Chiang Mai Airport

Chiang Mai has a very good airport. It is not so big or so small as to cause major inconveniences. Moreover the airport is located relatively close to the centre of Chiang Mai. The experience of using Chiang Mai Airport is very different to the experience of using Suvarnabhumi Airport. These are good reasons to consider using Chiang Mai Airport rather than catching a bus or train to the northern Thai travel hub.

Chiang Mai has an international airport. Currently it has flights to and from China, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore and Taiwan. There are also plenty of domestic scheduled flights that use Chiang Mai Airport. There are 130 flights to Bangkok every week. You can fly from Udon Thani, Udon Ratchethani, Mae Hong Son, Krabi and Surat Thani to Chiang Mai. Despite these scheduled flights many people will find that they cannot fly directly to Chiang Mai either because of price, bad connections or availability. Often it is necessary to spend at least one night in a Bangkok hotel.

The airport at Chiang Mai is a 2 storey building with plenty of parking at the front. It is usually quick to get through customs and also passport control if you are arriving from outside Thailand. The airport is less congested and the experience of getting through the formalities is a lot more positive. For those who want to avoid the long queues and possible interrogations involved with landing at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Chiang Mai Airport is the obvious choice.

Outside the airport you can catch a pre-paid taxi or tuk tuk to the centre of town. It takes about 10 minutes to get from the airport to the old walled city of Chiang Mai. This is where many of the best guest houses are located and has traditionally been where backpackers prefer to stay since it is near the historic sites of the city.

In terms of cost, internal flights to Chiang Mai are very reasonably priced especially if you have flexibility in your itinerary. For just 2,000 Thai Baht you can fly from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. This is great value since the bus or train costs around 1,000 Thai Baht. The fact that the flight takes just a couple of hours rather than overnight on a bus or train is another strong argument for flying to Chiang Mai.

At the moment Thailand is going through a budget carrier boom making it possible to travel the Kingdom quickly and cheaply. The trains are state owned and the prices fixed. The logistics of bus travel make it impossible for coach companies to lower their prices significantly. Another consideration is that flying is a safer form of transport than travel on the road. This is because of the high prevalence of drunk driving and the lack of enforcement of road regulations.

When you arrive at Chiang Mai Airport your main concern might be to just get to your hotel. The chances are, however, that once you are safely ensconced in your hotel you will look back on your journey and conclude that flying to Chiang Mai was a good idea.

Why Take the Train between Chiang Mai and Bangkok

There are 13 flights per day going from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Thai Lion Air and Bangkok Airways both offer services. A typical one way ticket costs 1,200 Thai Baht. In contrast there are just 6 trains running daily between Bangkok and Chiang Mai. An average price for a second class sleeper on the train is just over 1,000 Thai Baht. The flight takes 1 hour and 15 minutes. The train journey takes between 12 to 14 hours. So flying is cheaper and quicker. Why take the train between Chiang Mai and Bangkok?

For a start the money comparison is a little over-simplified because there is the extra expense of getting to and from an airport. Don Muang airport doesn’t have a rail link and a taxi into town costs 500 Thai Baht. From Chiang Mai centre to the airport costs about 120 THB. In comparison you can walk from Chiang Mai Train Station to the old town. You can catch the MRT from Hua Lamphong Station in Bangkok to Sukhumvit for 130 Thai Baht per person.

The different additional costs of getting to and from a travel hub make the train and the plane journey about the same price.

Obviously in terms of time the airplane option wins hands down. Even if you have to wait around in airports, get searched and scrutinised and all the other palaver that goes with modern air travel. So again, why take the train?

My main argument is that it is nicer. There is still a small amount of romance left about train travel, even with Thai characteristics. You get leg room and even a bed if you travel over night. You can get up and walk around with getting in everyone’s way. You don’t feel hemmed in like transported livestock in economy class on a plane.

As many people have commented in the past – train travel is more civilised. You can bring your own food and drink, you can go to the dining car for something or you can catch the attention of one of the hawkers going up and down the train. You can go to the end of the carriage for a crafty cigarette. And best of all you can look out the window and see something of the Thai countryside rather than just clouds.

Train travel in Thailand is straight forward. It is not hard to find your platform. The trains aren’t running an exact schedule like their Japanese counterparts but they are fairly reliable. You can get tickets the day before normally. You can even buy Chiang Mai to Bangkok train tickets online if you get them 3 days in advance. Click the book button below to check availability and buy a ticket, or use the ticket search engine at the top of the right hand column.

Finally, what is the rush? There is much to explore between major tourist destinations in Thailand. People often have the mind-set that only a handful of places are worth spending any time in. That is not true. Thailand is a diverse Kingdom with many hidden gems. Tourists are missing out. For example between Chiang Mai and Bangkok is Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. Both are former capitals and full of ancient temples and palaces. Ayutthaya is a UNESCO World Heritage spot. Trains give you the freedom to make stops on the way and discover a bit about Thailand.

It might not be the most convincing of arguments for people who hate being on transport but it shouldn’t be forgotten that in travel, as in life, it is the journey not the arriving that teaches you more.

THC Roof Top Bar

The THC Roof Top Bar just outside Tapae Gate has gone from cool obscurity to backpacker fame. For this reason many people come to the bar and feel disappointed as THC was billed as something amazing.

It isn’t really. But it is a great bar with club atmosphere. It is a great location on top of a tall building. You go up several flights of rickety stairs. The walls are decorated in glow art and weird decorations. You immerge to a large roof top bar. All the seating is on mats on the floor with low tables.

It is open top with girders above. The feel of the bar is quite unique, and very much enhanced with lovingly strange décor. It is partly acid party and partly reggae bar in Haad Rin. Indeed there is a Koh Phangan feel to the place. That feeling comes from the loud music. For many it feels like a jarring contradiction – a chilled roof top bar with a name that references weed with Bob Marley pictures but playing loud house music. It might be a perfect place for a reggae bar but the problem is that Chiang Mai isn’t a remote beach in Koh Phangan where they smoke weed. Reggae would be soporific in the urban context of Chiang Mai. Much more ‘Saturday night’ is a banging house soundtrack to the night.

Another Koh Phangan echo is the house music. The DJs are often really good at THC Roof Top Bar. They mix with care and verve and come up with plenty of surprising tunes. This reminds you of Koh Phangan were the quality of DJing is very high.

THC is one of those bars where on occasion people get in the mood and dance a bit. The views are great and it makes a good spot for a couple of drinks on a big night out. The only downer is that the drinks are a little pricey. For the same price you could go to a bigger club, but then you would lose the intimate and funky atmosphere.

Beware

If you aren’t keen on sitting on the floor where cockroaches and rats might be scurrying then this probably isn’t the bar for you. You just can’t stop nature in Thailand.

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Wat Lok Molee

Wat Lok Molee (also spelt Wat Lok Moli) is one of the first temples many visitors to Chiang Mai encounter because it is near several popular hotels. It is also near Chang Puak City Gate.

It is not known when the temple was built. It is first mentioned in 1367 AD. The temple was home to Burmese monks invited by the Siamese King to teach Theravada Buddhism.

It is a plain temple. The chedis have not received new stucco. Of note are the wooden façade and beautifully sculptured snakes or naga. The Vimarn, or hall, in front of the chedis is worth a look inside.

It won’t take you more than 30 minutes to take in this temple. If you are staying near the centre or in the old city it is easy to walk to the temple.

Wat Lok Molee is a working temple so you will see monks wandering about. As always it should be mentioned, to respect Thai culture and to dress modestly inside the temple compound. Entry is free.

Just outside the entrance to the temple there is a small shop selling drinks.

Many people comment on Trip Advisor and elsewhere that they liked Wat Lok Molee because it is a peaceful location not teaming with tourists. You can get in touch with the serenity which is at the heart of Buddhism, and which is in complete contrast to the hustle and bustle of Thailand’s second city.

Dudeism in Chiang Mai

One place you could visit in Chiang Mai is the Dudeist Church. It is located at Moon Mueang Road Mueang Chiang Mai 50200. It is nothing really to look at and it probably won’t be open. And yet it has to be one of the most intriguing places in Chiang Mai to visit for the fact that it is home to one of the newest and most harmless religious cults in the world. The religion is Dudeism. The Church is called the Church of the Latter-Day Dude. And its founder, the Dudely Lama, Oliver Benjamin live at this address.

