In the magical mountains of Thailand lies the enchanting city of Chiang Mai, home to Temples, Muay Thai Boxing and delicious Thai Cuisine.

We arrived mid afternoon in this busy mountain city Chiang Mai, via the Green Bus from Chiang Rai. Our first frustration? was trying to get transportation to our hotel; Uber was too expensive, Taxis refused us and Tuk Tuks wanted a small fortune; most were unable to read our western written hotel address.?Tip: Be sure to have all addresses in Thai for drivers. Finally, after walking away from the station, we found someone in the street willing to phone our hotel for the address and take us for, after negotiating, 100 baht / USD$3.00 (he started at 200 baht).

15 minutes later we arrived at C Hotel Boutique and Comfort on the outer wall of the old city. The reception was very friendly and informative. The bright room had a balcony, a comfy big bed with fluffy pillows and bedding , fridge, water kettle with complimentary tea and coffee, flat screen tv with cable, air conditioning and a modern bathroom with big fluffy towels and a hairdryer!!! Until now, the best room of the trip with a great smell thanks to incense sticks. Cost: 1,700 for 2 nights (850 per night / USD$25) View my PHOTO GALLERY for more pictures of Chiang Mai.

The list of things to do in Chiang Mai is a smorgasbord of activities. Probably, if not already templed out, temples top the list, but also on offer are river cruises, trekking, mountain biking, rafting, kayaking, cooking courses, spa, Elephant camps and more. But first on our list is a quick shower and a search for food!?

Feeling refreshed, we grabbed an Uber and took an 8 minute drive, 39 baht (USD$1.15) to the Tikky Cafe. Great deal! The restaurant had a cool vibe?, in spite of it being tourism pure – certainly no Thai people here, other than the help.

Our order was a Passion Fruit Shake for 40 baht / US$1.20, Green Tea shake (45฿ / $1.30), Papaya salad (60฿ / $1.75), Thom Kha Gai soup (100฿ / $2.90) and Yellow Curry Chicken Rice (70฿ / $2). Everything was made fresh, unfortunately the papaya salad did not arrive until we were ready to leave. The shakes were very 4 star good, the soup and rice were 3 star good; probably we could have gotten better prices and maybe tastier food elsewhere. That being said, if you are looking to meet other travelers, this is a great choice! Total bill: 240 Baht (USD$7)

After dinner we walked to Wat Phra Singh, which was beautifully lit for the evening. The sound of monks singing echoed through the courtyards.  ?The temples are definitely worth 2 visits, once during the day, and once by night! We also found the Wat Phan Tao temple and Wat Chedi Luang Worawihan with its ruined chedi (stupa) from the 15th century and Wat Pan Whaen.

Next we wandered toward the night market; after Chiang Rai, this was disappointing, but still nice for a walk. Eventually, we ended up at the Iron Bridge which crosses the Mae Ping River.  This seemed like a cool place to spend some time. ?

The next morning we went to a little corner cafe across the road called Lek House for a breakfast of Pork Pad Thai and an Omelette with rice for a total of 105฿ / $3. It was very good!

Energized and ready to go, we headed back into the old city to see it by day.  After circling hours through the numerous temples, we found ourselves at the indoor Warorot Market (map). It is very big and sells everything from food to clothing; interesting walk through and great prices.

For lunch, we found a restaurant called Pad Thai Rachadumnoen, which became our go to eating spot due to the great food with fantastic prices. At the end of the blog, you will find some of the dishes we ate along with the prices. Each dish was amazing! I definitely recommend everyone to try this restaurant and let me know what you think!

‼️Before 11am and between 2 pm and 5 pm you cannot buy beer?

