Chiang Mai-Chiang Rai: One-Day Visit to White Temple, Black House, Blue Temple, and Karen Village

Experience the best of Chiang Rai in just one day! Visit the iconic White Temple, explore the unique Black House, marvel at the stunning Blue Temple, and immerse yourself in the culture of a Karen Village. Don’t miss this popular tour from Chiang Mai!

Duration: 11 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Wat Rong Khun - Rong Khun Temple stands out from other temples due to its entirely radiant white construction, with sparkling reflections from mirrored glass mosaics embedded in the white plaster. This temple is the brainchild of Mr. Chalermchai Kositpipat, one of Thailand’s most celebrated artists, who envisioned a white temple to symbolize the purity of Lord Buddha. The artist continues to infuse his religious beliefs and passion for enriching Buddhism in Thailand into his contemporary art design.
  • Baan Dam Museum - If you book the Baan Dam (Black Museum) program, it’s a 207 km drive from central Chiang Mai to Baan Dam (Black House), a unique creation by national artist Thawan Duchanee. Serving as part art studio, part museum, and part home, Baan Dam is an eclectic mix of traditional northern Thai buildings and some striking modern designs. Baan Dam offers a thought-provoking blend of fun, surrealism, and somber themes. While some of the artwork and themes may not appeal to everyone, visiting the Black House is still recommended if you’re in Chiang Rai.
  • Wat Rong Seur Ten (Blue Temple) - Chiang Rai’s Blue Temple, or Wat Rong Seua Ten, is located in Rong Suea Ten in the Rimkok district, a few kilometers outside Chiang Rai. This recent temple is still under construction, although its main hall is complete. The temple is renowned for its stunning blue interior and a large white Buddha. The paintings inside are reminiscent of the style seen in the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun). The great standing Buddha, also white, in front of the temple is equally impressive. With the White Temple, the Black House, and the Blue Temple, Chiang Rai is undoubtedly the city of colorful temples!
  • Karen Long Neck Village - Visiting one of the many Karen Long Neck villages in Thailand is among the most exotic experiences one can have. The tradition of wearing brass rings as jewelry is more captivating in person than in any book. Although we had ethical concerns about whether these hill tribe villages would feel like human zoos, we decided to visit anyway. It turned out to be a real-life National Geographic Magazine experience that must be seen to be believed.
  • Mae Khachan Hot Spring - Mae Khachan Hot Springs is located in Wiang Pa Pao, Chiang Rai. The thermal waters can be enjoyed at various locations in this district, but for travelers, it is conveniently situated right next to the main Chiang Mai – Chiang Rai Highway 118 (on both sides of the road). Most tour operators list this as an attraction, but honestly, your driver will likely stop here for a break halfway to Chiang Rai, whether you want to or not!
  • Chiang Rai - Driving to and from Chiang Rai.
  • Lalitta Café - If you book the Lalita Cafe Program, you’ll visit Lalita Cafe in Chiang Rai, a new Himmapan Forest of Chiang Rai Province. This magnificent place is waiting for everyone to come and experience it. Only at Lalitta Café.

Read more about Chiang Mai-Chiang Rai: White Temple-Blue Temple-Lalita Cafe - https://www.viator.com/tours/Chiang-Mai/CHIANG-MAI-One-day-White-temple-Bann-dam-museum-Blue-Temple/d5267-124759P59?mcid=56757

What's Included
  • Accident insurance
  • Lunch
  • English tour guide
  • Chinese guide (on request)
  • Admission fees
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
  • Round trip hotel transfer
  • Visit to Long Neck Village
What's Not Included
  • All expenses are not mention in program
Additional Information

This tour is a big hit among individuals who don’t have an ample amount of time to explore Chiang Rai. The journey begins early in the morning from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai and back to Chiang Mai on the same day. A visit to the renowned Wat Rong Khun or White Temple is included. It stands as a contemporary, unconventional representation of Lanna Thai architecture, reimagined and rebuilt by Chalermchai Kositpipat, a native artist from Chiang Rai.

