“Spending a week with my own elephant will be something I will never forget. Made so many good friends in Thailand too.. Thanks Guys you rock!”Joanna Parish
“I´m so pleased i went for it, was really nervous about being on my own at first, but then i met so many cool people, and everyone was really friendly. I was gutted that my friends didn´t want to travel with me but at the end of the day, it made it so much better, I would have never met all these people and made so many new friends. Will defo recommend Xtreme Gap to my mates, and hope to travel with you in the future. xxx”Samantha Lunn
The Xtreme Thailand Experience
Xtreme Thailand Experience Highlights Include:
- Meeting monks & discovering Thai culture, temples & cuisine.
- Trekking though national parks & discovering cool waterfalls.
- Exploring historic Singburi to see life outside the cities and islands, meeting tribes.
- Working with Elephants and Mahouts.
- Exploring exciting Bangkok and stay in luxury 4* hotel.
- Amazing beaches and adrenaline adventures on Koh Tao like abseiling, snorkelling and diving and freediving.
- Full moon party in Koh Phanang.
- Koh Tao adventure day.
- Lots of Chill time on Koh Tao and beach parties to remember.
- Meet and chat to other Xtreme Gappers with an online Buddy list before you travel too!
How Your Thailand Experience Looks:
Photos
- Thailand Experience
Xtreme TV
Full Details
This is a flexible itinerary, meaning you can choose to join any second week option in country depending on how you feel and which people you want to hang out with, this means the itinerary can change but you do have to pick which Koh Tao Option you prefer at the time of booking, as this influences the price.
Intro Week:
Starting on the Sunday, you will be transfered to your new home in Singburi, a couple of hours from Bangkok, to embark upon a comprehensive introduction to Thailand.
During the intro week you will learn more about Thailand, get to know other members of the group, and the local surrounding area. Emphasis will be placed on learning about Thai culture, Thai language and even try your hand at some Thai cooking. You will also check out the famous Buddhist Temple: Wat Phranon Jaksi, the old capital of Ayutthaya (including a visit to the elephant village), Lopburi’s museum and pagoda, and even have a cruise along the river.
Second Week Option Week:
You can choose what and where.
If you do not know which option week you would like to be your second week do not worry, you can still make that decision once you are out in Thailand. It might be that you want to hook up with some people and decide to join them on the trekking week, or maybe you rather join someone else who decided to do the Buddhism week. It is very easy to go with the flow!
Just mention it on your booking form, and we will sort it out for you.
Adventure Week Options – Take Your Pick!
Elephant Week
Elephant Week
- Learn how to ride the Elephants
- Head off through forests and around the camp.
- Bath them and feed them
- Go swimming with them
- This week is an unrivalled opportunity to learn about Elephants and connect with your very own!
- Just be warned you can´t take it with you when your week is up!
Trekking in the Jungle
Trekking in the Jungle
During the second week you and other participants have the option to go trekking in the jungle and rainforest of the Phutoei National Park, a lush park not often visited by other tourists. This again will be a unique experience. You will be roughing it, but in beautiful surroundings. After this experience, you will have a lot to boast about when you go home as you will be sleeping in tents and surviving with the basics – we’re sure you will have a lot of fun! The trekking option is fully guided by trained national park rangers, so you will be in safe hands but it is certainly an adventure!
Want to read more about what happens on the trekking week? See here.
Buddhism & Culture Week
Buddhism & Culture Week
If you choose the Buddhism & Culture week you will get to know a lot more about Buddhism and Thai culture. During this week you will visit temples, you have the opportunity to ask your questions about Buddhism to the monks, we will teach you about practicing meditation and chanting in a quiet and spiritual environment. Our guide is very knowledgeable and will tell you all you need to know. If you have a real interest in Buddhism & Culture, this is the programme for you!
Read more about this option in detail here.
Remember you do not have to to decide which option you pick when you book, you can wait to see what takes your fancy when you are in Thailand.
Itinerary for Bangkok.
In between heading to Koh Tao and finishing your option weeks you have 2 full days in Bangkok (One if you are on the elephant option).
You will arrive at the bus station on the Saturday (the elephant option arrives on the Sunday morning) and need to make your own way to the hotel. Full instructions are provided in the predeparture pack and your customer login account. and this is a £4 taxi ride from the bus station.
There is no set itinerary for Bangkok, but there is plenty to do you can see and do. You will be staying next to the Khao San Road in a 4 star hotel, so you can chill by the pool, or visit many of the sites Bangkok has to offer.
Staying the Saturday night for one night in Bangkok you then transfer to Koh Tao by night bus and boat on Sunday night, you need to get yourself to the bus departure point by this is very easy as shown in the video below.
Click here to see the transfer video
This means you will arrive in Koh Tao first thing on the Monday where we will pick you up off the boat.
Then Onto Paradise – Itinerary For Koh Tao Beach Week
The Koh Tao beach week itinerary is flexible because it depends on the option you choose for the action week (there is some overlap see details below), but in general you have 12 days to check out the amazing beaches, get involved in some adventures with your new friends and enjoy the epic nightlife.
You will also have your adventure day and hit the full moon party in Koh Phanang. On arrival you will have a full introduction from our resident rep who will settle you into the island life and it will go like this:
You arrive by night bus and boat on Monday morning where you will be picked up and taken to your accommodation.
Once you are checked in, you have time to relax, jump in the pool and freshen up. In the afternoon around 4 our Rep Miss Jai will meet you and the rest of the group at the bar and give you an intro to Koh Tao. She will show you round, tell you the essentials, and show you where everything is like ATMs, pharmacies, beaches and activity locations. She is on hand through out the week if you need her too.
