The Hmong Experience

The Hmong Experience

Your guide and driver will meet you at the hotel for your one-day Hmong Experience. We will drive to Ban Mae Sa Mai, the largest Hmong community in Northern Thailand. This village is located within the boundaries of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park. We will visit the small Hmong community center and meet our local Hmong guide. You can ask him any questions about the daily life of the Hmong people. Our guide will be the translator. We will also try to teach you some easy words in the Hmong language.

Enjoy a local snack before we embark on a beautiful two hours trek on a trail on the slopes of Doi Suthep. A local Hmong guide who will explain about the lush vegetation will accompany us. We will pass huge wild banana trees, giant bamboo and observe a natural water source. We will hike at a leisurely pace. There will be enough time for making photographs and enjoying the natural environment. The views from the village over the Mae Sa Valley are fantastic.

The Royal Project and forest restoration

Ban Mae Sa Mai has profited from the Royal Project, initiated by the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The village has a Royal Project compound with greenhouses, but it usually is closed for outside visitors. Today, it is one of the largest producers of vegetables for the Royal Project marketing division and a research center for herb and vegetable production. The village also has participated in a forest restoration project in cooperation with FORRU, the Forest Restoration Unit of Chiang Mai University.

After the trek, we will enjoy a healthy lunch with ingredients from the Royal Project. After lunch, we will visit the tree nursery of Ban Mae Sa Mai. Here you will learn about the tree-planting project and have the opportunity to pot some seedlings. It is fun! Before we return to Chiang Mai, we will visit the Mon Chaem viewpoint, which is on the other side of the Mae Sa Valley.

Then it is time to return to Chiang Mai. We will drop you off at the hotel and hope you have enjoyed our Hmong Experience. We also offer a two-day tour with an overnight at this village. For a more challenging day adventure try out our Opium Trail trek, which is the best Doi Suthep trail.