Nature and Culture in the South

Itinerary

Day 1: 1 Bangkok – Had Yai

Stop At: Hat Yai International Airport, 99 หมู่ 3, Khlong La, อำเภอ คลองหอยไข่ Chang Wat Songkhla 90115, Thailand
Take an early morning flight from Bangkok to Had Yai. Arrive Had Yai and then drive to Ko Mak, taking about 1 ½ hours. On arrival, get a warm welcome from the local people and after checking into your homestay explore the fishing village and join in with the activities of the local people. Learn how to make fishing nets and fish traps. Enjoy dinner with your host and overnight at the homestay.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Homestay

Day 2: Koh Mak – Lamnai

Stop At: City Shrine, Prang Mu, Muang Phatthalung District, Phatthalung 93000, Thailand
After breakfast take a boat out onto Songkhla Lake and see the local fishermen at work; time also for a little bird watching. Mid-morning, say goodbye to your host family and drive back towards Phatthalung town and to the community of Lamnai, taking about 1 ½ hours. Stop along the way for lunch at a local restaurant and to visit a workshop where they make traditional shadow puppets. Continue to Lamnai and meet your hosts. Check into the community lodge and after time to relax and settle in, visit the nearby Kaoh Kram Waterfall to take a swim and try the fish spa. Dinner and overnight at the community lodge.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Community Lodge

Day 3: Lamnai – Tale Noi

Stop At: Thale Noi Waterbird Park, Patthalung, Songkhla Thailand
Get up early and take a short drive to a view point and enjoy some local freshly-brewed coffee as you watch the sun rise over the forested hills. At the nearby village learning centre learn about the manufacture of rubber and try your hand at some rubber tapping. Return to the lodge for breakfast and then visit a cave temple and learn about living stone and lost Chinese treasure. See the making of local snacks. Return to the lodge and freshen up before saying goodbye to your hosts and heading to Thale Noi Waterfowl Reserve, one of the largest wetland reserves in south-east Asia. Make stops along the way to see the making of traditional Pons drums, at a local handicraft centre and for lunch at a local restaurant. Arrive at Tale Noi and check into a local resort overlooking the lake.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Lakeside Resort

Day 4: Tale Noi – Nakhon Sri Thammarat – Baan Laem

Stop At: Thale Noi Waterbird Park, Patthalung, Songkhla Thailand
Get up early and take a short drive to a view point where you can see the sun rise over the stilted fishing platforms, known as yor yak, dotted across the lake. Afterwards take a boat trip on Thale Noi to explore the Waterfowl Reserve where can be found over 180 species of resident and migratory birds that make their home among the lotus flowers, bulrushes, reeds and grasses of the lake. Watch water buffaloes s they swim in the lake. After the boat trip, enjoy breakfast at a local coffee shop and then look for some souvenirs among the over a dozen workshops carrying on the tradition of krajud: crafting mats, baskets, hats and other products from a type of long and hardy local grass that flourishes in the wetlands.
Duration: 5 hours

Stop At: Nakhon Si Thammarat City Pillar Shrine, Rathadamnoen Road, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80000 Thailand
In the late morning, head off along a scenic mountain road to Lake Hua Nam Sai for bamboo rafting and lunch at the Wang Hon Rafting Camp. Continue to Nakhon Sri Thammarat and visit the ancient city wall. The drive will take about 2 hours. Have dinner at Baan Laem Muslim village and overnight at a local resort.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight at local resort

Day 5: Baan Laem - Baan Kiriwong

Stop At: Wang Mai Pak Waterfall, Kam Lon, Lan Saka District, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80230, Thailand
Get up early at join the local fishermen as they go out on the ocean in their boats. Have breakfast on the boat and then return to the shore for a mud spa treatment. Go back to the resort to take a shower and check out. Drive approximately 2 hours to Kiriwong and check in at the Resort. Have time to relax before lunch at the resort. After lunch, set off on bicycles to visit some local handicraft shops where they make mangosteen soap and natural clothes dyes. Have a swim in the river before returning to the resort. Enjoy a starlight Dinner by the river.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight at local resort

Day 6: Baan Kiriwong – Pom Luk National Park – Khao Men Resort

Stop At: Nakhon Si Thammarat City Pillar Shrine, Rathadamnoen Road, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80000 Thailand
After breakfast, drive to Prom Luk Waterfall with a stop along the way to see the manufacture of a traditional medicinal tonic made from mushrooms. Have a bathe in the waterfall and then head to a local noodle shop for lunch. Afterwards visit three temples and learn about the history of the famous monk, Por Tangklai Wachasit and the Buddhist Way of Life. Check in to Khao Men Resort with time to relax before a sunset dinner on the resort terrace.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight at local resort

Day 7: Khao Men Resort – Departure

Stop At: Nakhon Si Thammarat City Pillar Shrine, Rathadamnoen Road, Nakhon Si Thammarat 80000 Thailand
After breakfast visit the local market near the station, enjoy coffee and snacks at an old Chinese coffee shop before the onward transfer to your next destination.

Options include train or flight from Nakhon Sri Thammarat or alternatively drive to the beaches at Khanom, Don Sak for the ferry to Koh Samui or across the peninsular to Phang-Nga, Phuket and Krabi.

Duration: 12 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
No accommodation included on this day.