You might think this is a joke, but it is not. Look it up on Wikipedia. The religion has over 250,000 adherents and 160,000 ordained priests. Although for those of scholarly and non-dude bent Dudeism may appear a mock religion, for many normal people the religion seems to have a certain persuasiveness.

To gasp the essence of the Dudeist message you just have to recall the character of Jeff ‘The Dude’ Lebowski in the Coen Brothers’ movie called ‘The Big Lebowski’. The central character ‘abides’. He likes taking naps, getting high and not working too hard or getting uptight. He is not into violence or messing with other people. He gets happiness from just being himself and doing the simple things in life such as bowling and hanging out with his friends. He loves his rug because it holds his room together.

Oliver Benjamin has made a credible case for connecting this portrayal of a world-view with the spiritual message of Taoism - ‘go with the flow’.

Anyway, if you can chat to Oliver Benjamin or hear him talk (probably wearing a brown bathrobe and holding a white Russian) you might find that that particular day in Chiang Mai turned out to be a memorable if not significant day in your life.

Baan Tong Luang

Baan Tong Luang is a hill tribes village located a few kilometres outside of Chiang Mai. It offers guests the chance to see several of the tribes that have settled in the north of Thailand over the last hundred and fifty years. They have kept their traditional clothes and customs. To supplement the proceeds from their agricultural activity they have opened this village area to visitors. It is the easiest place to see hill tribes if you opt not to do a trek while you visit Chiang Mai.

The park is described as an ‘eco-agricultral hill tribes village’. They are growing various crops using the traditional methods of their tribes. Naturally these methods don’t include using expensive pesticides and fertilizers. For those interested in seeing how food is grown without modern farming methods Baan Tong Luang is the best place to head.

The hill tribes represented in the village are:

1.    Karen – originally from Tibet
2.    Lahu Shi Bala – also from Tibet
3.    Palong – minority from Burma who migrated in the 1980s
4.    Hmong – originally from Tibet, fought against communists in Laos
5.    Kayaw  -from the Kayah state in Burma and a subgroup of the Karen tribe
6.    Akha / Ekhaw – from Yunnan in China
7.    Yao / Mien – trace their history back to the Song Dynasty of China; originally from the Chang Jiao River basin in China

You get to see the tribes in a real life setting. They are also wearing their traditional costumes. It is a chance to see some of the many minorities that inhabit China and South East Asia whose ways of life have become threatened by development and modernisation.

The only downside to the place is the focus on the Karen women who famously wear lots of golden hoops on their neck to make it look longer. This tradition has become famous and is the main crowd attraction it seems. Tourists gawping at these women put me off a bit.

There are often tribal people doing textile making. Naturally these items are available for sale.

Baan Tong Luang is on the Maerim-Samuang Road. The entrance is on the left, between Maesa Waterfall and Maesa Elephant Camp.

You can combine a trip to the Hill Tribes Village with a visit to Queen Sirikit Botanical Garden, Maesa Elephant Camp and Maesa Waterfall.

Infinity Nightclub

Chiang Mai is not just a place to visit temples and night markets: it is also a city with a thriving nightlife. It is Thailand’s second city and has everything (or nearly everything) that you can find in Bangkok. The nightlife might not be as seedy, as swank, as boutique, or as hi so as places in the capital but for many they actually prefer the more relaxed nightlife atmosphere of Chiang Mai.

One of the best nightclubs in Chiang Mai is aptly named Infinity. It is a large nightclub aimed at hip Thais. It is well furbished and stylish. Infinity looks like the type of nightclub many foreigners might avoid thinking it would be too expensive. However that is not the case: drinks are reasonably priced and cheaper than in many fashionable spots in Chiang Mai.

It gets packed at the weekend. Weeknights can be lively without getting too busy. A number of DJs play house music. They also have live bands. While the music is often geared towards a Thai crowd, they mix it up with plenty of tunes that will appeal to most people.

The club tends to fill up after the other bars and clubs shut at 1am or 2am. Infinity has a large outdoor seating area with lots of seating that attracts the late night drinking crowd.

Infinity has a great sound system and impressive lights and other effects. It is a high energy place. If you are up for having a big night this nightclub is a good option.

Details:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/infinity.chiangmai
Telephone 053 400 085
Address: Nimmana Haeminda Soi 6, Mueang Chiang Mai