Step off the plane into one of the most electrifying cities in the world: Bangkok. A driver will be waiting to whiz you through the skyscrapers and street bazaars directly to your accommodation located in the legendary backpacker quarter of Khaosan Road. After settling in, you'll have the opportunity to meet the rest of your group and your Tribal Thailand group leader at the welcome dinner. Then it's back to Khaosan to hit the street food markets and bars; the perfect setting for getting to know your tour leaders and fellow travelers.

Included Activities

• Pick up and transfer to hotel

• Khaosan Road

• Welcome meal and get to know your new travel buddies

Meals Included

• Dinner

Wake up in Bangkok. Straight away we'll be out touring the Grand Palace, the home of the Thai King. And there's more temple viewing to come, because your next stop is the exquisite Wat Arun, a 400-year-old Buddhist-Hindu shrine with an 86-meter-high central pagoda. From there, we hop on the characterful Bangkok river boats to travel along the Cho Phraya to Chinatown. It's a frantic quarter of wet markets and noodle kitchens that overwhelms the senses. The afternoon will be spent wandering the legendary Chatuchak Weekend Market, which is said to be the largest market in the whole of Asia – seriously, you can buy anything! Then it's straight to the station to jump on a night train heading south.

Included Activities

• Grand Palace

• Wat Arun

• Chinatown

• Chatuchak Weekend Market

• Night Market

Meals Included

• Breakfast

After hopping off the train, you cruise west into the great reserves of the Khao Sok National Park. This will be your first taste of the majestic backcountry of the Land of Smiles. Watch as the ground gets crumpled into big shark-fin peaks and the jungles take over. Soon, you'll swap wheels for water as you kayak your way across the mirror-like surface of Cheow Lan Lake. It's an unforgettable experience, gliding from cove to cove as you keep watch for wild elephants in the rainforests along the banks. In the afternoon, you can pick between a trek to a river deep in the jungles or a chillout session at your bungalow in the company of the tropical birds.

Included Activities

• Kayaking on Cheow Lan Lake

• Jungle trek

• Jungle stay

Meals Included

• Breakfast

A five-hour bus and ferry link brings you to the Phi Phi archipelago on the Andaman Sea. Welcome to the legendary Thai islands. Phi Phi Don – the only inhabited island in the group – is where you'll set foot first. The main town is spread over a narrow isthmus between two beaches. Your hotel for the night will be right in the middle of it all. First, take some time to recuperate after the journey on Loh Dalum Beach or, if you're feeling up for a walk, head to the secret coves that string along the south shore to Viking Beach and Long Beach – they're wonderful. Later on, we'll regather in the main town on Koh Phi Phi to watch some muay Thai in a local fighting arena and then hit the bars to see a legendary Phi Phi fire show.

Included Activities

• Loh Dalum Beach or other secret beaches

• Muay Thai fight

• Fire shows on the beach

Meals Included

• Breakfast

No trip to the Phi Phi islands could possibly be complete without exploring the surrounding archipelago. The best way to do that is by boat. So, hop aboard and whizz across the sparkling Andaman Sea. First stop: Phi Phi Leh. This is the boomerang-shaped rock to the south where you'll find the legendary Pileh Lagoon, a deep-water inlet filled with coral gardens that's ripe for snorkeling – keep your eyes peeled for sea turtles and rainbowfish! You'll have lunch aboard the boat and then cruise north towards Robinson Crusoe-esque Bamboo Island. First, though, there's time for a pitstop at Monkey Beach, which is often hailed as the best in the whole region. The evening is capped off by a hike to an iconic lookout point overlooking Phi Phi town. Finally, reward yourself with a Chang (or 10) in the bumping bars below.

Included Activities

• Boat trip

• Viewpoint hike

• Nightlife in Koh Phi Phi

Meals Included

• Lunch

A fast, 45-minute ferry ride to the east brings you from bustling Koh Phi Phi to off-the-beaten-track Koh Lanta. You should be settled in your hotel before 12am, which leaves the whole afternoon to explore. And there's lots to see. First up is the Koh Lanta Old Town on the east side of the island. It's a ramshackle picture of a traditional Thai fishing village that's inhabited by local sea gypsies. It's also one of the best places to shop for souvenirs. Afterwards, you'll be driven right to the southern tip of the island, where the Mu Ko Lanta National Park encompasses white-sand Bamboo Beach and hidden waterfalls in the jungle. For the evening, settle in for an incredible sunset beer on a secret beach that only our tour guides know about.

