2 Days Authentic Hill Tribe Tour

Highlights

Experience the Karen hill tribe way of life. Cultural immersion, Village life, Hilltribe Homestay, Nature & Scenery, Educational, Agricultural, Hill tribe schools & village handicrafts.

Description

With many touristic hill tribe villages in Thailand, it can be difficult to visit villages in an uncommercialised way. The hill tribe villages we will visit on this tour are non-touristic and we are the only group to visit there. As we only visit in small private groups, the experience is kept highly authentic and personalised. Enjoy an intimate cultural immersion experience with the Karen hill tribe, learn about and share daily life in the village, in a natural and responsible way.

Northern Thailand views

2d/1n Authentic Hill tribe tour

Outline Itinerary

As we follow the natural rhythms of village life, activities can change and we do not offer a fixed itinerary, this is a sample outline only

Day 1
Pick up from hotel - enjoy the scenery as we head out into the sub-tropical countryside (approx 1 hours drive from Chiang Mai city) - stop to visit aspects of local life such as roadside markets and admire the forested mountain views and rice terraces on the way - visit to Karen hill tribe village - learn about Karen way of life (for example cotton weaving and traditional bamboo stilt homes) - lunch break -  visit to farm, learn about how the Karen farm and live with nature (how they forage herbs and bamboo shoots) - cook a traditional dinner together over handmade fire -  O/n Karen Hilltribe homestay

Day 2
After breakfast - optional short trek - learn about flora and fauna - optional visit to elephant camp or Baan Tong Luang village - or other activities upon request - visit to Hmong hilltribe village - learn about Hmong culture - back to Chiang Mai drop off at hotel

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Sample Activities
  • Optional visit to elephant sanctuary
  • Optional short trek through forest and farmland
  • Visit waterfall
  • Help to prepare a traditional dinner

Testimonials of this tour


"Amazing Experience"

Pat and his team drove us around Northern Thailand with a 2 nights at 2 different homestays. We explored markets, tasting different fruits, visited Tribes, learning about traditions and lifestyle and they included bamboo rafting a waterfall for the kids. Pat was very flexible with the tour. The homestays were a great experience, the families were very accommodating, with enough food to feed the tribe. Our family gained so much, highly recommend this experience (Kelly, Australia, Visited April 2018)

2d1n Hilltribe Tour Mae Sariang "Unique Experience"

It’s not every day you get to experience life in a small Karen Hilltribe Village of thirty. From our basic accommodations to the openness of our host it was a very unique experience. I had a very enjoyable time with my guide Winai who shared my passion for photography and took me to many interesting places such as Baan Tong Luang Village. I watched him cut bamboo in the forest to make sticky rice for our breakfast treat. His English is excellent and I highly recommend him as a guide. I count myself extremely lucky to have had my schedule work with their availability. My only regret is having such a short time. They offer other longer adventure treks which I would have loved to experience. The office was prompt in responding to my emails and extremely professional. Highly recommend!
(Linda, Vancouver, Visited February 2018)

"Local Living"

We had this trip in the beginning of January (2018) and we must say that it was the best thing of our holiday. The guide (Pat) knew the places where were no tourists. That's why we had an excellent opportunity to observe real local living. We went to see for example poor hmong tribe, local school and hot springs. The best thing of trip was an unforgettable night with karen tribe family, where we lived together with water buffalos, roosters, chickens, pigs etc. Then we ate local food and had sticky rice from a bamboo. If you want to get rid of big tourist groups and experience local living, you should definately have this trip! (Oskari, Finland, Visited January 2018)

- This tour starts+ends in Chiang Mai. We can pick up+drop off at your hotel/airport/train station in Chiang Mai
- The itinerary is an outline only, it is not fixed, this leaves opportunity to explore local life along the way
- Includes an overnight at a Karen hill tribe homestay in a remote village
- Conditions are basic (very little electricity, no hot showers, simple bedding in a stilt house)
- We follow village life, rather than village life following us, so we cannot guarantee what activities you will see in the village. But you will have the chance to meet villagers, be invited into their homes and to see how they live in an ethical and respectful way
- Includes an option to visit Baan Tong Luang village (where you can see the Long neck women, Palong, Lahu, Hmong, Lisu hill tribes). It can provide an educational and all-round insight into a wide variety of hill tribe groups. You can decide about this on the day, with your guide
- This tour can be customised. Please contact us for more details
- Homestay and meals are payable directly to the host family. This is a form of sustainable income generation for the villagers. - We encourage 100% profits from services to go directly to the Karen hill tribe.  

 

DETAILS :

  • This tour starts+ends in Chiang Mai. We can pick up+drop off at your hotel/airport/train station in Chiang Mai. If you require pick up from another location please contact us.
  • The itinerary is an outline only, it is not fixed, this leaves opportunity to explore local life along the way.
  • Optional overnight at a Kayan Long Neck Tribe Homestay. Conditions are basic (very little electricity, no hot showers, sleeping in a bamboo stilt hut) or guesthouse accommodation is also possible. 
  • The itinerary is an outline only, it is not fixed, this leaves opportunity to explore local life along the way.
  • This tour can be customised. Please contact us for more details.

