This tour mainly visits the beautiful and interesting highland areas of Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and the River Kwai. This price includes:

• Return Air fares from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane into Bangkok with Thai Airways, plus one flight within Thailand.  

• 10 days touring Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai & North Thailand and the River Kwai.  

• 3 days in Cha'am at a beach front hotel. 

• Good accommodation, mainly three to four star.  

• Many meals. 

• Entrance fees to many attractions. 

• All transport and transfers. 

• Full time service of a professional tour guide and an Australian tour leader.

If you do not have a travel partner, but wish to travel at twin share rates, we will try to match you up with someone else in the same position. For a single room there will be an extra charge of $565.

Tour Itinerary

Terms and Conditions

Booking Form

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	Itinerary for  Thailand Mountains & Beaches Tour - October 2009
	Included meals are indicated as B = Breakfast, L =Lunch, D = Dinner
12.10.09	Depart Brisbane at 11.59pm on TG992, arriving in Bangkok at 6.00am the next morning.
13.10.09	Depart Sydney at 11.00am on TG994, arriving in Bangkok at 4.25pm. Depart Melbourne at 5.05pm on TG982, arriving in Bangkok at 10.35pm. All flights will be met at the airport and transferred to the Manhattan hotel in Central Bangkok.
14.10.09 (B,D)	3 hour coach transfer to Cha'am on the Gulf of Siam staying at the beach-front Cha'am Methavalai Resort hotel. This evening there will be a "Hua Hin By Night" tour. Travel down to Hua Hin with a short time for shopping in the city center. This is followed by a visit to the historic railway station. Next stop is Hua Hin's night market. This is followed by a Rickshaw ride to a water front restaurant for a seafood and chicken dinner.
15.10.09 (B)	Optional tour to Petch Dam and Lake.  Morning scenic drive to Petch Dam. First stop is at a meditation centre with a huge lady Buddha statue. Then we board a long tail boat for a two and a half hour boat tour on the lake created by the dam, viewing beautiful national park country with small scattered Karen hill-tribe settlements.  We stop on a small island and inspect its interesting temple.  We then do a short walking circumvention of the island to see its interesting statues.  We next have lunch (included) at a lovely restaurant overlooking the lake, before returning to Cha'am.   Price $45.00
16.10.09 (B,L)	Lunch at our hotel before departure for Bangkok airport. Enroute we visit a Buddhist Temple set in a large natural network of caves. We then visit the Petchaburi Palace of King Rama IV (of "The King and I" fame). Depart Bangkok at 6.20pm on TG140, arriving in Chiang Rai at 7.40pm transfer to the Rimcock Resort hotel with beautiful grounds.
17.10.09 (B,L)	Today we have a coach tour of the beautiful Golden Triangle area. Our first stop is the Thailand/Laos border crossing at the mighty Mekong River. Then we travel to the Thailand/Burma border and inspect the Opium Museum, here we have lunch at a nice restaurant on the banks of the Mekong. Travel back to Chiang Rai and overnight at the Rimkok Resort.
18.10.09 (B,L)	Today we have a 4 hour boat trip on the Kok River from Chiang Rai to Thaton.  During the trip we stop to see some interesting hot springs, and another stop to inspect a hill tribe village.  We have lunch at Thaton and then rejoin our coach to drive to Chiang Mai for 3 nights, staying in a hotel in the heart of Chiang Mai's famous night market.
19.10.09 (B,L)	In the morning we visit Chiang Mai's famous handicraft factories, seeing such things as the manufacture of jewellery, Thai silk, paper umbrellas etc. Lunch is at a beautiful teakwood restaurant. The afternoon is free to explore Chiang Mai, the city that everybody loves.
20.10.09 (B,L)	This morning we drive out to the rural areas to visit the beautiful Queen Sirikit Botanical Gardens. This is followed by a visit to an orchid nursery where we have lunch.  After this we visit Chiang Mai's famous mountain top temple with spectacular views back over Chiang Mai.
21.10.09 (B,L)	Today we commence our coach trip back  to Bangkok . Our first stop is at the Government Elephant Conservation Centre in Lampang where we see a display of elephants at work. We then visit a modern temple known as 'The Soldiers Temple'  which is so breath takingly beautiful that many regard it as being the most beautiful temple in the world. Then we have lunch at a rustic restaurant beside the river Si Sachinali. Then to Sukothai, the ancient capital with it's UNESCO sponsored historical park of ancient ruins dating back to the 14th century. Overnight in Phitsanalook.
22.10.09 (B,L)	First we visit Phitsanalook's large local market, then we travel to Lopuri and visit the monkey temple where hundreds of monkeys run wild over the temple and the surrounding city. This is followed by a visit to an interesting museum situated in a former palace. We then have lunch in Lopuri at a lovely garden restaurant. Next we travel to Ayuttaya, Thailand's former capital that was sacked by the Burmese in the 18th century. Here we visit Ayuttaya's world heritage historical park with its extensive ruins.
23.10.09 (B,L,D)	Morning departure to the River Kwai. First of all we visit the beautifully kept allied war cemetery at Kanchanburi. Then onto the infamous bridge itself. We then travel out to near the Burmese border and visit the famous 'Tiger Temple' where you can get a photograph of yourself patting  these magnificent animals. We then travel by long-tailed boat along the River Kwai for an overnight stay at the Jungle Rafts Hotel floating on the River Kwai. This accommodation is quite unique and beautiful and most people consider it to be one of the highlights of the tour. However it is rather basic without electricity. Tonight there is an included dinner and display of traditional mon dancing.
24.10.09 (B,L)	Today we travel to the infamous Hell Fire Pass where many Australians died during the construction, here we inspect the Australian run museum. We then transfer to the Felix Resort Hotel on the banks of the River Kwai overlooking the famous bridge.
25.10.09 (B,L)	Morning departure from the hotel to Bangkok with lunch en-route. Before arriving at our hotel we visit Bangkok's huge weekend market where almost anything can be bought at bargain prices. The coach will stay there for 11/2 hours before transferring to the Manhattan hotel. People who wish to stay longer at the market can get to the hotel via the Sky-rail.
26.10.09 (B,D)	A morning optional tour to one of the seven wonders of the world, Bangkok's magnificent Grand Palace, Coronation Hall, Emerald Buddha and the replica of Angkor Wat. This is followed by a visit to the temple of the huge Reclining Buddha, with his massive mother-of-pearl feet. Price $38.00 Tonight there will be a farewell dinner included at our hotel.
27.10.09 (B)	Sydney passengers depart Bangkok at 7:25am on TG451, arriving in Sydney at 8:35pm. Melbourne passengers depart Bangkok at 8.10am on TG461, arriving in Melbourne at 9.20pm. Brisbane passengers will have a late checkout, before being transferred for their flight. Depart Bangkok at 11:59pm on TG473, arriving in Brisbane at 12:05pm (28.10.09)