My love of Thai Cuisine helped me decide I could not leave without doing a cooking class. I signed up for the 5 hour morning course with Zabb-E-Lee Thai Cooking School.  Read about my awesome experience here: Cooking Class Chiang Mai  Cost: 900 Baht / USD$26

In the evening we walked to the Loikroh Boxing Stadium to watch Muay Thai Boxing . The entrance fee was 400 baht (USD$11.65) per person.  It was an interesting experience which I enjoyed far more than I thought I would! Read about it: Muay Boxing

In the morning we checked out of C Hotel, ordered an Uber car (60฿ / $1.75) and checked into Lamphu House Chiang Mai as a small treat for the end of our vacation. Located in the old city, this is a nice hotel with a pool! Cost: 2 nights 2000฿ / $58. We finished up our Chiang Mai time with two leisurely days of swimming, eating, drinking and strolling around the city!

Visit my Chiang Mai Photo Gallery for more pictures and info!

?Tips:
 - Be helpful to the Uber cars; they have problems with the red taxis, so sit in the front seat so it looks like you are friends.
 - 7-eleven - ok prices, toiletries, drinks, snacks, SIM cards
 - Kookai Laundry (map) - best prices we found for washing clothes, let us know in the comments section if you found a better place

Costs for 5 nights, 2 persons:
 Transportation: USD$4.10  Excluding transportation to and out of Chiang Mai
 Entertainment / Excursions: USD$50 
 Lodging: USD$133
 Food and Drink: USD$109
Total Cost: (2 persons):  USD$296.10 or $60.00 per day

Next Stop: Bangkok –  Booked Air Asia from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, Saturday March 11. – 1,300฿ / $38 each.

Some Food Prices (for reference):
Passion fruit juice – 30฿ / $0.87
Passion fruit smoothie 35฿ / $1.00
Spring rolls 60฿ / $1.75
Green curry with chicken 100฿ / $2.90
Som-Tum (papaya salad) 60฿ / $1.75
Basil fried chicken with rice – 50฿ / $1.45

 

On the List of top things to do in Chiang Mai, is the fighting event called Muay Thai Boxing. We were not going to miss it!

One fine evening during our stay in Chiang Mai,  we walked to the Loikroh Boxing Stadium to watch Muay Thai boxing (video below). The entrance fee was 400 baht (USD$11.65) per person for 6 fights and a program. Although they advertise with a 9 pm start time, it did not begin until 9:30, but it gave us ample time to find a seat, not at the front as that is VIP, and get a drink.

‼️ Watch out for the waitresses- they try to steal the change! Drinks are expensive! 360 baht (USD$10.50) for 1 cocktail & 2 small beers.

A broadcaster keeps the excitement up with play by play announcements and information in English.  If you are into betting, you could place bets with locals by holding up your money and laying it on the table for him to match; 100฿ / $3 was low, but they would always take the bet!

The program showed 6 fights altogether with 5 rounds each (if no knockout).  The 1st match was a main fight between 2 Thai nationals with a knockout in round 4.

Fights 2 and 3 were females, foreigners from Australia and Sweden, against Thais.  Fight #2 with Annette the Australian was pretty good and her Thai opponent Ormduen was a great match, but the Swedish fighter Frida from the third fight seemed slightly slow and out of shape.

The fourth and best fight was again a main fight between male Thais.  It was the best fight of the night; the opponents, Skitpon and Seanchailek were well matched and in great shape making for an exciting battle.

The next fight saw Youri from Switzerland against Thongchai from Thailand. The Swiss arrogantly strutted his stuff around the ring, winning the match with a knockout. This did not seem to please the Rocky wannabe? as he stood above the broken body of his opponent, screaming for him to get up.

The eventful evening passed very quickly, and by 11:30 PM, the fighting was finish and everybody left, in search of cheaper drinks and beds.

How to take the bus from Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai, Thailand – Green Bus step by step guide with photos.

If you want to take the bus from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai, read from the bottom up ?.

Step 1:  Go to the Chiang Rai Green line bus station.  At this point in time it is called the Temperary Bus Terminal, Address.  Click to see bus times / Time schedules for bus departures in either direction. Note: this is in town, not the New Terminal which is 7 kilometers outside of town, unless you prefer that. 

Step 2: Bought our bus ticket from Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai for 166 baht (USD$4.85) each, leaving at 11:30 AM www.greenbusthailand.com.

The ticket has all of the important information on the front including the bus number (#166), seat number (3A), departure  date (March 6 for us – 6/3) and time (11:30). Familiarize yourself with the picture below.

