
Community-Based-Tourism in Lamphun
Community-Based-Tourism
in Lamphun
When you want to become part of a local community that strives to keep traditions alive,
come with us to Lamphun where a village has set up an educational and fun-filled full
day of authenticity and sustainability. This is not your average local tour!
WHY THIS TOUR?
In the true spirit of Lanna hospitality, community-based tourism is one of the more sought-after tour ideas around. In essence, visitors become a part of a local community that prides itself with sustaining ancient, cultural heritage and a traditional way of life.
The community feeling during tours such as this one to the Ban Ta Pa Pao village does not only generate a community-beneficial income but also focuses strongly on transferring these traditions for generations to come. Located in the Lamphun province, this village is one of these examples in northern Thailand.



TRAIL ITINERARY
08:30 - 16:00
Guests are warmly welcomed by an English-speaking guide in the morning before making your way down south. Once leaving Chiang Mai’s city centre, the scenery slowly turns into a more local one, filled with roadside villages with ample farmland reaching as far as the eye can see. The leisurely drive towards Lamphun takes approximately 45 minutes. The small historic town of Lamphun is a traditional provincial town off the beaten tourist tracks. Located about 30 kilometres south of Chiang Mai, Lamphun was founded by the rulers of the Mon Kingdom of Haripoonchai and is home to the famous Wat Phrathat Haripoonchai, the oldest and holiest temple in the region.
From this base, you will explore a protected forest, home to spices and herbs that are still used to treat remedies of all sorts and with the assistance of a local guide, learn more about the medicinal values. The local school is very much into teaching how to recycle material such as plastic and paper and you will have the chance to take part in the importance of these environmental-friendly teachings (closed on weekends and public holidays).
Local lunch is served at one of the houses before we move onto Kad Ban Ta, a rural market where one will find hardly any tourists. These markets are the trading grounds for the Ban Ta Pa Pao residents as well as farmers from around the region to sell their produce. We say goodbye to the residents and move back in the direction of Chiang Mai but not before we pay respect to one of the most revered queens of the region – Queen Chamadhevi. The temple that commemorates her work and bravery during the Lanna Kingdom is found at the temple bearing the same name. The 60 stunning Buddha images around the Chedi are among the main attraction points of the temple which makes it a popular site for the local community.
We arrive within the city borders of Chiang Mai in the late afternoon at around 4 pm.