Fantastic Family Adventure in Chiang Dao

Your guide and driver will meet you at the hotel at 0800 for your one day Chiang Dao Hilltribe Family adventure. We will drive to Chiang Dao. People of the Akha, Lisu, Lahu, Palong (aka Dara-ang) and Karen tribes live in this area. It is a mostly agricultural area encircled by forested mountains. Many crops grow in this area such as corn, cassava and rice. There are lots of fruit trees as well, amongst others papaya, longan (lamyai), rose apple and mango. The Palong grow pineapples as well.

Mae Malai local market

Our first stop today will be at the local market at Mae Malai. Your guide with take you around and explain the herbs and vegetables, used in Thai cooking. He will also tell about the strange kinds of food and the other local products you can find here. We will proceed to the rafting camp for your bamboo rafting experience. It is not white water but bamboo rafting, which is a relaxing experience. We will provide life jackets. Please wear them and have a look at our bamboo rafting policy.

While the helmsman manoeuvres your raft down the stream, you have time to look around and enjoy the scenery.

Family Adventure: meet the Dara-ang people

Here we will leave the main road to proceed further into the countryside where we will stop at the Dara-ang village Pang Daeng Nai. In Thailand, the Dara-ang are known as Palong or Palaung. Most of the women still wear traditional dress. In this village, there is a small royal project that we will visit before we start our hike of today. Here you can find more about the history and background of hill tribe trekking in Chiang Mai. We’ll hike through the protected community forest to Mae Chon, another Dara-ang village. We will pass through dipterocarp and bamboo forest and patches of evergreen forest. The trail goes up and down. There is plenty of time for some explanation of flora and enjoy the tranquillity of the forest.

Mae Chon, Dara-ang village

Mae Chon is our final destination. The last part of our hike takes us through the plantations and fields of the villages. Your guide will show you around the village. He will explain about the village shrine and the ‘huja rawl’, the ‘village heart’. The Dara-ang (Palong) people moved to Thailand in the 1980s. The Dara-ang women are excellent weavers. They make beautiful textiles that are for sale in the village for very reasonable prices. We also will show you a traditional rice pounder. We installed it in the village because there wasn’t one.

After this walk, we will get back in our van and head back to Chiang Mai, where we will arrive late in the afternoon. Last stop today will be the Elephant Poo Poo Paper Park. During an excellent self-guided tour, you will see all the stages of the production of paper from elephant dung and learn about the history of papermaking. We will arrive back in Chiang Mai in the late afternoon.

End of your Chiang Dao Family Adventure

Timeline	08.00 – Departure from the hotel 08.45 – Visit to Elephant Poo Poo Paper Park 09.00 – Drive to Mae Malai 09.30 – Visit the local market 09.45 – Drive to the bamboo rafting camp 10.15 – Arrival at the camp 10.30 – Start bamboo rafting 11.15 – Finish the rafting trip 11.30 – Departure to Chiang Dao 12.15 – Lunch at local restaurant 13.00 – Arrive at Pang Daeng Nai, visit the village 13.30 – Start hiking about 2 hours 15.30 – Arrive at Palong village, Mae Chon, relax and visit the village 16.00 – drive back to Chiang Mai 18.00 – drop off at the hotel
Included	English speaking guide Transportation by AC Minibus Lunch Drinking water during meals Bamboo rafting (about 45 minutes) Limited medical insurance
Not included	Other drinks except water Personal expenses Tips
Things to bring	T-shirt and shorts for daytime Long sleeves/Jacket during winter time (Nov – Feb) Hiking shoes with good grip Flip flops Sunscreen Hat or cap Insect repellent (DEET medicated) Sunglasses Small backpack

"Due to weather conditions and other conditions on the ground we might have to adjust the itinerary of this trekking. If it is necessary to adjust the program we will always make sure that the quality of your experience and your personal safety are safeguarded."