We begin our circumnavigation of Chiang Mai’s old city at the northwest corner known as Hua Lim, for no particular reason other than you have start somewhere. And we move in a clockwise direction simply because it’s considered the more auspicious by Buddhists. This is where Huay Kaew Road heads off west past Central Huay … read the full post

We have complained about downtown Chiang Mai’s lack of parks before but there is a stretch of grass and trees that we inconsiderately overlooked, a very long stretch in fact — nearly eight kilometres long — which makes for an interesting and attractive hike without ever having to leave the city centre. We’re talking of … read the full post

Wat Lok Molee is an attractive and often overlooked little temple that’s recently received a facelift, and while not being one of Chiang Mai‘s most well known temples is well worth including on any temple tour of the downtown area. If we grade wats by the number of photos we take in them, then Wat … read the full post

The large monolithic red brick Chiang Mai Orchid Hotel next to Central Huay Kaew shopping mall might not look desperately exciting from the outside, but it’s a good spot to waste away a few hours on a hot Chiang Mai afternoon if you’ve no pool in your own Chiang Mai hotel. The hotel itself is … read the full post

We’ve covered the excellent Chiang Mai Aquarium and Nakorn Ping Aviary but haven’t yet given you an overall rundown on the city’s famous zoo; so, it’s about time! Chiang Mai Zoo is situated at the foot of Doi Suthep, just behind Chiang Mai University, and covers a large area of secondary forest, foothills and stream … read the full post

Doi means mountain in the northern Thai dialect (see our earlier geographical names post), so Doi Suthep of course means Suthep Mountain. Doi Suthep’s most famous feature is its temple, Wat Doi Suthep, and is part of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park. Finally, Suthep is the name of the western district of Chiang Mai city abutting … read the full post

We’ve been writing this Chiang Mai blog for some time now but still haven’t given a general introduction to Chiang Mai city but… better late than never, eh? Here’s a bit about what makes Chiang Mai a special city and the lay of the land so you can orientate yourself during a visit. Chiang Mai … read the full post

We can’t have any pretensions at comprehensive Chiang Mai coverage without mentioning what is the city’s largest market: Worarot. Worarot refers to a entire downtown district of the city, spreading out on both sides of Chang Moi Road and covering an area roughly between Ratchawong, Tha Pae Road and the River. Worarot (or Warorot) market … read the full post

Wat Chedi Luang rivals Wat Phra Singh for the title of Chiang Mai’s most important and prestigious city temple. Though it comes a definite second for local visitors, the two temples are probably neck and neck in terms of foreigners, though for sheer size Wat Chedi Luang has no competition. The partially ruined chedi is … read the full post

Maybe I’m a cynical old whatever but… “monk chat club” sounds a little like monk feeding time in Luang Prabang. Not that it’s the tourists’ fault: the monks seem more than happy to go along with it. Luang Prabang novices have never been so well fed and Wat Chedi Luang donation boxes are brimming. But … read the full post