Located in a verdant valley on the banks of Ping River 700 km north of Bangkok, Chiang Mai is a land of misty mountains and colourful hill tribes. Translated as “New City” (Chiang means city in northern Thai dialect while mai is new), it was founded in 1296 as the capital of the ancient Lanna Kingdom. In the olden days, it could only be reached by river journey or an elephant trek until the 1920s, which helped kept Chiang Mai’s distinctive charm intact.
Inside Chiang Mai's remaining city walls are more than 30 temples dating back to the founding of the principality, in a combination of Burmese, Sri Lankan and Lanna Thai styles, decorated with beautiful wood carvings, Naga staircases, leonine and angelic guardians, gilded umbrellas and pagodas laced with gold filigree.
Getting around Chiang Mai
By local buses. There are newly introduced local buses in Chiang Mai (B1 and B2) which are white coloured buses stationed at the main road in between Bus Station Chiang Mai and Arcade Bus Station. Bus B1 connects the Bus Station, Chiang Mai Railway Station, Thaphae Gate, and the Zoo. Bus B2 on the other hand covers places such as the Bus Station, Thaphae Gate and Chiang Mai Airport. The minimum fare is 15 baht.
By songthaew. One can also get around the city on a songthaew. These covered pick-up trucks have two long bench seats in the back (songthaew means "two rows" in Thai), and travel fixed routes picking up passengers en route who are going the same way. Some can also be hired outright. The colour of the songthaew indicates its general route or usage. Red songthaews don't follow a specific route and roam the main streets around markets, temples, or the bus/train stations. Prices must be negotiated, but do expect 20 baht per person anywhere within the city walls and 40-60 baht outside. Fixed route songthaews congregate around Warorot Market and charge a flat rate of 20 Baht. White songthaews travel to the eastern suburban city of Sankampaeng, yellow songthaews travel to Mae Rim in the north, blue songthaews travel to Sarapee and Lamphun in the south, and green songthaews travel to Mae Jo in the northeast.
By tuk-tuk or samlor. Tuk-tuks are a quick, though noisy way to get around. Fares are usually 40-50 baht for a short hop and 50-100 baht for longer distances, depending on the proficiency of your bargaining. A few samlor (three-wheeled bicycles) still cruise the streets and will happily take you to a temple for the same price as a tuk-tuk, though at a considerably quieter and slower pace. Mostly these are used by local elderly for trips to the market. Quite charming.
By taxi. There are several taxi companies in Chiangmai, but you need a phone to use them as taxis do not cruise the streets. There are found at the airport, railway station, bus station and hotels. You will need to make a phone call to hire a taxi driver.
By uber and grab. Rides between Nimman area and the old city cost 50-60 baht. Comfortable air-conditioned cars and a short wait (at least in the center) makes it definitely the best transportation option.
By motorbike. A motorbike is a convenient and cheap way to get around town or reach the outlying sights. There are abundance of rental outfits in town, and most guest houses can arrange rentals. A valid Thai or international drivers licence is legally required to rent, though most places will not require it. Rates are 100-150 baht/day for a 110cc motorbike and 150-200 baht/day for a Honda Wave 125cc.
By bicycle. Traffic inside the old city walls can be somewhat subdued, the roads are flat, and the distances are short (2km on each side of the moat) to make bicycling a quick way to get around. Bicycle rentals are plentiful with rental from 50 -250 baht/day depending on the bike quality.
By car. Car hire services are available both in the city centre and at the airport. Cars typically offered include the Toyota Vios, Altis, and Yaris, and the Honda City and Jazz. Typical rates for newer models are 900-2,000 baht per day, depending on season and model. (We rented a Toyota Vios for two days in Chiang Mai for 2400 Baht in total. This was arranged with the hotel where we stayed)
On foot. The old city is not huge and as such is easy to walk around. The airport is also quite close to the old part of town, about 2.5 km away, so if you have the energy and an hour to spare, you can even walk to and from the airport. Note that this is not necessarily a pleasant experience as the sidewalks are uneven and Chiang Mai gets hot during the day, especially during the hot season, and rainy during the rainy season. (We did however walk from the Sunday Walking Street back to our hotel for about 20-30 minutes)
Side Trip to Pai
Set in a particularly picturesque valley north of Chiang Mai, Pai is a predominantly tourism-oriented town, offering a relaxed atmosphere for local Thai tourists, and in recent year, serious backpackers from around the world.
