Best of northern Thailand in 2 weeks

When most people think about Thailand, they picture pretty beaches but that is by far not the only thing Thailand has to offer. Many of the highlights you can find in the northern part. Here is an itinerary to see the best of northern Thailand in 2 weeks.

Day 1 – 3 Arrival in Bangkok

If you arrive from a western country, Bangkok might seem a bit overwhelming at first. However, it has lots of calm temples to offer. I really recommend spending the 500 Bath to visit the beautiful Grand Palace. It’s very colorful and you will get to look at a lot of gold. Wat Po was also very nice. Then, eat Thai food and drink Thai ice tea. Whether you sit down in a restaurant or order off a street food stand, your food will be delicious. Just order ‘no spicy’ food if you don’t like your food too hot. We never had any troubles with street food if you are worried about your stomach. At the crowded with tourists Khaosan Road you can also find western food. I also recommend a boat ride on Chao Phraya river and to have a drink at Armosa bar (rooftop of Arun residence) at night, to have a beautiful night view of Wat Arun. Here is a post with the top 10 things to see and do in Bangkok.

Day 4 – 5 Kanchanaburi

To get from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi take a bus from Sai Tai Mai (Southern bus terminal), don’t take an expensive and uncomfortable minivan from Khaosan Road! I can really recommend the VN Guesthouse which was also mentioned in Lonely Planet. It was very idyllic there!!! We had the best rooms right on the riverfront but in the concrete building. I guess that they have better insulation than the wood houses. Also, all the meals we had at the guest house were mouthwatering. On the first day, we rented bicycles and rode to the famous River Kwai bridge, which was built and bombed and then rebuilt during WWII. Riding the bicycle along the river was very relaxing and walking across the train bridge a lot of fun (watch out the train still crosses about three times a day). The next day, we visited Nam Tok Sai Yok Noi waterfall. The waterfall itself is beautiful but also the train ride there is stunning.

Day 6 – 7 Erawan National Park – a highlight in the best of Thailand in 2 weeks

Natural slide

We only took a day trip from Kanchanaburi to Erawan National park but I would recommend spending a night there. That was the most beautiful waterfall I have ever seen! Blue colored water flowing from white rock pool to rock pool, Erawan waterfall definitely is a highlight of northern Thailand. Unfortunately, the colors just didn’t come out natural on my pictures, I guess you have to go there and see for yourself 🙂 Apart from the waterfall it’s also a nice rainforest to take a walk and if you hold your feet in the water, you’ll receive a free fish spa.

Day 8 Ayutthaya

By bus and minivan we traveled to Ayutthaya. This place is nice because there are pretty temple ruins in the middle of the city and they rebuilt a floating market, so that you get to experience how it was in the earlier days. Again, we rented bicycles and the best was riding past an open field with elephants.

Day 9 Chiang Mai

In Kanchanaburi I got surprised by the rain. During wet season it usually rained about one hour a day.

We took a night train from Ayutthaya to Chiang Mai. I had a great night’s sleep since Thai night trains are  more comfortable than European ones (yes, really). But during the day, the journey continued and after a while it got a bit boring to only look at the green rain forest. We were all glad, when the train finally arrived at Chiang Mai train station, where also the temperature was a bit more agreeable than in the South. Chiang Mai is a good place to explore on foot and by bicycle. You will discover lots of cute temples along the way, find good spas and places to eat. We especially loved Loco Elvis to eat Mexican food and at Jimmy’s restaurant (the brother from our trekking guide, he’s an amazing cook). Also, if you like shopping, go to the Saturday night market! The one in Chiang Mai was my favorite one. Plus, while you are in Chiang Mai, you have to do a jungle trekking! We had three amazing days.

Day 10 – 13 Jungle trekking with elephant riding – an amazing ending of Thailand in 2 weeks

The trekking with our guide Piroon (visit his website here) was another personal highlight. He knows what he is doing and takes good care of his tourists by cooking delicious meals on open fires in a wok and bringing them to beautiful waterfalls and rice terraces.

On day 1, we swam in the pool of a 30m high waterfall and after this refreshment, we hiked through the rainforest for about 4 hours. Piroon constantly explained things about plants and animals. We spent the night in a local village in the house of mountain people.

On day 2 we hiked some more and then boarded our first self-made bamboo raft to float to another village, where they live together with elephants. That was amazing! We could feed and wash them and later ride on their backs through the jungle for at least an hour. The Mahoons and the elephants seemed to live in harmony. I couldn’t see a sign of violence. The elephants pretty much walked the way on their own, while Piroon shipped our bags along on the raft and one Mahoon accompanied us with the elephants. The elephants would always stop when they got too far from their master and just wait for his command. It was really majestic seeing the jungle from the back of an elephant. I could do that every day 🙂 We spent the night with locals again, this time right next to the river.

Day 3 was filled with adventure while rafting on the river and then driving back to Chiang Mai.

Day 14 Chiang Mai

Relax, get a Thai massage, eat more delicious Thai food and then either fly out of Chiang Mai airport or take the night train back to Bangkok, like we did.

To find a hotel, use booking.com and to know more about train connections go on seat61.

Which highlight would you most like to see? What is your personal favorite in the north of Thailand?

Read more about Thailand in my I love Thailand travel guide which you can buy on Amazon in English and in German.