Chiang Mai

We had three and a half days in Chiang Mai and we definitely would have stayed longer if we could have. Hannah and I both agree that Chiang Mai was our favorite spot. La Naview @ Prasingh, our lodging for the next few days recommended we get a taxi from the airport for the short distance into town. If you look at Chiang Mai on a map, you’ll see that the Old City is a square shape and if you stay within that region, everything will be accessible. La Naview was a very clean facility with a great location but we had recurring issues with the wifi disconnecting, the shower not staying hot and the A/C was very loud. Check out booking.com to see other lodging options. There are so many to choose from but stay within the square!

Wat Phra Singh

With early check-in unavailable, we wasted no time exploring the city. Our first stop was Wat Phra Singh- you guessed it- another Buddhist temple! After seeing so many they all start running together but this one stood out to us. The golden Chedi in the back can be blinding in the sun.

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We headed east down Rachadamnoen Rd (the main strip in town) where we found a Thai massage parlor called Lila Thai Massage. There are multiple locations scattered across the city and they are all ex-inmate employment centers which is a terrific opportunity for those individuals to get back on their feet. The women were very professional, competent and kind. It cost us each 200 baht (approx $6) for an hour Thai massage. On top of the already unbeatable price, they also washed our feet, provided robes and gave us cookies, tea and a keychain souvenir as we were leaving.

We continued on Rachadamnoen Rd to Wat Tung Ya, another Buddhist temple that had zero visitors when we arrived! We stopped for lunch at The Old City Inn- our favorite spot in town. We tried many other restaurants but this one definitely won us over. Their pineapple fried rice was to die for and I loved their plate presentation. I mean the rice was served inside of an entire pineapple!

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We purposely planned our trip to Chiang Mai at the beginning of the week so we wouldn’t miss The Sunday Night Market. There are markets nightly but Sunday is the largest, running the entire length of Rachadamnoen Road. This is your opportunity to find treasures cheaper than usual as sellers want to unload their goods before the new week. We bought most of our gifts and souvenirs there.

I managed to find this beautiful, unique elephant painting. The artist had it priced at 3,000 baht and I offered to pay 2,000. I could tell he was nervous but he asked (more like begged) for me to meet him at 2,200. I could tell it meant a lot to him and really what is $6 to me? This beautiful piece of art was definitely worth it so I said yes and he jumped with excitement. I think it was his first sale of the night. He asked to get a photo and I had to do the same. I really wish I would have written down his name. His excitement alone made this my greatest purchase. FYI: He took the painting off of the stretcher bars, rolled up the canvas and put it in a poster tube. I carried this with me the rest of the trip. I had it re-stretched when I got home and it now hangs in my bedroom 🙂

Our second day in Chiang Mai was spent at Doi Inthanon National Park which I have created a separate post for. We booked our tour through Le Naview @ Prasingh. They have a stand near the front entrance with excellent pricing.

Day three was spent at Maerim Elephant Sanctuary which is also on a separate post because I have an abundance of elephant photos. It would be impossible to only choose a few. This was one of my favorite days, ever! Be sure to check it out!

Hannah and I had discussed taking a day trip to Chiang Rai to see the white temple but after our drive through Doi Inthanon National Park we realized the last thing we wanted to do was be in the car for 6+ hours. Instead, we had a relaxing day with a night trip to Doi Suthep.

The Oasis Spa

Our last day was properly spent eating, shopping and relaxing at the spa. They had a BOGO special at the time so we each paid $50 for a two and a half hour spa package that included an oatmeal scrub, one hour massage and one hour facial. I have never in my life been so pampered. Hands down, do not miss this.

While going over their “Spa Menu” we were given Pandanas Tea and chilled washcloths. The tea was so good that I ended up buying pandanas leaves at a nearby store. They wouldn’t give out the recipe but I’m fairly certain they just add lemongrass and chill the tea.

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After the oatmeal scrub, we were each taken to a shower room that already had the water running with robes and slippers on deck. Upon check out we were given hot tea with fresh fruit and we begged for one more glass of the Pandanas Tea.

Doi Suthep

All of our day trips were booked through our hotel and because of this- we got an amazing deal for our Doi Suthep trip. We paid 900 baht for the both of us and that was such a bargain that our tour guide questioned the trip planner!

Our first stop was WatU-Mong, an underground tunnel temple in the forest of Doi Suthep. Removing your shoes is mandatory when entering any temple and still applied to the underground tunnels. We came across a lot of statues with missing limbs. Apparently they used to store gold and money inside of them and robbers would break them apart and steal the goods. G-O-L-D-G-O-L-D thats gold!

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We were taken to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a buddhist temple on the Doi Suthep mountain. Reaching the top involved climbing 309 stairs! I’ve read there is a tram but I did not see it nor was it offered to us. Don’t forget your long sleeves and long pants. Luckily for me, Doi Suthep had a basket of loaners but I hadn’t seen that anywhere else.

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Fun Fact:

We learned that when Buddhist statues prop their head in their hand, they are resting. If they are laying on their arm, it means they are dead.

There is also an overlook with impressive panoramic views of Chiang Mai. I see why they recommend taking the tour at night. Chiang Mai was larger than I imagined and if you looked closely you could see the Old City Square. I searched EVERYWHERE for one of those lanterns but could not find one to bring home. #regrets

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We arrived back at our hotel later that night and packed for our early morning flight to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Please check out the Doi Inthanon National Park and Maerim Elephant Sanctuary posts. You do not want to miss these spots if you’re in Chiang Mai!