We had some time to kill and had not eaten breakfast yet, so went up the street to the BaanchivitMai Bakery and Restaurant – a feel good Bakery ??  We both ordered the Club sandwich with French Fries for 120 baht each (USD$3.50).  A little more expensive than we are comfortable with, but it is supporting a good cause! 100% of the profits go to support disadvantaged children in the province of Chiang Rai – housing, medical and education.

Step 3:  Watch for your bus, and as soon as you are allowed to, show your ticket, load your backpack or suitcase into the luggage compartment.

Step 4:  Present your ticket again at the door to board.  Our Bus #166 was loaded and left the station at 11:32 am ? with an estimated time of arrival 2:15pm. (3 hours 15 minutes).

Within 5 minutes a Thai lady handed out water and cookies to all the passengers.  How civilized! Better than flying!?

At 11:50 am the bus stopped at the main bus station just outside of town (it is where we arrived coming from Luang Prabang, Laos) and picked up more people; 20 minutes and we have not made it too far yet. ? We leave the main station at 11:53 am.

The further we go, the better it gets, winding our way through the lush mountainous countryside of northern Thailand. The scenery is incredibly beautiful and the roads are in perfect condition, possibly recently paved.

Step 5:  We entered the busy city of Chiang Mai at around 2:37 and reach the Arcade bus terminal at 2:48 PM, exactly as promised.?

‼️After note:  Getting a tuk tuk ride was extremely complicated, due to a supposed language barrier. Tip: Have your address printed out IN THAI. Finally after walking away from the terminal, we found someone in the street willing to phone our hotel for the address (in Thai) and take us for, after negotiating, 100 baht / USD$3 (he started at 200 baht).

Chiang Rai, Thailand. Everybody you run into who has ever been to Thailand claims you MUST go here. Is it really all that great?

Bye bye Luang Prabang, Laos, Hallo Chang Rai, (photos here) located in Northern Thailand; not quite as trekked as the south, known for it’s limestone cliffs, the White Temple, pristine nature, elephant sanctuary, culinary delights and ancient long necked village tribes. Also, if you believe the travel hype, the place you must go!  Let’s find out if it is all it’s cracked up to be.

At 11 am, via the Night Bus from Laos, we finally arrived. If you need to know how to take the Nightmare Sleeping Bus from Luang Prabang to Chiang Rai, and what happened in between, you can read about it here.

The sun was shining, the roads were smoothly paved and washrooms were so much cleaner; these are the first things that stand out in stark contrast as we make our way into beautiful northern Thailand, as opposed to our previous destination of Laos.

On arrival at the bus station, many smiling men politely offered their tuk tuk services. Mr. Manat offered his services for the best price of 100 baht and promptly took us to our hotel Baan Siri. We arrived very tired and in desperate need of a shower, but were firmly told no checkin until 2 pm.?  Not so happily, we deposited our luggage with them and headed out for the short walk to downtown.

First on our agenda was Thai SIM card which we found quickly at a 7-Eleven; one card was 300 baht (USD$8.75) for 7 days.  It seemed a little expensive, but not too bad if you need to be connected.  Hunger quickly overtook our need for sleep as we found a cute little cafe called Lumdee.

After our meal, we made the 20 minute walk back to our hotel, checked in and had a heavenly shower in our wet room.

Feeling wide awake after our showers, we decided to make the most of our time and instead of going to bed for a nap, we headed to the Saturday Night Market, also known as the Walking Street Market – not to be confused with the tourist Night Bazaar, which is every night. People often flippity say once you have seen one night market, you have seen them all, Wrong!  This Market was huge!  We walked, browsing for a few hours and I am certain we only saw a small portion of it! Filled with culinary delights, arts, crafts, clothing, electronics and so much more, it makes your head spin.

Instead of eating at the market, we went in search of a dining restaurant which eventually found us in Sawaddee.  This fabulous restaurant with excellent service was located on the second floor of a building overlooking the Night Bazaar, which made for entertaining views.

