Thailand

Grand Tour of Thailand: from the Golden Triangle to Koh Lanta and Krabi

Seventeen days to see it all, with five beach nights on Koh Lanta and in Krabi

Thailand

Grand Tour of Thailand: from the Golden Triangle to Koh Lanta and Krabi

The most complete tour: the markets around Bangkok, Ayutthaya, Lopburi, Sukhothai, the Golden Triangle, Chiang Mai and the night train, then the south with two nights in the Khao Sok jungle and Cheow Lan lake, three nights on Koh Lanta island and two in Krabi. Groups of 24 at most, French-speaking guide during the tour. The same route runs from Paris as 'Parfum thaï et plages du Sud' (from €2,739 per person); private version from €3,356.

When

Nov to April

Price

From 2 665€ excl. flights

(based on 2 people sharing)

How long

14 nights

Ideal length

Departure

Day 1

Flight to Bangkok.

Day 1

Flight to Thailand

Flight to Thailand. Dinner and night on board.

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Bangkok and old Siam

Days 2-5

The markets on the water and on the rails around Bangkok, then the historic capitals of Ayutthaya and Sukhothai.

Day 2

Arrival in Bangkok

Welcome at Bangkok airport by your French-speaking guide, with the traditional flower garland, and transfer to the hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Day 3

The railway market and the floating market

An early start for Mae Klong market, laid out on a railway line that the train crosses eight times a day. Then the floating market of Damnoen Saduak, reached by boat along the canals, with its stalls of fruit, vegetables and fish.

Day 4

Ayutthaya and Lopburi – Phitsanulok

Ayutthaya, the former capital of the kingdom of Siam and a UNESCO site: the temples of Wat Yai Chaimongkol and Wat Mongkol Bophit. Lunch, then Lopburi, 'the monkey city', and the Prang Sam Yod shrine. Drive to Phitsanulok, on the Nan River (about 350 km).

Day 5

Sukhothai – Chiang Rai

In Phitsanulok, Wat Phra Buddha Chinnarat and its 13th-century statue, said to be the finest in the country. Then Sukhothai, capital of the first Siamese kingdom and a UNESCO site: Wat Mahathat and Wat Sra Sri. Drive to Chiang Rai.

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The North: the Golden Triangle and Chiang Mai

Days 6-8

The northern mountains, the hill peoples, the White Temple, then Chiang Mai and its craftspeople, before the night train.

Day 6

The Golden Triangle and the White Temple – Chiang Mai

Meet the Yao and Akha peoples in Mae Chan, then Chiang Saen and the Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. On the way to Chiang Mai, a stop at Wat Rong Khun, the White Temple.

Day 7

Doi Suthep and the craft villages

Visit Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, one of the most revered temples in the country, nearly a thousand metres up, with the view over Chiang Mai. In the afternoon, the craft villages: lacquer, silk, parasols, wood carving.

Day 8

Elephants, orchids and the night train

Visit an elephant camp, where you watch and feed the elephants, then an orchid farm. A free afternoon. Late in the day, board the night train to Bangkok, in an air-conditioned 2nd-class sleeper.

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Khao Sok

Days 9-10

Two nights in a lodge in Khao Sok National Park, at the edge of the jungle.

Day 9

Flight to Surat Thani – Khao Sok

An early arrival in Bangkok, breakfast in a nearby hotel, then a flight to Surat Thani and a transfer to Khao Sok National Park, where you stay in a lodge in the wild.

Day 10

Cheow Lan lake

A boat trip on the emerald waters of Cheow Lan lake, among limestone peaks that recall Halong Bay. Lunch in a floating restaurant and a short jungle hike to a cave.