 

ETHICAL FACTOR :

    • We follow village life, rather than village life following us, so we cannot guarantee what activities you will see in the village. But you will have the chance to meet villagers, be invited into their homes and to see how they live in an ethical and respectful way.

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM :

    • Option to go on a short trek with our village trekking guide. S/he can show you the local ecology, and how the hill tribes live with nature. This is part of our sustainable tourism efforts, to provide training and a livelihood to villagers so that they have the chance to practice guiding and their English.

TOUR IMAGES

Excellent
Based on 484 reviews
Marta R
Marta R
2023-08-14
Amazing trip with great people The tour was amazing, we did the 2 days tour with a homestay with a Kayan family. Our guide Surachai was really good and knowledgeable, and really made our trip a great one. He was a local from the Karen tribe. We started with a bamboo rafting, which was alright but if you are more into adventure could maybe skip and do something else. Then we drove to see the Hmong village and market and then to the Kayan village. There a local guide took us around to see the rice fields and the village, really nice scenery and he told us all about the local plants and crops. We even stopped at the local shop to have a local drink (a sort of rice liquor) and some snacks with him. When we came back we had dinner with the family and our guides, the food was delicious, our host Massu and her sister cooked a feast and it was all stuff they had gathered or grown. My partner and I stayed at the village , there is an option to go stay at a nearby hotel, which my parents did, but I would recommend staying with the family to both support and get a better understanding of their way of living. We stayed in a bamboo hut with no electricity, and overall it was pretty comfortable. We stayed up after dinner to chat and play uno with our host and her kids and had breakfast with them the next day. It was really nice to chat with them and they shared a bit about their experience as refugees. The next day our guide took us to do a short trek on a mountain where we were the only ones, had dinner at a local place and then waterfalls. Our guide took us to less touristy places which were less crowded but equally beautiful, and we were glad to support the locals. He even offered us to do a long boat tour near his village, which was on the way to our next destination and he then went to pick us up on the other side, saving us some driving which was replaced by a very enjoyable boat ride. Only thing I would add is that if you want to do elephant camp, check with them before to see where they will take you. Our bamboo rafting was in the same place as an elephant camp which offered shows and rides (which we wanted to avoid). We had done our elephant visit the day before at an ethical elephant sanctuary so it didn’t impact us but something to keep in mind. Overall a fantastic and authentic experience and would it a longer tour in the future. 10/10
Amber W
Amber W
2023-07-12
Highlight of not only our trip but of our life as a family We have traveled all over the world, and this is one of the most magnificent things we’ve done. My husband and 4 children - ages 13, 11, 11, and 11 - did the 4 day 3 night adventure with a home stay. It was amazing and authentic from start to finish. Pat is an amazing guide who knows several languages and all of the locals, which means you get an experience that you absolutely cannot rival anywhere else. I can’t recommend this highly enough for adventurous travelers who want off the beaten path and want a REAL Thai experience. We will always remember it.
Pau-Ling B
Pau-Ling B
2023-07-07
Experience life as a local Wonderful trip with my kids. Guide was so good. Showing us life as a local. We stopped often to see interesting non touristy places and ate like locals. We particularly enjoyed meeting the ‘lisu’ and Karen people and seeing their way of life. The home stays were our highlights. Our guide was warm and enjoyed showing us his country. He was genuine in his desire to help support these small communities. Highly Recommend.
Brian D
Brian D
2023-07-01
Wow fantastiske oplevelser med fantastisk guide, der selv var fra bjergområderne Vi var på 4 dages tur fra Chiang Mai og op i den nordligste del af Thailand. Afhentning i lufthavnen af Surachai, vores guide. Han talte ok engelsk, og vi forstod stort set alt. Han var den bedste guide, der gav os nogle fantastiske oplevelser og informationer. Største øjeblikke på turen: Ophold og Overnatning i bambushytte i Hilltripe hos Masu) Besøge den gyldne trekant Trekke opad Thailands 2. højeste bjerg Doi Ang Khang (det var ret udfordrende og man skal ikke være bange for højder eller være usikker på benene) Grænsen til Myanmar Grotten hvor fodboldholdet blev reddet Bådtur på flod Gå opad vandfald (Buaton waterfall) Vær forberedt på at du bliver spurgt meget til hvad du har lyst til - så lidt forberedelse hjemmefra kan være smart. Eneste minus ved turen var sidste overnatningssted - Chiang dai in love. Toilet var beskidt, der var små insekter/biller i sengene og området var meget forfaldent, så jeg ville bede om et andet hvis du bliver forslået at overnatte der (bambushytte var bedre) Vi var totalt overvældet allerede efter de 2 første dage og 4 dag var vi lidt mættet og droppede bambusrafting.
Maria Fernanda G
Maria Fernanda G
2023-06-25
