Thailand in two weeks

Early in the morning, you'll be picked up by air-conditioned minibus with English-speaking guide and make your way to the River Kwai. You'll stop for an hour at the famous floating market before continuing on to the famous Bridge over the River Kwai where you'll go on a short train ride along a stretch of the infamous Burma Death Railway. Bag a seat on the left side of the train for the best views. You'll pass over a spectacular viaduct made from the original wooden building materials.

On your arrival at a small train station, your lunch will be served (included) after which you'll step into a traditional longtail boat for a boat ride up the River Kwai into the jungle. 40 minutes later the boat will moor at a handful of floating bamboo huts where you'll be staying tonight. Your private room has a small jetty and hammock. The river is generally safe for swimming but beware of the strong current. There's no electricity in the bungalows, so the resort is entirely lit by oil lamps when the sun goes down. The excellent evening dinner, shared with the other guests seated at long tables, is included.

If you're lucky the village chickens will treat you to fresh eggs for breakfast. Later that morning you'll be going on a 1-hour elephant trek through the dense jungle, past rivers and valleys. It's amazing how these huge animals gently make their way along the steep paths. Perched high on the elephant's back you'll have some great views across the landscape, but watch out for those low-hanging branches...

The elephant trek ends at a river where you'll change onto a small bamboo raft. Using a long bamboo pole the raftsmen will steer the raft down river. On the way back to Chiang Mai you'll make a final stop at a small orchid farm before you're dropped off back at your hotel around 4pm. If you prefer, we can replace the 2-day elephant trek by a more challenging 3-day jungle trek, in which case you'll spend 2 nights with the Karen and Akha hill tribes. The longer trek is suitable for anyone in good physical health and the elephant ride and bamboo raft trip are also included.

The last few days of your two week Thailand itinerary are about total relaxation, spend your time lazing by the pool, or on the beach. There are plenty of local traders selling exotic fresh fruit for a cheap and wonderful lunch, prepared on the spot! If you're looking for something more active there are plenty of excursions available. You can hire a moped and visit some other beaches on the island, or try canoeing or snorkelling. There are also plenty of diving opportunities on the island, and there are sometimes whale sharks in this area. Ko Samui has a great variety of restaurants and it goes without saying that there is an amazing selection of seafood available. After dinner, you might well see people making fire lanterns on the beach, and it's beautiful to watch them float off into the night sky.