The increase in Pai popularity is a result of it being featured in a romantic Thai film, “Pai in Love”. There are now around 350 guest houses and hotels in Pai, and the city centre has transformed into a tourist centre containing Western-style restaurants, souvenir shops, live music venues, tattoo parlours, and bars that cater largely to the now significant influx of tourists and package tours.
While the growth of Pai has been rapid and more or less every farm in the valley seems to rent bungalows, development so far has been largely tasteful and the town remains relatively serene during low-season.
Getting from Chiang Mai to Pai
Route 1095 which connects Pai with Mae Hong Son (110km) and Chiang Mai (135 km) is a very scenic route through the mountains which takes several hours. It's a steep and winding drive, with 762 curves between Chiang Mai and Pai, which is notably for giving the passengers motion sickness. To prepare for the ride to Pai, it’s recommended to get some supplies of motion sickness pills.
By motorcycle. If you're a little adventurous, rent a motorcycle in Chiang Mai and make the ride up to Pai. You can stop at the waterfalls and small towns along the way, and you'll really enjoy the trip, as opposed to being motion sick in a bus for hours. Make sure to take some warmer clothing on your bike, as it tends to get a bit chilly in the higher portions of the ride. As a novice rider, expect the trip to take around 5 or 6 hours, including stops at sites and restaurants along the way.
By buses and minivans. Buses and minivans depart from Chiang Mai Arcade Terminal and Mae Hong Son. From Chiang Mai, regular non air-conditioned public buses take around 4 hours and charge 78 baht, and there is only one bus at 7am daily. The privately-operated minivans (air-conditioned) take around 3 hours, and there is a 15 minute rest stop at the small half-way village of Mae Sae, with food, free internet and well-serviced toilets (3 baht). Tickets sold by guest houses and travel agencies cost about 150-180 baht, but one can purchase the tickets directly from the office at Arcade Bus Terminal, or from their online website with some minimal additional surcharge, and subjected to exchange rate. (We booked online via Aviabooking for RM22.30 per pax as opposed to 150 Baht per person (SGD 6.14 / RM 19.08) if purchased from the counter)
By plane. Kan Airlines operates 25-minutes flights between Chiang Mai and Pai in a twelve-seater Cessna Caravan. The frequency varies with demand according to the season. Passengers can make reservations and purchase tickets through the airline website, their call centres, or with a travel agent.
Getting around Pai
By motorbike. A motorbike is a convenient and cheap way to get around town. They can be rented from many agents along the main street, and most guest houses can also arrange rentals. Rental ranges from 80 to 200 Baht a day depending on the model and cc. (We rented two Honda Wave 125cc for two days in Pai for 200 each a day. This was arranged with the hotel where we stayed)
By bicycle. If you do not know how to ride a motorbike, you may also explore Pai by renting bicycle with rates ranging from 40 to 100 Baht a day.
On foot. The town itself is compact and can be explored on foot.
Best Time To Visit
The best time to visit Chiang Mai is between October and Feb, when the weather is mostly cool and pleasant with light breeze, which is also why it's peak tourist season. Another good time to visit Chiang Mai is during the festivals when the city is at its vibrant best.
Chiang Mai hosts many Thai festivals, including:
Loi Krathong (known locally as Yi Peng), held on the full moon of the 12th month of the traditional Thai lunar calendar, being the full moon of the second month of the old Lanna calendar. In the Western calendar this usually falls in November. Every year thousands of people assemble floating banana-leaf containers (krathong) decorated with flowers and candles and deposit them on the waterways of the city in worship of the Goddess of Water. Lanna-style sky lanterns (khom fai or kom loi), which are hot-air balloons made of paper, are launched into the air. These sky lanterns are believed to help rid the locals of troubles and are also used to decorate houses and streets.
