About Us
The History of Green Trails
We started a company in Chiang Mai in 2010 to focus exclusively on organizing trekking and other active, outdoor activities. At that time we worked closely with a company in Laos, called Tiger Trail. We decided to work together and started with the brand name Tiger Trail Thailand. Our office was at Charoenprathet Road, very close to the Iron Bridge. After more than five years we split amicably and we rebranded the company as Green Trails. We still do business with Tiger Trail Laos, who are still our friends. In 2016 we moved office to the K-Park Business Center on Mahidol Road.
Initially most of our guests came through Destination Management Companies in Bangkok but over time guests started to find our website and approached us directly. Over time we added another brand to the company: Chiang Mai a la Carte. This brand focuses on more general, less adventurous tours such as cultural, historical, culinary and samlor (bicycle taxi) tours.
Trekking with Green Trails
We still believe that trekking is one of the most rewarding experiences in the North of Thailand. We have written a couple of stories about trekking in the past. In the early days of the ’70s and ’80s trekking was one of the few activities on offer for tourists. That has changed. There are now so many other things to do in Chiang Mai and North Thailand. Treks of three and four days were the norm in the early days.
Now one day and two-day tours are more popular. We are always looking for new trails and adventures. At the same time, we are striving to make the trekking experience more rewarding both for hosts and guests. We are constantly updating and extending the information on tribal culture on this website. We are committed to the tribal communities we work with. Green Trails is also committed to the preservation of tribal textiles.
Chiang Mai on Three Wheels, the samlor project
Chiang Mai on Three Wheels is a non-profit project of Green Trails. We want to give something back to Chiang Mai, the city that we love. Chiang Mai on Three Wheels offers several Chiang Mai tours by samlor. In Thai language, Samlor means three wheels. The samlor is a bicycle taxi. In the old days before the age of the automobile, there used to be hundreds of samlors in Chiang Mai. Now there are less than 40. We consider the samlor a Chiang Mai heritage and aims to preserve the samlor as a means of transportation in the future and want to improve the livelihood of the drivers by offering some great Chiang Mai Tours by samlor. Chris Parker of Retired Working for You made this video about the project:
Samlor tour in Chiang Mai
Jeroen Maduro of Global Travelmate made a video on the same day in November 2021.
Chiang Mai a la Carte: customized travel
Finally, Chiang Mai, a la Carte is our “umbrella”. This website offers everything you want to do in Chiang Mai, including the tours of our other brands. Chiang Mai a la Carte offers tours and packages. Customization is the greatest strength of Chiang Mai a la Carte. We will go the extra mile to personalize your tour and make it a once-in-lifetime-experience. Chiang Mai a la Carte focuses on festivals, traditions, architecture, culture and meaningful encounters. We are one of the few companies that pays attention to heritage houses and buildings in Chiang Mai and North Thailand. We value the preservation of traditions and cultural heritage. But most of all we would like you to enjoy the hospitality and friendliness of the local people that make this country such a special place to visit.
