School Expedition Thailand 15-Day Itinerary

You will arrive in Chiang Mai where you’ll be greeted at the airport by your trip leader in air conditioned mini-vans, and transported into the heart of the city.

Throughout your school expedition in Thailand, your accommodation will be basic, clean, and comfortable with twin single-gender rooms. In rural settings you can expect single-gender doom rooms. Expect traditional food such as noodles, rice, stir fries and curries. All dietary requirements are catered for. 

After breakfast we will embark on a City Tour of Chiang Mai City. Starting at Thapae Gate you will learn about the history of Chiang Mai, a fortified city founded in the 13th century that soon became the capital of the Lanna Kingdom. 

This morning we will visit the Three Kings Monument, along with the sacred and stunning temples of Wat Chiang Man and Wat Lok Moli before jumping in minivans to our lunch stop. After lunch we will continue our drive a short distance to the winding path leading to Wat Phra That Doi Kham. You will follow the winding staircase, decorated with crafted snakes, some 300+ steps to the temple. Enjoy the stunning views before returning back to Chiang Mai City. 

This evening you will experience traditional Lanna dining with “Khantoke”, a round rattan tray, serving various kinds of authentic northern Thai dishes. As you enjoy the tasty food, you will be entertained by spectacular and fabulous classical dances from northern Thailand and from around the nation. 

After breakfast we will depart Chiang Mai city a short drive to the start of your first trekking day. Today’s trek is approximately 6 km in length, you will be following the Monks Trail, an ancient trail snaking up to one of Chiang Mai’s most sacred and beautiful temples: Wat Prah That Doi Suthep. Located 1,300 meters above Chiang Mai this temple is located at the top of Doi Suthep mountain and offers the best views of Chiang Mai and the surrounding valley floor. 

Enroute up the mountain you will also have a break at a wonderfully mysterious temple tucked into the forest; Wat Pha Lat, and enjoy a picnic packed lunch in the jungle. Upon arriving at your accommodation for the night you will have time to freshen up before we descend a few hundred meters to enjoy dinner, before exploring Wat Doi Suthep for sunset. The 12th Century temple is home to beautiful ornate carvings and is a perfect introduction to Thai culture, Buddhism and the opportunity for everyone to be blessed by the monks for their forthcoming adventure.

Wake up early for stunning sunrise vistas or enjoy a slightly longer sleep in if you wish before we descend down to the temple area for breakfast. When ready we will check out of your accommodation leaving your big bags with our 4×4 truck and support vehicle. With day packs, plenty of water and a pack lunch we will set off on our second day of trekking, the destination; a Hmong Hilltribe Village. 

Meandering along valleys and ridges at an altitude of 1,300 meters, the trek can be tailored to the exact needs of the group’s ability. The cooler temperatures at altitude along with the cover of the evergreen forest is a perfect way to enjoy the views and jungle whilst continuing on your journeys. This evening will be our first Hill Tribe Village stay and our first experience of authentic rural Thai Culture. Guided through the village, everyone will have the opportunity to learn about the Hmong ethnic minority group of S.E Asia including some of their cultures and traditions, traditional hand woven costumes, food and games.

Arising early, you’ll enjoy a warming hot chocolate with your breakfast as you look out across the valley below. The trek down the mountain is approximately 7km in length, finishing off at the Huay Tung Tao Reservoir for lunch. Along the route, the views of the city below will be hard to beat and there is also the added fun of a spectacular waterfall to cool down in. Upon arrival at the reservoir, lunch will be enjoyed on floating Thai-style huts looking across the water before getting into air-conditioned minivans for the 1 hour journey to our accommodation. This evening before dinner you will get kitted out with bikes so that you are ready to go in the morning on the start of your cycling journey.

After breakfast you will hop onto your bikes and cycle, weaving our way through villages, past open paddyfields and over the mighty Ping River. Your destination is the famous Wat Baan Din Temple. Within the grounds of this beautiful Wat are buildings of different historical and regional styles from all over Thailand. You will spend a short time at this temple to have a rest from cycling, enjoy a snack and make sure to keep hydrated! From here you will mount your bicycles and cycle 12km finally arriving at the Organic Farm and Education Center for lunch. 

This afternoon there will be a few activities to participate in, for example, learning how to make your own soap using traditional and native plants to perfume the smells, before cooking your own dinners. On the menu: Pad Thai – arguably the most famous (and delicious) Thai noodle dish.

Today you will learn about the environment, food, dwellings and culture from a very hands-on and interactive approach. Everyone will have the opportunity to build mud bricks that will be used to erect Mud Houses. Depending on the season you may learn the processes of planting and harvesting rice (the staple food of most of the world’s population), learn about Seed Banks, or learn about native plants and the different colors they produce to paint your own canvases. 

After breakfast we will be ready to continue our journey onwards. Taking onboard the environmental considerations of the past couple of days, we will journey on via human power. Today we continue our cycling journey along unpaved country lanes, weaving through rice paddy fields finally arriving at our destination: Mae Ngat Dam.

After lunch, we board kayaks and learn the basic strokes and concepts that you will use for the next several days and continue our human powered journey a further 5km out to our evening accommodation: remote floating bungalows. Located about 2.5hrs kayak from where we leave our bikes we will arrive at a tethered and anchored floating guesthouse. Here we will spend the afternoon and evening relaxing, swimming in the clean lake, enjoying the calming views and reflecting on how far you’ve come and what you’ve accomplished at your halfway point. 

This morning we will depart our floating accommodation by boat back to our minivans. From here you will be driven a short distance to the unique Sticky Waterfall. Bua Tong Waterfall is genuinely one of the most bizarre and impressive waterfalls you will ever experience and you will enjoy the opportunity to cool down in the water and explore some of the different tiers. 

After visiting the Sticky Waterfall we will transfer to Wat Tham Chiang Dao Temple, stopping for lunch enroute. Wat Tham Chiang Dao is a temple that has been built inside a limestone caving system, beneath Thailand’s 3rd tallest mountain.  We will explore the temple before continuing the remainder of the journey, ascending up and over Thailand 3rd tallest mountain past stunning limestone cliffs to our destination: Muang Khong village; the location of the start of our rafting. 

Over the next 2 days,  you will journey by raft down the Mae Taeng River. Over the next two days the river will get progressively exciting as everyone’s skill and experiences also develops. 

Day 1 is 17km of Class 1-2 whitewater. This is a perfect opportunity for everyone to practice and perfect their whitewater paddling skills with the added opportunity to splash around in the water when it gets a bit warm. Lunch will be halfway down the river and we will finish off mid afternoon at a Lahu Hill Tribe Village where we will spend the night. In our second hill tribe village experience we will have the opportunity to learn about their different cultures and customs and compare them to our experiences of both the Hmong (from Day 1), and the dominant Thai Lanna Culture or northern Thailand.

After breakfast and a warming hot chocolate, you will have the opportunity to see and experience Elephants. Here everyone can learn about the history of working elephants in Thailand as well as its abolishment and the following birth of different types of elephant tourism that exists today. We will trek into the jungle to find them in their natural habitat before following them down to the river where they will enjoy a swim and drink of water. The exact number of elephants here varies throughout the year depending on the season, but there will always be at least one.

Late morning we will embark on our second day of Rafting. As the river meanders 16 km south, the rapids increase in size a little. Lunch will be at a Karen Hill Tribe village that is built high above the river on stilts. At the end of this day we will arrive back at the 8Adventures main Camp where we will spend the night.

This morning after breakfast we will depart the camp and begin the second multi-day trekking adventure. First of all we will be transferred from our accommodation to Pa Poo Jam, a remote crop and farming district high in the hills. From here we will begin our trek 13km through plantations and tea fields to the village of Baan Palo where we will be staying the night. 

Baan Palo undoubtedly has some of the best views in all of Thailand. From where you stay, views across the entire Chiang Dao region with the pinnacle being Thailand’s 3rd tallest mountain right in front of us. This place has some of the most stunning sunrises and sunsets to be seen. If you’re lucky, enjoy a ‘sea of fog’ first thing in the morning. 

After witnessing a spectacular sunrise across Chiang Dao followed by breakfast, prepare to depart for your full-day trek. The route snakes up dirt trails originally used for logging as we slowly continue to gain altitude. After a couple of hours the reward is arriving at the regional peak – Doi Sam Liem. From here you will see 360 degree views in all directions and can even make out the various places you have visited on your expedition so far. After lunch in the jungle the next 6km descends down a single-track path through surprising evergreen forest which later turns into rainforest as we lose elevation. When the forest clears, you will see fields that bloom in flowers. The day will end at Lahu Village hill tribe village where we will spend the night. 

In the mornings here we can often witness the spectacular ‘sea-of-fog’ phenomenon that fills up the valley floor below. After breakfast we will continue our trek down the mountain. Approximately 8 km in length this portion descends a total of 600 meters passing 4 waterfalls – some of which are possible to swim in, a fantastic way to cool off half way!

We also pass through  subsistence fruit and vegetable farms, coffee plantations, bamboo forests and of course the thickest of jungles. 

You will arrive back at Camp for a late lunch and a relaxed afternoon after our hiking. For those wanting, there is the option this afternoon, or tomorrow, for a short hike to a waterfall that has formed a natural waterslide into the plunge pool below. 

Today is your last day in the jungle. Head back to where you left your rafts on day 11 to complete your river journey. The morning begins with the best, most exciting and fun Whitewater section of the trip arriving back at camp for lunch. 

After lunch and packing up, transfer back to Chiang Mai City via a local market. Here you’ll get to try some local fruits and delicacies that you haven’t tried so far. Upon arriving into Chiang Mai you will have time at the famous Chiang Mai night markets picking up any final souvenirs and enjoying a traditional final dinner. 

After a farewell dinner you will be transferred to Chiang Mai International Airport for your homebound flight.