A Feast for Foodies (FF14)
(14 days/13 nights)
This two-week gastronomic holiday will take you through Thailand, visiting some of our most magical places, with the focus on our delicious a varied cuisine.
Although we are sure that you will enjoy our wonderful, rich, aromatic food throughout, we have identified a dozen special culinary highlights;
1. Dinner at a restaurant specialising in Central Thailand food
2. Central Thailand cookery school
3. Street food in Bangkok
4. Isan restaurant of North-Eastern Thai food
5. Giant freshwater prawns in Ayutthaya
6. Delicious fare straight from the floating market vendors
7. Northern Lanna cookery school
8. Spicy sausages and other delicacies in the vibrant Night Bazaar of Chiang Mai
9. Eat tasty Lanna food with the locals in Warorot market food mall
10. Traditional Khantoke dinner with Thai dance
11. Southern cuisine cooked in the gastro-heaven that is Ao Nang
12. Southern Thai cookery school
Your gourmet journey will take you from colourful bazaars to fine-dining restaurants, from floating markets to beach cafes, and from huge food courts in the city to simple street food at night.
You will visit three cookery schools where you will learn the basics of Thai cooking and some of the regional differences.
In Bangkok, there is a large Chinese influence, with non-sticky jasmine rice and noodle dishes. Curries here are often flavoured with coconut milk, such as the famous green curry (kaeng khieo wan).
In the north of the country, around Chiang Mai, the staple carb is the glutinous, sticky rice which people like to roll into balls and dip in their sauces. The climate here favours plant growth and the Lanna dishes of the north, which are influenced by neighbouring Myanmar and Laos, are rich in aromatic herbs. Sausages are also a northern speciality.
In the south of the country there is a Muslim influence and the cuisine reflects its proximity to neighbouring Malaysia. The rich Massaman curry is popular here, as is the yellow curry,    With its warm tropical seas, there is plenty of fresh seafood to enjoy.
- Arrive at Bangkok airport
- You will be met at the airport by your own guide and driver
- Transfer to hotel
- Your guide will show you the area around your hotel and advise you about how to haggle for a good
price on the street markets that are located close by - CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 1: We will arrange for you to have a delicious dinner close to your hotel in an open air restaurant, where you will have your first taste of the spicy, aromatic food of Central Thailand.
- Today you will get up early to visit a local market where you will buy the fresh produce that will be used in today’s cookery school.
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 2: At the cookery school, you will prepare 4 or 5 authentic Thai dishes from the Central region of Thailand. Your teacher will first demonstrate the techniques to use and when you have finished your meal, you will sit down with the other guests to eat your Thai banquet for lunch
- This afternoon is yours to enjoy at your own leisure. You may wish to relax by the hotel pool, or we can point you towards the vibrant MBK centre and the ultra-modern Siam Discovery and Paragon malls
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 3: Tonight we will take you to Sukhomvit Soi 38, a small street that is famed for its tasty street food. Here you will find the most amazing noodles, served in a broth of crab meat and dumplings, or you may choose to sample the famous Pad Thai.
- Tour of famous Bangkok temples including those of the Reclining Buddha & Emerald Buddha
- Tour of the glittering Royal Palace
- Walk through Amulet Market to Chao Phraya for a pleasant riverside restaurant lunch
- Tour of Bangkok canals by longboat
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 4: Tonight you will dine in an elegant Isan restaurant, where you will enjoy the unique food of Northeast Thailand, with its Laotian influences. Isan food is hot, sour and spicy. Papaya salad (sohm tahm) and minced chicken or pork salads (larb) are favourites. (This two-week tour does not take in the Isan region of Thailand, but if you would like us to alter the itinerary, then just let us know)
- Full day excursion to Ayutthaya, the ancient capital of Siam
- Visit the many pavilions and landscaped gardens of Bang Pa-In Summer Palace
- Take a long-tail boat up the Chao Phraya river to Ayutthaya island
- Catch an elephant taxi to the temple ruins of Ayutthaya including the famous three-chedi temple, Wat
Phra Si Sanphet, Wat Phra Mahatat and the magnificent Wat Ratburana - CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 5: Feast on giant freshwater prawns grilled straight from the river. With just three
or four prawns per kilogram, these are more like freshwater lobsters! - Return to Bangkok for an evening at your leisure. If you wish, then we can make a reservation at a
restaurant of your choosing, or you may like to eat with the locals in one of the many food malls, or you maybe dine in style at one of the rooftop cocktail bars.
