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[diverg]

Well, I just put down a deposit on a 5 day guided motorcycle tour in Thailand for January. I will be riding a modern retro classic Triumph Bonneville T100. My Birthday isn't till July, but if a total travel time of 23ish hours I'm going for more then a week, and I can get 2 weeks off in January vs July. I'll spend some time in Bangkok and the tour will be out of Chaing Mai. Here is the group I'll be riding with. At the moment I'm the only rider on this tour, but I'm sure it will not stay that way since it is peak season there.

http://www.thailandmotorcycle.tours/the-mae-hong-son-loop-five-day-classic-tour/

Now to decided do I splurge and pay for a premium economy seat or be a sardine in economy class.

[xcaliber]

Looks exciting! How did you pick this company? Looking forward to plenty of pics and full ride report!

[Rocket67]

Ditto what Gary said.  I need to put this on my bucket list.  Do they do any 2-up bikes? 

[diverg]

Gary and Scott, to answer your questions. I chose this company based on TripAdvisor reviews, and price. They have great reviews along with another company. I chose this one based on the reviews, price and they have an option for a slower paced trip with their retro classic bikes.

If you have looked up prices for guided trips overseas they are not cheap!! Guided tours in Thailand are relatively cheap. This 5 day tour is only costing me $1200 which is a slight discount from there listed rate. Most of their trips tend to run about $225 to $270/day, and includes everything except evening meals and alcoholic drinks. That means gas, single accommodations rooms at great lodgings, motorcycle insurance, support, riding gear etc.

 I figured that the adventure type bikes like the Vstrom 650 may be more then I am up to at this point in time. No experience riding them and too boot no mountain riding experience. I figure the Triumph Bonneville T100 would be more closer in ride to the VTX. Plus its a less aggressive pace. If there is a next time I can go on the Adventure bikes.

Scott, the road trips are mainly on Honda CB500X and Vstrom 650's. I believe the 650's are used for two up. From their webpage here are the bikes:

The Bikes
Honda CB500X 500cc parallel twin - The default tour bike for solo riders. Extremely comfortable twin cylinder motorcycle - just jump on and go. It's light and nimble and eminently suitable to the roads we use on all our tours.
Suzuki V-Strom 650cc vee twin - A versatile V-twin cylinder motorcycle and our standard default bike for those carrying a passenger. Also available as an upgrade option at 500 baht/day.
Royal Enfield Classic 500 - The modern remake of the British  classic. Bomb-proof single cylinder 500cc thumper that will bring more smiles to your face than you can possibly imagine. Used on our two Retro tours for solo riders.
Triumph Bonneville T100  - The ultimate classic - put your arse on some class! Capable, easy handling, torquey parallel twin that just oozes character. This is the default bike for pillion riding on our Retro tours and is also available as an upgrade (+1000 baht/day) for solo riders.
Honda CB1100 - Big, beefy and imposing. We have one of these very special bikes available as a premium upgrade (+1500 baht/day) on our retro tours.
Honda CB300F - Single cylinder small capacity naked street bike. This bike is recommended for the less experienced rider or those of shorter inseam measurement! They are suitable for the Mae Hong Son loop and the shorter duration tours and are also a budget option with a 500 baht/day discount offered on our advertised prices for our Four Countries , Golden Triangle,  Road to Mandalay and The Total North Thailand 10 Day Tour.

Honda CRF250 - Used mainly for our Off-Road/Adventure guided tours.

[Rocket67]

I am curious about the pace and what you describe as mountain riding.  From the pictures it looks like most of the roads are paved and no trails that would perch you precariously on the edge of a cliff.  That being said, I would expect to ride at a pace similar to what we would here or in the hill country.  The T100 isn't exactly a slow bike so just curious what you mean.  I would really love to do this but have to put it way out there especially if I am going to go sans significant other. 

Thanks!

[diverg]

They say you average 80/kmph to 120 kmph on the normal road tours. Less on the retro tours.  The retro tours are meant to be more leisurely and sedate is what they told me. When I talk about slower its the pace of the trip not that the bike isn't capable of going faster.

Also the way I look at, the t100 is more of a standard bike so you I couldn't ride it as aggressively as a adventure bike could be ridden. I may be wrong in my thought process though.

[Rocket67]

They say you average 80/kmph to 120 kmph on the normal road tours. Less on the retro tours.  The retro tours are meant to be more leisurely and sedate is what they told me. When I talk about slower its the pace of the trip not that the bike isn't capable of going faster.

Also the way I look at, the t100 is more of a standard bike so you I couldn't ride it as aggressively as a adventure bike could be ridden. I may be wrong in my thought process though.

Gotcha.