Treasures of Thailand
11 Day Thailand Tour from Bangkok | Operated by Trafalgar
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11 Days
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1 Country
Thailand -
5 Cities
Bangkok, Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Kanchanaburi, Sukhothai, Chiang Mai -
23 Meals
1 Welcome Reception, 10 Breakfasts, 7 Lunchs, 2 Dinners, 1 Regional Dinner, 1 Be My Guest, 1 Farewell Dinner -
Pace: Comfortable
Mainly 2–3-night stays in each location. Comfortable travel days with numerous stops. Requires 1-3 miles of walking per day that might involve some uneven surfaces, such as cobblestones and stairs.
Trip Itinerary
Say sawadee ka to the land of smiles, starting your Thai adventure in Bangkok. Transfer to your hotel where this evening, we meet our Travel Director and fellow guests for a Welcome Reception drink with local appetizers.
Rise early and join the locals for a graceful T’ai Chi practice in Lumpini Park to kick-start your day. Alternatively, enjoy a leisurely start before joining your fellow travelers on a City Tour, which begins with a visit to Bangkok’s Grand Palace, where you’ll visit the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand, Wat Phra Kaew. See the largest-reclining Buddha in Thailand in Bangkok’s oldest temple, Wat Pho, and enjoy a traditional Thai massage in the temple’s massage center. Return to your hotel by express river boat, cruising down the Chao Praya past beautiful Wat Arun, the Temple of the Dawn.
Immerse your senses in the five flavors of Thai cuisine as you join a Local Specialist for a traditional cooking class in a colonial-style house. Visit a local market nearby to source the freshest ingredients that reveal the sweet, sour, salty, bitter and hot flavors of Thai cuisine. Sample the results later, then spend the afternoon exploring the City of Angels on your terms, or consider joining an Optional Experience to Jim Thompson's House, home to an impressive collection of Asian art.
A riot of colors greets us this morning as we embark on a visit to the famous floating market at Damnoen Saduak. Connect with the friendly merchants who paddle along the congested canals in their sturdy canoes, laden with fresh fruit and vegetables to sell to shoppers on the banks. En route, we’ll Dive Into Culture, stopping at a coconut palm sugar plantation where we’ll discover how the farmer extracts the sap from his palm trees to create palm sugar. After lunch in a local restaurant, visit the world famous Bridge over the River Kwai. After a walk along the bridge continue to the Thailand-Burma Railway Museum, revealing insights into the history of the infamous railway line built during WWII by the Imperial Japanese army. Our final stop today sees us pay tribute to the thousands of allied prisoners of war who were laid to rest at the War Cemetery.
This morning, we visit Hellfire Pass, a section of the Thailand-Burma “Death Railway”, so named for the tortuous conditions that prisoners of war endured during WWII to build it. After lunch, we embark on a thrilling train ride across wooden viaducts, skirting the winding waters of the Kwai River. We’ll disembark and see the wooden viaducts first-hand walking across one. This evening, we enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
After breakfast, we travel to the UNESCO-listed Ayutthaya, once the second-most important ancient capital of Old Siam and the largest city in the world. Here, we’ll delve into the trading heritage of a mighty city that was all but raised to the ground by an 18th century Burmese invasion. We’ll enjoy lunch at a local restaurant, then return to Bangkok for our flight to Sukhothai, Thailand’s first capital.
Gain insights into a powerful kingdom that enjoyed its golden age during the 13th and 14th centuries and shaped modern Thailand as we know it today. Start the day with a visit to the UNESCO-listed Sukhothai Historical Park which reveals thousands of years of history and a 15-meter seated Buddha secreted within its walls. Your choice of exploring will see you engage with the historic complex by bicycle or on the internal tram. This afternoon, visit the home of a local family and learn how to make amulets which are thought to protect the owner from harm.
Our day begins with a visit to the first of our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® experiences today at the village of Natonchan, where our visit supports the community’s eco-tourism project . We’ll interact with the locals and meet one of the villagers to learn about 'gymnastic doll' making and the villagers’ traditional cotton clothes which are soaked in mud to protect them from fading. Arriving in Chiang Mai, we enjoy an evening walk with our Travel Director and visit the colorful Sunday market. Our hotel tonight is located in the old town of Chiang Mai.
Admire the delicate hand-painted fans and colorful paper umbrellas that are famously crafted in Chiang Mai’s San Kamphaeng district. We continue to a small village nearby where we’ll Connect with Locals, joining a family in their typical stilt house for a northern Thai-style Be My Guest lunch. Next is a visit to Wat Suan Dok where we’ll meet a local monk and learn about Buddhism, against the backdrop of the temple’s magnificent golden chedi.
Your morning is free to spend as you please. Later, we visit Wat Doi Suthep, one of Thailand's most sacred temples. As the sun sets over this mystical temple, listen quietly to the tranquil sounds of the monks chanting. This evening, we join fellow travelers and Travel Director for a Farewell Dinner at a traditional Thai restaurant located next to the river.
