• Hotels/guesthouses (2 nts), hilltribe villages/camps (2 nts), overnight train (1 nt)

• Overnight train, songthaew, elephant, walking

Day 1 Chiang Mai

Thailand's beloved northern capital is a hive of activity. See some of the city's 300 temples, take a class at the famed Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School, bargain hard at the night bazaar or hire a bike and head into the countryside to warm up those legs for the hilltribe trek ahead.

Days 2-4 Hilltribe Trek

Get ready for incredible views and an amazing cultural experience. Pull on hiking boots and take to the northern hills for a fantastic adventure through rural landscapes and remote villages. Wander along pastoral tracks, past rice terraces and banana forests, to reach basic overnight huts. Staying in the huts is part of the fun and a great chance to get to know the locals and learn about their lives. The villagers grow rice and vegetables along the slopes and, when in season, this fertile region becomes a photographer's dream. On the return journey, take it easy on the final leg and grab a lift from an elephant. Riding on one of these gentle giants is always a lot of fun.

Day 5 Chiang Mai/Overnight Train

Back in Chiang Mai, there is plenty of time for sightseeing or to simply revel in some serious relaxation. Get a traditional Thai massage, attend a yoga session, scale the Crazy Horse Buttress limestone cliffs, walk up to the Doi Suthep temple or chat with a monk at Wat Suan Dok before boarding the fan-cooled overnight train bound for Bangkok.

Day 6 Bangkok

This fantastic adventure concludes in the capital. For those who wish to stay on for a few days, there is plenty to see and do and the city provides a striking contrast to the laidback lifestyle of the hilltribes.