Your trip begins the moment you walk out of arrivals: we are waiting for you and drive you straight to the hotel, where the room is ready from 2:00 PM.

From there the day is yours. If the jet lag allows, a first walk around the block, a bowl of noodles at a street stall and an early night are the perfect way to land.

West of the city, the Mae Klong Railway Market does its trick four times a day: awnings and baskets fold away in seconds, the train slides past centimetres from the tomatoes, and everything reopens as if nothing happened.

At Damnoen Saduak we swap the pavement for a boat and drift through the narrow canals of the floating market, haggling for fruit, hats and Thai masks from paddlers who have been doing this all their lives. Afterwards we head into the mangroves to see how the fishing families live and stop at a shellfish farm.

Back in Bangkok in the late afternoon, with the evening free before an early start tomorrow.

You wake up on the water. After breakfast we visit the nearby Mon village, home to the same community for generations: the Golden Rock, the Buddha image cave and the village school, where the children are usually the ones giving the tour.

An easy jungle trail leads to a viewpoint over the River Kwai, with the whole valley opening up below.

The afternoon is free at the bungalows. You can swim straight off the deck, take a Thai massage on the water or simply watch the river go by until the light drops behind the hills. Second night on the river.

We start at the Bang Pa-In Royal Palace, the royal summer residence built in the 17th century and restored in the 19th, where Thai pavilions sit beside a neo-classical mansion and a Chinese throne hall in the same set of gardens.

Then we board a traditional boat and travel the last stretch to Ayutthaya by water, the way the city was always reached: stilt houses, rice barges heading down to Bangkok, and temple spires appearing above the trees.

In the afternoon, the temples themselves: Wat Mahathat and its Buddha head held in the roots of a banyan tree, Wat Phra Sri Sanphet with the three chedis of the old royal palace, and Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon and its reclining Buddha. You walk the site at your own pace with an English audio guide.

We stay the night in Ayutthaya. If there is light left after the temples, the ruins at dusk are worth a last short walk.

We visit the extraordinary Wat Rong Khun, the “White Temple”, a contemporary creation by one of Thailand’s most renowned artists, Chalermchai Kositpipat. Although it resembles a religious complex, its true purpose is artistic: its nine buildings house unique works of art, from meditating Buddha statues to pop culture icons, as well as murals illustrating the teachings of Theravada Buddhism.

We continue to Wat Rong Suea Ten, known as the “Blue Temple”, where we admire Buddha statues in meditation, mythological figures such as demons and nagas, and paintings depicting key moments from the life of Gautama Buddha.

We then head to Chiang Mai to visit the magnificent Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, 1,200 m above the valley, stopping on the way at the peaceful Wat Pha Lat.

After breakfast with our hosts and a walk around the village, we drive to the camp of a young Karen mahout who introduces us to his elephants and to the way his family lives with them. The first job is preparing their fruit.

Then we simply walk with them through the forest while they browse, with the guide explaining what they are doing and why — no shows, no riding. The morning ends at the river, watching them bathe.

In the afternoon, a gentle 40-minute descent of the Mae Wang river on a bamboo raft. Tonight we sleep at the camp itself, with the elephants a few metres away and the forest all around.

Deeper into the mountains, to a small Karen village in Mae Chaem, one of the least touristed corners of the country, where the day is measured by daylight and not much else.

In the afternoon we share ordinary life with the families: a walk through the gardens and plantations, learning what grows here and gathering vegetables for the evening. Then a traditional Karen cooking class, with recipes handed down through generations, and dinner together.

To close the day, the village schoolchildren perform a traditional Karen dance: music, costume and a lot of laughing.

After breakfast we continue to Pai, a small mountain town with a slow, creative streak to it. We stop first at Wat Phra That Mae Yen, up its long stairway, with the valley laid out below.

We cross the Kho Ku So bamboo bridge over the rice fields and take in the view from Yun Lai Viewpoint. The rest of the day is for the town itself: quiet corners, local artists, live music.

As it gets dark, the night market takes over the main street: some of the best street food in the north, eaten standing up.

A short transfer to Chiang Mai airport and a domestic flight to Krabi (around 2 h 05) takes us from mountains to sea in one morning.

Twenty minutes from the airport we reach Ao Nang and check in. The afternoon is free: the beach is a two-minute walk away and the limestone cliffs turn orange at sunset.

A day with nothing booked, to use as you like. Some ideas we always end up recommending:

Slow down in Ao Nang. The hotel, the nearby beaches and the seafront, with its cafés, massage shops and evening market.

The beach at dusk. Talk to the fishermen mooring their boats — now and then they take people out for traditional squid fishing.

Tubkaek Beach. Dinner or a drink at Mama Kitchen & Moon Bar, and a kayak at sunset with the Hong Islands on the horizon.

Emerald Pool and Thapom Klong Song Nam. A jade-green natural pool in the jungle, and a flooded forest you can paddle through between mangroves.

Railay by boat. Cliffs, hidden lagoons and short trails to viewpoints, twenty minutes from Ao Nang.

Wat Tham Suea. The Tiger Cave Temple: 1,200-odd steps, and the whole of Krabi laid out below you.

Depending on your flight, there may still be time for one last temple, a market or a Thai massage before heading off.

Transfer to the airport for your departure — or tell us and we add a few more days and keep the trip going.