Highland Bound: The Mae Hong Son Tour

Mae Hong Son province sits in the far northwest corner of Thailand against the Burmese border, and the road that loops through it is the reason most riders come to Chiang Mai in the first place. Thai Bespoke Bike Tours rides it over four days and three nights, departing from its own base and returning there, and puts the total at around 750 kilometres with 1,864 curves along the way. The first day heads north through Phrao and picks up route 107 into the highlands, aiming to reach Pai by about four in the afternoon so there is still daylight for the hotel pool or the river and an evening on the walking street. Day two is the short one at roughly 150 kilometres, which is the point: the road between Pai and Mae Hong Son is dense enough that covering it quickly would be a waste. Lunch is taken in a Chinese village near the Burmese frontier, and the group rolls into Mae Hong Son in the afternoon with time for its nightly market. The third day swaps two wheels for a long-tail boat partway through, running upriver to visit Karen villages where the women wear brass neck rings, with a stop at the Japanese War Museum before the run down to Mae Sarieng and a hotel on the Salween River. The last leg turns back toward Chiang Mai through pine forest and detours into Doi Inthanon National Park for a waterfall, with the group back at base around four. This is a road tour on mid-capacity machines rather than an adventure ride. The operator asks for prior experience on larger machines and average speeds of 80 to 120 kph, which is a fair description of what the route demands. The default bike is a Suzuki V-Strom 650, chosen partly because it carries a pillion well; solo riders who prefer something lighter can take a Honda CB500X or the lower-seated CB500F. Groups of five or more are accompanied by a support vehicle and driver, and the tour leader works in English, French or Dutch. Departures run from August through March with custom dates available for groups.

Four days and three nights on the Mae Hong Son loop, ridden anticlockwise out of Chiang Mai and covering roughly 750 kilometres in total. Thai Bespoke Bike Tours counts 1,864 curves on the route and treats it as its signature short trip: a full circuit of Thailand's most mountainous province without the padding of a longer holiday. Days are moderate rather than epic, with the second leg running only about 150 kilometres, which leaves time for a lunch stop in a Chinese settlement on the Burmese border, a long-tail boat ride to Karen villages and an afternoon spent on the Salween River. Riders need real time on large-capacity machines and should be able to hold an average of 80 to 120 kph. The published price of 38,000 baht per rider covers the bike, fuel, gear, three nights of private accommodation and two meals a day; pillion passengers are quoted separately at 13,000 baht.