Elephants and Tribal culture – 3 days
Highlights:
Small group elephant-friendly experience
Beautiful trekking
Waterfalls
Karen Tribal Culture
Royal Project
Exciting bamboo rafting
Difficulty Level:
Departure on Wednesday/Saturday
This three day program has everything. On the first day you will participate in an elephant-friendly experience. You will learn a lot you didn’t know about elephants. You will meet them up close, feed them, walk with them and bathe them in the river. A donation to the Tong Bai Foundation is included. Then you will embark on a wonderful trek through the forest, past waterfalls and villages. You will spend the night at a traditional Karen village and learn about their culture and language. You will get your hands dirty working for a couple of hours at the interesting Royal Agricultural Project before you descend back to the road. You will enjoy a relaxing bamboo raft trip before returning to Chiang Mai.
Tour Code:
TTET03
Duration of this Tour:
3 days
Departure Time:
08:30 am
End Time:
4 - 5 pm
Transportation:
Trekking truck
Accommodation:
hilltribe house
Price per person in USD | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 pax | 3 pax | 4 pax | 5 pax | 6 pax | 7 pax | 8 pax |
$295 | $345 | $310 | $290 | $275 | $269 | $260 |
Itinerary:
Wednesday/Saturday
Meals:
Lunch
Dinner
Description:
Chiang Mai – Mae Win (Tong Bai Elephant Foundation)
Your guide and driver will meet you at the hotel.Our first stop will be at a local market where your guide will do his shopping for the coming days and will explain about some of the local specialties that are for sale here. Continue to Mae Win where you will be welcome by the elephant expert of Tong Bai Elephant Foundation. There will be a maximum of 9 persons, including you, participating in the elephant program. The foundation has 4 elephants at the moment in its care.He will introduce you to the elephants and provide you with specific information about the Asian elephant. After helping feed the elephants and meeting them up-close, you will enjoy your own lunch with Thai specialties.Afterwards you and the elephants then trek to a river which is the highlight of the day – where you both take a bath! You get to join them, wash them and scrub them.
We will then walk back to the camp before we say goodbye to the elephants and staff of Tong Bai Foundation. You will receive a certificate of participation after which we will drive the short distance to our guesthouse.Enjoy dinner at the guesthouse on own costs.Overnight at Mae Win Guesthouse
Thursday/Sunday
Meals:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Description:
Mae Win - Karen Village
After breakfast, your hilltribe adventure begins. Drive the short distance to the starting point of the trek. We will hike to a waterfall where we will rest and have time for a swim. After this we will trek through the forest about two hours to the Karen village Baan Huai Hoi. Here we will have lunch. After lunch continue trekking for another two hours to another Karen Village Huai Kao Lip. Along the way, stop at another waterfall. Enjoy swimming and relaxing before continue trekking to village. After arrival in the Karen village where we will spend the night your guide will introduce you to your host for tonight. You can explore the village while he starts to prepare dinner. You are welcome to help him with cooking. We also encourage you to practice some Karen language with your host after dinner. Overnight in the Karen village Huai Khao Lip.
Friday/Monday
Meals:
Breakfast
Lunch
Description:
Karen Village – Chiang Mai
Rise with the roosters. Your guide will prepare a hearty breakfast. After breakfast we will visit the Royal Project. Your guide explains about this agricultural project and we will work a couple of hours helping the villagers take care of the vegetables that are grown here. After that, walk to another Karen village, Ban Mae Sapok. We will stop at a pretty waterfall where we will spend some time relaxing, swimming and enjoying nature. Your guide will prepare a delicious lunch, jungle style.After lunch, we will drive to a small rafting camp. Our bamboo rafts will be waiting for us. Enjoy a relaxing and, at times, exciting bamboo raft trip for about 45 minutes on the Wang River. After this we board our truck for the drive back to Chiang Mai.
Included:
- English speaking guide
- Private transportation by trekking truck
- Expert Elephant guide of Tong Bai Elephant Foundation
- Donation to the Tong Bai Elephant Foundation
- Certificate of participation of Tong Bai Elephant Foundation
- Accommodation in a local house and guesthouse
- All meals during the trek
- Drinking water
- Coffee and tea
- Medical insurance
- Bamboo rafting (about 45 mins)
- Use of sheetbag or sleeping bag
- Use of Mosquito net
- Use of Backpack (on request)
- Toilet paper & Soap
- Towel
- A flashlight is provided in the village
Not Included:
- Other drinks except water
- Personal expenses
- Tips
Things to Bring:
- Short sleeve shirts for the day time (bring a spare one, just in case)
- Long sleeves for the evening (especially in the winter Nov - Feb it can be a bit cold)
- Shoes with good grip (especially in the raining season from May - Sep)
- A cap
- Sunscreen
- Flip flops
- Sunglasses
- Your personal toiletries
- Personal medication
- Fully charged batteries or even an extra battery for your camera
- 1000-1500 Thai Baht per person in small (not bigger than 500 Thai Baht and plenty of 100 Thai Baht notes). This is for souvenirs, drinks and tips.
Notes:
Due to weather conditions and other conditions on the ground we might have to adjust the itinerary of this trekking. If it is necessary to adjust the program we will always make sure that the quality of your experience and your personal safety are safeguarded.Please respect local customs and traditions. We will give you a document named "code of conduct in the village". Read it before you go on your trek. Dress conservatively in the village. Please refrain from or, at least minimize, the intake of alcoholic beverages while you are in the village.