The Hidden Gem of The North

Early morning, depart from Chiang Rai with our Exo Travel guide and transfer south about an hour and a half toward Phayao Province. Passing through the vast plains of rice fields, you will finally arrive at Rico Resort, situated near a small town of Chiang Kham.

Having arrived at the resort, you will be greeted by a refreshing welcome drink and enjoy your delicious meal at the Rico’s restaurant with a view overlooking the rice field. After lunch, you embark on the bike and arm your head with helmet before cycling off through a local village to visit the Thai Leu weaving house. Observe the locals at work for the art of weaving. Ride off next to visit “Wat Nantalam”, a Burmese style teakwood temple before keeping up the cycling pace to Wat Phata Doi Kham, a modern style temple, “Temple of the Golden Mountain”. From here, you will then transfer by van to Phadaeng Bat Cave for a beautiful sunset of the day. (Note: Access to the cave depends on the season. During the rainy season (Jul-Oct), the cave may not be able to access as the crossing wooden bridge may be broken due to the rain).

A nice dinner set up at the hotel.

Overnight in Chiang Kham.

Inclusions:

🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

Enjoy a breakfast in the serene surroundings of the resort in the morning.

After breakfast, hop on the bike and follow the guide through rice fields along the backroads around the resort. Cycle off-the-beaten path until reaching “Wat Phra Khaew”, an over 400-year old temple, where the Emerald Buddha was housed for an unknown period of time. Make a short stop at one of the biggest trees in Thailand, and proceed on bike to visit the Huai Sa Reservoir. From here, keep on cycling to the “Community Jungle”, and start soft-trekking for about 2km while learning about this well-preserved ecosystem. Trek around the loop and then return to the bike.

Then, bike through rubber plantations and rice and vegetable fields before stopping for lunch at our favourite som tum restaurant. Here, try various kinds of local specialties.  

After lunch, visit another famous temple around town, “Wat Phra Nang Din”, which highlights the Buddha image in a sitting position on the ground -which is highly unusual in Thailand, and is thought to be a vestige of Buddhism’s very early days. Today’s trip then ends at a vegetable market at Ban Chayaphrom. From there, return back to the resort by van.

Dinner at the hotel.

Overnight in Chiang Kham.

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

After breakfast in the morning, relax by the pond near the hotel before checking out and transferring back to Chiang Rai via Phayao Town. Along the way, stop at Lake Phayao.  Then visit Wat Si Khom Kham near the lake for a look at the 16-metre tall golden Buddha statue. Following this, drive up the hill of Doi Bussarakham, approximately 17 km from town, and reach Wat Analayo, a must-visit temple while in Phayao.

Proceed to Chiang Rai, and drop off at a Chiang Rai hotel or Chiang Rai Airport. 

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast