Programme Details
WEEK 1
Friday
On Friday you will be personally met on arrival at Bangkok airport by our friendly co-ordinators. They will take you to the guest house in Sukhumvit. Depending on when you arrive, you can relax or explore this exciting capital. We will arrange a welcome dinner in the evening. This is a great opportunity to have fun on your first night, make friends with your fellow travellers and get to know the co-ordinators.
Saturday
A Bangkok tour is included within the price. You are welcome to join this on Saturday. The tour will start around 10am. The tour will include a visit to the Grand Palace including the home of the Emerald Buddha and Temple of the Reclining Buddha.
After lunch near the river, visit Jim Thompson’s House; a very popular tourist attraction in Bangkok. The property features the home of the legendry self made American entrepreneur who was the founder of the world renowned Jim Thompson Thai Silk Company. The property is home to a series of traditional Thai houses that were a venue to many legendry social soirees during the 1940 and 50s. It is a really interesting visit, with some truly amazing pieces of art. There is a museum next door which allows visitors to purchase all manner of top quality silk.
Next is a stop at the mighty MBK shopping centre. This is probably Bangkok’s most legendary shopping mall. This multi-storey centre has eight floors packed with 2,000 shops.
Your day will end at the Lumpini Night Plaza; a really nice 'upmarket' market with a big beer garden that has many restaurants for you to try the local cuisine.
Sunday
You will leave your hotel about 9am and take the underground or sky train to Chatuchak (or Jatujak) weekend market in Bangkok. Renowned as the largest market in Thailand, and the largest in the world, it is often referred to as J.J Market and covers over 35 acres (1.13 km²) and contains up to 5,000 stalls. It is estimated that the market receives between 200,000 and 300,000 visitors each day. The market offers a wide variety of products including household items, clothing, Thai handicrafts, religious artifacts, collectibles, foods, and live animals.
There are many places to eat locally and after lunch you will head back to the hotel. You can choose to relax or our in country staff can suggest additional activities.
Monday
Check-out your Bangkok guesthouse at 10am and journey to Ayutthaya by train or minivan (approx. 1 hr journey time). Arrive at Ayutthaya around lunch and check-in to your hotel.
Visit some of Ayutthaya’s best kept temples; Wat Mahathat was constructed in 1374 and completed during 1388-1395, the main Prang (Khmer style tower) contained a holy relic of the Lord Buddha. It also used to house the Buddha image made of green stone.
Wat Phra Si Sanphet has become the symbol of Ayutthaya, a favorite of royalty and used as a palace by several kings of Ayutthaya. The temple was built during the 14th century and once housed a 16-metre-high Buddha image coated with 250kg of gold. The gold was removed and melted down by the invading Burmese forces. In the temple grounds, three classic Ayutthaya-style bell-shaped chedis contain the ashes of former kings of Thailand.
A visit to Wihan Phra Mongkol Bophit is also a must see; the principal Buddha image is one of Thailand largest bronze images.
Tuesday
Late morning, visit the local market and town. After lunch visit Wat Phanan Choeng. Built in 1324, you will see one of the largest, oldest and most beautiful Buddha image, known as “ Luang Po To”.
Afterwards, visit Wat Chai Wattanaram. Built in 1630, it consists of a main Prang and four lesser Prangs, all built on the same base and surrounded by eight lesser prangs and a gallery. Its architecture is similar to that of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
Enjoy free time in the evening.
Wednesday
Check-out your hotel in Ayutthaya in the morning and journey to Khao Yai via train or minivan (approx.2 hr journey time). Stop at Muak Lek Waterfall en route for lunch and a cool dip if it takes your fancy. Muak Lek waterfall is a tiered waterfall close to Pak Chong (the nearest town to Khao Yai National Park Entrance) and is a very scenic spot popular with local Thai people. You can easily enjoy 2-3 hrs here, swimming, relaxing and chatting with your fellow travellers. Later in the afternoon you will travel to your hotel, about another 45 minutes. Your first evening is free to explore locally or relax in the hotel.
Thursday and Friday - Choice of 2 options
On Thursday and Friday you have the choice between a visit to Chok Chai Farm, an outlet mall and 2 waterfalls or enjoy 2 days trekking.
Chok Chai Farm began its agro-tour programme in 2000. Since then over ten thousand people have visited the farm. The farm is situated on the outskirts of the national park. You can visit the dairy farm and enjoy the mountain back drop. It is the only dairy farm in SE Asia that opens its doors to the public. After the tour you can learn how to make ice cream. Later on you will travel just a few minutes down the road to an outlet mall selling discounted branded clothing.
The next day, you will enter Khao Yai National Park and visit two waterfalls. You will be taken by truck but shorts walks are involved in order to see the waterfalls and view points.
Alternatively, you can enjoy trekking and jungle trekking.
On Thursday morning you will enter Khao Yai National Park and head straight for the visitors centre. Here you will meet your guide. In the morning you will walk 8kms (approx 4hrs) to Haew Suwat Falls, made famous by the film ‘The Beach’. In the afternoon there is a light walk of 3kms (1.5hrs) to the camp site. At both the waterfalls and camp site there are restaurants, also all the camping gear will be waiting for you at the camp site.
Friday morning, you will take a truck back to the visitors centre. From the centre you will walk 6kms (3hrs) through the jungle. You will carry lunch with you and eat on route. In the afternoon you will be met by your fellow travellers on their one day experience and travel back to the accommodation together.
Please note: We require a minimum of two people for the trekking option to take place.
Saturday
Leave your hotel around 10am. Enjoy an optional morning massage and visit an Italian style villa and coffee shop.
Tickle your taste buds at a local winery in the afternoon and enjoy a tasty buffet for dinner. The local winery organises daily tours which end with food and wine tasting. A great relaxing day to end your time at Khao Yai.
Sunday
Journey to Surin. You will travel to Surin by train. On arriving in Surin our local staff will take you to your accommodation to relax and settle in for a few hours. Later that day our staff will meet you and walk you around Surin town showing all the local amenities such as post offices, restaurants, internet cafes, etc. You will also be taken to the main office where more detailed information will be given for your time in Surin and especially for those of you who have chosen to volunteer.
WEEK 2
Monday
In the morning you will have a Thai lesson in the main office with our local staff. You will then travel to the local market, practicing your Thai, and purchase all the ingredients for your cooking lesson. In the afternoon you will cook between 4-5 dishes and enjoy a late lunch together of your own creation.
Tuesday
In the morning you will visit Baan Dha Bun Plai, the Massage course Centre. You will receive an introduction to the Centre and learn how to massage and help local staff produce Thai medical products such as Tiger Balm, shampoo, etc.
In the late afternoon/ evening, you will visit the local evening fresh market, and also discuss the food to provide to the monks (also know as ‘alm’) for the next morning for the Temple visiting.
Wednesday
Leave Surin early at 7am for Wat Paa Dong Koo to give alm to the monks (the Thammayut monks are expected to eat only one meal a day and the meal is gathered during a traditional alms round the practicing is more orthodoxy). You will then travel to see Prasat Sikhoraphum, the Khmer ruin in Sikhoraphum district. On the way back to Surin, stop on the way to see the basketry making village. Your afternoon and evening is yours to do as you like.
Thursday
Visit the ancient Khmer ruins in neighbouring Buriram Province, also known as the City of Happiness. These temples are over a thousand years old and date back to the same period as Angkor Wat. The journey is about 1.5 hrs from Surin town. Transport will leave around 9am, returning around 2pm after lunch.
Friday
Thailand is famous for its temples and there are some spectacular examples of Buddhist temples in Surin. After a number of visits to different temples in Surin town you will visit a massage centre and given a little instruction in Thai massage. The techniques are reasonably simple and Thai massage is world renowned.
Saturday and Sunday
Free weekend to explore the area. Our local staff can help you arrange additional activities during your free weekends. Alternatively you can relax in Surin. You will also have the opportunity to use a swimming pool at a local hotel.
WEEK 3
Week three will vary depending on if you have booked option A, B or C.
WEEK 3 - Option A
Monday – Thursday
You will be able to choose from one of the following community volunteer options in Surin. You must let us know which option you would like to do at time of booking.
Teaching: This option allows you to teach English in primary schools, secondary schools, as well as teaching children with special needs (the latter two options are available on request only and you will need qualifications) and give them the chance to gain the valuable skills they need in life. Before long, you will become a valued member of the local community and also the chance for these young bright children to gain a brighter and gainful future.
Your time in Surin will give rural Thai children the opportunity to learn English with a native speaker. Tourism is the dominant industry in Thailand and most international companies with operations in Thailand expect a competence in both written and spoken English, so by offering your teaching assistance you are enabling the children a brighter and gainful future.
Please note: School holidays run in March and September.
