Chiang Mai Farm Life & Khao Soy Tasting on a Half Day Boat Tour
Description
Escape the city and discover the soul of northern Thailand on peaceful river journey. Start with short transfer to Chaimongkol docking area for exhilarating 45-mns cruise over Mae Ping River. Glide along watching scenery change from urban charm to green countryside dotted with teak houses and banana trees. The Rose of the North's Mae Ping River splits modern part with local side where temples, old wooden houses and communities still thrive. With colorful scenery witness lifestyle of local people retained over time. Disembark at local farmhouse with herbs, vegetables and fruit gardens to learn how jasmine rice is cultivated and variety of herbs are used in Thai cooking and natural medicine. Guided by local family, truly get feel and taste of how former generations infused their knowledge. Enjoy refreshing herbal drink, lemongrass juices and seasonal fruits straight from garden. Highlight is comforting bowl of Chiang Mai's signature Khao Soi, smooth spicy noodle curry soup.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Begin with a short transfer to Chaimongkol Pier for a 45-minute cruise along the Mae Ping River. Discover a different side of Chiang Mai, where temples, wooden houses, and local communities line the riverbanks. The cruise ends at a local farmhouse with herb and rice gardens. Learn about traditional farming methods and taste fresh fruits, herbal juices, and the iconic Khao Soy noodle curry. Return transfer to your Chiang Mai hotel is included.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick up from downtown Chiang Mai hotel. Regions outside the central business are excluded and supplementary charges apply. The pick up time will be started 20-30 minutes before boat time. If your hotel is located outside downtown Chiang Mai hotels, the meeting point is at Mae Ping River Cruise. If you have any question about the pick up point, you can drop us a message in the Chat.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- This tour is operated on joint / Seat-In-Coach basis only with English-speaking assistance (no guide).
- Transfers are only operated within the downtown Chiang Mai areas and restricted to main hotels only. Regions outside the central business district such as Mae Rim, Hang Dong, Doi Saket, Mae Taeng and Chiang Mai International Airport are excluded and supplementary charges apply.
- We regret that are unable to provide pick-up and drop-off transfer services from and to apartment complexes, local guest houses or private apartments.
- We advise you kindly to head on your own arrangement to the nearest hotel inside the downtown Chiang Mai area.
- We will do all possible to comply with any dietary requirements during this excursion; it may not always be possible to confirm your wishes in advance based on the choice of meal at the farm.
- Natural elements of any kind have a destructive effect on electronic equipment. It is the customer’s own responsibility to ensure that any camera, mobile telephone or other device is properly wrapped and protected against these elements. We cannot be held responsible in any way for negligence and/or not following suggestions for any damage related to this.
- Please ensure that you bring sunglasses, a hat /cap and sunblock with a high SPF factor when traveling with us on this tour – even when it is cloudy, the sunrays still have an immense power.
- We reserve the right to make necessary changes to the excursion in case of unfavourable weather conditions or situations where we are forced to make alterations to guarantee the safety of our guests.
- It is the responsibility of the customer to provide us with the correct hotel information, should pick-up and drop-off services be included in the package.
- Any changes in accommodation outside 24 hours will be handled accordingly: changes within 24 hours may be on request.
- In the event of no-show or change of accommodation without prior consent and confirmation from us within 24 hours may result in the applicable cancellation charges as outlined in the terms and conditions.
- This tour departs every hour between 09:00 and 15:00 hrs (last departure).
Reviews(66)
A very enjoyable cruise up the river. We all had the Khao Soi and loved it! Great value!
Thanks so much for the kind words! Really glad the Khao Soi won you over, it's one of those dishes that perfectly captures northern Thai cooking, and there's something special about enjoying it on the river. Hope to see you back in Thailand or somewhere else in Asia soon! Asian Trails Team
A pleasant 2 hr return boat ride along the Ping River. Please note, it is not a half day trip and you don't visit a soya farm
Thank you for sharing your feedback and for joining this experience with us ! Just to clarify for future readers, the 2h30 tour includes a scenic cruise on the Ping River followed by a visit to a local family farm where guests learn about jasmine rice cultivation, herbs and traditional agriculture, along with a tasting of Chiang Mai’s famous Khao Soi noodle curry. There is no soya farm mentioned in the program, but we truly appreciate your comments and are glad you still enjoyed the peaceful boat journey. Asian Trails Thailand
Would definitely recommend for viewing from the River. Nice lunch and herb farm visit. Tea, drinks and dessert as well. You meet inside the Temple are down by the river to the left. We were wandering around not sure where we were to meet.
Thanks so much for your recommendation, Heidi! We're glad you enjoyed the river views and the farm visit. The lunch and tea break are always nice moments to relax and soak in the atmosphere. We really appreciate you mentioning the meeting point. As we discussed in the chat before your tour, your hotel was located outside the pickup area, which is why the meeting point with the guide was nearby the river. For hotels in central Chiang Mai, our guide comes directly to pick you up. We've now updated the product information to make this even clearer for future guests. Feedback like yours truly helps us improve the experience for everyone. Hope you had a wonderful time in Chiang Mai! Best, Asian Trails Thailand team
We had a lovely time on this tour. We went as four adults, a baby, and a two-year-old, and it was the perfect thing for everyone to enjoy. There was no guiding on the boat, just an enjoyable ride seeing the city from the water. When we got there, we saw how many different things grow, like holy basil, Thai basil, figs, camphor, mango, papaya, cinnamon, and lemongrass. Our guide would pick some of the herbs to let us smell. The food was excellent! Khao soy and pad Thai, along with our choice of herbal drinks, with ice cream after the lunch. Delicious! There wasn't much walking, but the walking there was was steep and uneven.
Hello Christine! Thank you for this great feedback! Delighted this tour worked well for everyone, from adults to little ones. And what can we say about the khao soy! Thanks also for the note about the walking terrain, that's helpful for other families. Hope to see you back in Thailand! The Asian Trails team
The trip on the river was interesting but a little bit boring on the way back as you are seeing the same. The herb farm was good and our driver who was also our guide was very informative. Lunch was good and the ice cream excellent.
Hello! Thank you for this honest feedback! Glad the herb farm and our driver/guide impressed you. We note your point about the boat trip back, that's valuable input for us. Delighted the lunch and especially the ice cream were up to standard! Thanks for choosing Asian Trails.
Beautiful and peaceful. The river cruise was absolutely beautiful. The food and ice cream were a delight. Everyone is so friendly.
Hello Sue! Thank you for this lovely feedback! Delighted the river cruise brought you such serenity. And the ice cream always seems to be a hit! Thanks for choosing Asian Trails!
Our tour guide was amazing. They picked us up and dropped us off at our hotel seamlessly. We got little facts as we cruised down the river then visited a local farm. We got to smell multiple herbs and the food served was delicious.
Hello! Thank you for this great feedback! Delighted our guide impressed you and the transfers went smoothly. Those little stories during the cruise and discovering the herbs at the farm really make the difference. And clearly the local cuisine hit the spot! Thanks for choosing Asian Trails!
End of day walk very pleasant Beautiful bank - very welcome on site - visit the vegetable garden and aromatic herbs.
Bonjour Muriel ! Merci pour ce retour ! Ravi que cette balade de fin de journée vous ait plu. La visite du potager et des herbes aromatiques est toujours un moment apprécié. Merci d'avoir choisi Asian Trails !
The boat trip itself was very great and wor have been able to collect many impressions - mainly because the floods of October can still be seen very clearly. We wouldn't call it a half-day trip, because the whole thing only took 2.5h.. and a farm we also imagine differently. It was a restaurant with some plants that were explained, but then we had lunch right away and then we had to get back on the boat. The people were friendly and nice, spoke broken English. The food was very good.
Hallo! Danke für dieses detaillierte Feedback! Schön, dass Ihnen die Flussfahrt und das Essen gefallen haben. Wir nehmen Ihre Anmerkungen zur Dauer und zur Darstellung der Farm zur Kenntnis. Diese Überschwemmungsspuren verleihen der Landschaft wirklich eine besondere Dimension. Danke, dass Sie Asian Trails gewählt haben!
Very pleasant cruise up the river. The guide was very informative. It was a relaxing experience. Highly recommend. Leave every hour on the hour
Hello! This Mae Ping cruise always does you good! Our guide will be happy to read this. Those hourly departures are handy for planning. Thanks for choosing Asian Trails!