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Deposits and Payments - A non-refundable deposit of $200.00 per person is payable within 7 days of booking. This deposit is not refundable should you later cancel. The balance is payable in full 8 weeks prior to departure.
Refunds and Cancellations - Cancellations after final payment will result in a refund limited to whatever we can recoup from the airline.
Insurance - Adequate travel insurance is essential. We can arrange this for you if desired.
Passports - All travellers require a current passport with at least 6 months left on it at the end of the tour. Non-Australian passport holders require a re-entry visa for Australia. Visas are not required for Thailand if travelling on an Australian passport.
Basic Tour Price and Taxes -  Air taxes and fuel levies are included in the basic tour price, therefore, as air taxes and fuel surcharges change regularly the exact amount will be advised at time of final payment. Total tour cost may therefore change by a small amount.
Not  Included in the Cost - All items of a personal nature such as telephone calls, drinks, excess baggage, tips, meals, (except those specified in the itinerary), travel insurance etc.  
Health and Fitness - Macleay Valley Travel recommends that the passenger is reasonably healthy and/or fit to participate in this tour. Persons with a disability requiring special assistance must be accompanied by a companion. Macleay Valley Travel and their representatives cannot provide this service. Macleay Valley Travel reserves the right to accept/decline or terminate a passenger's participation in the tour under certain circumstances.
Booking through other Agents - As we keep the cost of out tours as low as possible, there is insufficient margin for us to be able to pay commission to other travel agents, so some bookings can only be accepted if the client pays the other agent's commission. 
Macleay Valley Travel is a fully licensed travel agent and as such any monies paid to us are fully insured by the Travel Compensation Fund. We are happy for any prospective traveller with us to check us out with your local Consumer Affairs (fair trading) department.
Similarly, credit card payments can only be accepted if 2% is added to the price to help defray the heavy merchant fees charged to us by the credit card companies. 
Limitation of Liability - As Macleay Valley Travel acts only as agent for the Airlines, Hotels, Coach Companies etc., providing accommodation, transportation and other services, Macleay Valley Travel shall not be liable or responsible for death or injury to any person or loss or damage to any property including baggage arising out of or connection with any transportation, accommodation or other services, or resulting directly or indirectly from acts of God, fire, breakdown in machinery or equipment, acts of Government or other authorities, de jure or defacto wars, whether declared or not, hostilities, civil disturbances, strikes, riots, thefts, epidemics, quarantines, medical or customs regulations, delays or cancellations caused by changes in schedules or itinerary, or over bookings or defaults or for any causes beyond Macleay Valley Travel's control or any loss or damage resulting from improper or insufficient passports, visas or other documents and neither Macleay Valley Travel, and its servants or employees shall be or become liable or responsible for any additional expenses or liability sustained or incurred by the tour member as a result of the foregoing causes.
Macleay Valley Travel reserves the right to modify the itinerary or the accommodation if circumstances make this necessary, provided that the amended itinerary is of equal value or greater value than that of the original program.
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