Authentic Experience in Chiang Mai: Palong Villages Stay and Chiang Dao Trek
Overview
Inclusions
- 4x Breakfast
- 3x Dinner
- 3x Lunch
- Accommodation included: 4 nights
- 2 nights accommodation at Wangburapa Grand Hotel (or similar category hotel) and 2 nights accommodation at local guesthouse in Palong village
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Meals as per itinerary (B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner)
- Bamboo rafting
- Two overnights in a local village house
- Limited medical insurance
- English speaking guide
What to expect
Day 1: Chiang Mai - Trekking briefing
Pass By: Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai
Arrive in Chiang Mai and transfer (on own to Chiang Mai Hotel.
At 18.30, meet with the organizer of tomorrow’s trekking tour in the hotel lobby for a briefing – please bring your passport along.
No meals included on this day.
Accommodation included: Overnight at Wangburapa Hotel
Day 2: Chiang Mai - Chiang Dao
Stop At: Chiang Dao, Chiang Dao
Your trekking guide will pick you up at your hotel or guesthouse. We will drive into the mountains. On the way, you'll stop at the Mae Ma Lai market. Your guide will do some shopping for the coming days. He will take you along and will explain about the different ingredients used in the Thai kitchen.
Then, continue to a riverside camp on Tang River where a bamboo raft will be waiting for you. Your helmsmen will manoeuvre the raft through the gentle rapids. Continue to Chiang Dao where we will leave the main road to drive to an Akha village Ban Huay Hok.
We will start our trek with the first hike of about one hour to the Palong village Pang Daeng Nai, which is part of one of the Royal projects. Here the guide will explain about this interesting agricultural project. Lunch will be at the village. After this visit, we will start trekking to Pang Ho, another Palong village where you will stay overnight. There are only a handful of Palong villages in Northern Thailand. The Palong tribe only recently moved from Myanmar to Thailand. The women wear a distinctive costume mostly in red, with rattan hoops and a silver belt worn around the waist.
Your guide will introduce you to the Thai kitchen and will explain you about all the different herbs we use for the Thai dishes. After that, you can help your guide to cook dinner. After dinner, he will take you to one of the local houses to tell you the stories about the daily life of the Palong and the history of the village.
Duration: 3 hours
Meals included:
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Accommodation included: Overnight in village homestay
Day 3: Full day trekking
Stop At: Chiang Dao, Chiang Dao
After the sounds of nature and the locals woke you up, your guide will prepare breakfast. After breakfast, your guide will show you around the village. He will explain about the village shrine and the ‘huja rawl’, the ‘village heart’. After this, we will start trekking for about two hours to a waterfall where you will have time for a refreshing. Enjoy a delicious picnic lunch at the waterfall.
After lunch, we will continue our trek through the forest about 3-4 hours to another Palong village. Your guide will take his time to explain to you about the natural environment. We will invite you to recognise wild ginger, rattan and the pitcher plant in the forest and tell you all about bamboo and its many uses.
We walk out of the forest into the rice fields to Huay Bong, another Palong village. Once we have arrived in the village, you can rest for a while or spend some time playing with the children. Your guide will prepare your evening meal for you all, and if you like, you can join him to cook dinner. At the campfire after dinner, it’s time to share some more stories with your guide and the local Palong people.
Duration: 6 hours
Meals included:
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Accommodation included: Overnight in a village homestay
Day 4: Trekking and back to Chiang Mai
Stop At: Chiang Dao, Chiang Dao
After the sounds of nature and the locals woke you up, your guide will prepare breakfast. After breakfast, we will trek about 1.5 hours to the Karen village Thakilek. Along the way, we will stop at Lahu village Ban Huay Bong where we will visit the fascinating spirit temple and a blacksmith.
After this, we will continue trekking to the Karen village.
After that, drive to the restaurant where we have lunch. Drive back to Chiang Mai by truck. On the way back we will make a stop at an orchid nursery.
Duration: 2 hours
Meals included:
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Accommodation included: Overnight at Wangburapa Hotel
Day 5: Chiang Mai - end of the program
Pass By: Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai
Free morning. Check out at noon
Meals included:
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No accommodation included on this day.
