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Land of Smiles
17 days/16
nights
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Day 01.
Bangkok
We pick you up at your
Bangkok hotel and transfer to the local wharf for a boat trip on the “Chao Phraya
River”, the mighty River of Kings. We explore the river
and its many canals (klongs) in a longtail boat, a most
unique way of travel, and show you why Bangkok is
known as the “Venice of the East”. On the way we
make a stop at “Wat Arun”, the stunning Temple of
Dawn. Overnight at the Menam River Side
Hotel. |
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Day
02. Bangkok (B,L)
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Breakfast at the
hotel. We visit the largest fresh flower
and vegetable market of Thailand.
This market is well known as “Pak Klong Talaad”,
a center for wholesale of
flowers, fruits and vegetables.
Farmers bring their farm products to
this market daily. We continue
to Chinatown, a center of
trading by the Chinese since
they arrived from China
some 300 years ago. We
stroll through the small sois
(alleys) and visit the Indo-Chinese food
market.
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After lunch
we visit the most beautiful temple of ancient Siam: Wat Phra Kaew
and the adjunct Grand Palace, a must for every
visitor. We visit the Emerald Buddha, the most
revered Buddha image of Thailand, the Throne Hall,
the Coronation Hall and The Funeral Palace. Overnight at Menam River Side
Hotel. |
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Day
03. Bangkok (B)
All day at leisure to discover
the Metropolitan of Bangkok on your own and enjoy the
many shopping areas in Bangkok, such as Prathunam, Siam
Senter, Gaysorn, World Trade and Paragon
shopping centers. Or you could book a half-day tour
to discover Bangkok by bike. Biking in a metropolis
with million cars? No problem! It is possible! On
this trip you
will hardly see any cars. An absolute unique
experience! You will see places where time stood
still, cycling along the klongs, through small
communities, along fruit plantations, local schools,
markets and temples. Make contact with the local
people and become an attraction yourself! Overnight at
the Menam Riverside Hotel. |
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Day
04. Bangkok – Damnern Saduak – River Kwai (B,L)
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In the early morning we depart
for Damnern Saduak. Our first stop is at a
local coconut sugar farm to see the processing of
natural coconut sugar, by longtail boat we continue
along idyllic canals where you stop to visit the
colorful Floating Market. Here one can still
see vendors paddling their small sampan boats loaded with all kind of
fruit and vegetables. |
After this we go
on to Kanchanaburi where wen visit the JAETH war museum, a
realistic replica of a POW's living
quarters containing sketches and photographs
describing life in the camps. We then continue to the
War Cemetery, the resting place for over 6,000
allied Prisoners of War. Then its on to the Bridge over the
River Kwai. After lunch we continue our trip on the
legendary Death Railway where thousands of Prisoners
of War died building this infamous railway. Overnight at
the Royal River Kwai
Resort and Spa. |
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Day
05. River Kwai (B)
In the morning we taste the
atmosphere from the legendary River Kwai by
canoe (two persons in one canoe). We paddle along the
historical banks of the Kwai River and in the afternoon
there is time to
enjoy the facilities of the resort. |
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Day
06. River Kwai – Ayutthaya (B,L)
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Depart for the ancient city
Ayutthaya. This old city was from 1359 untill 1767
the capital of Siam. In 1767 its was destroyed by
the Burmese. We visit three important temples : “Wat Chawathanaram”
situated on a magnificent area on
the west bank of the Chao Praya river; “Wat Phra Sri
Sanphet” , a World Heritage site with ruins in the middle of the old capital;
and the gigantic bronze statue of Wat Mongkol
Borpith. After lunch you have spare time to discover
this old city by yourself. Rent a bike! Overnight at
the U-Thong Inn Hotel. |
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Day
07. Ayutthaya – Khorat – Surin (B,L)
Today we continue
to Isan, the 'granary' of Thailand. We visit the pottery village Ban
Dan Kwian and continue to the province of Buriam where
we visit the impressive ancient Khmer temples “Prasat Phanom Rung” and “Prasat Hin Muang Tam”
. These
finest of Khmer temples in Thailand are a good taste
of their mother temple in Cambodia, Angkor Wat. Overnight at
the Thong Tharin Hotel.
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Day
08. Surin – Ubon Ratchathani – Khong Jiam (B,L)
Breakfast at the hotel. We proceed
to Ubon Ratchathani and visit a typical northeastern market. We
then continue
to Khong Jiam along the Mehkong River and take lunch
on the banks of this river. We travel on
the Mekong River by boat and stop at the Wat Hiew Chai temple. Overnight at
the Tohsang Khong Jiam
Resort. |
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Day
09. Khong Jiam (B,L)
After breakfast we visit the
Thai–Lao border market of of Chongmeck, where products from
countries from
the Mekong delta, that is Vietnam, China, Laos and Cambodia,
are sold. We continue to Phra Taem National
Park to see the pre-historic cliff paintings, that date
back some 2 to 3000 years. We then walk a trail and
enjoy a superb view of the mighty Mekong River. After lunch we return
to the resort. |
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Day
10. Khong Jiam – Yasothorn – Roi Et – Khon Kaen (B,L)
We leave Khong Jiam
for Khon Kaen. On the way we visit a catholic
village with a wooden church and in Roi-Et we
visit the city lodge and one of the largest
Buddha images in the World: the 68 meter high Buddha
of “Wat Buraphaphiram”. Before going to our Khon
Kaen hotel we first stop at the “Kosum Phisai”
monkey park where you can buy
fruit and peanuts to feed the monkeys. Accommodation at
the Charoen Thani
Princess hotel. |
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Day
11. Khon Kaen – Phitsanuloke (B,L)
We
continue our trip to Phitsanuloke via two National Parks: Nam Nao
NP and Thung
Salaeng Luang NP. On the way there are
plenty of opportunities to stop and make
pictures from the local environment. We arrive
in Phitsanuloke in the afternoon and visit Wat Mahatat
with it’s highly revered Buddha statue: the Phra
Buddha Cinaraj as well as a factory of Buddha
sculptures. Overnight at the Amarin Lagoon
Hotel. |
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Day
12. Phitsanuloke – Sukothai – Lampang – Chiang Mai (B,L)
We drive on to Sukothai, where
we visit the ancient ruins of the Ramkhamhaeng Historical
Park and Wat Sri Chum with its gigantic Buddha
statue. We then continue to Lampang. Upon arrival we
visit one of the oldest and most famous temples in
northern Thailand: “Wat Phra That Lampang Luang".
