Samlor Tours

The traditional bicycle taxi

Chiang Mai a la Carte offers samlor tours in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Lamphun. The samlor is a bicycle taxi. In Thai language “samlor” literally means “three wheels”. In the old days, before the age of the motorized vehicle, there were hundreds of samlors in Chiang Mai. Now there are less than 70 on Chiang Mai streets. In Chiang Rai there are about 15 samlors left, in Lamphun there are about 30 still active.

Our samlor tours are private

We have designed a number of half day private tours in Chiang Mai. In Chiang Rai and Lamphun the samlor tours are included in day tours. An knowledgeable English speaking guide will accompany you because the samlor drivers speak very little English. Our tours avoid the main roads as much as possible. We prefer to cycle through quiet back roads and alleys. Each samlor seats one passenger. We care about the health and well-being of the drivers so we limited the distances. In between the rides they have time enough to recuperate.

Preservation of a cultural heritage

We support the drivers of samlors and want to preserve the samlor as a living, intangible cultural heritage of Chiang Mai. By joining our samlor tours you will directly support the drivers and will contribute to the preservation of the samlor as a means of transportation. Much more though has to be done to keep samlors on the streets of cities in North Thailand.