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped by a hot pot open air restaurant for a beer & water because we saw a football game playing. It was still half full with locals drinking, eating and watching the game. Nobody understood any English, or did not let on if they did, but we, and they sure laughed a LOT!??.

The next day we got up early, ready to take on a full busy day of sight seeing. We walked for hours through and around the city observing temples, markets, the Mae Kok river and a beautiful resort.

Link to a List of top things to do and a Temple Challenge!

After a very late lunch of 7-Eleven self made ramen noodles (almost free?), we ventured through a huge?indoor market which we accidentally wandered upon.  If you need anything cheap (great prices), this is the place.

Mid afternoon we grabbed a **tuk tuk from hell for 150 baht to the White Temple / Wat Rong Khun. Our old driver horrified us during the 30 minute drive; every time he stopped, he would rev the engine of his junker and basically pop the clutch when taking off, practically dumping us out the back.? We learned to remind each other to hang on. His tongue was always hanging out, perhaps in concentration, but every time I tried to take a picture, he caught on and would pull it back in. ? The White Temple Wat Rong Khun was gorgeous; glittering silver and white. Definitely worth the hell ride!

**Alternatively according to Wikitravel, It's easy to get to the temple by public transport: there is a public bus from the Chiang Rai bus station (20 baht, 30 min; platform 8, but ask driver or counter). To get back, flag down a public bus or songthaew from the police station on the left side of the road leading back to the main highway.

Our second and last evening, we wandered around the Night Bazaar, and had another fabulous dinner at Sawaddee.

Sadly, we did not go visit the ⁉️ Elephant Sanctuary or the ⁉️ Long Necked Tribes, however, this was by choice and after a lot of discussion, due to our controversial feelings about it.  We do not judge anyone and in the end, to each their own – I am not saying do or don’t. Part of me knows I missed some great photo opportunities…

On our final day, we grabbed a taxi to the Green Line Bus Station for 60 baht (USD$1.75) and bought our tickets to our next destination Chiang Mai for 166 baht each (USD$4.85), leaving at 11:30am.  With time to kill and empty stomachs, we strolled up the street to Baan Chivit Mai Bakery and Restaurant – a feel good Bakery ??.

Goodbye Chiang Rai. Next stop: Chiang Mai, Thailand

Costs for 2 nights, 2 persons:
 Transportations: USD$10.50  Excluding transportation to and out of Chiang Rai
 Entertainment / Excursions: USD$0 (everything we did was free!)
 Lodging: USD$32
 Food and Drink: USD$40

Total Cost: (2 persons):  USD$82.50 or $41.25 per day

¹Baan Siri hotel is a short 10 minute fast walk (20 minute stroll) to downtown.

❗️Sample prices:
Small water – 10 baht (USD$0.30)
Coca Cola – 12 baht (USD$0.35)
Ice coffee – 40 baht (USD$1.20)
Chang Beer – 55 baht (USD$1.60)
Noodle or rice dishes can be bought for around 35 to 4o baht (USD$1.00+)

Oh, and to answer my question: Is it really all it is Cracked up to be? Yes and no – At first we couldn’t see past the fact that this was just a city and we had expected so much more.  The not so trekked path was overrun with backpackers! But, by the end of our time here, and in retrospect, Chiang Rai is definitely a place to visit! What do you think?

Use the comments section below to let us know about your experience, feelings or questions regarding this Northern treasure.

Links which you may find interesting:
→ Chiang Rai Photos
.….⇒ Stay: Baan Siri Hotel
           …..⇒ Eat: Baan Chivit Mai Bakery & Restaurant
           …..⇒ Eat: Lumdee Cafe Restaurant
           …..⇒ Eat: Sawaddee Restaurant
…..⇒ Sleeping Bus from Luang Prabang, Laos to Chiang Rai
…..⇒ Top Things to See and Do in Chiang Rai
…..⇒ Temple Challenge – are you up for it? Fun!
→ Chiang Mai / Photos
…..⇒ Green Bus From Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai

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Location: Location:  Asia  >  Southeast Asia  >  Thailand  > Northern Thailand >  Chiang Rai