Thailand Cooking
From £83 per person*
Northern Thai Country Living
Overview | 3D/2N Night Khum Lanna stay | Khum Lanna | Lisu Lodge
Immerse yourself in rural Thai life at Khum Lanna, learn to cook delicious Thai cuisine, gently cycle through surrounding countryside & villages, and participate alms giving to the local Buddhist monks.
Set in a small valley surrounded by mountains, Khum Lanna is located in the serene village of Phrao, an hour and a half drive from Chiang Mai. With emerald-green rice fields and lush orchards, Khum Lanna gives you a luxury home-stay experience combined with a cooking school for traditional Northern Thai cuisine - a celebration of heritage, food and lifestyle. Our proposed packages range from day visits with cooking class to multiple overnights with a variety of activities such as cycling, cooking, herbal steam bath and massage.
Lisu Lodge: Only an hour’s drive north of Chiang Mai, nestled in a rich green valley that time seems to have forgotten, this award-winning eco-lodge is a sanctuary for Lisu heritage, a direct link to the heart of three fascinating tribal groups.
Hilltribe Adventure
Built in traditional Lisu style with an eye for western comforts, the lodge overlooks the lush fields and hills surrounding the valley and serves as a base-camp for a magical blend of adventure, relaxation and insight. A wide variety of packages, from day visits to multiple overnights are available, such as Hilltribe Experiences, Soft Adventure (cycling, elephant riding and white water rafting) and Trekking.
Prices include accommodation in comfortable King-size or twin bedded rooms with en-suite bathrooms (where applicable), electric fans (non air-conditioned), meals as specified in the programs, coffee, tea and water with meals as well as English speaking Tour Guide / local Lisu Guide.
Combination packages of Khum Lanna and Lisu Lodge are also possible. For the more adventurous, a 5-day / 4-nights trekking program has been created including one night at Khum Lanna, two nights at two outposts, as well as one night in Lisu Lodge. The prices include accommodation in comfortable king-size or twin bedded rooms with en-suite bathrooms (where applicable), electric fans (non air-conditioned), meals as specified in the programs, coffee, tea and water with meals as well as English speaking Tour Guide / Activity Guide.
3D/2N Night Khum Lanna stay
Khum Lanna Thai Country Living (3 days/ 2 nights)
Day One: Khum Lanna
Upon your arrival in the afternoon, the local Lanna staff will greet you with a refreshing welcoming drink (herbal tea or fruit juice from our garden). To blend in with the surroundings, you will be provided with traditional Thai farmer’s shirts to wear during your stay.
After checking into your room and a brief rest, you will be met by a chef who will teach you to cook some some popular Thai dishes. At the end of the session, you will receive a book on “Khum Lanna Thai Recipes”, which features not only various Thai recipes but also the nutritional benefits of each Thai herb. Enjoy the fruits of your labour with a full four-course Thai dinner with your host and friends. Additionally, your host will teach you simple Thai words that you may use when shopping at a local market the following day.
In the evening, from a campfire in the garden, you will be able to look up at a million stars in the night sky. Stay overnight at Khum Lanna
Day Two: Khum Lanna
Your coffee/tea will be brought to your room as your wake-up call in the early morning. Start the day with a sunrise cycle trip along a rural country road to visit a village market. With the help of your guide you may buy local biscuits and garlands to offer to the monks during a visit to a temple. Then take a short walk to a local hardware shop that sells farm tools, supplies and rice seed. Chat with the owner (also a farmer) and learn more about the history of Thai rice and different species and properties of rice.
On the way back, pay a visit to a Buddhist temple where a respected Buddha image is enshrined under a sacred tree. Continue cycling to Khum Lanna along a scenic route of canals and rice fields. Upon your return, a Lanna-style breakfast awaits you at the riverside.
Thailand is known as one of the world’s biggest rice producers, and rice is inevitably her most important crop. One of the objectives of Khum Lanna is to promote Thai rice under the concept “Rice for Life”. You will learn about the history of rice cultivation, different species of Thai rice, and tools and equipment used in the rice fields. You will also have a chance to exercise your cooking skills by making a staple Thai dish of steamed sticky rice. Then you will have a casual walk around Khum Lanna’s organic garden where a variety of vegetables, fruits and herbs are grown. Your host will guide you on how to pick the right ingredients for your cooking class in the afternoon. Your lunch will include a Lanna country-style barbeque, steamed sticky rice and other scrumptious Thai dishes.
In the afternoon, you have a variety of fun and relaxing activities to choose from, such as:
* A guided biking tour around the beautiful countryside of Khum Lanna
* A class of creative fruit (or vegetable) carving
* A local herbal steam bath to rejuvenate your body
* A therapeutic hot-pressed herbal massage
Note: A second additional one-hour activity can be booked at a nominal charge but you are welcome to go cycling by yourself. The staff will give you a road map with recommended routes.
In the late afternoon, you can enjoy another cooking session with Khunm Lanna's experienced Thai chef who will teach you how to cook three authentic Thai dishes. Indulge in the success of your creations with a full four- course Thai dinner with your host and friends.
