Family holiday to Thailand
| country: | Thailand |
| location: | Southern Thailand, Northern Thailand, Central Thailand |
| trip type: | A small group adventure |
| departures: | 2008: 19 Oct, 18 Dec, 21 Dec 2009: 4 Jan, 11 Jan, 5 Apr, 12 Apr, 24 May, 5 Jul, 12 Jul, 19 Jul, 26 Jul, 2 Aug, 9 Aug, 16 Aug, 18 Oct, 13 Dec, 20 Dec |
| price: | From £535 (15 days) excluding flights. Local payment US $200. We can arrange flights from the UK. Children welcome over the age of 6. |
read 4 travellers reviews
the amazing things you'll be doing
Thailand is incredibly well suited to travel with your family.
The people are friendly and love children, the hotels are comfortable and most have swimming pools and there are lots of activities to keep children of all ages happily occupied.
On your tour you get to see all the highlights of Thailand from the excitement of Bangkok to traditional hilltribe villages.
Plus there's the chance to ride elephants in the jungle and spend a wonderful two days relaxing on the beach at the end.
The people are friendly and love children, the hotels are comfortable and most have swimming pools and there are lots of activities to keep children of all ages happily occupied.
On your tour you get to see all the highlights of Thailand from the excitement of Bangkok to traditional hilltribe villages.
Plus there's the chance to ride elephants in the jungle and spend a wonderful two days relaxing on the beach at the end.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Bangkok. Arrive and check in to your hotel with pool. No meals. |
| Day 2: | Bangkok. We have an exciting Klong (canal) tour of Bangkok by longtail boat. Our route takes us along many of the peaceful and residential canals which form part of Bangkok’s 20,000 km of canals. |
| Day 3: | Kanchanaburi. This morning we travel to Kanchanaburi and the River Kwai. Later we board a longtail boat to get to our jungle rafts where we spend the night. These are quite simple but spending the night in a floating bungalow surrounded by the jungle is a fabulous experience! There is also the chance to ride an elephant. |
| Day 4: | Kanchanaburi. Today we go to Nam Tok, the end of the Burmese railway. From here we take a slow local train to Kanchanaburi through stunning scenery. Later we visit the Bridge over the River Kwai and visit the war cemetery and JEATH museum. Tonight we stay on the beautiful island resort of Koh Kasem. |
| Day 5: | Bangkok - Chiang Mai. Drive to the nearby National Park and visit the Erawan Waterfalls. We can walk up to the top of the falls or swim in the pool at the bottom. Later we return to Bangkok, visiting the tallest Buddhist monument in the world on the way. Overnight train to Chiang Mai. |
| Day 6: | Chiang Mai. Arrive in Chiang Mai and transfer to our comfortable hotel which has a pool. The day is free for you to relax by the pool or explore this lovely laid back city. |
| Day 7: | Chiang Mai - tribal mountain village. Our day starts with a visit to an elephant training camp where we can see how these enormous creatures are trained for working in the jungle. After lunch we continue by pick up truck to a small tribal village. We then continue on foot through mountainous terrain (easy walking though!) to a Palong village where we spend the night in a traditional village house. |
| Day 8: | Elephant ride and bamboo rafting. After breakfast we board our elephants for a short ride through the jungle to a small river. We then continue by bamboo raft down the river. Later we return to Chiang Mai where we spend two nights in the same hotel with a pool. |
| Day 9: | Chiang Mai. A full free day to relax by the pool or perhaps take a Thai cookery class. |
| Day 10: | Chiang Mai - Bangkok. A second full day to relax or explore the markets and temples of Chiang Mai. In the evening we board our overnight train back to Bangkok. |
| Day 11: | Bangkok - Koh Samet. We arrive in Bangkok and transfer to the beautiful island of Koh Samet. |
| Day 12-13: | Koh Samet. Two wonderful days spent on the beach with options for snorkelling, swimming or just relaxing. |
| Day 14: | Koh Samet - Bangkok. Return to Bangkok for our final night |
| Day 15: | Bangkok. Tour ends. |
travellers' tales
Most memorable were the elephant ride, Thai cooking class, and day spa experience. These were also the favourites of my eleven year old daughter. (more)
small group family holiday
This is a 'small group family adventure' - typically you will join several other families and travel in a group of approx. 16 people. The trips are great value and a great way for you and your children to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of time to yourselves. Most adventure kids tend to be aged between 7 and 15, but some are younger (minimum age 6) and some older (perhaps travelling as part of a larger family group). Please check with the operator to confirm the minimum age for this trip.highly commended
This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
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Who better to lead the way in responsible travel than children? Curious without being intrusive, children bring new ideas, far fewer demands and no preconceptions to off the beaten track destinations. This trip takes families out into the real Thailand with many opportunities for interacting and learning about new cultures.
After an easy hike to a small tribal village near Chiang Mai we meet and learn about hilltribe groups and spend the night in a traditional village house. Staying with villages in their simple bamboo huts, our small group visits are carefully controlled to help distribute revenue from tourism without destroying the local tradition. In Kanchanaburi we stay on locally owned simple rafthouses, go wildlife spotting with local guides and learn about life in a lake community. Throughout the trip we use local guides and representatives who are often from the villages we are visiting. All activities are organised directly through local people e.g. we take bamboo rafts on the river which are bought from a local village and go on an elephant trek which financially benefits a small elephant camp. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |