Where is Chiang Mai? Chiang Mai Free Travel Guide

The place we decided to travel this time is Chiang Mai, Thailand. Because of its unusually rich environment and medicinal herbs, it is often compared to the nickname "Northern Rose". It was once the late singer Teresa Teng’s favorite town!

Itinerary

1DAY1 red-eye transfer, Guangzhou to Chiang Mai - women's prison massage chicken, staying at Ningman Road.

2DAY2 Su Tieshan, Shuanglong Temple-Chai Dilong Temple-visit Ningman Road and stay at Ningman Road.

DAY3 jungle leap, stay in the ancient city

4-day trip to Chiang Rai, stay in the ancient city

5DAY5 Pai County - Pai County Night Market, stay in Pai County

On DAY6, watch the sunrise at Yunlai Observation Deck - check in at the main attractions - return to Chiang Mai - Chiang Mai Saturday night market, stay near Taimen.

7DAY7 Chiang Mai Marathon - Wat Chiang Man and Wat Phra Singh, return to Chiang Mai and fly to Guangzhou.

Tips written above

1. It is recommended to exchange Thai baht at domestic Bank of China for the most cost-effective exchange rate. If it is not enough, the exchange rate at the exchange shop on Ningman Road is generally higher than that in the ancient city.

2. The queue for visa on arrival is relatively long, so it is recommended to apply for the visa in advance. It is recommended that Taobao go to "Baicheng.com" to apply for a visa.

3. Thailand tourism is mainly temple-based, and the dress code is strict. Be sure to do your homework in advance.

4. Recommend several mobile apps: GoogleMaps (GoogleMaps, in a country where you can drive a motorcycle freely, you deserve it); Tripadvisor (cat-walking eagle, the owl symbol that can be seen everywhere in Chiang Mai, delicious food Guide, much more practical than Dianping); Eat, drink and have fun in Chiang Mai (a guide software favored by domestic tourists and a friendly partner of Korean Chiang Mai Travel Agency); as for Ctrip and Hive, it all depends on personal preference.

Day 1

In order to save travel expenses, we chose to take AirAsia’s red-eye flight from Guangzhou to Chiang Mai at 00:05 in the morning and transfer in Bangkok. We needed to spend the night at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok.

AirAsia Tips (Written to friends who have never flown AirAsia)

When departing from domestic AirAsia, you need to print your boarding pass and present your pre-printed e-ticket and baggage claim at the AirAsia counter at the airport Order (AirAsia will send you an email after booking and check in online about 10 days in advance). The staff will print your boarding pass to Bangkok and check in for you. AirAsia flights departing from abroad can be boarded directly with electronic tickets, so when flying from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, you only need to show the pre-printed electronic ticket, and the checked baggage can be taken directly to Chiang Mai without the need to pick up the luggage halfway. At Bangkok Airport, be careful not to leave the airport and take the connecting passage. When you arrive at Chiang Mai Airport, be sure to pay attention to the staff holding signs in the aisle. They will write down your name and tell you which direction to go to pick up your luggage, which is different from other places where passengers can pick up their luggage directly. (We didn’t pay attention and almost missed it (|||)︴) It was super cold at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok in the early morning. Remember to bring extra clothes!

When we arrived in Chiang Mai, we asked the staff to call a taxi at the taxi service center opposite the airport exit, took the ticket written by the staff, got in the car, and went to the ancient city of Unity 250B. Our first destination was the Women's Prison Massage Parlor recommended by a friend, located at the crossroads behind the Three Kings Monument. It was already 11 a.m. when we arrived (the number of this massage parlor is limited, remember to arrive as early as possible!)

On the way, we walked to the nearby "Han Chiang Mai Travel Agency" to book jungle leap and Chiang Rai One-day tour, tickets to Paixian County. The travel agency provides pick-up and drop-off services, and the overall price is similar to that booked with Ctrip. The front desk speaks fluent Chinese and has no barriers to communication.