Childcare: Volunteers are needed to provide support to children at various different childcare centres. The centres provide a safe place for children with poor working parents. You will assist local staff in looking after the children during the day organising games, activities, lessons and preparing food, as well as helping out with renovation and repair of the centres which may involve painting walls or renovating kitchens. With up to 50 pre-school children at one time at the centres, your interaction with the children will ensure that they have the much needed care and attention they deserve.
Farming: You will be helping to farm the land at one of the schools. Schools in Thailand are given approximately 2000 baht per child per year from the government for everything that the child needs. This means that finances at the schools are stretched to the maximum. By choosing to assist with the farming of some of the school’s land you will be helping in two ways;
1. Lightening the financial burden placed on the school by helping them to become more self-sufficient.
2. As all the food goes to the children at the school you will be helping to make sure that the children get a good nutritious source of food.
The projects that you will be working on will be aiming to help the schools in the short, mid and long term. In the short term the creation of vegetable gardens will be greatly beneficial to the school. With midterm projects such as fish farms and long term projects like the planting of orchards of fruit trees, the schools will be able to make sure that they can offer balanced nutritious meals to their children.
Community: Surin is Thailand’s third poorest province, once you leave the main town the landscape changes dramatically. The majority of people are still living in wooden style housing or very simple concrete structures. In addition many villages are not on mains water and rely on water collection during the raining season.
The community work that you can get involved with aims to support individuals, families and villages in some of the poorest areas of Surin. Previous projects have included planting crops on community land, improving living conditions in people’s houses, supporting local child care centre and schools, and more adventurous project such as preventing soil erosion during the raining season through tree planting.
The range of community projects differ greatly and are chosen based on group sizes, length of volunteers stay and where the help is needed most. Please enquire for more details at the time of booking.
Friday
This will be your last day in Surin. You will need to pack your bags for the overnight journey to Koh Samet. Thai buses can be cold in the evenings with the air con, so it’s advisable to take a warm top. The bus doesn’t leave until 10pm so you have lots of time to pack your belongings, say your goodbyes and eat before the journey. The buses are VIP with a toilet on board and reclining seats. You will arrive in Rayong the following morning at approx 7am to take the first boat to the island.
WEEK 3 - Option B
Monday
An opportunity to learn a few more dishes and improve your Thai cooking skills. You will have a morning Thai lesson in the main office. You will then travel to the local market to further practice your Thai speaking, and purchase all the ingredients for your cooking lesson. You will make a few Thai dishes and enjoy a late lunch of sampling your creations.
Tuesday
Late morning, you will cycle to Ang Ampuen Lake and take lunch there. The cycling route will pass villages, paddy fields and local people. Ang Ampuen Lake is a manmade reservoir supplying the local areas water. It is an enormous lake home to much wildlife and a source of income through fishing for the local people. Many great restaurants surround the lake.
In the afternoon, you will cycle back to your accommodation. This might be a great day to go and use the hotel pool after to cool down. The return round trip is approx 40km but the terrain is roads and completely flat.
Wednesday
Cycle to Techno in the late morning, experience the original way of herbals steaming style at Techno which run by the nuns (a herbal steam is a steam room with herbs boiled with the water, very good for clearing air ways and skin) . Here you can learn how the nuns go about their daily life. Late afternoon, visit Phnom Sawai, the Buddha Forest park. Enjoy walking and admire the beautiful scenery from the top of the hill.
Thursday
Visit Bua Chet where you will be met by local Thai border patrols and taken on a 1 to 2 hour walk past the reservoir to get up close to the Thailand/ Cambodian border.
Friday
This will be your last day in Surin. You will need to pack your bags for the overnight journey to Koh Samet. Thai buses can be cold in the evenings with the air con, so it’s advisable to take a warm top. The bus doesn’t leave until 10pm so you have lots of time to pack your belongings, say your goodbyes and eat before the journey. The buses are VIP with a toilet on board and reclining seats. You will arrive in Rayong the following morning at approx 7am to take the first boat to the island.
WEEK 3 - Option C
Monday – Thursday
Based in Tha Thum, Surin's 'District of Elephants' (approx 45 minutes from Surin) you will be assisting local mahouts with their daily chores.
The aim of this project is to generate income for the local families ensuring the elephants can remain in the rural areas. The reason for this relates back to the issue of 'logging' where elephants used to remove trees from forests creating an income for their owners, this work is now illegal in Thailand and instead many domesticated elephants are used for tourism purposes and taken into cities to generate income. This poses many dangers to the elephants; firstly road accidents can occur and secondly, the welfare of the elephant is threatened as their weight and health are not maintained in the cities.
