Elephants, Fishing and Tropical Thai Islands with the Kids in Tow

Arrive in Bangkok and meet your private guide in the arrivals hall for your private transfer to your hotel. Check in to the Siam or the Peninsula, both luxury riverside resorts with world-class service. The Peninsula offers connecting rooms for families with young children and child-oriented in-house experiences from their Peninsula Academy, while the Siam’s sumptuous villas create a private oasis for young families replete with plunge pool, courtyard, and sun deck. Unwind at your hotel of choice and spend the rest of the day at leisure. Those eager to get a taste of the city’s energetic nightlife can opt for a guided experience that takes to the Bangkok streets and close to its people. Explore renowned street food destinations and local favorite eateries from open air night markets to streets lined with carts, hawking kid-friendly favorites like charred satays, fragrant noodles, and coconut milk desserts.

Start the day with a hands-on cooking experience that is fun for the whole family. Meet a local chef and head to a local morning market, where pungent exotic fruits, a colorful assortment of jelly sweets, fresh fish on ice and a cacophony of chatter are a treat to all the senses. From the market, board a small wooden motorboat and cruise the river to the restaurant. In the garden, the kids will love smelling, tasting and harvesting fresh herbs like kaffir lime leaves, holy basil, spearmint, and butterfly pea petals. Together, chop vegetables, pound dried herbs and spices, rub marinade, and grill meats while learning how to cook staple Thai dishes. Families with younger children may opt for a creative cooking class geared for children in a classroom setting that provides child-safe tools and teaches recipes like Little Rabbit curry rice, Rainbow Sandwich, and Deco Cookies. After having your creations for lunch, head to the Children’s Discovery Museum where kids can burn energy while also learning. The museum features fun interactive exhibits in three buildings and an outdoor space; popular attractions are excavating dinosaur bones, hands-on science experiments, and a multi-level climbing are with tree house, slides, nets, tunnels, and more. Round out the day by introducing the kids to contemporary art at the Museum of Contemporary Art, a world class art gallery, from depictions of facets of local Thai life to the hyper-realism works.

Send the kids off to work at KidZania, an interactive mini-city for kids where they can learn real-life skills like financial responsibility, taking instructions, and working with others through role-playing activities and earning a salary. From dentistry and bottling milk on a production line to being a pilot or gas station attendant, there are a wide variety of roles and vocations befitting tots and teens. Next, get in touch with Thai history and culture at the Museum Siam, a charming vintage mansion that houses beautifully executed multimedia exhibitions with interactive displays certain to captivate the whole way through. At Wat Pho, witness the giant gilded reclining Buddha and drop coins into the 108 bronze bowls for good luck. In the late afternoon, explore the narrow canals that crisscross the city by private long-tail boat and get a glimpse of how locals live in the city’s authentic canalside neighborhoods. Those who enjoy song and dance shows will want to see the Siam Niramit cultural show which features 150 performers in bright colorful costumes and impressive stage sets depicting scenes from popular Thai anthologies. Before the show, stroll the Thai village outside of the theatre, a replica rural village where you can watch demonstrations of traditional crafts, sample Thai snacks, and dress up in hill tribe costumes.

This morning depart Bangkok for the northern city of Chiang Mai, known for its misty mountains and laidback atmosphere. Head to Wat Prathat, one of the north’s most sacred Buddhist temples perched at the top of Doi Suthep. Climb the 306 steps to the top on the Naga serpent staircase, or take the tram, and enjoy the temple’s beautiful golden spire, historic murals, and panoramic views of the city and scenic countryside. Next, head to a magical temple of tunnels, Wat Umong, and wander the labyrinthine paths to discover Buddha heads, relics, altars and monk cells. Travel just outside of the city and check in to the Four Seasons Resort, nestled among lush gardens and terraced rice fields in the tranquil Mae Rim valley. The private residences are perfect for families, offering multiple bedrooms, board games, spacious interiors, views of the rice terraces from the verandah, and optional private plunge pool. While parents unwind at the spa, kids can enjoy complimentary games and activities at the Gecko Club and will love visiting Mr. Tong, the resort’s resident water buffalo. Families can also choose to participate in the resort’s rice planting and harvesting experience held in the fields.

Begin today with a fun tour around the city’s small lanes by rickshaw and see Chiang Mai’s intact wall and moat, landmark gates, and statues. Stop at Warorot market where the locals shop for everything: produce, flowers, baked goods, herbs, clothing, shoes, and fireworks to name a few. Take a refreshment break for fresh fruit and try your hand at one of Thailand’s oldest decorative art, fruit and vegetable carving. Let the kids get creative with tomato roses and apple swans, then eat their masterpieces. In the afternoon, leave for the countryside and get ready to reel in behemoths. Let the kids battle it out with giant Mekong catfish, some as big as the kids themselves, and take pictures with their trophy catch. It is sure to be an unforgettable experience.

Come face to face with friendly giants today at one of Chiang Mai’s elephant sanctuaries that practice rescue and rehabilitation. Learn how to interact and care for the elephants from their mahouts. Sanctuaries may offer different programs from visiting a nursery and meeting baby elephants to learning how to give health checks and trekking into the mountains alongside the pachyderms. Afterwards, get a lesson in recycling and sustainability at the Elephant Poo Poo Paper Park, a licensed parter of the WWF, where waste is turned into paper. Stroll the eight pavilions and see each stage of the process. Visitors are welcome to participate from poo collection to rinsing and final product assembly, a laughter-inducing and educational one-of-a-kind experience. If you wish, step out at night and stroll the night bazaar, a fun space to pick up unique tchotchkes and sample delicious street fare. If it is a weekend, check out the popular Saturday and Sunday Walking Street Markets where shoppers from around the region gather to shop, eat, and enjoy street entertainment on a long pedestrian-only street.

Leave the city life behind as you fly to Koh Kood, an island in the Gulf of Thailand, for a tropical getaway at Soneva Kiri. Arrive by the resort’s private Cessna and take in the warm sun and ocean breeze. Aside from beautiful natural landscapes, idyllic beaches, private butlers and stunning infinity pools, what sets Soneva Kiri apart from other resorts is its attention and catering to families, offering a host of well curated experiences, facilities and services. Kids can slide from a top-floor bedroom into the pool below. The indulgent chocolate and ice cream parlor features sorbet-colored seat cushions, over sixty rotating flavors of chilled treats and freshly made truffles, mousse and fondue. The jewel of the resort is The Den, a giant playground shaped like a manta ray and made of bamboo, where kids can immerse themselves in fun, comprehensive, and age-specific hands-on activities such as rainforest walks, learn how to play Thai instruments and scavenger hunts.

Enjoy the day at leisure. Spend time lounging at the beach or getting pampered at the spa, while the juniors learn Thai and play tennis. Come together in the afternoon for a cooking class or a gourmet tasting experience where adults can sample meats, cheeses and wines while children sample chocolates and ice cream. In the evening, watch the sunset on a private cruise and enjoy a fresh BBQ dinner on the beach.

On the penultimate day, spend it however you wish from languid to active, the resort caters to all levels of activity. Each lunch in a pod suspended in a tree where the waiter will arrive with the food by zipline. Take to the seas for sea kayaking, windsurfing, water skiing, and snorkeling, then head to the jungles for gardening classes, mountain biking and astronomy. Close out your unforgettable family trip with a classic movie under the stays in an open- air jungle-enshrouded auditorium.

After a final breakfast on the tropical island, return to Bangkok to catch your onward flight home.