Grand Thailand Overland: Bangkok, River Kwai & Northern Thailand (10D9N)

Itinerary

Bangkok / Arrival

Arrive at Bangkok International Airport, meet your English-speaking guide, and transfer to your hotel for check-in and a briefing on your upcoming journey.

Bangkok / Wat Pho, Grand Palace & Emerald Buddha Temple, Thonburi Canal

Pick up from your hotel lobby and depart to Wat Pho (Temple of the Reclining Buddha), founded in the 16th century and the oldest and largest temple in Bangkok with 95 pagodas, home to the 46-meter-long Reclining Buddha.

Continue to Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), Thailand’s most sacred Buddhist temple, and the Grand Palace, covering over 218,000 square meters and enclosed by walls built in 1782.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Cruise aboard a comfortable Long-Tail Motor Boat along the Chao Phraya River and through the canals of Thonburi, taking in colorful scenes of Thai riverside life.

Visit Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn), its main shrine decorated with glazed ornaments and ceramics rising 67 meters toward the sky. Afterwards, return to your hotel for leisure time.

Bangkok / Damnoen Saduak Floating Market & Kanchanaburi

Check out from the hotel and depart to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market (1½ hours’ drive). The journey begins with a leisurely drive through rice paddies and salt fields, followed by a boat ride among shopping boats selling local produce and crafts.

Depart for Kanchanaburi (2½ hours’ drive), Thailand’s third-largest province, with mountainous terrain along the western border with Myanmar.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Take a ride through history aboard the Death Railway Train along picturesque scenic routes past mountains and the River Kwai.

Visit the Bridge over the River Kwai, part of the Death Railway constructed by Allied prisoners of war, and the JEATH War Museum, a realistic depiction of prisoner-of-war living quarters. Afterwards, transfer to your hotel for check-in and leisure time.

Kanchanaburi / Erawan Waterfall, Bang Pa-In Palace & Ayutthaya

Check out from the hotel and depart to Erawan Waterfall, the largest and most beautiful waterfall in western Thailand, cascading across seven distinct levels within a lush, serene national park. Relax, swim, and enjoy the natural surroundings at your own pace.

Depart to Ayutthaya Province (3½ hours’ drive), once one of Indo-China’s most prosperous cities and a major Thai historical attraction.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Visit Bang Pa-In Summer Palace, first used as a royal summer retreat in the 17th century and restored by King Rama IV in the mid-19th century, its structures set in a large park around ponds and waterways.

Continue to Wat Chaiwatthanaram, one of Ayutthaya’s most imposing ancient monasteries, built in 1630 in Khmer architectural style reminiscent of Angkor Wat. Afterwards, transfer to your hotel for check-in and leisure time.

Ayutthaya / Ayutthaya Historical Park, Lopburi & Phitsanulok

Pick up from your hotel lobby and visit Ayutthaya Historical Park, covering the ruins of the old capital founded in 1350, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981.

Visit Wat Mahathat, believed to date to the 14th century, and Wat Mongkol Bophit, home to one of the largest bronze Buddha images in Thailand, restored under the design of Prince Naris.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Depart for Lopburi Town (1½ hours’ drive) and visit Phra Prang Sam Yot, a former Hindu shrine and provincial landmark built in the 13th century in classic Bayon-style Khmer architecture, its compound comprising three linked prangs.

Depart for Phitsanulok Town (2 hours’ drive), then transfer to your hotel for check-in and leisure time.

Phitsanulok / Sukhothai Historical Park, Phayao & Chiang Rai

Check out from the hotel and depart to Sukhothai Town (1 hour drive). Visit Sukhothai Historical Park, the birthplace of the first independent Thai kingdom, with ruins of royal palaces, temples, city gates, walls, and canals preserved under UNESCO cooperation.

Depart to Lampang (2½ hours’ drive).

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Continue to Chiang Rai, stopping en route at Phayao Town, home to Kwan Phayao, the largest fresh-water lake and fish habitat in the upper North. Arrive in Chiang Rai and transfer to your hotel for check-in and leisure time.

Chiang Rai / Long Neck Tribe, Mae Sai Border, Golden Triangle & Boat Trip

Pick up from your hotel lobby and depart to Long Neck Karen Village, home to women who wear brass rings around their necks, a tradition originating from Myanmar.

Continue to Mae Sai Town, the Thailand–Myanmar border and northernmost point of Thailand, with local markets selling Myanmar goods.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Visit the Golden Triangle, where the borders of Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar meet, and enjoy a boat trip along the Mekong River for views of the Golden Buddha statue and the riverbank scenery.

Visit the Opium Museum, displaying the history and culture of the region’s opium trade. Afterwards, return to your hotel for leisure time.

Chiang Rai – Chiang Mai / White Temple & Handicrafts Center

Pick up from your hotel lobby and depart to visit White Temple (Wat Rong Khun), designed by a celebrated national artist, its distinctive white main building decorated with fragments of reflective glass.

Depart to Chiang Mai (3 hours’ drive) by road along picturesque scenic routes. On the way, visit the local Hot Spring at Mae Ka Chan Town, watching locals boil quail’s eggs.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Arrive at Chiang Mai and visit the San Kamphaeng Handicrafts Center, where skilled artisans craft silk textiles, silverware, jade, and gem carvings. Afterwards, transfer to your hotel for check-in and leisure time.

Chiang Mai / Elephant Camp, Bamboo Rafting & Doi Suthep Temple

Pick up from your hotel lobby and depart to Mae Taeng Elephant Camp (1½ hour drive) through breathtaking mountain landscapes. Enjoy an elephant show demonstrating painting, log pulling, and trained commands, followed by an elephant ride through the lush mountain trails, then a relaxing bamboo rafting cruise along the Mae Taeng River.

Lunch is provided at a local restaurant.

Visit Bai Orchid & Butterfly Farm, home to a large collection of colorful exotic orchids and a delightful butterfly garden.

Depart to Doi Suthep Temple, one of Northern Thailand’s most sacred temples, perched 1,050 meters above sea level with panoramic views over Chiang Mai. Ascend the 306-step Naga staircase, or take the tram to the summit. Afterwards, return to your hotel.

Chiang Mai / Departure

Check out from the hotel and transfer to Chiang Mai Airport for your flight to the next destination.