We absolutely love Chiang Mai and if you’re visiting for the first time you’re in for a treat. It may be the second city of Thailand, but it’s number one in our hearts for sure. Chiang Mai is located in the north of Thailand and is rich with history and culture. However, there also many conveniences such as an airport, shopping malls, hip cafes and of course lots of delicious food.
In this blog we let you know which 10 things plus a bonus tip you cannot miss when visiting for the first time. So yes it’s actually a top 11, but that sounded weird so we’re sticking with top 10 plus bonus!
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Table of Contents
1. Walk in Chiang Mai's Old City
Our first recommendation is an easy one, but something that has to be done when you’re in Chiang Mai: walking through the old town. Yes walking! The old town of Chiang Mai is set up in a square and is surrounded by a moat. This makes it super easy to navigate.
Inside the old city you will find surprises around every corner. There are so many hidden streets with artwork, temples everywhere, lots of food and small cafes with some of the best coffee
You can also visit the different gates of the old city wall. The Tha Phae Gate is the most famous one, as it’s the old main entrance into the city and this is also a great starting point to start your walking tour.
2. Visit Chiang Mai's Best Night Markets
Next up Chiang Mai’s night markets. These night markets are a reason alone to visit and the most famous market of Chiang Mai is:
Sunday Night Market
The Thae Phae Walking Street market happens, yes you guessed it, every Sunday. It starts around 4 pm and goes on until late. This is a really big market and it completely covers the main street from the Tha Phae Gate all the way up to the Wat Phra Singh temple.
The street will be filled with all kinds of vendors that come from all over the region and it’s a good opportunity to shop for souvenirs. While visiting the market you’ll also come across many beautiful temples. It so happens that the food courts are set up around the temples and you can enjoy all your Thai classics and not so classics there.
Also if your feet get tired there is an abundance of massage options everywhere.
Saturday Night Market
If Saturday works better for you then Chiang Mai has a solution for that: the Saturday Night Market. This one is also known as Wua Lai Walking Street and the opening hours are from 4 pm until 11 pm.
Here you’ll find many similar souvenirs, hand-crafts and of course delicious food stalls. This market is generally a little quieter, although not very much, and is fun and easy to explore.
3. Join a Thai Cooking Course
Chiang Mai is famous for its delicious food and how is it do yourself during a Thai cooking class. There is an abundance of cooking schools in the city and they all follow a similar plan.
The first part of the class usually starts at the local market so you can learn about the ingredients you’re about the cook with. You’ll then be taken to the cooking class location and here you can chose a variety of Thai dishes to prepare. Think of the famous Khao soi, mango sticky rice, papaya salad and lots of curries!
Some cooking classes take part in the city itself and others take place on a farm outside town. Ours take place on a beautiful farm that had its own herb garden and we really enjoyed it. A cooking class is a really fun deep dive in Thai food culture and we can’t recommend it enough.
4. Eat Chiang Mai’s Iconic Dish
Our favorite Thai food is Khao Soi and Chiang Mai happens to be the capital of Khao Soi.
What is Khao Soi you ask? Khao soi is a spicy, rich and creamy coconut curry soup. It usually includes tender chicken leg, egg noodles and it’s topped with crispy fried noodles. On the side you’ll get shallots, pickled mustard greens and a lime wedge.
You can find this dish everywhere in Chiang Mai and while the foundation is the same, every vendor gives it their own unique twist. Here are some places we recommend:
- First is: Khao Soi Khun Yai. It’s only open from 10am until 14.00 pm and its considered one of the top places of Chiang Mai. Bursting with flavor, serves large portions and it’s only 60 baht.
- The second one is another banger: Khao Soi Lung Prakit Kad Kom. It’s Michelin guide mentioned and for a good reason. The soup is packed with flavour, with a broth to die for and yet again it costs only 60 baht.
- Last one is one of our favorite restaurants in the old town: Kat’s Kitchen. Here they serve a delicious XXL bowl of Khao Soi. Easily shared with 2 people or 1 hungry Laurens. And we can also recommend the other food they serve
5. Visit Chiang Mai's Oldest Temple
Another activity you can’t miss out on in Chiang Mai is visiting one of the many temples. The most famous one is: Wat Chedi Luang. This is a 14th century temple that once housed the famous emerald Buddha that now resides in Bangkok.
Chedi means Stupa and Luang means big and yes that combination means that it’s a big temple. It used to be 98 meters tall but during an earthquake in the 16th century, it sadly suffered from a lot of damage.
But still to this day it’s an impressive building and a must visit. It’s opened daily from 6 am to 5 pm and entry costs 50 baht per person.
6. Explore the Mae Kha Canal
Our next recommendation is to visit the Mae Kha Canal. This area has been transformed into a market inspired by Japanese towns. You can walk along the river, buy some souvenirs and if you visit at night, everything will be lit up.
There are also 2 bridges so you can get from one side to the other and along the canal there are a few bars where you can get some drinks or have a bite to eat. It’s a fun change of pace and they did a great job cleaning and rebuilding this area.