Time of tour
Meeting point
Additional information
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- A current valid passport is required on the day of travel
- On the first night, bring your passport and meet with local operator at 6:30pm at the hotel lobby for a briefing
- Minimum age is 6 years
- Itinerary may be adjusted due to weather conditions
- Backpack may be provided upon request
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
- Face masks required for travelers in public areas
- Face masks required for guides in public areas
- Face masks provided for travelers
- Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
- Social distancing enforced throughout experience
- Regularly sanitized high-traffic areas
- Gear/equipment sanitized between use
- Transportation vehicles regularly sanitized
- Guides required to regularly wash hands
- Regular temperature checks for staff
- Temperature checks for travelers upon arrival
- Paid stay-at-home policy for staff with symptoms
- Contactless payments for gratuities and add-ons
Exclusions
- Other drinks except water during meals
- Tips
- Personal expenses
Ticket delivery
Cancellation
the tour was well planned and the guide on the tour was very well educated on the tour that we went on.
accommodation with the local villages was excellent and the mixing with the local people was fantastic.
the meals and snacks that were provided were also fantastic.
overall, I...
the tour was well planned and the guide on the tour was very well educated on the tour that we went on.
accommodation with the local villages was excellent and the mixing with the local people was fantastic.
the meals and snacks that were provided were also fantastic.
overall, I would recommend this tour 100.
I had a great time hiking and staying at local villages around Chiang Dao north of Chiang Mai. There was only myself and my guide, Lek, on the trip so the we were able to hike/walk at my pace. Accommodation was VERY basic as expected but more than compensated by the amazing scenery, tasty food...
I had a great time hiking and staying at local villages around Chiang Dao north of Chiang Mai. There was only myself and my guide, Lek, on the trip so the we were able to hike/walk at my pace. Accommodation was VERY basic as expected but more than compensated by the amazing scenery, tasty food and the hospitality of everyone we met. A peaceful few days and a thoroughly enjoyable trip that I have no hesitation in recommending.
I travelled in a Group of 14 people (including 5 under 10 kids) in Thailand in Genuary. The time we spent in the Chang Mai was an absolute highlight and big parto of it was due to the excellent Guide Narong and the Green Trail Organizations: the excursions were various, very well organized and al...
I travelled in a Group of 14 people (including 5 under 10 kids) in Thailand in Genuary. The time we spent in the Chang Mai was an absolute highlight and big parto of it was due to the excellent Guide Narong and the Green Trail Organizations: the excursions were various, very well organized and all defenetly worth. Elephants, kayaking, Palong Villave were my personal top picks. But again, the wise and knolegable wave of Narong was inspiring and made the difference! I defenetly recomend the Organization and Narong in particular. Hope to go back to those beautiful land!our guide and driver were a great couple of characters, Wanai (guide) had so many interesting things to share with us which made the long journey seem to fly by. It was a non stop experience which was so worth the effort and cost.
our guide and driver were a great couple of characters, Wanai (guide) had so many interesting things to share with us which made the long journey seem to fly by. It was a non stop experience which was so worth the effort and cost.
This tour was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. The hiking is fun and the mountain scenery very nice, and while the trail was somewhat challenging at times, anyone who is reasonably fit should be fine. I am in my 60s and had no problem with the pace or the condition of the trails. ...
This tour was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. The hiking is fun and the mountain scenery very nice, and while the trail was somewhat challenging at times, anyone who is reasonably fit should be fine. I am in my 60s and had no problem with the pace or the condition of the trails. It was interesting to stay in the villages and see how the hill tribe people live. The accommodations were very rustic, but I slept surprisingly well under the mosquito net in the huts. The guide cooked the meals and he made me wonderful vegetarian dishes as I had requested. The raft trip at the beginning of the tour was rather touristy and not too interesting, but it did give us a short break to what otherwise would've been a long drive getting to the trail head. Overall, the knowledge and helpfulness of the guide was excellent and I would recommend this tour to anyone who is looking to escape to the countryside for a few days.
We had a wonderful experience with our guider Dui, we saw beautiful places, discovered a lot of precious information on the villages we visit but also on all the wildlife. The cooking is really delicious and do not worry about quantities, it is all the time perfect (and we eat both a lot!!!) We w...
We had a wonderful experience with our guider Dui, we saw beautiful places, discovered a lot of precious information on the villages we visit but also on all the wildlife. The cooking is really delicious and do not worry about quantities, it is all the time perfect (and we eat both a lot!!!) We were lucky because alone with the guider... I think we will never forget it! Do not hesitate if you want to live a "real" life experience in Thailand!!! I would recommend it to all my friends/family :-)