At 1 o'clock, we returned to the massage parlor on time. According to the online introduction, this massage parlor was opened to help service staff re-employ. Technicians are service personnel and charge 200B hours. The price is very cheap and the pressure is very comfortable. It left an excellent impression on us who had just arrived in Chiang Mai.

After the massage, we took two buses to Ningman Road to check into the hotel. This hotel is called Chanet, a loft-style hotel located next to Mango Tango in "Internet Celebrity". The decoration is very unique and the front desk is very warm. The only drawback is that there is no elevator.

Of course, the first thing we did after putting down our luggage was

Since we didn’t sleep well at the airport the night before and didn’t go anywhere in the afternoon, catching up on sleep was the most important thing.

I walked around Ningman Road in the evening and walked into a restaurant called KhunMorCuisine (Kunmo) on Ningman 17th Street. I was surprised to find that the chicken rice and rice noodles in clear soup were delicious.

-Address: 17 Rue Nimes, 10/1 Rue Nimes

The next day

The next day, we planned to visit the Cycad Mountains Shuanglong Temple. We asked the hotel front desk in advance how to get there. The lady at the front desk said that it is better to take a double charter bus to Chiang Mai University, which is cheaper. We took a double bus directly to Chiang Mai University on Ningman Road, 80B for two people. After arriving at the main entrance of the university, I happened to see a two-car driver soliciting passengers to go up the mountain, from Su Tieshan to the university 160B and back. If you return to Ningman Road, it will cost 40B for two people.

Su Tieshan is basically a mountain road with many sharp turns, and it takes about half an hour to drive. But thanks to the driver’s driving skills, I vomited as soon as I got out of the car.

The driver told us that the tour time was one and a half hours and he was waiting for us in the parking lot. Temple Suspension charges foreigners a maintenance fee of ￡20 per person. The entire Shuanglong Temple is magnificent and condescending, and you can also see the panoramic view of Chiang Mai city. It’s really eye-opening.

After coming down from Sushan, we asked the hotel lady to rent a motorcycle for us. The rent was ￡270 a day and we needed to sign our passports. After renting a car we set off for lunch. We originally planned to go to An Chan Noodles to eat blue noodles as recommended in the guide. After we sat down, we discovered that we had gone to the wrong restaurant called Anchan, which is a vegetarian restaurant. Because I was too hungry and didn’t want to change places. Unexpectedly, when I opened the menu, it was only in English and Thai, with no pictures. I couldn’t understand (|||); I had to open the Catwalk APP and click on a few pictures on the APP. As soon as the food arrived, I noticed that the color was beautiful and it looked very good. After trying it, I found that the taste is also very pleasant! Eat cleverly! It is worth mentioning that it is the 7th restaurant in Chiang Mai.

-Address: Nimmanahaeminda Road opposite soi13

After lunch, it was about 3 o'clock. While there was still time, we decided to take a motorcycle tour around the ancient city and visit the most famous Chai Di Long Temple in the ancient city. There were not many tourists in the afternoon, and as the sun set, the pagoda looked so dazzling, it was a good time to take photos. I feel so small in front of the pagoda, and I feel in awe looking at this historical building.

This is the main hall of Chai Dilong Temple. Monks sit neatly and chant sutras, followed by devout believers.

In the evening, we returned to the Maya Mall on Ningman Road. I saw a tour guide saying that there is a Dhara Dhevi selling a very good macaroons. When I accidentally browsed Weibo, I discovered that there is an open-air terrace on the top floor of Maya, with a panoramic view of Ningman Road. There are two bars on the terrace, where many local young people spread their dog food. stand at attention! On the way back to the hotel, we went to the online celebrity store next to the hotel, Mango Tango, known as "Thailand Hui Lau Shan", and tasted a variety of mango desserts.

-Address: nimmanahaeminda Lane 9suthepmueang

On the left is DharaDhevi’s almond cake combination, you can freely mix the flavors, 200B for six servings, but it is too sweet; on the right, there is mango sticky rice from Mango Tango, A bit tastier than the ones sold at roadside stalls. Taking photos is okay but not recommended.

The third day

On the third day we will do the jungle leap that we are most looking forward to during our trip to Chiang Mai. We took the most popular route, jungle flying, and the introduction was very attractive. I have booked with Hanchiangmai travel agency before. At 8 o'clock, the driver arrived at the door of our hotel on time. The jungle leap takes place in the mountainous areas on the outskirts of the city. The drive from the hotel takes about an hour.

After arriving, the staff will guide you to put your belongings into the storage box, and then ask everyone to sign a "life and death form." If you need full name follow-up service, two people will pay 1800B. Asked for this service considering we wouldn't be taking our phones with us on the fly. Then we had a team of 9 people, led by a coach, an assistant, and a follower, and we started to make a leap!

The coach is very nice and can speak English and a little Mandarin. Everyone felt very nervous before jumping, and some said they were afraid of heights. But when the coach flew over the first platform, we could see everyone's mood relaxed. Because the safety measures are really sufficient and the coaches are also very professional and will guide and help you throughout the process. There was no feeling of weightlessness and no fear at all. Moreover, it feels really good to fly from one tree to another. The most positive thing is the 400-meter and 1000-meter-long ropeways, which are super exciting and recommended for wall-breaking. This is definitely a must-do when I come to Chiang Mai!

Everyone had a great time after jumping in the jungle. After lunch, they set off on their way home. Back at the hotel on Ningman Road, we packed our luggage and took two buses directly to the Coco Palm Inn in the ancient city. This hotel is conveniently located and has the feel of a community, which is very nice. It takes about 10 minutes to walk to Tapemen from the hotel. There are many restaurants and shopping stores nearby, and it is right next to the main road of the ancient city. In the evening, we went to Tapemen. There are many pigeons in Tap Mun Square, and there are also small vendors selling feed next to it. We bought a small bag of feed, and he can help you make the pigeons fly together, make pictures, and provide free photography services.

It was getting dark, so we chose to dine at an Italian restaurant called UgoBarRestaurant next to the tape door. We went specifically for it, it was ranked 11th on TripAdvisor, and we ordered two pastas, two drinks, and a salad, which was much bigger than we expected! You can’t finish it yourself, it’s not expensive and it tastes good! recommend!

-Address: No. 47, Wenmeng Road, next to Tower Pae Boxing Gym

After dinner, go directly through the Taipei Gate. It takes about 15 minutes to get to Changkang Road Night Market. The weekend night market is always open on weekends, but Changkang Road is open every day. If you can't make it to the weekend night market, you can visit here. Passing by Rotee, a stall selling banana pancakes. The stall owners are three grandparents. There was a small queue in front of the stall. I quickly bought one and tried it. It was so sweet.

Day 4

On the fourth day we signed up for a one-day trip to Chiang Rai, and the bus picked us up at 7am.

One-day tours are all in this kind of van tour with about 10 people, which is quite comfortable. The tour guide is fluent in English and can speak simple Chinese. The usual route of the Qing delegation is to visit the Black Temple in the morning and the White Temple in the afternoon, with a simple lunch. There is one drawback. Our tour price did not include a visit to Long Neck Village on the way through Long Neck Village. But if the person in the same car has already signed up to visit, we have to wait for him to finish the visit before going together, which results in a delay of some time.

It takes about 3 hours to drive to Chiang Rai. The full name is that the road is very flat, it is very comfortable to sit on, and you don’t need to take motion sickness medicine. Let's go to the Black Temple first. The Black Temple is a museum owned by a famous local artist. It has a collection of various animal bones and a bunch of weird things. It is a place full of imagination and art, but I don’t really understand it anyway. It's good to open your eyes.

