure, illness, disease, acts of war, civil unrest, insurrection or revolt, animals, strikes or other labor activities, criminal or terrorist activities of any kind, overbooking or downgrading of services, food poisoning, mechanical or other failure of aircraft or other means of transportation or for failure of any transportation mechanism to arrive or depart on time. Additional expenses incurred due to delays, accidents, natural disaster, political actions and unrest, must be covered by the clients. Vietnam Travel and Cruise will make every effort to recoup any losses from the service providers.
Booking condition:
Payment:
– A Deposit of AUD$300 per person is required upon confirmation of your booking. This deposit is non-refundable.
– The balance is due 30 days prior to departure. If you fail to pay by the due date we reserve the right to cancel your booking and retain your deposit.
– If you make a booking less than 30 days prior to departure, full payment is due within 48 hours.
Cancellation: Any cancellations must be made in witting.
– Cancellation fees apply to all cancelled reservations. The fee is determined by the date written cancellation received by Vietnam Travel and Cruise.
– Cancellation more than 30 days – Loss of deposit
– Cancellation at 30 or less days – 100% of total booking cost
Special conditions: Depending on airlines, hotels, cruises’ cancellation policies, the above conditions may be modified.
Claims and refunds for unused services
No refunds or exchanges can be made in respect of accommodation, meals, sightseeing tours, transport or any other services, which are included in the tour prices but not utilized by the client.
