Mae Hong Son Tours

Am taking my daughter (she is 20) to Chiang Mai and we are also thinking of making the trip to Mae Hong Son for 3 or 4 days.

From what I am seeing flying looks like the best option between Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son at around 2500 baht return ($68 US).

A few questions for the experts:

1) Should I wait to book a tour until we arrive in Mae Hong Son?

2) Are there any tours where you get to stay the night in a hilltribe village?

3) Can you recommend any tour companies or guides?

4) Is the Fern Resort a good place to make our base in Mae Hong Son?

Thanks-

Mike

Mae Hong Son Tours

I can%26#39;t answer all your questions, but here%26#39;s what I can say;

I personally would book any tour in advance. You won%26#39;t save much by booking locally, and at least in your own country you know you are booking with a reputable company.

I%26#39;m sure someone can reply with a local guide if you prefer this.

Air IS the best option to Mae Hong Son, but the airstrip there is small, so if the mist comes down you will be collected by minibus, and taken by road, no discount!

Mae Hong Son Tours

Here is a tour operator that I have heard is good:

http://www.rosegarden-tours.com/

They can arrange hilltribe treks. As for Fern Resort, it looks nice although I have not personally stayed there. They do seem to get good reviews. Keep in mind that it is a bit out of town, so you would need to arrange transport to visit Mae Hong Son town, the night market there, etc.

Yes, the flights are occassionally cancelled due to fog, but that is not often and it does not happen much at this time of year. The fog usually burns off by mid morning. Cancelled flights are actually more frequent around March due to smoke from fires that are set by the hilltribes to clear mountains off for planting.

Thanks for the advice Tookay!

I am really looking forward to going to this more remote region of Thailand after our visit to the big cities.