The Mae Kha Canal market is opened daily from 3 in the afternoon until 10 at night (or until it starts raining, whichever comes first).
7. Visit Chiang Mai's Hippest Neighborhood
The Nimmanheamin district, or Nimman for short, is a very popular and vibrant area. It’s filled with lots of boutique shops, trendy restaurants and delicious coffee places. When you’re here we recommend to stop by One Nimman, a unique blend of Northern Thai Lanna style meets Italy.
At One Nimman they host host weekly markets, entertainment and food that is all worth a try. Closeby you’ll also find the Maya shopping mall for all your shopping mall needs
For the Nimman area, just like tip number one, explore the streets on foot there are surprises everywhere!
8. Explore China Town
Going from modern to old school Chiang Mai with Warorot Market in China Town.
Here’s you’ll find an indoor day market where you can make your baht work for you. It’s filled with all kinds of stalls ranging from lots and lots of clothing, to all the local specialty foods and many Thai trinkets plus souvenirs.
Opening hours for the market are from 6 am to 5 pm and after 6 pm the streets of China Town turns into a delicious night market food street.
From here it’s also a short walk to the Ping River which is nice too look at be at by daytime or at night. And if you have lots of time you can even take boat rides on the Ping river including dinner cruises.
9. Visit the Night Bazaar
A famous area for night life and evening shopping is the Night Bazaar area. Here you’ll find a night market that’s on EVERY day from 6 pm until midnight. Chang Klan Road is filled with stalls featuring lots of handicrafts, services and clothing. If you enter the side streets, you’ll massive food courts with entertainment and even games to play.
Our favorite here is the Ploen Ruedee Night Market. It’s the kind of touristy spot we actually love. There is a large set-up with seats in the middle of the square and there’s LOTS of food around you. This combined with live music and performances, makes for a great evening out.
10. Go to Doi Suthep
There are A LOT of temples in Chiang Mai, but none stand out like Doi Suthep.
Doi Suthep is located on the mountain side overlooking Chiang Mai and is the most famous temple of the city. On a sunny day you’ll even it see it glistening on the mountain from afar. You can choose to take the 306 stairs up or you can take the tram. On the top you’re welcomed by the iconi Stupa and beautiful views of Chiang Mai!
An easy way to get there is to take a red Songthaew (shared ride), a private taxi or if you want super easy: book one of the many tours that will pick you up from the hotel and drop you off.
The temple is open for sunset views at 6 am, closes at 6 pm and costs 50 baht per person.
Reading Tip: Best Areas to Stay in Chiang Mai
Bonus Tip Chiang Mai
And now bonus time. Our worldwide favorite activity is taking the bicycle and exploring! It’s one of the best ways of going through a city without wasting a lot of energy. With a local guide you can learn about many things in and around the city.
In Chiang Mai you can choose to take a tour of the city or you can go into the countryside by bike. Here you’ll see a whole different landscape than within the city, but both tours offer a unique perspective and you often get to try some local specialties as well.
We did both the city tour as well as the countryside tour and had a blast!
10 Things to Do in Chiang Mai
So here it is 10 things to do in Chiang Mai plus a fun bonus activity. Now is this all Chiang Mai has to offer? Absolutely not! We could make many more blogs about all the food, cafes and special places in and around Chiang Mai so stay tuned…
But for now we want to thank you for reading along and enjoy your trip!
– Laurens & Laura
FAQs
Is Chiang Mai worth visiting?
Absolutely! Chiang Mai is very different from other Thai cities in the sense that it’s the old town is very walkable and many sights are easy to reach. The city feels also feels much calmer than the bustling city of Bangkok for example.
Also Chiang Mai has a unique mix of Thai culture and the old Lanna culture that was dominant in the region for centuries. You won’t find a city like this elsewhere in Thailand.
What is the best month to visit Chiang Mai?
The best months to visit Chiang Mai are without a doubt from November until February. These months offer the perfect mix of sunny days with almost to no rain. However, this also means that it will be the busiest time as this period generally draws in a lot of tourists.
September and October can be good months too, it will be less busy with a slight chance of some rain now and then.
From February until half-April Chiang Mai suffers from ‘smokey season’ meaning the air gets very polluted.
How many days in Chiang Mai is enough?
If you ask us there’s no such thing as spending too much time in Chiang Mai!
But for a minimum we recommend to stay at least 3 to 4 nights here, preferably with at least one weekend-day so you don’ miss the night market.
Where to Stay in Chiang Mai?
Chiang Mai’s best area and easiest area to stay for first time visitors is the old-city. It’s where you find many temples, places to eat and plenty of accommodation.
Check-out our video in which we tried out 6 hotels in the best areas of Chiang Mai!
Laurens is the co-founder of Yes and Explore, with a background in sports, theater, and bringing people together. He’s happiest when traveling, tasting his way through local dishes, and sharing stories that inspire your next travel adventure.
