In one of my gatherings with some of my old school mates, I was given the task to plan an oversea trip within Asia for our travelling group of 3 couples during the January to February 2018 period.
I chose Chiang Mai to be our destination as the weather in Chiang Mai during this time of year would be nice and cool. A perfect getaway from hot and humid Singapore. Chiang Mai is also a relatively inexpensive travel destination, with delicious food and plenty of attractions and things to do within and outside of the city.
This was how we spent our 8 days in Chiang Mai:
Day 1 (6 January 2018)
We travelled from home to Chiang Mai by air, arriving in the early evening. Since we took different flights, we arranged to meet at the hotel.
We walked to the famous Saturday Night Market, a lively and fun night market that takes place every Saturday. It is along Wui Lai Road, starting from the southern gate of the old city walls to the end of the road. It starts in the late afternoon, after the road is closed to vehicular traffic, and continues until around 22:30 hours. There are plenty of stalls selling handicrafts, clothing, shoes, food, wood carvings, ornaments, candles, housewares etc.
Our dinner was from the various street food vendors along the night market. We ended our gastronomical adventure with a round of brewed coffee in a nice cafe near the end of Wu Lai Road before walking along the same night market back to our hotel.
Where we stayed: Hotel De Nara, a small boutique hotel within the Old City that is within walking distance to the Saturday Night Market. This hotel is also convenient to visit the Sunday Night Market, which starts at ThaPae Gate and runs all along Ratchadamnoen Rd, for around one kilometre.
Day 2 (7 January 2018)
This was the first day of a 2 Days/1 Night private tour for my travelling group.
The activities for this day were:
Where we stayed: Tree House Hideaway in Chiang Dao (booked as part of the tour).
Trip report - Visit Lanna Kingdom Elephant Sanctuary.
Trip report – River rafting and visit to Long Neck Village.
Day 3 (8 January 2018)
This was the second day of a 2 Days/1 Night private tour for my travelling group.
The activities for Day 2 were:
Where we stayed: We returned to Hotel De Nara, a small boutique hotel within the Old City of Chiang Mai.
Trip report - Jungle trekking at Chiang Dao from the Treehouse Hideaway.
Day 4 (9 January 2018)
A day out from Chiang Mai to Doi Inthanon National Park, home to Thailand’s highest peak. We hired a private car with guide/driver for the day and go hiking on two of the most popular nature trails, namely the Pha Dok Siew and Kew Mae Pan nature trails.
Where we stayed: Hotel De Nara, a small boutique hotel within the Old City of Chiang Mai.
Trip report - Hiking the Pha Dok Siew and Kew Mae Pan nature trails at Doi Inthanon National Park
Day 5 (10 January 2018)
Some free time to enjoy a massage or go explore the old city and visit at least one of its historic temples. Two couples walked to Wat Chedi Luang in the Old City and one couple went for a massage near our hotel.
Wat Chedi Luang in the Old City.
Later in the afternoon, we shifted to our next hotel in Chiang Mai, so as to try a different hotel and also be closer to the famous Chiang Mai Night Bazaar which operates every night.
After a morning of exploring the Old City and shifting hotels, it was time for some soothing massages (a must when visiting Thailand!) in the afternoon.
We went to the Fah Lanna Massage along Loi Kroh Road, which was a short walk from our new hotel.
We had dinner and did some shopping along Chiang Mai’s Night Bazaar.
Where we stayed: Movenpick Suriwongse Hotel. This hotel is ideally located next to the intersection of Chang Khlan Road and Loi Kroh Road which is right smack in the center of Chiang Mai’s famous Night Bazaar.
Day 6 (11 January 2018)
We hired a car with a driver cum guide to bring us to a few places outside of Chiang Mai City.
Visited Wat Phra That Doi Sutep (also known as Doi Suthep Temple) in the morning.
Mom Cham
Had lunch at Mon Cham, relaxed and enjoyed the views and fresh air at Mon Cham.
We then spent some time at the Bua Thong “Sticky” Waterfall in the afternoon before returning to Chiang Mai.
We ate excellent pad thai (Thai style stir-fried rice noodles) at a small nondescript restaurant called Eat Pad Thai before exploring more of the Night Bazaar. Eat Pad Thai is located along Chiang Moi Road, between Warorot Market and the eastern moat of the Old City.
Where we stayed: Movenpick Suriwongse Hotel.
Day 7 (12 January 2018)
This was a lazy morning in Chiang Mai where we did little but explored cafes in the Nimmanhaemin area, known to be the chic and trendy part of Chiang Mai.
The Nimman area includes the main Nimmanhaemin Road, which runs south from Maya Shopping Mall on Huay Kaew Road, cutting through the city’s bustling university area towards the airport, plus all the small Soi or side lanes along the Nimmanhaemin Road.
The afternoon was spent catching the giant Mekong Catfish at Bo Sang Fishing Park, under the guidance of a fishing expert.
We ended the day with a casual dinner at the Green Chilli Thai Restaurant and a soothing massage at Fah Lanna Massage, both places near to our hotel, Movenpick Suriwongse Hotel.
Trip report - Cafe hopping at Nimmanhaemin.
Trip Report - An afternoon of fishing at the Bo Sang Fishing Park.
Day 8 (13 January 2018)
We catered some free time in the morning of our last day in Chiang Mai before taking the afternoon flight home. Four of us went to continue exploring Chiang Mai’s Old City which included a visit to Wat Phra Singh temple, Fern Forest Cafe and Khao Soi Khun Yai (tasting the best Khao Soi in Chiang Mai).
Trip report - Wat Phra Singh temple, Fern Forest Cafe and Khao Soi Khun Yai.
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