Eastern Thailand Isan Adventure

Motorbike Madness is based at Pong outside Pattaya and this six day trip is its route into the northeast, the Khorat plateau region Thai people call Isan. The operator grades it intermediate, runs groups of up to twenty riders and puts everyone on a Honda CB500X fitted with its own upgrades unless you pay to switch. The daily distances are consistent rather than punishing, between 244 and 348 kilometres, but they add up over six consecutive days. The first leg leaves Pattaya on back roads past lakes and twisty sections, includes a stretch of dirt through rubber plantations and the Khlong Si Yat reservoir, and finishes at Nakhon Ratchasima. Day two visits Phimai Historical Park, one of the major Khmer sanctuaries in Thailand, before a twisting route to the Chi river and Khon Kaen. The third day is the longest and the one the operator sells hardest: lake views at Marahat Park, the two kilometre elevated Thepsuda bridge over the Lam Pao, a road past Nam Phung lake it calls world famous among bikers, and the pink lotus lake at Nong Han Kumphawapi near Udon Thani. Day four rides the curves around the Ubolratana reservoir to the Mor Hin Khao sandstone formations and the Pha Hua Nak viewpoint above Chaiyaphum, and day five follows the Pasak river and the elevated Khoksalung railway bridge down to Pak Chong on the edge of Khao Yai. The last day rides the tight scenic curves inside Khao Yai National Park, more than 2,000 square kilometres of forest holding elephants and other wildlife, then the sweeping bends of the Bo Thong district past limestone mountains back to Pattaya. Accommodation is a private hotel room throughout. Breakfasts and lunches are covered but evening meals deliberately are not, so riders can choose where and how much to spend. Fuel, national park and historic site entrance fees, taxi transfers from your Pattaya hotel, helmets, medical insurance, comprehensive motorcycle insurance and third party liability are all included. The operator does not publish a total distance for the tour.

Isan is the part of Thailand most visitors never see, and Motorbike Madness reaches it from Pattaya in six riding days of between 244 and 348 kilometres. The route opens with backroads past lakes and a stretch of dirt through rubber plantations to Nakhon Ratchasima, then heads north to Khon Kaen by way of the Khmer sanctuary at Phimai and the Chi river. The third day is the big one, looping through Sakon Nakhon to cross the two kilometre Thepsuda bridge and finish at the pink lotus lake near Udon Thani. Chaiyaphum follows, with the curves around the Ubolratana reservoir and the sandstone pillars of Mor Hin Khao, then Pak Chong on the edge of Khao Yai, and finally the tight park roads and limestone country back to Pattaya.