After lunch, we set off to the White Temple. We had seen many pictures of the White Temple on the Internet before and thought it was a very beautiful temple. But when you come to the scene and see this work of art, all you can feel is shock. My wife was so shocked. It is a rare large-scale work of art and is definitely one of the highlights of Chiang Mai tourism. You can’t help but watch! Entering the gate of the scenic spot, taking pictures all the way, crossing the Bridge of Hell, and entering the temple, I felt like I had experienced reincarnation and was moved. We always feel that an hour of browsing time is a bit short. In addition, there are golden toilets in the scenic area. The last toilet was so luxurious, it was such a long experience. The tour guide said that with the ticket, you can get a brochure about the White Temple at the information desk, with a Chinese version. After visiting the White Temple, return to Chiang Mai and stay at Coco Palm Inn in the evening.

After riding for more than six hours, I felt a little tired. The first thing I did when I returned to the ancient city was to have an herbal massage at LILA near the hotel. It cost about RMB 80 for one and a half minutes, and I felt much more comfortable all of a sudden, but I think the price-performance ratio is not as good as that of the female prison ()

Day 5

On the fifth day, we set off Go to Pai County. We bought tickets in Chiang Mai very early and took Prempracha's van

It is 133 kilometers away from Pai District, Chiang Mai, and has 762 turns. The roads are asphalt, but they are rough. Friends who are prone to motion sickness, please bring your own motion sickness medicine! Remember to take motion sickness pills! Remember to take motion sickness pills! Remember to take motion sickness pills! suggestion! It takes about 3 hours by car. After arriving at the station, I immediately bought a return ticket for tomorrow. I found out it was only 14:00, so I decided to buy it.

We booked the Montes Resort in Pai County, which is a resort hotel. The environment is very good and so comfortable that I want to stay in the hotel without going out. Golf carts are available inside and outside the hotel. If you want to go to PAI County, a van will be arranged to take you there. The service is so attentive.

For lunch, we found a restaurant recommended online in the city, Nong Beer Restaurant. The taste is very average, and the green papaya salad is a fighter in dark cuisine. After lunch, we rented a motorcycle at the motorcycle shop next to the station. It’s only 200 yuan a day, so cheap!

We drove freely on the highway in Pai County, clocked in along the check-in line, and took photos through inverted thatched huts, tree shacks, and small yellow houses.

In the evening we went directly to Pai’s night market to find dinner. Paixian Night Market is much more interesting than Changkang Road Night Market. We sold a lot of food along the way. We saw a food stall recommended by a Chinese mother online and ordered cold yellow noodles, which was delicious. I tried another local ravioli and it was delicious.

Day 6

In the morning, we struggled to get up at 5 o'clock and drove our motorcycles to Yunlai Observation Deck to watch the sunrise! It was chilly all the way. It turns out there is winter in Thailand too! Yunlai Observation Deck is not far from our hotel. On the way through the Chinese Village, the roar of motorcycles broke the original tranquility of the village. "Yunlai", as the name suggests, is a group of people who settled here from Yunlai. Going to the observation deck to watch the sunrise costs 20 pounds per person. You will be given a pot of tea after purchasing your ticket. If necessary, you can order breakfast, steamed buns, porridge, etc.

When we arrived, all seats were basically occupied. Then wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, etc. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait

We had to go down to the hotel for breakfast. After breakfast, we rode our motorcycles to continue the unfinished check-in trip yesterday, visiting the Strawberry Fields, World War II Bridge, etc. There are few people on the road, so you can take photos of various road scenes. We love this feeling of freedom.

After playing cards and having lunch, we embarked on the journey back to the ancient city. The driver drove very fast along the way and I vomited again. The first thing I did when I returned to the ancient city was to go to Tapemen to collect materials for tomorrow’s Chiang Mai Marathon and stay at the Nai Boutique Hotel near Tapemen. The hotel is Thai style and very unique.

