We have curated the best tour itineraries for Northern Thailand. All of these itineraries balance comfort and pace of travel with your desire to see as much as possible during your time with us.
Most of these itineraries start/end in Chiang Mai, but can be customized to start or end in another location (for example, you can book the 2 day Chiang Rai Higlights itinerary but ask us to drop you in Chiang Rai at the end of the tour rather than returning to Chiang Mai.
Some itineraries have been designed to take you one-way for onward travel to Chiang Khong/Laos, or Bangkok for example.
Chiang Mai Itineraries
You can easily spend a week or more based in Chiang Mai. If you have limited time, or simply want the comfort of staying in one hotel, you may like to base your entire itinerary out of Chiang Mai.
There is lots to see and do around Chiang Mai, and we can get out of the city for full day tours of scenic countryside.
Chiang Rai Itineraries
Combine the best of Chiang Mai with 1 or 2 nights in Chiang Rai, and you will get to say some more remote parts of the country.
Our Chiang Rai itineraries are great for experiencing hill tribe culture, agriculture, and also stunning temples and city attractions.
Mae Hong Son Itineraries
If you are a nature lover and want to leave the city behind, our Mae Hong Son itineraries will take you to a remote corner of Thailand.
Visiting Mae Hong Son is ideal for relaxation, natural beauty, agriculture & hill tribe culture. If you also want temples and city activities, you can build a balanced itinerary by adding some days in Chiang Mai.
Itineraries for Other Provinces
If you are traveling onwards from Chiang Mai to Laos or other part of Thailand we have several tour itineraries designed specifically for one-way travel.
Itinerary Customization
We stand by our commitment to offer a complete itinerary customization service for all visitors. However, we have learned that it is difficult to get started designing your own tour itinerary. In particular, if you do not understand the distance/time between destinations and attractions it is hard to design an efficient tour route.
Browse our destination & attraction guides to get an idea of where you would like to visit. Choose one or more of these standard itineraries, then tell us what you want changed. We will work with you to write a personal itinerary that fits your exact needs.
Your tour guide is a mobile concierge and can help with dinner reservations, finding reasonably priced laundry services, reputable tailors and whatever else you may need.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
For the vast majority of tours in Chiang Mai, transport is by Toyota Commuter (seats 9 in addition to guide and driver). We also have access to SUVs (Ford Everest, Toyota Fortuner, etc.), larger busses (20/30/40 seats), and for luxury transport we can use a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter (12 – 20 seats).
We will suggest the best possible transport option based on the size of your group and the distance you plan to travel.
Yes, we can arrange hire of child safety seats. Please request this option early to ensure availability and tell us the age of your child so we can book the appropriate safety seat.
All tour operators in Thailand are required by law to carry insurance. Our insurance provider (AXA) requires the passport number and other information for each person travelling before they will extend cover.
If you have strong objections to providing your passport number(s) in advance, it is possible for your tour guide to complete the insurance form on the day of your tour. Please let us know if this is your preference.
Once you have an itinerary from Olsen Tours and decide to make a booking, we will send you an invoice for payment. For bookings that are several weeks or months in advance, we will normally request a deposit rather than full payment. Payment can be made by credit card, direct bank transfer, or using your Paypal balance.
Unless the full amount is paid upfront, we normally request a cash or direct transfer payment of the balance on the first day of the tour. This is done to minimize payment platform costs. If you prefer, we can accept credit card payments for the balance but we will add the credit card fees.
Our online payments are processed securely by Paypal, but you have the option to pay by credit card without logging in. When you receive the deposit invoice by email, click on the blue ‘Pay’ button. You will then be prompted to either login to your Paypal account, or continue to pay with debit/credit card. If you can not see the credit card option, try scrolling down, it is usually towards the bottom of the page.
If we make a mistake with your booking, Olsen Tours will offer you a 100% refund.
If you simply change your mind, then we will refund any amount you have paid less any costs. Typically we will deduct foreign exchange and credit card fees from a ‘change of mind’ refund, but there may be other 3rd party costs that we are unable to recover. In all cases we will attempt to maximize your refund and be transparent about how the refund is calculated