Our team will pick you up from The Chiang Mai Gate Hotel at 10:00 and transfer you to Mae Wang, around 45 minutes from the city by songtaew, where the adventure starts.

First stop is a remote hill-side temple where we'll make merit for the adventure ahead and learn about the lives of the monks living in this ideal location. Then we travel on by songtaew through small farming communities, getting a real sense of how people live in this part of the world.

Enjoy a tasty lunch at a laid-back rural family restaurant and then it's time to head north up through the valley enjoying the winding roads and the feeling of getting further and further away from urban life.

We'll stop to explore the valley of Mae Sapok where we'll enjoy the views across rice terraces, water buffalo relaxing in fields, and hike through the forest to a fantastic waterfall before heading high into the mountains up superb winding roads.

Next stop is a giant Buddha image towering out of the forest giving incredible views and a stunning mural inside and then we'll arrive at our site which will be our base for the next two nights. The site is right in the heart of Karen Hill Tribe country and you'll be greeted with a traditional Karen welcome before relaxing and enjoying the natural surroundings. In the evening we'll cook and eat together with the community and sit around the campfire enjoying fantastic Karen mountain food and sharing stories and perhaps even a little bit of local moonshine! A superb opportunity to learn about Karen history and culture and to enjoy the hospitality of the community.

Meals: Lunch, BBQ Dinner
Accommodation: Camping Tent
Transportation: Chiang Mai Gate Hotel to Mae Wang by Songteaw

Start the day with a local mountain breakfast and freshly brewed coffee from the mountains before we hike into the forest to explore the local area. Led by members of the local community who know the mountains like the back of their hands, you'll learn about the different plants the community use, look for animal trails, and even learn about the environmental challenges facing the mountain communities in the never ending battle between urban demands and the wishes of the community to preserve their heritage and environment. The hike takes a couple of hours but is at a gentle pace with lots of stops to learn, explore, and even gather food for later this evening.

Lunch is eaten in a clearing in the forest next to a small stream and then walk down to the local Karen village where you'll have the opportunity to learn about the lives of the community up here in the mountains. This is a real Karen community and a million miles from a tourist trap – in fact nothing here is designed for tourists and this is a great opportunity to interact and learn about life without the pretense one finds elsewhere.

We'll then enjoy a great feast in the local village, learning a few more wonderful mountain menus with the community before heading back to the camp to enjoy another evening sitting around the campfire and enjoying a truly unique experience.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Camping Tent

Another tasty and filling mountain breakfast to set you up for the day before we transfer by songtaew through stunning mountain roads to the start point of our hike today. 

Walking through the foothills of Doi Inthanon accompanied by a local forest expert as we pass through towering forests, track along rivers, enjoy superb waterfalls, and even stop for a swim in a cool (that's temperature) pool deep in the forest.

We'll have lunch in a forest clearing before finally walking through the rice terraces into the community of Mae Khlang Luang where we can enjoy traditional mountain coffee in a laid back Karen coffee shop – Starbucks eat your heart out, this is how you really do coffee.

There's time to explore this lovely community and take in the views over the rice fields and forest all around before transferring back to Chiang Mai city to end the trip. We'll arrive in Chiang Mai in the afternoon and drop you off at the same hotel we picked you up from.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Camping Tent
Transportation: Mae Wang to Chiang Mai by Songteaw