The Best of Chiang Mai – Photos and Tips- This is how you should do it
Chiang Mai Thailand was not what I expected it was a big surprise. nature at its best, full of art and design. we all had such a great time it became our favorite vacation place of this trip and even 3 months later the kids are talking about it.
Here you will find the hotels we stayed in, the activities we did, the places we visited and the restaurants you shouldn’t miss.
There are 3 posts about Chiang Mai :
I’ve been to Thailand 5 times before but only now I discovered Chiang Mai. when I started organizing our trip to Thailand I understood I made a mistake and took only 6 days in Chiang Mai and the surrounding areas. If you really want to discover Chiang Mai you need at least one week ( I would take 2 weeks)
For Great Experience in Chaing Mai try Withlocals ( you will earn 15 euro from this link) I use this App all the time.
Maybe I am a dreamer But I love to see the beauty in every place I visit and something in Chiang Mai made me fly.
Quick Facts
When to visit Chiang Mai:
In my opinion, there is no Best time to visit. you may get : Hot, Cool and Rainy 🙂
The Hot period is between March to June – it will be hot and dry but you might get good prices
The Cool period is between November to February- there is not too much rain and it might even be chilly.
The Rainy period is between July to October- it might not rain all day But you will have rain.
We visited at the beginning of August. Here is a fact:) In tropical countries, its considered to be the rainy season between May to October But after visiting many in the last 20 years I know that in the Mid Rainy season ( between July and August ) its a good time to visit.
How to get to Chiang Mai:
There are 2 best ways to get to Chiang Mai:
- By a flight from Bangkok ( there are about 50 flights a day) the airport is about 15-20 min to the old city.
- With a car from Chiang Rai if you are arriving from there. this will take between 3-4 hours.
In Chiang Mai, you can get from place to place with many options, some traditional like the tuk-tuk and some modern like Uber:
A private car ( you can rent)
Tuk Tuk – the symbol of Thailand – all you need is to jump on, the problem is that usually it will be for 3 people max and if you are a big family you’ll need to split.
Songthaew – the red truck works as a shared taxi picking passengers on the street ( we used this option a lot cause we were 6 and it was the easy way to travel all together )
Taxi / Uber – an easy way to move around the city but more expensive
You can also walk and use motorcycles and bicycles.
To get out of the city or in the city you can book tours on get your guide Chiang Mai
Where to stay in Chiang Mai
There are a lot of options for accommodation in Chiang Mai, lots of styles for every budget.
It was hard to choose from the large variety the city has to offer.
When I planed the trip I saw that we were spending a lot of time traveling in the car if we were to sleep in Chiang Mai every night, and for this reason, I chose to sleep 2 nights in a different location.
If I had more time I would sleep 1-2 days in every location (north/south) and than spend more nights in Chiang Mai.
The best locations to take a hotel in Chiang Mai city are: The Old City, Night Bazaar and Riverside.
Here is the hotel I took in the north part of Chiang Mai and the hotel I took in the center of the old city. for more info please go to post 1.
Sibsan Resort & Spa Meataeng, Chiangmai
Thai Akara
For more hotels – have a look here
Attractions in Chiang Mai
There are so many options that you can get lost. best is to find your favorite things and to try and do 1-2 attractions a day so you won’t get too tired or drive too much:)
You may find all the attractions we made in POST 1 & POST 2. For more options press HERE.
One more option is to get a tour with WITH LOCALS. I use this all the time and its great fun (with this link you will get a 15 euro discount)
Where and What to eat:
The north of Thailand has a lot to offer in food flavors and you have a huge variety to choose from: you can eat on the streets, in the markets and small restaurants and in luxury places, most likely you will enjoy them a lot 😋
You can check all the posts I wrote about the food we had ( Post 3 is full with cool coffee spots) but for more information try the web, here are some options :
I am sure no matter what you do, you will have a very tasty time.
Now all you need to do is to book a flight and let me know how it was