Location
McDonald's Im Thapae
Kotchasarn Road
All hotel pickup Incase of your hotel out route of Chiang Mai City Center should visit us at Meeting point at McDonald's Im Thapae 07.00 am. are located in Chiang Mai City Center only.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
3.9
(21 Ratings)
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Slve_h
Jul 23, 2023
Amazing! - A very fulfilling trip. The guide was not only passionate, But Also really funny. He explained a lot of history behind each temple, and each creator. He cracked good jokes and took well care of us. Made sure we had water, ate when we had lunch and reminded us to always Ask if there was any problem or question. Felt safe and taken care of through the whole trip. Driver was Also very good and skilled. Would recommend everyone
Review provided by Viator
Eva_y
May 15, 2023
Good experiende and awesome temples - Good trip .guides very kind although the explanation is not very long.and the food was fine and I warned that I m vegetarian and they offered me a omelette and I wanted to repeat and they cooked one more. Ññ
Review provided by Viator
Maciejba1241qt
Dec 28, 2022
Good trip with a lot to see - The trip was greate, very intense and very well organised. We have seen a lot of beautiful places in just a one day. Our guide was very well prepared.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Emily_f
Sep 4, 2022
Amazing - It was a very long but fantastic visit it was well worth a visit if you don’t have time to visit Chang Rai. The tour leader MM was amazing very knowledgeable and told you the I formation before you arrived to the places which meant that you had context when you were visiting these places. I would highly recommend this visit.
Review provided by Viator
Felipe_a
Oct 4, 2023
Long drive/ temples amazing - The guide and the sites were amazing. The only downside and why I am giving this a four is the transportation. Yes it had A/C but for such a long trip it was very crammed. I would suggest to anyone looking to visit these temples to make the effort and book 2 night stay in Chiang Rai. If you do this, you will avoid the 6 hour car ride(3hrs there and 3hrs back) You will also be able to reach the temples bright and early avoiding all the crowds.
Review provided by Viator
Alpesh
Dec 20, 2022
Great day. Worth the long return journey. - Great company and guide. Pick up starts at 7.00am from old town and not any other times stated (even if they confirm via email). Temples are stunning but lunch was cold. I hope the the annoying 22 year old French girl reads this. You annoyed everyone on the tour so thank you for your constant complaints, making the trip 1 hour longer than needed and selfishness throughout the day. But a real thanks to the great guide and driver.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Margarita_i
Nov 12, 2022
Great places, insufficient guide experience. - The places are great and the pagodas are much different from the traditional style. The long neck village is also unique. The tour guide was quite poor though.
Review provided by Viator
Nicole
Jan 3, 2023
Too long - If you’re looking for a small group tour, skip this one. We booked it because it said small max 10 people. However they pick you up in a van and then bring you to a location where there is a coach bus waiting - over 30+ people. The tour started at 7am waiting for the van and was supposed to go 11 hours however we did not get back to the hotel until 9:45pm (15 hours). Lunch was provided however breakfast is on your own and so is dinner (ours was at the last rest stop -gas station). Try and eat prior or you will be very hungry and looking for food at rest stops. The temples were great but certainly not worth a 15 hour trip. Very long day with a lot of waiting for the large group of people.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Xi
Oct 17, 2022
Dishonest business operations - The white temple, the blue temple and the black house were good. Great architecture and we were very happy with the experience there. But we were sort of compelled to go for an additional tour to the golden triangle, having to spend an extra 3 hours (and a few hundreds of THB). The guide did not ask whether we wanted to go or not, but just told us that we would go there. Then the guide asked us to sign a paper at the beginning of the tour, without any explanation, which read “we were happy with the long tour with no complaint”. At the end of the tour, we realized that it might have been meant to be our consent to go for the additional tour to the golden triangle…To be fair, we did not speak up or try to argue when the guide told us that we would go to the golden triangle, which we did not book, because we did not want to let the other people in the group down (we thought they all wanted to go), and we were not sure if the agent could have arranged to send us back after we finished our tour if other people in the group would like to go to the additional one. But the interesting thing was that, at the end when we talked to the other people in the group, none of them wanted to go, and we were all sort of compelled to go, and decided not to raise an issue for the same reason… All in all, the white temple, the blue temple and the black house are worth visiting. Our favorite is the black house, where you can see amazing collections and architecture. We wish we could have spent more time there. The long neck village is good, and we fully respect the culture while we do not think we should encourage people to keep putting the heavy rings on the young girls (starting when they are seven) only to make their necks look long. The river tour at the golden triangle is ok, but the Laos island is not worth going. It is merely a small market selling mainly counterfeits… As for the guide, she was enthusiastic and trying to entertain us, but her English was not good, so the information given was quite limited. She liked making fun of women and showed kind of discrimination against the “lady boys” by making jokes, which made us a little bit uncomfortable. The lunch was ok, but just ok.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Craigka3191jx
Feb 4, 2024
Terrible guide, no history provided, hard to understand, I do not recommend. - The guide was hard to understand, short and did not have a lot of detailed information on the temples. The driver was driving fast around corners making others feel unsafe. I would not recommend this tour again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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