Included Activities

• Koh Lanta Old Town

• Mu Ko Lanta National Park

• Secret beach

Meals Included

• Breakfast

Embark on an amazing tour of four of western Thailand's most stunning isles. These are truly unknown rocks dotted around the central Andaman Sea. You leave from Koh Lanta Old Town in the morning and cruise south to Koh Cheuk. It's totally uninhabited and has just one sliver of sugar-white sand on its side. That's where you'll splash around, snorkeling with schools of parrotfish and seahorses. Next is Koh Mook. Here, you'll hop off the boat and swim through 30 meters of tunnels into the hidden Emerald Cave, where you can leave footprints on a paradise beach that's totally cut off from all civilization. You also get stops at Koh Waen, a prime location for spotting stingrays, and Koh Ngai, a classy isle with some five-star resorts and epic beachfronts.

Included Activities

• Four island tour

• Koh Cheuk

• Koh Mook

• Koh Waen

• Koh Ngai

• Emerald Cave

Meals Included

• Breakfast

It's quite the ride from Koh Lanta to Koh Samui, taking about eight hours in total. But it's also an epic odyssey across the very heart of Thailand. You'll cross through jungle-covered mountain ranges where tapirs and wild elephants live, so enjoy the views. Arriving into Samui, you'll transfer to your digs in Bo Phut. Also known as the Fisherman's Village, it's another glimpse at local Thai life, with craft stores and seafood restaurants lining the shore. There's also a sandy beachfront – Bo Phut Beach – if you'd simply prefer to chill. For the evening, we'll meet up to delve into the Walking Street Market, where BBQ grills tout peanut satay sticks, you can taste the best mango sticky rice in the world, and there's stacks of shopping to be done.

Included Activities

• Bo Phut Fisherman's Village

• Bo Phut Beach

• Walking Street Market

Meals Included

• Breakfast

Your second day on Koh Samui is dedicated to meeting Thailand's most iconic animals: Elephants. You'll spend the whole morning at a designated elephant sanctuary. And when we say sanctuary, we really do mean just that. Cue the Samui Elephant Sanctuary (SES). These guys have spent years rescuing at-risk elephants from farms across the country, and they're listed as a Best Practice Elephant Venue by World Animal Protection. Tours are specifically designed with the animal's welfare front and center. That means no riding, no petting, and lots of educational content. Afterwards, we'll meet to plan the trip to Koh Phangan the following day and share some elephant tales over a Chang beer by Bo Phut beach.

Included Activities

• Samui Elephant Sanctuary (SES)

Meals Included

• Lunch

Start the morning with a 1.5-hour ferry across the strait to Koh Phangan. This loveable island might be best known for its hedonism but we'll leave that for later. First, you'll be taken north to the trailhead for Bottle Beach. It's a two- or three-hour hike that pushes you through sections of bamboo coastal forest and along rocky crags, occasionally offering 180-degree views of the Thai Gulf. The goal is Bottle Beach itself. Surely one of the most stunning bays on Koh Phangan, it's 200 meters of pure white sand backed by bungalow hotels and a halo of mountains. For the evening, cruise back to Haad Rin and ready yourself for the night of your life. Soon, it's the grand finale of our Thailand adventure: The Full Moon Party. That surely needs no introduction?

Included Activities

• Koh Phangan ferry

• Bottle Beach hike

• Full Moon Party

Meals Included

• Dinner

Either you're still partying from the night before (Full Moons have that rep) or you're nursing a sore head somewhere. Either way, it's time to say goodbye. We'd recommend planning to have another few days in Phangan to recover. Alternatively, there are regular ferry and bus combos that go to Samui Airport from where you can connect to Bangkok for the flight home.