Chiang Rai One Day Trip – 3 Temples & Golden Triangle

Chiang Rai One Day Trip – White Temple & the Golden Triangle

This one day Chiang Rai One Day Trip to the White Temple & the Golden Triangle from Chiang Mai takes you all the way up north to the border between Thailand, Laos and Myanmar. Also known as the Golden Triangle. It includes hotel transfers from Chiang Mai, transport by air conditioned van, small groups (max 12 persons), Thai buffet lunch, bottle of drinking water, English speaking guide, travel insurance and all entrance fees. Visit the White temple, hill tribe villages, the Golden triangle and hot springs. Please note that you don’t need a separate visa for the visit to Laos. Our staff will take care of a temporary permit. Book the Chiang Rai tour online here!

What to expect on this tour

The day starts with an early morning pickup from your hotel. If you are staying in the old city, expect to be picked up between 07:00 and 07:30. Within a 3km outside of Chiang mai old city the pickup will be between 07:30 and 07:45. Our English speaking tour guide will take you to our air conditioned van. The journey to Chiang Rai takes around 3 hours and we’ll make a stop on the way at our first destination of the day: the hot springs.

Here you can enjoy a hot foot bath, boil an egg in the naturally hot water or get something to eat or drink. We should arrive there at 09:00 in the morning and the stop takes around 20 minutes. We then head back on the road to our most impressive stop of the day: Wat Rong Khun or the White temple. This Gaudí like temple was constructed in the last 20 or so years and is the work of a famous Thai artist. Soak up all the details and don’t forget to take some pictures as the temple is a brilliant piece of art!

Golden Triangle

After 40 minutes at the temple, we drive the van further north towards the Golden triangle. Here we enjoy a Thai lunch buffet. If you are vegetarian or have any other dietary needs, please contact us so we can serve the meal for your needs. We stay here for around an hour and move onward towards the viewpoint, where you have an amazing view over the Mekong river. The borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet here. You will have the opportunity to take a boat on the Mekong river to visit Don Sao island on the Laotian side. If you don’t want to go you can just stay on the shore to take pictures or relax in a restaurant.

At 15:30 we arrive at the Wat Pra That Phu Kao, visit and worship the sacred sites. You can also see beautiful views of the Golden Triangle and overlooking the three nations with the Mekong River playing a central role in this area. We stay here for around 40 minutes.

Akha hill tribe

At 16:45 we should arrive at an Akha hill tribe village. More colorful people in their traditional clothes! See them in their natural environment and take a walk around the village to see what they do in their daily life. From here you can take an optional tour to a Karen long neck village. The extra fees are THB 300 per person. If you don’t want to do that, please stay in the Akha village for another 30 minutes and enjoy a local market and foods.

Return to Chiang Mai

By the end of the day it’s time to head back to Chiang Mai. We leave at around 18:00 and make a stop at a roadside gas station with minimart and restaurant where you can enjoy a snack or meal. The trip back takes around 3 hours, so we should be back in Chiang Mai and back at your hotel at 21:00. A long day full of activities and highlights of the far north of Thailand!

Itinerary

• 07:00 – 0715 – Pickup from your hotel in Chiang Mai old city
• 07:30 – 07:45 – Pickup from your hotel within 3km radius from Chiang Mai old city
• 09:00 – Arrival at the hot springs south of Chiang Rai. Stay here around 30 minutes
• 11:00 – Arrival at the White temple, where you can enjoy for around 50 minutes
• 12.15 visit Blue temple 30 mins
• 13:00 – We enjoy lunch at a restaurant
• 14.00 visit Black museum spending time 45 mins
• 15.00 visit karen long neck hill tribe Big ears hill tribes village
• 16.00 Golden triangle. viewpoint where you can see Thailand, Myanmar and Laos. take a boat on the Mekong river spending time on Boat about 1 hours
• 17.30 – Departure from Chiang Rai with a stop at a roadside place for toilet stops or food (not included)
• 21:00 – Arrival in Chiang Mai and return to your hotel or guesthouse