Price Includes
What's Included- - An expert Travel Director and professional Driver
- - Cherry-picked hotels, all tried and trusted
- - All porterage and restaurant gratuities
- - All hotel tips, charges and local taxes
- - Breakfast daily and up to half of your evening meals
- - Must-see sightseeing and surprise extras
- - Audio headsets for flexible sightseeing
- - Luxury air-conditioned coach with Wi-Fi in most countries or alternative transportation (such as rail journeys)
- - Optional Experiences and free time
- - On occasion, hotels of similar standard and location may be utilized.
- - Flight from Bangkok to Sukhothai.
- - 1 Welcome Reception (WR)
- - 10 Breakfasts (B)
- - 7 Lunchs (L)
- - 2 Dinners (D)
- - 1 Regional Dinner (RD)
- - 1 Be My Guest (BMG)
- - 1 Farewell Dinner (FD)
- Visit Lumpini Park in Bangkok and join the locals in their daily T'ai Chi practice.
- Enjoy a traditional Thai massage in the grounds of Wat Pho, a center for traditional Thai massage.
- Learn the secrets of Thai cooking and visit a local market to buy fresh ingredients.
- Stop at a coconut palm sugar plantation and discover how the farmer extracts the sap from the palm trees to be turned into sugar.
- Begin your city tour by visiting Bangkok's Grand Palace, home to the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand, Wat Phra Kaew. Continue your exploration of the city and its renowned landmarks.
- Embark on an Express River Cruise on the Chao Praya River and admire the beautiful Temple of the Dawn along the way.
- Visit the famous floating market at Damnoen Saduak and paddle along the canals laden with fresh produce to sell.
- Discover the "Death Railway" when you visit Hellfire Pass and learn about the horrible conditions of which the prisoners of WWII had to endure when building this landmark.
- Bask in the views of the Kwai River as you make your way across wooden viaducts on your scenic train ride.
- Delve into the rich trading history of the UNESCO-listed Ayutthaya as you embark on your city tour.
- Visit Sukhothai Historical Park and choose to explore the park by bicycle or tram tour.
- Spend some time with a local family and learn the art of amulet making and how these jewels protect the owner from harm.
- Spend the evening enjoying a walk through the vibrant Sunday market of Chiang Mai with your Travel Director.
- Visit Wat Suan Dok Temple, marvel at the golden details and meet a local monk.
- See the vibrant paper umbrellas that are famously crafted in the San Kamphaeng District.
- Visit Wat Doi Suthep, which is one of Thailand's most sacred temples and listen closely for the chanting of the monks.
- On a visit to Natonchan we interact with the locals and meet one of the villagers to learn about traditional crafts such as gymnastic doll making and creating textiles in an array of patterns which are then soaked in mud to protect them from fading.
- Join the Saiwangjit family who live in a wooden Thai stilt house for a traditional northern Thai-style meal.
Optional Experiences
Optional Experiences are subject to change. Your Travel Director will supply you with a final list of Optional Experiences available on your trip. Optional Experiences cannot be booked online; they can be purchased during your trip through your Travel Director.
Dinner Cruise on The Loy Nava (with drinks) (Available on Day 2)Experience Bangkok at its best while cruising along the historic Chao Phraya River, aboard the "Loy Nava", a 40-year-old antique rice barge which was entirely re-built and beautifully restored to its former glory. On board, you will be welcomed by traditionally dressed hostesses with a rose water sprinkling ceremony. With traditional Kim music playing in the background savor Thailand’s finest regional specialties, whilst passing some of Bangkok’s most famous cultural and majestic landmarks. Price includes dinner, tea/coffee, four alcoholic drinks and bottled water. The price shown is in Thai Bhat.
Adult Price: ฿2800 Dinner Cruise on The Loy Nava (without drinks) (Available on Day 2)Experience Bangkok at its best while cruising along the historic Chao Phraya River, aboard the "Loy Nava", a 40-year-old antique rice barge which was entirely re-built and beautifully restored to its former glory. On board, you will be welcomed by traditionally dressed hostesses with a rose water sprinkling ceremony. With traditional Kim music playing in the background savor Thailand’s finest regional specialties, whilst passing some of Bangkok’s most famous cultural and majestic landmarks. Price includes dinner, tea/coffee and bottled water. The price shown is in Thai Bhat.
Adult Price: ฿1900 Jim Thompson House (Available on Day 3)Jim Thompson House is one of the best examples of traditional Thai residential architecture and houses a breath-taking collection of Southeast Asian art. Jim Thompson, born in Delaware in 1906, fell in love with Thailand while posted as an intelligence agent in Bangkok during WWII. He later made it his permanent home and started a business supplying fine Thai silk to overseas fashion houses, single-handedly saving what had been a dying cottage industry. His silk company continues to flourish today. With the proceeds of his success, Thompson collected an impressive range of art works, and sections of teak houses, assembling them into a museum complex set in a lush garden alongside central Bangkok’s Saen Saep Canal. The main house is full of tastefully displayed Asian art and curios including Buddha images, paintings, ceramics and antique furniture. The living areas have been preserved as they were when Thompson lived there before his mysterious disappearance. There is also a Thai restaurant and bar plus, a sizeable boutique selling quality silk items, books and prints. The price shown is in Thai Bhat.
Adult Price: ฿2220