With approximately 250 elephants living in Tha Thum, it is quite a task to ensure that these creatures are looked after in a natural and safe environment. You can get involved by assisting the communities that take care of the elephants of Tha Thum by helping out with their daily chores, this may involve planting bamboo, wild grass and other crops to help feed the elephants during the dry season and enjoy the unique experience of washing them at the river.
You can also offer your support to the local community by getting involved with a number of development projects such as helping local schools, poor families and Government-run projects including child care centres.
During the project you will be staying in basic homestay accommodation with the village elder in the local village. You will be staying in a mixed room sharing with all other volunteers. A toilet and shower/ bucket bath will be available for you to use. You will be able to purchase snacks locally and prepare your own food at your homestay, or you may be invited to eat with your host family.
Friday
This will be your last day in Surin. You will need to pack your bags for the overnight journey to Koh Samet. Thai buses can be cold in the evenings with the air con, so it’s advisable to take a warm top. The bus doesn’t leave until 10pm so you have lots of time to pack your belongings, say your goodbyes and eat before the journey. The buses are VIP with a toilet on board and reclining seats. You will arrive in Rayong the following morning at approx 7am to take the first boat to the island.
WEEK 4 – Beach
This is usually the traveller’s most favourable option in week four. You will spend from Saturday morning to Friday morning on the gorgeous island of Koh Samet. This is free time for you to do what you want, when you want.
Koh Samet is a great island. There are many boat tours for you to choose from which allow you to explore the beautiful area, or you can go snorkeling. Please speak to your local coordinator for more details about how to organize optional activities. Alternatively, you can relax on the stunning white sand beaches, or simply chill out in one of the many cafés and beach bars.
The accommodation during this week is on the beach. You will share a twin room and all rooms have air conditioning. Breakfast is included.
Friday
We will transfer you back to Bangkok where you will spend your final night of the programme. The accommodation will be at the same hostel where you stayed the first three nights of the programme.
Saturday
You will make your own arrangements to go to the airport or continue with your independent travel plans. Our co-ordinators can give you advice and assistance with regards to transport.
What‘s included in the programme
- Personally met on arrival by a Gap Year For Grown Ups representation
- Transfer from Bangkok airport to accommodation
- 4 nights twin share accommodation in a hostel in Bangkok (3 nights on arrival and 1 night on your last day)
- Bangkok tour
- Temple visits
- JJ Market trip
- Ayutthaya tour
- Wine tasting and buffet
- 2 nights accommodation at a hotel in Ayutthaya
- Choice of a visit to Chok Chai Farm, Shopping Outlet Mall and 1 day in Khao Yai or 2 days trekking and camping
- 4 nights accommodation at a hotel in Khao Yai (if you choose the trekking option, you will be camping for 1 night during this time)
- Thai cooking lesson
- 12 nights accommodation in Surin (for those on Option C, 3 of these nights will be spent in Tha Thum)
- Overnight bus from Surin to Koh Samet
- Six nights on the beautiful island of Koh Samet
- Return transfer to Bangkok
- All Breakfasts (excl Surin)
- All accommodation – twin share
Extra activities included with Option A
- 4 days volunteering from a wide range of options
Extra activities included with Option B
- Thai Language/ Thai Cooking lesson
- Cycling
- Herbal Steam
- Temple visits
Extra activities included with Option C
- 4 days volunteering with elephants in Tha Thum
What’s not included in the programme
- Tourist visa (You will receive a 30 day visa on arrival, the 60-day tourist visa costs approximately £28 / 32 euro / $40)
- Travel insurance
- Flights
- Lunches and Dinners
- Breakfasts in Surin
Prices and Durations
Thailand Explorer - Option A Community Volunteer (Chok Chai farm and Khao Yai Walk)
£1,299
Thailand Explorer - Option B Adventure (Chok Chai farm and Khao Yai Walk)
£1,349
Thailand Explorer - Option C Elephant Volunteer (Chok Chai farm and Khao Yai Walk)
£1,499
Thailand Explorer - Option A Community Volunteer (2 day trekking)
£1,349
Thailand Explorer - Option B Adventure (2 day trekking)
£1,399
Thailand Explorer - Option C Elephant Volunteer (2 day trekking)
£1,599
