Chiang Mai is the largest city in a mountainous region of Northern Thailand and the second major city of the country. Its Old City is still well preserved and home to numerous temples and pagodas including the ancient Wat Phra Singh built in 14th century. Unlike the capital Bangkok and the south Phuket where they have spectacular beaches and wild night life, Chiang Mai is more of a chill and laidback city. Time moves slowly here, and a lot of businesses close before midnight.
HOW TO GET THERE
If you are traveling from the Philippines, there are 4-hour direct flights to Chiang Mai from Manila three times a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) via Cebu Pacific. Another option when you are in Bangkok and looking for a side trip is to fly from the capital or take overnight buses and trains. Numerous flights from the capital take less than 2 hours while overnight land travel are around 10-12 hours.
*Manila to Chiang Mai Flight is at 9:30 p.m and Chiang Mai to Manila is at 1 a.m, so you might want to consider your accommodation booking for that matter.
WHERE TO STAY
The Old City is not just a historical landmark but also a hub for visitors. The place caters to every type of guest looking for cheap hostels to budget or boutique hotels. Its strategic location houses travel agencies, bike rentals, souvenir shops, restaurants, cafes and convenient stores. As for me, I booked a private room with The Ten Hotel Thippanate for my first 2 nights then transferred to shared dorm in Hug Backpackers for the rest of the stay.
THINGS TO DO
Chiang Mai doesn’t have any beach so most of the views here are mountains. The place though still has lots to offer. Travelers can kickstart in the Old City. As I mentioned it has a lot of visiting sites and restaurants serving authentic Thai food. Weed is legal in Thailand so if you are curious, feel free to enter those marijuana stores. Just be mindful that not all establishments allow smoking weed. At night, the city streets lit up for night markets offering Thai products and food.
For night market options, you can go to Night Bazaar Chiang Mai and Anusarn Night Market. They are close to each other so you can experience them in one visit. Night Bazaar is a bit of an upscale night market since they have fountain and plaza to sit, eat and watch live performance at night. Their stalls are also a bit bigger with lots of options to choose from. Anusarn on the other hand is just the typical night market you see in Thailand. Walking Street Sunday Market is packed with people, especially on Sunday night since it is the only the time of the week it operates.
To see most of Chiang Mai and its nearby provinces best option is to book day tours through travel agencies. They offer different options of package tours, from half day to full day, water activities, zip line, cooking classes and cultural excursion, all-inclusive of transportation, food, entrance fees and guides.
Two of the most popular tours are the Elephant Sanctuary and Chiang Rai plus Golden Triangle Tour. The Elephant Sanctuary tour is great way to be up close with the rescued elephants in the border of Thailand and Myanmar. It starts with spending half a day with the elephants, feeding, walking and bathing them. Then move on to bamboo rafting on the river and end with dipping and swimming in the waterfalls. Chiang Rai and Golden Triangle Tour is for cultural experience. The tour starts at 7 a.m to travel the Long Neck Village where Burmese and other minor ethnicities live. It also includes a visit to the most popular White Temple in Chiang Rai, known as Wat Rong Khun then Blue Temple and Black Museum. The most interesting in this tour is going to Golden Triangle which borders the three countries of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos. You can circumference the three countries with a 40-minute boat ride along the Mekong River. English and Chinese-speaking guides are there to give a bit of historical background of the area.
For day tours there are a lot of travel agencies around the Old City. You can also book through your accommodation to avail of discounts. As for me, I went with Darwin Tour with Ms. Evi +66612849256 (whatsapp). They have competitive prices and discounts.
GETTING AROUND
Chiang Mai has variety of transportation options. If you stay in the Old City, you can get to places on foot or tuktuk. Drivers offer their services going to different temples for 3 hours at ฿300. Grabcar and grab bike are also available at very reasonable prices. However, I wouldn’t recommend grabcar if you are traveling alone since they are quite slow and the traffic is quite heavy in the city. The most used riding app recommended by locals and expats is Bolt. It’s the same as grab but way cheaper and faster. Motorbike rentals are also at hand for those who want to travel on their own.
ITINERARY
DAY 1: OLD CITY TOUR
- Check in accommodation
- Old City Sites (Thapae Gate, Three Kings Monument, Wat Phra Singh, Wat Phantao, Wat Lok Moli)
- Old City Night Market (Wua Lai Walking Street, Old City Walking Street Sunday Night Market)
Day 2: ELEPHANT SANCTUARY
- Kerchor Elephant Eco Park
- River Rafting
- Tat Mok Waterfalls
DAY 3: CHIANG RAI AND GOLDEN TRIANGLE TOUR
- Long Neck Village
- White Temple
- Blue Temple
- Black Museum
- Golden Triangle
DAY 4: SOUVENIR SHOPPING
- Old City Souvenir Shops (just walk around, you can easily spot them or check google maps)
- MAYA Mall
- Night Bazaar and Anusarn Night Market
BUDGET BREAKDOWN
- Plane Tickets:
- Manila to Chiang Mai via Cebu Pacific (no check in baggage): ₱4,216.14
- Chiang Mai to Manila via Cebu Pacific (no check in baggage): ₱4,732.2
- Accommodation:
- The Ten Hotel Thippanate (2 nights in double bed private room): ฿1,260 (₱2,268)
- Hug Backpackers (3 nights in shared dorm room): ฿555 (₱999)
- Food: ฿1,500 (₱2,700)
- Transportation (Grab and Bolt): ฿500 (₱900)
- Wat Phra Singh Entrance Fee: ฿50 (₱90)
- Elephant Sanctuary Tour: ฿1,800 (₱3,240)
- Chiang Rai and Golden Triangle Tour: ฿1,900 (₱3,420)
- Shopping: ฿1,000 (₱1,800)
Total: ₱24,365.34
Just Go Abby 