In the evening, we walked south along the moat for about 10 to 15 minutes and arrived at Wuallai Road where the Saturday night market is located. When we left Chiang Mai on Sunday afternoon, we were not able to experience the biggest Sunday night market, which was a bit regretful. The night market on Saturday is very lively, and the entire Wuallai Road is full of vendors selling all kinds of unique things. The night market is very large and we had a lot of fun shopping along the way. Finally, our feet got a little tired and we didn't make it to the finish line. suggestion! When you see something you like at a night market at a reasonable price, start it.

Don’t think about buying it when you come back, because they have already closed the sale when you come back!

Day 7

Finally it’s time to run the Chiang Mai Marathon. In fact, we decided on this trip to Chiang Mai in advance. We later found out that it collided with the annual Chiang Mai Marathon on December 18th. We had never run a marathon before so we decided to join in the fun. We registered through the domestic Yirun.com. Although it was only a 3-kilometer mini run, we were determined to participate. Hahaha.

The marathon clothes are black, in order to commemorate the change of the King of Thailand from the previous colorful. Before leaving, my friend said that the King of Thailand had just passed away and there would be chaos. Don't go. But Chiang Mai is actually very safe. Don’t worry, Thailand’s safety index is very high.

Those who run 42km start running at 5 o’clock. By the time we gathered at 7 o'clock, we had basically finished the half marathon. But when we arrived at the starting point

On the way to the run, we could always see cheerleaders organized by various schools to cheer for the runners. Suddenly, I was infected by this welcoming country! The 3km run was very fast, and we thought we could actually sign up for 7km because we weren’t tired at all! As soon as you reach the finish line, you will get a medal, and there will be food and drink at the supply point.

Today is the last day of our trip. In order to avoid any regrets, we decided to experience a local SPA in Thailand. After careful selection of various recommended software, we finally chose the deeply relaxing SPA, which costs about 400 yuan per person for 2 hours. In fact, the SPA is a traditional Thai oil massage, but it was so comfortable that I almost fell asleep.

After the SPA, we found Kanjana in northern Thailand nearby based on Catwalk’s food recommendations. In addition to the delicious Thai noodles, I think several other Thai dishes are quite good. I recommend them!

-Address: No. 7/2, Ratchadamnoen Road, Sui District 5

In the afternoon, we rented a motorcycle and visited the remaining two of the three major temples in Chiang Mai , WatChiangMan and Pasin Temple. Both temples have their own characteristics. Wat Chiang Man is a very contemporary temple, and Pasin Temple is the highest-level temple in Chiang Mai. The pagoda is majestic and different from the one seen in Shuanglong Temple.

At the end of the trip we bought a Boots and Herb letter near the tape door and returned the car. After checking out, the driver in charge of Hanoi Airport came to pick us up on time. At the airport, I couldn’t let go of the fun in Chiang Mai, the massages and food in Chiang Mai, and the warm and friendly people of Chiang Mai! See you in Chiang Mai! Looking forward to our next meeting in Chiang Mai!

Travel Summary

1. We went there in December. The weather in Chiang Mai is not as hot as Bangkok. We can wear long sleeves, but the weather is sunny. Pay attention to sun protection and keep cool at night.

2. AirAsia’s flight to Chiang Mai is the cheapest between Hong Kong and Macau, and the flight time to Macau is very good.

3. If possible, try to change as much money as possible, because there are so many delicious and fun things. Of course, many stores accept credit card and Alipay payments.

4. Giving a chicken massage is a must when you come to Thailand, otherwise wouldn’t it be in vain?

5. Chiang Rai is highly recommended. Must go! There is also a jungle leap, which is so exciting and worth experiencing!

6. Herb’s aromatherapy essential oil products are very good, affordable and easy to give away.

7. It doesn’t matter if you can’t find the restaurant recommended in the guide. Just go into any store, it won't be too bad, and it will save you time looking for a store. Anyway, we had several meals this way.

8. Chiang Mai airport is small, so don’t expect to buy all handwritten letters at the airport. When I see something suitable when shopping, I buy it first.