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| Photo from The Vasilis |
Chiang Mai Flower Festival is a three-day festival held during the first weekend in February each year; this event occurs when Chiang Mai's temperate and tropical flowers are in full bloom.
Tam Bun Khan Dok, the Inthakhin (City Pillar) Festival, starts on the day of the waning moon of the sixth lunar month and lasts 6–8 days.
Sample itinerary
Here’s a sample itinerary for your reference:
Day 1 - Pai (link)
We flew from KL to Chiang Mai on a morning flight and upon arrival, we took the shuttle bus to Chiang Mai Arcade Bus Terminal, so that we can catch the minivan to Pai. The minivan that drove along long winding mountain road with 762 curves took 3 hours to reach Pai. Having only less than half a day to explore Pai, we only managed to cover one attraction – Wat Phra That Mae Yen, after checking in the hotel and renting bikes.
Dinner was settled at a restaurant downtown – Na’s Kitchen. On the way, we passed by Pai Phu Fah Resort, and took some quick shots.
Dinner was settled at a restaurant downtown – Na’s Kitchen. On the way, we passed by Pai Phu Fah Resort, and took some quick shots.
Lodging: Yododo Inn
Day 2 – Pai (link)
We started the day with Yun Lai Viewpoint, the perfect spot for sunrise viewing. After hours of phototaking session, we went back to Yododo Inn for complimentary breakfast, before checking out and riding to Pai Panalee Resort, located at another side of the town. We then checked out the following resorts for the rest of the day:
- Oaia Pai Resort
- Prawdao Resort
- Heart of Pai
- Coffee in Love
The above-mentioned resorts are all free to be visited, even if you are not the guests. Coffee in Love, is our main highlight for the day, as this is the main setting for the 2009’s Thai movie – Pai in Love. The house featured in the movie remained a popular tourist spot, and we did spend the most hours here, taking numerous photos. There’s a café next door, overlooking the mountain and paddy fields, where you can chill out if you are tired.
We ended our day tour with Pai Canyon, another major tourists’ attraction in Pai, normally visited for its sunset (Don’t miss this!) Dinner was settled at Pai Walking Street where we had local street food. You can also find massage parlour here.
Lodging: Pai Panalee Resort
We took afternoon minivan to Chiang Mai on this day, and therefore, we had half a day to cover other areas in Pai which we had yet to explore. Looking at the list of places we have yet covered, we decided to go in the following order:
- Boon Ko Ku Su Bridge
- Secret Enchanted Forest
- War Memorial Bridge
One thing to note is that we went to the wrong Boon Ko Ku Su Bridge, as we were deceived by google map. We ended up at a paddy field along the highway with wooden bridge, thinking we reached our destination. We only found out about this upon our return to the hotel later on.
Leaving War Memorial Bridge, we had little time left before we need to return to our hotel to grab our bags, have lunch and depart to Chiang Mai. Our next plan is to stop at the famed Big Tree Swing at Mari Pai Resort. On the way to Mari Pai Resort, we stopped at these photo-worthy resorts for some quick photos.
- Coffee Tea Sapan
- The Container
- Pai Coffee
After checking out from Pai Panelee Resort, we rode to nearby Dang’s Kitchen & Drinks for lunch, before heading to Pai Bus Station, to return our rented bikes and boarded the minivan to Chiang Mai.
By the time we reached Chiang Mai, it was already late afternoon, and after checking in to our rooms, we took the complimentary shuttle tuk-tuk to the Sunday Walking Street Night Market, for dinner and shopping. As we walked back to the hotel, we stopped at the famous Fong Fei Fei Pig Trotter Rice for supper.
Lodging: Hotel Arch39
Day 4 – Chiang Mai (link)
We spent several hours in the morning, filling the car rental form and waiting for our car to arrive, then proceeded with inspection etc, before we could finally checked out from the hotel and drove out to our first destination on our list. Due to the delay, we had to sacrifice Pa Chor and Doi An Khang, and proceed to only covered Doi Inthanon and Baan Pang Pong Piang.
