Doi Inthanon Waterfall and Royal Project Chiang Mai

Doi Inthanon is the highest peak in Thailand at 2,565 metres, and at that elevation the air is genuinely cool, the trees are mossy and the temperature swing from Chiang Mai city can be 10 or 15 degrees. The Twin Pagodas, built for the King’s and Queen’s 60th birthdays, sit on a ridge with landscaped gardens and a view that on clear mornings runs out to the Burmese border. A day trip from Chiang Mai is the cleanest way to see them alongside the mountain’s main waterfalls and a couple of hill-tribe stops.

The day runs 8 to 9 hours with a cap of 9 people, which is at the small end for Doi Inthanon tours and part of why the experience doesn’t feel like a bus-group shuffle. An air-conditioned minivan collects you between 8 and 8:45am from any hotel within 2km of the old city. The itinerary covers the Twin Pagodas and the summit (a short nature-trail walk near the highest point), Wachiratharn (Diamond) Waterfall which is the most photogenic of the mountain’s falls, a White Karen Hill Tribe village (not the controversial long-neck kind), and a Hmong market where you can pick up produce from the Royal Project agricultural programmes. Lunch is included, with normal, vegetarian or vegan versions, along with bottled water, travel insurance and a guide.

The national park entrance fee of 300 baht per person is not included and is paid at the gate to the government officer (the Twin Royal Pagodas charge a separate admission). Drop-off is back in the old city area between 6 and 6:30pm.

Bring a light layer even in hot season; the summit can be 15 degrees in the dry months and cold enough for a jacket in December and January. Sensible shoes for the short walks and a camera with a longer lens for the pagoda views are the two things most guests wish they’d packed.