An inspiring family experience! So inspiring!! I travelled alone with my two four-year-old twins for the first time, and this 3-days tour was such a fantastic experience. Our tour guide, Surachai, from the Karen tribe, explained a lot about the hill tribes, their differences, origins and culture, and organised all the details so we could have authentic encounters with these beautiful people. He was so patient with the kids and flexible also to organise seeing some nature wonders such as some fantastic waterfalls and caves. We stayed with a Kayan Long Neck family one night and it was so inspiring. I was unsure about visiting the Kayan Long Neck tribe, so I looked for an ethical and sustainable tour company. But the visit was worth it. The family have created a beautiful homestay. I learned from their resilience and awareness, and hopefully, my children also discovered a new perspective on life, and as a family, we will cultivate a new friendship. Everyone in "Thailand Hilltribe Holidays, Responsible Tours for Northern Thailand" was so responsive. I admire their work, and definitely, their purpose goes beyond any traditional tour company to change the status quo and give local northern hill tribes an opportunity to share who they are and have a sustainable income. Again- as a family- it was just inspiring.
Claire
Claire
2023-06-20
Wonderful, authentic experience! We loved our authentic home stay experience. Thank you for arranging everything Melissa and a big thank you to our private guide, Pat for his insights, knowledge and big, generous heart. I love that he is trying to change lives through training and teaching. Our driver also provided excellent, kind service. The highlight was being able to meet Masu and her beautiful family. We loved speaking with her and getting to know them. Her story is heartbreaking. And she served incredibly delicious food which we all thoroughly enjoyed. Your tour was exactly what we wanted…exploring and meeting people off the tourist path and not going to a “human zoo”. The home stay was a deeply meaningful experience for my kids as well. We included the elephant sanctuary and we also really enjoyed the waterfall stop! Thank you again!!
SofiyaM
SofiyaM
2023-02-15
Terribly disappointing tour with unprofessional guide We did 2 days, 1 night hill tribe tour out of Chiang Mai. This tour was a total rip off and scam for what it was. Our guide, Surachai, had absolutely no knowledge about the areas he was showing us. If I had a question, he would point out to the official short description of the place in English. When I asked him about the war between Thailand & Myanmar, he suggested to read it in a book. We would’ve been better off with just a car and a driver for the day. He was also pretty useless organizing our meals. Both, me & my partner were feeling uncomfortable in the first village we visited. The residents of that village would not respond to our hello and even turn away from us. We were clearly not welcomed. On the first day we also visited a cave & a sticky waterfall. All of it could’ve been done on our own, as no explanations or history of the places were given to us. At the waterfall the guide climbed it himself and was obstructing my photo shot! Very unprofessional. Our overnight guesthouse was clean, but had uncomfortable bed & unusable pillows. Never again I will agree to someone else booking a place to stay. Good lesson. The plan for the second day was to visit long neck tribe village & hmong people village. We were brought in the middle of nowhere and offered a walk in the forest and our guide’s village, instead of walking in a long neck village, as I expected from the tour description. When asked the guide, why it’s a different village, he said long neck tribe is actually just one family, and we will stop there later. At that point we were so dissatisfied with the trip, we just asked to take us back to the city. Then suddenly the guide remembered another, “touristy” long neck village we could visit… really? For some weird reason, they had to stop in 2 different places “to pick up their backpacks”. Why their backpacks were not with them in the morning, if they were leaving back to the city with us?! Suspicious. To be fair, the driver was nice and polite. His car, however was untidy and not cleaned, unlike any other drives we took while in Thailand for a month. Oh, and they made us to pay for the full tank of gas, when we know we only used half at most. Feel scammed and extremely disappointed. Don’t use this company. There are many other much better once.
George T
George T
2023-02-11
One of our best experiences It was a reals life experience and not just a tour. Melissa and Pat our trying to do something out of ordinary and. They are showing you how is really the north thailand.
Andrea A.
Andrea A.
2023-01-25
Amazing tour by expert guide What an amazing experience! Anan was our guide. He is also a part of the tribe and is the perfect guide for this tour. The itinerary was perfect. It is customizable and he helps make sure you have a great time. We loved every part of this tour, from the elephant sanctuary, to the visit to the villages, the homestay, the food, farm tour, market tour, and seeing the waterfalls, and many more! We did so much within 2 days and it was just perfect. I will definitely do another experience with Anan and this tour agency in the future. Thank you so much and all the best to you!
Vicky
Vicky
2023-01-17
Recommended! We had a wonderful time exploring part of Northern Thailand. We visited many hilltribes in a very respectful and authentic way. We would definitely recommend this company for your travels. Thank you again!

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