Lunch was settled on the way to Doi Inthanon, as we found a restaurant along the highway – Chom Thong Restaurant.
The more interesting of the trails available in Doi Inthanon is definitely the Kew Mae Pan Trail (2.5km), which requires a moderate level of physical activity for more than 2 hours. Via Kew Mae Pan trail, hikers will be rewarded with the view of the Royal Twin Pagodas mid-way and at the trail ends at the pagodas themselves. However, during our visit, the trail was closed for maintenance, and we could only choose Ang Ka Nature Trail instead, which is relatively shorter, easier and doesn’t comes with the stunning view.
We extended our journey to cover the nearby Mae Pan Waterfall and then drove to Baan Pa Pong Piang just in time for sunset. As the sun sets, we drove back to the city, and along the way dropped by a mookata restaurant for dinner. We reached our hotel (yet another one) late at night, and called it a day.
Lodging: Mona Boutique Hotel
Day 5 – Chiang Mai (link)
We started our day with congee breakfast at Joke Sompet, before driving over to Tiger Kingdom and Moncham.
We spent a couple of hours in Tiger Kingdom and another 3 hours in Moncham, where we also had brunch.
We then drove back to the city, where we first pay a visit to Ice Love You for dessert (since it was drizzling), before we headed out to the Chiang Mai Night Safari for free feeding time with the giraffe.
We then drove up to Wat Doi Suthep, and ended the night a visit to Rustic & Blue Cafe for dinner.
We spent a couple of hours in Tiger Kingdom and another 3 hours in Moncham, where we also had brunch.
We then drove back to the city, where we first pay a visit to Ice Love You for dessert (since it was drizzling), before we headed out to the Chiang Mai Night Safari for free feeding time with the giraffe.
We then drove up to Wat Doi Suthep, and ended the night a visit to Rustic & Blue Cafe for dinner.
Lodging: Mona Boutique Hotel
Day 6 – Chiang Mai (link)
With our rented car scheduled to be returned around lunch time, we decided to make on last car trip to a special place, not known by most tourists – Huay Tung Tao Lake. We were among the first customers to have arrived, and we had early brunch there. With our stomach satisfyingly filled, we drove back to the city to return the car, before walking to Ristr8to (for some coffee) and Rustic & Blue Café (for late lunch). We ended our day with a grab ride to the airport, and flew home to Malaysia.
How you can do Pai
I will definitely suggest a full 2-days trip to pai to truly enjoy the beauty of this quiet little town. A trip to Yun Lai Viewpoint is a must for sunrise (depends on your luck), and the same is for sunset at Pai Canyon. We were not a big fan of waterfalls and caves since we see that quite often in back in Malaysia, but if you are interested, you may want to add Lod (Spirit) Caves, Pombok and Mo Paeng Falls into your itinerary.
There’s also a Yunnan Chinese Village and Mae Ping Long Neck Tribe Village, if you are interested to see the lifestyle of the tribes. I would suggest trying to cramp all these together with Tha Pai Hot Spring into a day or two, if you are not a fan of visiting those insta-worthy resorts like we do.
There are also several elephant camps which you can visit, such as Thom’s Elephant Camp, and while you are at that, be sure to visit the (real) Boon Ko Ku Su Bridge which we missed. The remaining of your time in Pai can be spent chilling out at a café or hunting down those insta-worthy resorts. The most popular and not-to-be-missed is definitely Coffee in Love and the Big Tree Swing at Mari Pai Resort. A few resorts we did not visit but could be interesting are the Pai Treehouse, Chang Pai Hill and Love Strawberry Pai.
For shopping, do drop by Pai Walking Street and if you are visiting on a Wednesday, there’s even a Wednesday Night Market.
How you can do Chiang Mai
There are too many interesting places to visit in Chiang Mai, and to truly explore Chiang Mai, one may even need more than a week. If your time is short like ours, you will definitely need to make some sacrifice and only chose the ones worth your time.