- After an early breakfast, you will travel to the world famous Damnoen Saduak floating market
- Tour the floating market and the surrounding countryside canals by boat
Step out of the boat and wander through the myriad stalls on the canalside – this is a photographer’s paradise! - CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 6: There is so much wonderful food for sale that you won’t know where to begin. For those with a sweet tooth, we recommend the sticky rice and mango, the fresh fruit smoothies, or the grilled banana with coconut ice cream. Hot, tasty treats are sold right out of the canoes in which they are cooked and the array of fresh, tropical fruits is astounding.
- After a delicious riverside lunch, we will transfer you to Bangkok airport for your flight to Chiang Mai
- After checking into your Chiang Mai hotel, a short ride out of town brings you to the colourful temple
on the mountain, Wat Phra That Doi Suthep with splendid views of Chiang Mai down below - You will return to your hotel late-afternoon and the evening is free for you to relax after a long day.
- Breakfast at your hotel
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 7: Early departure to a local market where you will buy fresh produce for today’s Cookery School. You will learn how to cook five delicious Lanna dishes and will eat these with other cookery students.
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 8: Tonight we visit the exciting Night Market in Chiang Mai and enjoy a tasty Thai dinner among the bustle and vibrancy of this colorful, Asian bazaar. Here you will probably get your first taste of sai ua, the spicy northern pork sausage that is steamed in banana leaf
- Breakfast at your hotel
- Spend the morning in Warorot Market; a vast area of stalls frequented by the local populace
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 9: The market is a paradise for lovers of Lanna Thai food and this is where we
have lunch. Fried pork (moo tod) is a local delicacy, as is the uncooked, fermented sausage, naem maw. - In the afternoon you will take a guided tour around the old city of Chiang Mai, where you will visit the most famous temples, Wat Suan Dok and Wat Chedi Luang
- If time permits, then we can also see the message trees & underground tunnels of Wat Umong
- Return to Chiang Mai for a free evening. If you wish, then we can take you to a riverside restaurant with live music, or to Chiang Mai’s most fashionable street, Th Nimmanhaemin with its many places to eat, or you may wish to dine in a quiet, romantic restaurant close to the hotel.
- Early arrival at Mae Taman Elephant Camp for breakfast
- Option to bathe the elephants (swimwear required) before the elephant show
- Ox carting from hill tribe village
- Elephant ride through jungle
- Scenic riverside lunch
- Bamboo rafting gently down the river
- We return to Chiang Mai mid-afternoon, giving you plenty of time to prepare for tonight’s feast!
- CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 10: In the north of Thailand, food has long been eaten around a low, wooden table called a khantoke. This is a communal activity, often with entertainment, and this is exactly what we have arranged for tonight. You will enjoy a taster menu of regional food, served at your khantoke with traditional Thai dancing to follow.
- This morning you will have an early breakfast before your transfer to Chiang Mai airport
- It’s time to say goodbye to your guide as you take a flight to Bangkok and then on to Krabi.
- We will arrange for your transfer from Krabi to the idyllic seaside resort of Ao Nang where you will
spend the next five nights. - Whilst at Ao Nang you are free to relax and enjoy yourself at your own leisure.
- Breakfasts are included, plus the last two of our Culinary Highlights, but we are sure that you will
now be eager to try out the food of the south on your own. - CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 11: On your first night, dinner is on us! We will arrange for you to visit one of Ao
Nang’s most highly recommended restaurants. Before you leave Chiang Mai, we will help you
choose the ideal place to enjoy your first taste of authentic Southern Thai food. - CULINARY HIGHLIGHT 12: Your third and final cookery school. Here you will learn the Secrets of the
South, where shrimp paste, chilies, palm sugar and lime juice come to the fore. - Ao Nang has an incredibly beautiful beach, with warm, creamy, turquoise waters and stunning
limestone karsts and islets rising straight out of the sea. Many of these have hidden beaches that are just a short boat ride away. Being just 20 minute’s drive from the regional capital, Krabi, the beach is popular with Thais, yet maintains a small-town charm. The renowned restaurants and markets serve delicious, fiery fare and are a magnet for lovers of Thai food.
Arrangements:
Services included in the price:
- Tour Guide: 1 car with driver and 1 English speaking guide will be provided from Day 1 until departure from Chiang Mai on Day 9
- Accommodation: 1 twin/double room with air conditioning and private facilities.
- Meals: As specified in the program; 13 x Breakfast, 8 x Lunch (including cookery schools), 6 x Dinner.
- Transport: Tours and transfers by air-conditioned vehicle. 4 internal flights are included.
- Misc: All activities as specified in the itinerary, including admission fees, with instruction where necessary.
Services not included in the price:
- International flights
- Drinks and meals not mentioned in the itinerary
- Tips for guide and drivers / Personal expenses