11. Two Day One Night Elephant Trekking Tour

One this trip, you will walk through four different tribal villages (Karen, Lahu, Akha Yao). Many of these tribal villages are undergoing changes and are modernizing. Villagers way of life however, has remained the same and many still depend on agricultural production, as a source of livelihood.

Villagers supplement their income by collecting forest products like different types of grasses to make into thatch roof shingles or to make into brooms. Other villagers go into the forest to collect edible products such as bamboo shoots, mushrooms, wild-vegetables.

We start the day by riding a long tail boat up the Mae Kok River (1-hour) to a Karen village. From this Karen village we ride an elephant up the hill to a Lahu village where we will take our lunch. Among the different tribal groups, only the Karen handles elephants. The elephant ride will take about 2 hours.  Along the way, you will see how these seemingly ungainly beasts can be so agile.

Walk around the Lahu village to see how one tribal group builds their home. Do not expect to see villagers hanging around in the village because unlike you, they are not on vacation. They may not have offices, but they have fields to tend or they may be in the jungle collecting wild vegetables.

We have the option of staying at either a Lahu or Akha village. The Lahu village does not have electricity while the Akha village is quite modern looking.

The following day, we proceed downhill on foot to a Lahu and Akha village. There is a small community-managed museum that we will be visiting.

Finally, we hop into a local taxi for the ride back to town. Along the way, we make stops at another Akha village and a Yao village. The Yao village is quite modern.

Minimum number of passengers recommended is two.