Chiang Mai Experience

Holidays up North

Advantages: Less hectic than Bangkok, beautiful temples
Disadvantages: colder than the south

...can make a trip to Chiang Rai and the golden triangle. Costs for these excursions range from less than 10 pounds to about 35 pounds, depending on your mode of transport and level of comfort you want. The night bazzar is a sight in itself for all you bargain hunters from fake Gucci to local pottery the market has it all. For food you have so many options, as well as your standard Thai fare you also have some specialties of these my favourite is sticky ...
...Accomodation varies greatly in Chiang Mai from simple guesthouse ( share bathrooms no hot water) to the extremely oppulent prices also vary greatly ranging from a few pounds for a simple guesthouse to 50 or 60 for a five star establishment like the Royal Princess. For those of you who love a vibrant nightlife, your places are somewhat limited, there are a few small clubs and expat pubs like the red lion, other than this unless you like being pawed ...

daleyboy 28.05.2005 · Read full review
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Review of Chiang Mai (Thailand)

There is more to Thailand than beaches and Bangkok

Advantages: great base for exploring from; great value
Disadvantages: can get busy in season

...lucky enough to have visited Chiang Mai a number of times and always found it to be a city that is well worth a visit. It is only a short (cheap) flight from Bangkok and, whilst it is still a city it is only a fraction of the size of the capital. The benefit of that is that it offers a different type of experience from the more commonly seen parts of Thailand, namely the beaches. There are a few sights to see in the city but the main attraction ...
...range of other excursions from Chiang Mai including a number which will take you on elephant treks through the jungle. Most of these give you the opportunity to travel in a cart pulled by buffalo and/or go rafting (gently) down the river as well as on an elephant ride and are most definitely worth going on. Most folk do not get many chances to ride through the jungle on an elephant so just do it! In the evening the Night Market is a must - lots ...

megget 24.09.2004 · Read full review
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Review of Chiang Mai (Thailand)

The Visa Run

Advantages: Quieter than Bangkok but just as much fun
Disadvantages: Thai boxing less high profile ( no big stadiums)

Chaing Mai makes a great base to discover a bit more about Thailand away from the noise and smells of bangkok. The night bazaar situated in the centre is a great place to find all the bargains much like koh san road but it is a much friendlier environment all together. The two main reasons we came to Chaing Mai, however, was to renew our visas to lengthen our stay past 30 days and as a chance for me to practise my thai boxing while i was away from ...
...We stayed in the Libra guest house in Chaing Mai and i would thoroughly recommend it to anyone going up north as it was both well priced and the staff were fantastic. Around the corner from the guest house was a local travel agent and for 400baht we picked out an all day trip to some rather dissapointing hot springs in a small, uncomfortable bus but also a trip to the burmese border where, for a further 600baht, we were able to renew our visas for ...

Elem3ntal 30.04.2004 · Read full review
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Review of Chiang Mai (Thailand)

700-year old Rose of the North

Advantages: Accomodation - budget to 4 star hotel, wide transport options
Disadvantages: 10-12 hour train or bus from Bangkok, dirty streets & buildings

City displays many points of historical architecture including city walls, gates & moat, amongst the several hundred large and small temples. They are some of the few attractions which are free, almost all the others having a two-tier pricing structure - pennies for locals, pounds for foreigners. That situation sums up the attitude of locals towards rich foreign visitors - everyone attempts overcharging unless you can speak some Thai to them. There ...
...the city offering overr 17,000 bedrooms, with prices ranging from below 2 UK pounds per night to around 100 in the highest class out-of-town resorts. There are about a dozen 3 and 4 star hotels inside the city with more scheduled. The budget to mid-range accomodation is mainly clustered around the East Moat and Thapae Road which joins the old city to the river. To find a large list of accomodation, pick up one of the several free advertising magazines ...

gazlannathai 01.03.2004 · Read full review
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Review of Chiang Mai (Thailand)

Wonderful City

Advantages: Cultural, busy, great shopping
Disadvantages: Pollution

...for the famed ancient capital, Chiang Mai. The first thing that greeted us when we got off the plane was the heat, although the clouds and smog give the city a hazy appearance, do not be fooled, the sun beats down hard! Dripping in sweat we headed for our hotel, the Empress in the centre of the city. Just 5 minutes walk from the fabulous Chiang Mai night bazaar, this hotel is in a prime position for exploring the city. The hotel itself is positivly ...
...to do in and around Chiang Mai. I definitely recommend the elephant trekking. Getting close to these placid and magnificent creatures was a real treat, and it was wonderful to see them bathed and taken such good care of by their mahoots. Another "must" is a visit to the Wat at Doi Suthep. Once you have climbed the millions of stairs to the top (OK, slight exaggeration..but it felt like it!) the reward is well worth it. You are welcomed first of ...

mrsclark 27.08.2003 · Read full review
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Review of Chiang Mai (Thailand)