Jaytee Kanwal
Sample Itinerary
Day 1
SURAT THANI – KLONG NOI
Welcome to Southern Thailand!
Start your journey in the beautiful Klong Noi. Located at less than one hour from the airport, Klong Noi remains and idyllic location far away from the noisy bustle of busy Phuket or Krabi. Here you will be welcomed into the local community, and your homestay will provide the perfect opportunity to learn about village life. Set along the river, Klong Noi is a good example of a village dependent upon what the river provides. You will explore the area with your local guide and learn to learn more about this unique region.
Homestay overnight at the village.
Overnight Homestay
Day 2
KLONG NOI
Enjoy a tasty local breakfast with your host family. Later continue with some activities in and around the community with your English-speaking guide. There is a long tail boat-making shipyard where you can see boats being made by hand. Additionally, local families make fishing rods for crayfish and even there is a quirky school for training monkeys to retrieve coconuts from palm trees.
Overnight Homestay
Day 3
KLONG NOI – CHEAW LAN LAKE
Today you depart from Klong Noi and head for the hills of Khao Sok – an area known as the hidden gem of Thailand. Towering karst peaks jut up from a beautiful lake surrounded by one of the region’s oldest rainforests. Enjoy a local lunch as you make your way to Cheow Lan Lake. Here you will meet your guide and embark on a long tail boat journey to your floating raft house – a charming way to experience the calm waters of the lake. Enjoy a dinner in a relaxed, peaceful atmosphere of the floating raft house on Cheow Lan Lake.
Overnight Floating Raft House
Day 4
CHEAW LAN LAKE – KHAO SOK NATIONAL PARK
Rise before breakfast and enjoy tea or coffee before boarding your long tail boat for a morning mist wildlife safari. From your boat you may see Macaque monkeys, dusty langurs, great hornbills, wild boars, Gibbon monkeys, and even the occasional wild elephant! Return to the raft and enjoy a traditional Thai breakfast of Khao Tom (a savory rice porridge) or a delicious pancake.
Later, hop aboard a kayak for a guided tour of the surrounding area. Sliding peacefully along the shores of the lake in your kayak, you may have the opportunity to spot shyer animals as they amble about. Head back to your raft house for lunch and check out and jump on your long tail boat for Khao Sok National Park. Here you will watch the sunset from your cliff top room.
Overnight The Cliff & River Resort
Day 5
KHAO SOK NATIONAL PARK – LAEM SAK
Today you’ll head to the coast! Your drive takes you through some scenic back roads through coconut plantations and rubber tapping farms. Pass through the hills of Khao Sok to the small port village of Laem Sak, which lies outside of the main tourist route and provides its own unique flavor of Thailand. Arrive at The Lanlay Homestay and check into your room with the help of the friendly local staff.
Later today, visit Thanbok Khorani National Park at the nearby village of Ao Luek, an area famous for its caves and rock formations, some are even adorned with ancient rock paintings. This area is well of the beaten path and offers a real peek into the Coastal life of South Thailand. In the evening, upon your return to Lanlay you delight in a savory dinner prepared in traditional Southern Thai style.
Overnight Lanlay Homestay
Day 6
LAEM SAK
Today, head out into the gorgeous bay of Phang Nga with your village guides from Laem Sak. Weave through the dramatic landscape of vertical islands that jut up from the impressively blue Andaman Sea. Enjoy a picnic lunch along the way. In the afternoon, come in from the sea and back to local life in Lanlay for a final stay with your host family. Enjoy another fabulous local dinner prepared with fragrant Thai ingredients.
Overnight Lanlay Homestay
Day 7
LAEM SAK – KOH YAO NOI
Board your private long tail boat and make your way to the island of Koh Yao Noi. Koh Yao, as the locals like to call it, is a small, welcoming island. Here you will learn about local economies. Visit a rubber tapping farm, work with local fisherman to cast nets for the the catch of the day, and learn about batik fabrics. Most importantly, experience and share in the local lifestyle in the shared perspectives of the local communities. This great little island will take good care of you providing another fantastic dinner prepared with fresh-caught seafood.
Overnight at The Village
Day 8
KOH YAO NOI
Spend the day out with your local hosts and enjoy the marvelous setting on the bay of Phang Nga. Swim in the ocean on this bucolic setting and later enjoy a last dinner with your host family as tomorrow you will say your goodbyes.
Overnight at The Village
Day 9
KOH YAO NOI – PHUKET
Jump in your private long tail boat to and head to the Bang Rong pier in Phuket. It takes about one hour to travel from Koh Yao Noi to Phuket. Upon arrival your driver will transfer you to the historic Memory On On Hotel at the heart of Phuket’s old town. After check in, head out on a “discovery walk” with your knowledgeable guide in old town, Phuket.
The walk will give you insight into the local lifestyle in Phuket and an authentic glimpse into the coastal culture and its rich history. You will find that some sections of Phuket town still look like they did in the 1950’s. Little printing shops, the old sarong and cloth Indian sellers on Thalang and ma and pa hardware stores are reminders of times passed.
Walk to a local shrine and pay respect to the spirits, and then head to the local amulet market, where can “rent” protection charms to keep you out of harm’s way. Later, visit the historic Chinese shops and houses in the beautiful streets of Thalang and Soi Romanee. These little are relics from Phuket’s mining period and represent a pivotal change to the coast’s history. As you will find, multiple culinary influences coalesce in Phuket and include savorry examples such as the Muslim-style roti and Chinese cuisine brought by the Hokkien immigrants in the 19th century.
Overnight at The Memory On On Hotel
Day 10
PHUKET
Today after a delicious Thai breakfast, depart from Phuket International Airport for your flight home.