Although there are like hundreds of temples in Chiang Mai, visiting all of them could be overwhelming and not truly recommended. The most important and popular temple in the city is definitely Wat Doi Suthep with a great sunset view. The nearby Bhuping Palace, Chiang Mai Night Safari, Grand Canyon Chiang Mai and Royal Flora Ratchaphruek are good add-ons to your trip to Wat Doi Suthep.
Those who aren’t against visiting Tiger Kingdom (I’ll let you be your own judge of morality at this) should also make a visit, for a chance to see the beast up close and personal. Mae Sa Waterfall and Queen Sirikit Botanic Gardens and Mon Cham are also around the same area (north of Chiang Mai town) which can be explored together.
Mountain-lovers and hikers should not miss Doi Inthanon, and especially the Kew Mae Pan trail at that. Driving there is the most convenient, and while you are there, you may also add Pha Chor, Mae Ya Waterfall, and Baan Pa Pong Piang which are along the way (south of Chiang Mai town).
Other interesting day Trips from Chiang Mai worth considering if you have time, are:
- Pha Singh Liao (3 hours south west of Chiang Mai town center)
- Doi Ang Khang (3-4 hours north of Chiang Mai town center) – a great place for camping and sunrise
- Bua Tong Sticky Waterfall ( 1-2 hour north east of Chiang Mai town center)
At night, do not miss the Sunday Night Market, which is the biggest night market in town. Be sure to plan your stay in Chiang Mai so that you are in town on sunday night, and if possible, stay in vicinity. What’s a trip to Thailand without visiting their night market and sampling their local street food, right?
Cost breakdown
🔼Flight (KL – Chiang Mai) ➤ RM 249 / SGD 80
🔼Bike rental in Pai ➤ RM 25 / SGD 8
🔼Petrol for bike ➤ RM 3 / SGD 1
🔼Car rental in Chiang Mai ➤ RM 76 / SGD 25
🔼Petrol for car ➤ RM 40 / SGD 13
🔼Local transport ➤ RM 58 / SGD 19
🔼Accommodation (5 nights) ➤ RM 210 / SGD 68
🔼Attractions ➤ RM 140 / SGD 45
🔼Meal ➤ RM 210 / SGD 68
🔼Massage ➤ RM 22 / SGD 7
🔺Total (excluding souvenirs) ➤ RM 1033 / SGD 333
As you can see from the above breakdown, our main expenses are on flight ticket, accommodation, meal and transport (minivan, bike and car rental, and petrol). Our flight ticket to Chiang Mai was considered cheap in recent years. Any cheaper flight tickets are not common, though not impossible, so do look out for promotions.
Our trip was not a budget one, and we did splurge a lot on meals, especially on the last two days. Given a second chance I would have probably done the same. It’s still affordable nonetheless and we were in Thailand after all. It’s a foodie heaven, and you can’t just starve yourself to save a few bucks.
As for transportation, we could have spent lesser if we concentrated on the places around Chiang Mai town instead of driving further to Doi Inthanon, Ban Pa Pong Piang, and Moncham. By visiting places in town, we wouldn’t have needed to rent a car, and would therefore save on transport costs. But seriously, where’s the fun to that?
Ultimately, it depends on how you would spend your time in Chiang Mai. A thriftier traveller could easily spend less whereas someone with a higher budget would probably spend more, particularly on food. There’s no right or wrong.
Epilogue
There are plenty to see in both Pai and Chiang Mai, and honestly 6 Days 5 Nights to me was a little too short. While Pai is relatively smaller, and can be fully explored in 2-3 days, Chiang Mai has too much to offer, that we ended up striking off several places out of our list due to time constraint. Given a second chance, I would really like to visit Doi An Khang, Pha Singh Liao, Chiang Mai Canyon, and Pha Chor. I’ll have to make a note somewhere to remind myself to revisit Chiang Mai in the future, to settle this unfinished business, and include a side trip to Mae Hong Son and Chiang Rai.
I impressed with your article. Tq for sharing amazing place. Keep on updating
ReplyDeleteFor more beautiful places visit:
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