Day Three: Departure
Rise early (around 7 a.m.), and join your host in the Buddhist tradition of alms and food offerings to the monks. As a symbolic gesture, guests are encouraged to make a small purchase on the offerings.
After a delectable breakfast by the river, cycle around the village. After stopping to see the fascinating accumulation of beehives on the sacred tree at the Ban Nam Phrae community, you will find out why there is a need for bees and the reasons for their conservation. Continuing your ride to the ancient town of Wiang Phrao Wung Hin, visit a temple to see Phra Chao Lan Tong, the most significant Buddha Image in the Phrao district. Another stop will be at the temple of Tham Dork Kum, where you will have the opportunity to admire various Buddha stucco figures and a large reclining Buddha.
A picnic lunch will be provided on an orchard hill overlooking the entire Phrao valley and Khum Lanna. Return to Khum Lanna for refreshments.
Khum Lanna
Home of Artisans
Lanna was the name of a prosperous self-ruling kingdom that occupied the whole of Northern Thailand and parts of present day Myanmar and Laos. Founded in the 13th century, the name means 'Land of a million rice fields'.
The rich culture and history owe much to the influence of Burma and, to a certain extent Laos. As a result, Lanna is quite different from other regions of Thailand, particularly in cuisine, culture and custom. It is generally agreed throughout Thailand, that the Northern women are the most beautiful and people the friendliest and most polite in the country. The charm and gentleness of the Northerners seldom fail to impress even the most demanding of visitors.
At Khum Lanna, discover the rural charms of traditional Northern Thai life and bathe your senses in this enchanting Lanna experience. Set in a small valley surrounded by mountains, the property is located in the serene village of Phrao, an hour and a half drive from Chiang Mai. With emerald-green rice fields and lush orchards, Khum Lanna gives you a luxury home-stay experience - a celebration of heritage, food and lifestyle.
Take a leisurely bike ride around the village and visit the quiet temple and huge reclining Buddha in a part set amidst the forest. Gain an experiential understanding of Thai 'country' cuisine, through a special cooking class, beginning in the market, followed by a class on the essentials of 'iconic' Thai dishes and the art of fruit and vegetable carving.
Lisu Lodge
Lisu Lodge was designed to blend in with the houses of the ethnic Lisu village in which it resides, and the surrounding landscape. However, the Lisu design was adapted to meet the needs of Western guests ... with modest expectations! The other houses in the village do not have windows, for example, whilst LL does. The roof is thatched; the frame is wood and all the walls are woven bamboo.
Floors are made of rattan. All decorations are either made by the village or within the local area.There are 4 bungalows with six rooms each. Each room is 16 feet by 14 feet. Comfortable mattresses (two per room, with a third one available) are on a hilltribe-style bamboo "sleeping platform", enclosed at night in a large mosquito net. Provided with a fan - the area is cool at night throughout the year - a table and storage space. 
Each room has a private bathroom with hot shower and western-style flush toilets and wash basin.
The bedrooms surround a large living area, which also serves as an eating area, meals served on low Thai-style 'khan toke' tables, with a choice of either traditional 'Mon Kwan'- triangular padded cushions - or more conventional tables and chairs on the covered verandah. These areas look out over fields to the mountains beyond.
The lodge is located on the edge of a Lisu village 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the city of Chiang Mai. The village of Dton Loong has a population of 750, including 20 families of another ethnic group, the Akha.
The lodge leases the land from the village, and is very much part of the village, employing staff from the village and joining in with their celebrations.
At Lisu New Year, typically in early February, guests are strongly urged by the village to drink the Lisu whisky and to become, like the rest of the village, blind drunk (optional!). 
All are invited to the dance, and a great spirit of camaraderie develops over the course of days in the village, all inviting all to re-affirm their ancient traditions and celebrate the general dance of life.
Whether it's elephants you wish to ride, trekking you want to experience, or simply the wonderful experience of enjoying a few days in the company of very hospitable cultures, there will always be something there to offer you, from the first-time traveller to the most seasoned explorer.
General Information
Name : Lisu Lodge- Destination : Thailand
- Location : Located in an ethnic Lisu village, one hour drive north of Chiang Mai on the Mae Teng River
- Seasons : year round
- Capacity (max no. guests) : 48 max
Accommodation
- Room Types : 24 double bedrooms equipped with electricity, fans, mosquito nets and comfortable bedding.
- Showers & toilets : en suite, some rooms
- A/C : no, only fan
- Hot Water : yes
Further Information
- Electricity : 220V, 2 pin (flat)
- Fire warning system : N/A
- Fire extinguishers : Yes
- Fire escapes : N/A
- Entertainment : Elephant riding, trekking, white water rafting, mountain biking, culutral shows, more...
* NOTE. Prices indicated on this website are shown as a guideline only and may be subject to currency fluctuations, banking fees and other changes outside our control. Pricing information is available in
other currencies.
