Northern Thailand's Mountains

Twelve nights in a loop from Chiang Mai, guided, 2,000 kilometres through the mountains of northern Thailand.

Phrae and Nan come first, which is the quiet side of the region: Nan was a secluded kingdom that stayed effectively autonomous for centuries and still feels separate from the rest of the country.

Chiang Kham and Chiang Rai follow, with the White Temple outside the latter, then Chiang Saen on the Mekong at the Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet and the opium trade was run from until the mid-1990s. Fang comes next near the Myanmar border, then Pai, a riverside town with a long-standing travellers’ population, and Mae Hong Son, which closes the loop on the famous road of 1,864 curves, the best known motorcycle route in Asia and the reason most riders come to northern Thailand at all.

Premium hotel accommodation, the airport transfers, all the dinners, first aid, a chase vehicle with a mechanic, tools and spares, a guide and support team, the fees and permits for the cultural sites and the motorcycle itself, either a Royal Enfield Himalayan or Classic or a Honda NX500, are all included; flights, medical insurance, gratuities, alcohol and any damage to the motorcycle are not, and a five-hundred-dollar bike deposit is required. The full day-by-day itinerary sits behind an enquiry form on the operator’s site. The cool dry season from November to February is the window, since the burning season in March and April fills the valleys with smoke and the wet brings landslips to the hill roads. Thirteen days covers the whole region rather than the famous loop alone.