Thailand & Cambodia Family Fun – 14 days

Enter Angkor Thom through its South Gate, lined with stone gods and demons and crowned with giant carved faces. At its heart stands the Bayon, where more than two hundred serene stone faces gaze out from its towers. Walk on through the Royal Enclosure and past the Phimeanakas temple to the Elephant Terrace, where kings once watched parades, and the finely carved Terrace of the Leper King.

Save the best for last at Angkor Wat, the largest and most complete of all the temples, built in the 12th century and spread over around 210 hectares. Wander its long galleries of carved columns, its libraries, pavilions and courtyards, and look back at the towers reflected in the ponds out front.

Head out before dawn to watch the sun rise behind Angkor Wat, its five towers mirrored in the still water in front of the temple, then return to your hotel for breakfast.

Drive out of town along quiet country roads, stopping at Preah Dak village along the way. Banteay Srei, the “Citadel of Women”, is small but exquisite, its rose-pink sandstone carved so delicately it looks almost like lace. Nearby, the walls of Banteay Samre are covered in reliefs of the legends of Vishnu and Krishna.

After lunch, step into Ta Prohm, the jungle temple where giant fig trees and strangler roots have wrapped themselves around the stones, as if nature were slowly taking the buildings back. It is easy to see why it was chosen as a set for the film Tomb Raider.

Spend the day as you like, or choose one of these optional activities. Cycle through the villages around Siem Reap on a route planned with your guide to suit your fitness, with a support vehicle on hand for a rest. Ride sturdy Cambodian horses at Happy Ranch, a western-style ranch, on a two-hour trail through rice fields and villages to the rarely visited Angkor-era temple of Wat Athvea, with gentle ponies led by staff for younger children.

For a little more speed, take a quad bike along 12 kilometres of country tracks to local villages, timed to end with sunset over the rice fields. Or soar over the forest canopy at Angkor Zipline, with eight lines, sky bridges and a final abseil to the ground. If you would rather explore, Beng Mealea, about 65 kilometres from town, is an unrestored temple swallowed by the jungle, where you climb over fallen blocks and through dim passages like the first explorers.

Drive about 18 kilometres to Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, and board your private boat. Here whole communities live on the water: houses, schools and even a police station float on the lake, and the village moves with the rising and falling water through the seasons.

Transfer to the airport for your flight to Bangkok, where your guide meets you on arrival and takes you to your hotel.

The rest of the day is yours to settle in.

Take a boat along the Chao Phraya River and into the quieter canals, where wooden homes stand on stilts and families still live much as they did generations ago. Step ashore at Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn, and climb its steep, porcelain-studded tower for views across the river to the Grand Palace. Then cross to Wat Pho, home to the 46-metre Reclining Buddha, covered in gold leaf, and a good place to make an offering and a wish.

Continue to the Grand Palace, the most important landmark in Thailand, with its glittering spires and grand throne halls. Then wander through the flower market, a sea of orchids and marigolds where locals buy garlands for their family altars, and finish in Chinatown, a maze of lanes full of spice, colour, traditional shops and Chinese temples.

Return to your hotel and enjoy the evening at leisure.

Drive out of Bangkok to Damnoen Saduak and board a boat through narrow canals to the market itself. Vendors in wide straw hats paddle their little wooden boats laden with pomelos, rambutans and other tropical fruit, and some cook steaming bowls of noodle soup right on board.

Head back to Bangkok airport for your flight to Chiang Mai, where your guide meets you and takes you to your hotel.

The evening is yours. The famous Night Bazaar is a short trip away and a lively place to browse handicrafts and try street food.

After breakfast, transfer to Patara Elephant Farm for its Elephant Owner for a Day programme, which lets you share the daily care of an elephant. Learn how to approach your elephant, read its mood, feed it and check its health, then bathe and scrub it in the river. You also learn the spoken commands used by its keepers and how to sit on its neck, before riding bareback into the forest, perhaps to a waterfall or a village temple.

Lunch is served at the farm. The programme follows a simple philosophy, “Extinction is Forever”, and most families leave feeling they have made a real connection.

After time to freshen up at your hotel, your guide takes you to a local temple. Monks in saffron robes are a familiar sight across northern Thailand, and here you sit down with one of them, shoes off, and ask anything you like about Buddhism, daily life in the temple or whatever is on your mind, with your guide translating where needed.

Finish at Ton Payom market, where you can try a range of local northern Thai food.

Begin at the local market, choosing fresh ingredients with your chef. Back in the kitchen, a local family teaches you the techniques and flavours of northern Thai cooking, using organic produce, before everyone sits down together to enjoy what you have made.

After lunch, take a gentle walk through the neighbourhood to see some of its small family workshops at work.

Drive up the mountain to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, about 1,000 metres above sea level. Climb the 306 steps between two long naga serpents to the temple gateway, then walk among golden pillars, great gongs and rows of bells, with the city spread out below. Return to your hotel to rest.

Head out to the Chiang Mai Night Safari. A walk through the park is followed by a tram ride through its different zones, from grazing animals of the grasslands to the big predators, and the evening ends with a series of shows before you return to your hotel.

Your driver collects you from your hotel for the transfer to Chiang Mai airport and your flight to Koh Samui.

On arrival, transfer to your hotel by the sea.

The rest of the day is yours on the beach.

Spend the day as you please: swim, build sandcastles, read in the shade of the palms or explore the island’s beaches and villages.

You are collected from your hotel and taken to Nathon pier for the boat to the marine park.

Kayak around the dramatic northern shore of Koh Tai Plao, then snorkel and swim in its calm, inviting water.

Lunch of Thai dishes and salad is served on board as the boat heads to Koh Mae Ko.

A long-tail boat lands you on the beach at Koh Mae Ko, and a short, steep climb leads to a viewpoint over the Emerald Lake, a saltwater lagoon of vivid green hidden inside the island. Then cruise on to Koh Wua Talap and choose how to spend your time: kayak around a nearby island, climb to the high viewpoint for a view across the whole park, walk to Bua Bok Cave and its stalactites, or simply swim and relax on the beach.

Sail back to Koh Samui, arriving at your hotel in the early evening.

Enjoy a last full day on the island at your own pace, whether that means a swim, a massage by the sea or a family afternoon by the pool.

Enjoy a last breakfast and a final walk along the beach.

At the agreed time, you are collected from your hotel and taken to the airport for your flight home.