You will then go out for dinner (on us) with the rest of the group, expect a tasty Thai curry! The next day you will be taken by miss Jai to start your activity, depending on the option you have picked the itinerary will be as follows.
Koh Tao.
Koh Tao has some of the best beaches in Thailand, it is also one of the most popular backpacker hubs in South East Asia, but not ruined like some of the other islands, there is a great community and vibe to the place you are going to love spending time here. We have many Xtreme Gappers resident on the Island as we run lots of different trips there so there is lots going on. It is also a great place to learn to dive as well, so you can take advantage of getting your PADI Open water while you are there as well.
This part of the trip is all about being social and having fun, you can take long tail boat trips round the island, enjoy amazing Thai food and stay up all night in some of the best beach clubs and bars in Asia. After a few days of chill, you will want to pick up the pace again, so we finish the trip with the action week! The Koh Tao adventure day is the perfect end to the week and you also get to complete your action option:
Final Week Action Week on Koh Tao
During the action week you will do an awesome adventure day around the island. We have lined up some cool activities like abseiling, snorkling and zip lining to get the pulse racing!
See the adventure day video
Pick from one of the below:
Fit Package (Muay Thai)
Fit Package
The fit package is the most popular (and cheapest) option. It includes 5 Muay Thai sessions learning the national sport of Thailand in a cool jungle gym. It is a great way to try something new, get really fit and learn much more about the culture of Thailand.
You will under go a modified non contact training regieme in the camp that host monthly Muay thai fights, a really authentic and cool experience!
Some like to do it in the morning and then hit the beach others like the cooler evening training times.
You can read more about this option here.
Discover Scuba Package
Discover Scuba Package
For the discover Scuba session you will be allocated a diving instructor and work out when you will be doing this locally.
If you want to see what all this scuba diving is all about, with out committing to a full blown PADI course then a Discover Scuba Diving experience is a must. Have you ever wondered what it’s like to breathe underwater. If you want to find out but aren’t quite ready to take the plunge into a certification course, Discover Scuba Diving will let you try scuba to see if you like it. While not an actual scuba certification, during the Discover Scuba Diving experience you’ll learn how to use scuba equipment in shallow water and get a quick and easy introduction to what it takes to explore the underwater world.
Read more about this option here.
Open Water Course Option
Open Water Course
This costs a little more than the Discover Scuba option, but it is a full blow open water course worth over £400. The course lasts 2.5 days and includes 4 dives in the beautiful gulf of thailand. Afterwards you have your PADI Open Water license and can dive anywhere in the world!
Xtreme Package – Freediving
Xtreme Package Freediving
This is probably the most Xtreme option, and one of the most rewarding! Our professional freediver instructors will teach you the basics of Freediving, and accompany you down to depths of 12 metres! The actual course itself lasts 2 days and included theory and water based instruction.
Read more about the Xtreme Freediving option here.
Xtreme Package – Rock Climbing
Xtreme Package Rock Climbing
Why do we call it Adrenaline Travel? We know that when you push your comfort zone just a little bit you can get the most out of your travel experiences: personal development through overcoming your fears!
The Xtreme Rock Climbing option is the perfect example of trying something exciting and new.
The beginner course is designed for people that are interested in rock climbing and introduces them to the sport. No experience is necessary, but we are sure you will be onto a new addiction once you give it a go.
You can discover more about the rock climbing option here.
No what action week activity you pick you will also do the adventure day and visit the full moon party!
Further Information
Koh Tao is so much fun… Koh Tao is not only famous for its great diving and beautiful beaches, there is quite a party scene there too! Picture cool beach bars, fire shows, awesome night clubs like Moov and Fizz bar. If you want to have some serious fun after the sun sets, you will not be disappointed. Read more.
This is a great way to finish up on your trip, after experiencing the culture its time to party. Speaking of which…
The Full Moon Party! Party Boat Included!
You can´t go to Thailand and miss the full moon party. That would be criminal! So we arrange a trip over to Koh Phanang for the night to party your butt off at Haad Rin, and then after the sun comes up it is back to Koh Tao for a well deserved sleep in the ultra comfortable resort avoiding the messy crowds left in Koh Phanang.
The Full Moon Party is one of the once in a life time experiences and a great way to finish your Thailand Experience.
Want to read more about the Full Moon Party click here!
Group Demographics
Is this trip suitable for you? The average age on this trip is between 18 and 22. Although it is open to all. The make up of the groups is usually 75% female to 25% male, just going to show, girls really are braver than boys! So come on lads, what are you waiting for? Prove us wrong!
The final week finishes on the Saturday morning, so you can arrange your transfer back to Bangkok with Miss Jai via boat and Bus (12 hours) or book a flight from Koh Samui to Bangkok (2 hour boat and 45 minute flight). This is the prefered option for most of our travellers as this gets you straight into the international airport for a smooth flight connection back home.
Remember lots of details are in predeparture pack you recieive after booking. You will also be hooked up with your buddy lists then.
Finally
We can also send you loads of information on this trip and the locations so get trip notes for more details!
Full details on your options to get back to Bangkok are included in a very detailed predeparture pack, which we send you after booking.
You will also be set up with an online buddy list so you can chat to other members of the group in Koh Tao.
The trip ends on the Saturday morning in Koh Tao. Check the FAQ section for details on how to get back to the airport.
Please do book early
This can be a very popular trip so make sure you get booked up ASAP! You can secure your spot for only £100 by submitting a booking form. Do it now!
So now you have read about the trip, you might want to check out where you will be staying or a break down of everything included.
Included
Excluded
Dates