Stay with the Palong People of Chiang Dao

Day 1: Chiang Mai- Palong village

Your guide will pick you up at the hotel. You will drive to the north into the mountains near Chiang Dao for your two day Palong Hilltribe trekking. First we will stop at a local market.  Your guide will do some shopping for the coming days. He will take you along and will explain about the different ingredients he will be using for dinner. Then, continue to a riverside camp on the Tang River where you will experience an exciting whitewater raft trip by rubber boat before continuing by car to a Lisu village near Chiang Dao where we will start trekking.

Lunch will be in the jungle.  After lunch we will continue our trek. The trail has a few steep hills but most of ut is relatively easy. All together we walk about 2,5 – 3 hours through the forest. We will invite you to recognize wild ginger, rattan and the pitcher plant in the forest and your guide tell you all about bamboo and its many uses. Late in the afternoon we will reach our final destination of today, the Palong village Pang How.
There are only a handful of Palong villages in Northern Thailand. The Palong tribe only recently moved from Myanmar to Thailand. The women wear a distinctive costume mostly in red, with rattan hoops and silver belt worn around the waist.

After arrival in the village you can relax, explore the village or learn some Thai cooking by helping your guide prepare the dinner. He can explain you about the herbs and ingredients he uses. After dinner you will meet some of the villagers and you will learn about the turbulent history of this village..

Overnight will be in one of the village houses

Day 2: Palong village – Chiang Mai

After the sounds of nature and the locals woke you up, your guide will prepare breakfast. The second day of your Palong hill tribe trekking starts. After breakfast your guide will show you around the village. He will explain about the village shrine and about the ‘huja rawl’, the ‘village heart’. We will visit an interesting textile weaving project where local women produce exquisite sarongs and shoulder bags. Next we will visit the garden of Sukhum where lots of different fruits and vegetables grow. This is really an educational experience.
After this we will say goodbye to the villagers and start trekking for about one hour to a Lahu village.  Here we will visit the very interesting spirit temple. We will also meet an elderly blacksmith who is still going strong despite his age.  After this we will continue trekking for one hour to a Karen village where are car will be waiting for us.

Drive to the foot of Doi Chiang Dao, the 3rd highest mountain in Thailand. Here we will have lunch in a local restaurant. Visit the famous caves of Chiang Dao. Last stop today will be the Elephant Poo Poo Paper Camp. 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 paper making. Return to Chiang Mai where your Palong Hilltribe trekking ends.