The eventful history of this 1000-year-old temple is
described in its many murals. Around lunchtime we
visit the Dan Kwiang
Forest market, a market known for its variety
of grilled, baked and roasted insects. After lunch
(you don't have to eat the
insects!) we proceed to Lamphun and visit Wat Phra
That Haripoonchai, one of the most
important Buddhist temples in northern Thailand.
From here it’s a short drive to Chiang Mai. Overnight at
the Park Hotel. |
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Day
13. Chiang Mai (B,L)
Today we visit the Chiang Dao elephant camp where
you can watch elephants take their daily morning
bath and demonstrate their skills.
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After the show their is a possibility to do a trekking
on the back of an elephant and bamboo rafting on
the river. The elephant trekking and bamboo rafting are
both optional.
We have lunch at an orchid farm
where we take time to relax and marvel at the beauty of this exotic
flower. A fter this we visit
the Wat Doi Suthep temple built
at an elevation of 1,056 meters.
A
staircase of 290 steps and flanked by a Naga
balustrade takes you to this mountain top temple,
where you can enjoy an excellent view over the city
of Chiang Mai. |
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Day
14. Chiang Mai (B)
Today you have free time to
discover the city of Chiang Mai on your own. The city
was
established over 700 years ago and it is a place with
many hidden treasures from history, religion, culture and art. Often
referred to as the “Rose of The North”, some of its
highlight are the temples “Wat Chiang
Man”, “Wat Phra Singh”, “ Wat Chedi Luang” and
“ Wat Suan Dok”, temples located within
the old city walls of ancient Chiang Mai.
Other places of
interest are the Warrot market:
a
day market from early morning till late
afternoon that offers a variety of food, vegetables and
clothes. Besides
this there is the Night Bazar, a must for every visitor
to Chiang Mai. This market is daily and starts from
18.00 till 01.00 am and offers a variety of clothes,
souvenirs, food, paintings and antiques. |
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Day
15. Chiang Mai – Mae Hong Son (B, L)
In the morning we transfer to Chiang
Mai airport for our flight to Mae Hong Son (if no
flight is available due to bad weather or other
unforeseen conditions
we proceed by minivan to Mae Hong Son). Mae Hong Son
is located amidst towering mountains and densely
forested slopes that stretch deep into Burma. Here
we visit one of the world's finest hill tribes known
as the “Longnecks”. Their women wear copper rings around
their necks, a tradition that starts at the age of 5. They
are also
called Giraffe Women and are a small minority of the Red
Karen tribe, also called Karenni.
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The
Karenni lived in Burma as a small
independent people, with their own
government and army. A large number of
refugees now live in refugee camps along the
Thai-Burmese border. We also visit the
Burmese-style temples Wat Jong Kham and Wat
Jong Klang. Shan people who make about 50%
of the population of Mae Hong Son built Wat
Jong Kham some 200 years ago. Afterwards we drive
uphill to visit Wat Phra Dhat Doi Kong Moo,
which on clear days, offers a beautiful view
into the Mae Hong Son valley. Overnight at
the Golden Pai Hotel. |
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Day
16. Mae Hong Son – Chiang Mai – Bangkok (B)
In the morning
there is time for leisure. You can walk around in Mae Hong Son
or visit the early
morning market; here one can see many different
kind of hill tribe people, that come to sell their produce.
In the afternoon we transfer to Mae Hong Son airport for our
flight back to Chiang Mai (if no flight is available due to
bad weather or other unforeseen conditions we depart
early to Chiang Mai, by minivan). In the evening we
board the night train in a
second-class air condition sleeper car, for our overnight
trip back to Bangkok. |
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Day
17. Bangkok (B)
After arrival in the early morning in
Bangkok we have breakfast and a transfer you to any destination
in Bangkok. |
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Included: English speaking guide, 11
lunches, and visits as in the program, entrance
fee, flight ticket Chiang Mai – Mae Hong Son –
Chiang Mai, train ticket 2nd class sleeper
Chiang Mai to Bangkok
B=Breakfast
L=Lunch
D=Dinner
Not
included:
flight to
Thailand, airport taxes, meals not mentioned,
drinks, tips, optional excursions and travel insurance
Note: small deviations in the
tour program are sometimes necessary, depending
on weather, road conditions and room
availability
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