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Nature and wildlife holiday in Thailand

COUNTRY:
Thailand
DEPARTURES:
This trip is a private tour. It can be taken on dates to suit you, subject to availability. The itinerary can be customised.
PRICE:
From £1800 - £2100 (15 days) including UK flights
MORE INFO:
This private tour costs £1800 per adult or teenager (discounted price of £1350) for under 12s including flights from the UK, accommodation, activities, transport and most meals. If being taken as a private tour for two, it costs £1900 per adult. Summer prices, add £200 per adult/teenager and £150 per child under 12. Christmas add £300/£200 under 12 You can also book without flights for £1200 per adult and £900 per child (or £1300 per adult if being taken as a private tour for two) at any time.
VOUCHERS:
Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday
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Nature and wildlife holiday in Thailand

Nature and wildlife holiday in Thailand

Tailor made holidays
This holiday is designed for people who like to travel on their own, as a couple, as a family or as friends (not in a group with other people they do not know previously). You will not have a 'tour leader' or an 'escort' with you all the time. We run our own operations so do not need to rely on this type of arrangement to make sure your holiday is organised. We work hand-in-hand with our unique network of local people who are backed up by our carefully-picked drivers and local office. This means you will meet a range of trusted local people throughout your holiday and have time on your own, with full confidence that your holiday will run smoothly at all times.

How this holiday makes a difference

All our holidays are deliberately designed to be as socially responsible as possible, and we work with local people on a highly individual basis.

On this holiday, you will get an unrivalled insight into Thai culture and you will meet a wide range of ordinary people on an 'equal' basis, not just those involved in the tourist industry to 'serve' you. You will learn about real life in Thailand, both traditional and modern, sustainable ways of living and farming, local festivals, dances etc. We find people who will show these to you and compensate them accordingly, this helps local efforts of keeping traditions alive.

You will spend most of your time areas away from the main tourist destinations, therefore providing additional income in local economies that may not normally benefit from revenue from tourism. Whether a housewife takes you to her local market to buy food to prepare dinner, or you pop into the village co-operative to browse their handicrafts, your holiday will help the very places and people you visit.

The accommodation on this itinerary is small and local, within existing buildings or built with comparatively low impact to the environment. When you do stay in a 'conventional’ hotel in Bangkok, it is a Green Hotel, which uses solar energy for heating the hot water and room sensors that automatically turn off lights and appliances.

We encourage visiting less places and spending more time there, this allows richer experiences and also has less impact on the environment than constantly moving from one place to another. Whilst we do use private cars and minivans (not shared transport), where possible our vehicles are fuelled by LPG. We encourage exploring local areas by foot or bicycle.

This holiday includes meeting elephants but not riding them, you will learn why when you spend time at Elephant Nature Park. This is a showpiece of wildlife conservation in Asia, with a passionate founder who has been named Time Magazine's 'Asian Hero of the Year' for her efforts. Not only does Elephant Nature Park provide a refuge for elephants from all over Thailand, often previously-abused, but it spreads knowledge on humane training and elephant welfare to the wider community, as well as providing hands-on medical assistance to elephants who are not lucky enough to live here.

It goes without saying that we also provide cultural guidelines and travel, including responsible travel information.

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Nature and wildlife holiday in Thailand

Reviewed 21 Apr 2011 by Lisa Hele5 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


Time with elephants!

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


Enjoy every experience!

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Yes, big emphasis on putting money back into the local community and getting to know locals.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


Amazing!

Reviewed 30 Nov 2011 by Lisse Caird4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


Holiday was overall great - we moved about a lot so difficult to say the best bit but probably early mornings when everything was so quiet and having a cup of tea looking at elephants!

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


The operator gave lots of info so no tips to pass on - very quiet in evenings so a pack of cards could have been handy.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Not really - we did go to a local school and bought biscuits and bracelets and the elephant camps employed local people in the kitchens and for massages.

Reviewed 29 Oct 2010 by Natasha Lokhun4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


Being able to get so close to the elephants, and learning so much about them - a real privilege.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


To make the most of the opportunities afforded by not staying in the 'usual' tourist places.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Yes, on the whole, except that the last hotel we stayed at did not seem in keeping with the focus on the environment elsewhere, despite its name (e.g. towel changes every day).

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


It was amazing - I hesitate to use any clichés, but we had some unique and extremely memorable experiences. A great introduction to the country.

Reviewed 18 Jun 2009 by Michael Anderson5 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


I think there would have to be two - firstly, the elephant sanctuary in Chiang Mai. I didn't want to visit a place where there was rides, or elephants playing football or painting. At the sanctuary, this could not be further from the truth and the work they do there is fantastic. Combine that with the hands-on experience you gain, as well as the insight and education given, it was truly unbelievable. The second would have to be getting an insight into just how hard life is for the people of Cambodia as they rebuild their country and lives following the awful atrocities of not so long ago. Being able to see directly how staying at the hotel and contributing to such basics as clean running water, was very uplifting

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


Throw yourself into it. We all like nice hotels and cosy arrangements and indeed, on my trip I had these as well. But doing Homestay was fantastic as the families were so welcoming and they involve you in local life, which you would never get staying in the usual holiday 'bubble'. Also, investing in the use of your own guides etc. is not particularly expensive and the additional value far outweighs the cost.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Totally. Some examples - staying at the sanctuary, in the evening there was an opportunity to have a Thai Massage. The sanctuary uses the local village people to provide the service, directly supporting local life - hotels I stayed in were eco friendly (recycled rainwater for showers) and/or supported the local industry i.e. providing a scholarship in hotel hospitality and whilst the students worked at the hotel, the hotel sent 'home' food to the families as the individual culture is to send home money to dependents. I saw many other examples

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


It has totally changed my perspective on how I can holiday, enjoy myself and yet provide genuine, positive, tangible support on the ground. The tour operator (who I used) were fantastic throughout and particularly when I was away. When needed, I was in contact with London and where appropriate, help was available on the ground locally. Everywhere I stayed, seemed to know my whole itinerary, so were able to ensure forward details were checked/reconfirmed etc. It felt very personal and I feel I have made some new friends as a consequence.

Reviewed 03 Aug 2009 by Jackie Phillips4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


We just loved the home stay in Chang Rai. The hosts were wonderful and the adventures we had were fantastic. Both Yui and Leticia could not do enough for us and their children were delightful. The other wonderful part was the food at the clay pot in Chang Mai. Our hosts were wonderful and so very kind to us. Our children would rate the elephant sanctuary as the highlight of their trip.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


You will need cash to pay for any expenses in the national park in Khao Yai as they do not accept credit card.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


The idea of home stays is a wonderful one. This is by far the best way to meet local people and enjoy real food rather than hotel food.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


We had a wonderful and memorable time in Thailand. We enjoyed every second of it all and would not hesitate to recommend it to all families who like adventure and do not mind roughing it... we just loved it.
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Holiday Reviews

We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!

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