Ten Things We Learned on Our Trip to Chiang Mai, Thailand

We completed our month long trip (Feb 7 - Mar 7, 2017) to Chiang Mai, Thailand.  We wrote this blog entry to share what we learned from our trip.  We found these bits of information most helpful and wished we had them prior our trip.

We hope this information helps you with your trip planning to Chiang Mai.

Our trip to Chiang Mai from our home in Atlanta, Georgia was to explore the possibility of continuing our retirement in Chiang Mai.  We had lived overseas twice before (Bangalore, India and Stockholm, Sweden) during our working years. Those expat experiences were full of adventure and travel opportunities.  Being empty nesters and retired, we were looking for another adventure in our "golden years."

Chiang Mai is a popular retirement venue for expats from around the world. This community of expats is supported by an active Chiang Mai Expat Club.  Per the Editor of Chiang Mai City Life magazine, Pim Kemasingki, the top reasons expats settle in Chiang Mai are:

• Financial
• Cultural
• Lifestyle
• Love
• Weather

Here are ten things we learned from our trip.

1. Housing

Map of Pansook in Chiang Mai
Click to Enlarge

Before traveling to Thailand we did extensive research on housing options in Chiang Mai.

Our primary tool was YouTube videos of people searching for housing in Chiang Mai.

Our goal was to secure a serviced apartment with the following criteria:

• walking distance to restaurants, shopping, transportation
• one bedroom (not a studio)
• kitchenette
• Air Conditioning
• WiFi

We selected the Pansook The Urban Condo on Soi Plubplueng Road (There are two Pansook Urban Condos in Chiang Mai; the second is a five minute walk away.)  Next door, the

Luxury Huay Kaew (left) and Pansook Urban Condo

Luxury Huay Kaew apartments appear to offer similar housing options.

For an initial trip to Chiang Mai, we would recommend Pansook the Urban Condo. This apartment (and other options listed below) is a good home base for an initial trip to Chiang Mai.

The apartment met all our criteria. Additionally, the building was located about 100 meters down an alley, or side street (Soi) and provided quiet from the traffic noise from the main road (Huaykaew Road).

Other comments:

• Onsite laundry facilities (e.g., washing machines).  You will need to hang dry your laundry.
• 24 x 7 security
• Adequate WiFi
• Small kitchenette with 1/2 refrigerator/freezer
• Microwave;  there are no "burners" or stove top cooking units
• Small collection of dishes and flatware
• Cable TV with a limited selection of English language programs.  
• Our daily rate (less than $30.00) included water, electricity, daily cleaning / towels and no deposit requirement
• The building is new (built circa 2015)
• The short walk to Huaykaew gave us easy access to transportation and Uber / taxi drivers picked us up just outside the apartment

We booked our lodging for a 37 sq meter, one-bedroom apartment online at Agoda.com.

Other housing options on our side street, Soi Plubplueng, include:

• The Dome
• Luxury Huay Kaew
• Sakulchai Place
• Pingnakorn (daily rates - located at the very end of Soi Plubplueng)
• PJ's Guest House (daily rates)

2. Communications

AIS Store In Maya Shopping Center

We highly recommend you enable your smartphone with a local SIM card with a voice and data plan.

We purchased SIM cards and a pre-paid plan (30 days, 1 gigabyte plan for 300 baht) at the AIS store in the Maya shopping center. We have Galaxy 6 and iPhone 6 smartphones on the US Verizon network.  

The AIS staff inserted the new SIM cards and configured the phones in just a few moments.  The configuration includes new settings for the Access Point Name (APN) required to connect to AIS cellular network. We were on the local network before we left the store.

The local AIS plan enabled us to make local calls, send and receive local text messages as well as text messages to/from the States (which is free).  To send a text message to the States, you will need to prefix US phone numbers with the country code +1.  For example, +1 404.555.1234.

Access to Google Maps on our phones gave us freedom to roam the city widely and not worry about how to find our way back to the apartment.

Upon our return to the US, we popped in our US SIM cards and immediately re-gained access to the Verizon network without updating the APN settings. You will need a paperclip or similar "tool" to access the slot that holds the SIM card.  

Most importantly, the local SIM cards gave us access to Uber.

3. Transportation

Transportation options in Chiang Mai include:

• Walking
• Uber
• Red Taxi (songtaew)
• Blue and yellow taxis (Grab Taxi)
• Tuk Tuk (autorickshaw)
• Rented motor bike or car
• Rented bicycle
• Local bus

We did a great deal if walking, which gave us a better "feel" for the city.   Sidewalks, however, are either non-existent, uneven, broken, cluttered with sign posts/trees and could be generally characterized as poor quality.  Nonetheless, we recommend good walking shoes for your trip.

There are cross walks, but very few places where pedestrians can signal that they want to cross the street. Be careful! Only about 98% of drivers stop for these pedestrian cross walk red lights. We almost got hit twice at the crosswalk on Hauykauw Road near the Pansook.

Uber came to Chiang Mai in late 2016.  Uber was our most popular motorized transportation option.  We installed the Uber app, registered a credit card and email address. Uber is convenient and inexpensive. Trips around town cost between 40 and 70 baht (less than $2) that is charged to our registered credit card. Although it's not required or expected, we tipped our drivers 20 baht. Drivers keep about 75% of the fare and we felt for the service provided in clean, air conditioned cars a small gratuity was appropriate. 

Red Taxi

The covered red trucks called songtaews (pronounced song tow-rhymes with cow) were very convenient and we used them frequently. There is a standard charge of 20 baht per person.  Don’t ask “How much?” Just communicate your destination or point to a Google Map location. If a yes nod follows, hop in. They will stop at your destination. Not all songtaews are going in your direction so be prepared for some no’s, but keep trying. There is also a movement for songtaews to charge 30 baht per person. Watch this cute video for an inside look on how to use the red taxi service.

Yellow and Blue Taxi

Add the Grab Taxi app to your smartphone. For in-town trips, including to the airport, the metered rates quoted on the Grab Taxi work. For out of town trips, the taxi meter is not used.  Rather, a rate card is used. Ask your driver to show you the rate card on their smartphone. For example, our trip from Chiang Mai to Hang Dong was 400 baht.  

We used tuk tuks only in a pinch.  They may charge upwards of 100 – 300 baht.  Bargain for the best rate. If you have not traveled to an Asian country, a tuk tuk ride should be on your punch list.

Public Bike Rentals

Some expats rent motorbikes or cars. Given the location of our apartment and easy access to other transportation options, we opted not to do this. Also, city traffic is pretty intense and Thais drive on the left side of the road. You need to decide for yourself if this transportation option is for you.

Public bicycles are available as well as rental from hotels.  Similar to our reasoning on rental of a motorized vehicle, we shunned the bike opt.  In addition the air quality is pretty poor and not ideal for pedaling.

We never did use the local buses.  Oddly we saw bus stops, posted bus schedules, never saw any buses.   

4. Food and Water

6-Liter Water Bottles at 7-11

We generally purchased bottled water at restaurants. A bottle of water costs from 10 - 30 baht.  We later found that many restaurants used filtered water and felt comfortable drinking glasses of water brought to the table and including ice in our drinks.

However, we followed "water safety" in our apartment.  We used bottled water for cooking, coffee/tea and teeth brushing.

For water in our apartment, we purchased 6-liter bottles of water from a 7-11 for about 38

Filtered Water Kisok

baht.  We then re-filled these water bottles from a filtered water kiosk near the Green Store on Ratchaphuek Alley, across the street from the other Pansook Condo.  Water at the filtered water kiosk cost 1 baht per liter.

When walking about town we either carried water from our apartment or purchased water from 7-11. There are 9,400 7-11's in Thailand, so you won't have to go far to find one.

Restaurants and food stalls abound everywhere.

Food Court at Maya Shopping Center

At food stalls in shopping centers, a noodle or rice dish typically costs 40 – 130 baht. Western style restaurants are numerous, with offerings of fried chicken, pizza or burgers with prices in the 180 - 300+ baht range.

We prepared many meals at our apartment; fruit for breakfast, salad for lunch/dinner, a pre-prepared meal or cooked meat from the supermarket or some combination of supermarket and food vendor fare.  

Two supermarkets are within walking distance from Pansook. Tops is located downstairs at the Kad Saun Kaew shopping mall and Rimping is in the

Produce Section at Tops in Kad Suan Kaew Shopping Center

basement at Maya shopping center. The selection at these supermarkets is very good. Beer, wine and spirits are also sold. However, sales are prohibited from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm.

We also visited the large Tesco Lotus market. That market was quite a hike from the apartment. There was a wide selection of household goods and foods at thi

Italics Restaurent

s large market. We found, however, our shopping needs were met by our local markets.

One of our expat friends told us they order goods online from Tesco Lotus and have their purchases delivered for free. Some restaurants will also provide home delivery with a minimum purchase.

On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, street vendors set up outside Kad Suan Kaew and provide a wide variety of food selection at very reasonable prices. 

Restaurants abound in Chiang Mai.  We selected restaurants based on recommendations from expats or searches on TripAdvisor.

The large supermarkets and many restaurants take credit cards. Food stalls, street vendors and many other businesses operate strictly on a cash basis.

**Kad Saun Kaew is often referred to as KSK. To help remember it, think of three animals: cat, swan, cow. In Thai, k is pronounced like g, so say gad swan gow. However, even if you tell a songtaew driver you want to go to "cat swan cow" he'll understand you. 

5. Shopping

Chiang Mai offers opportunities to shop ‘til you drop.  

Maya Shopping Center

The Maya shopping center offers American and higher end goods. The Kad Saun Kaew shopping center offers mid-level goods.

There are more street shops, especially in and around the Old City,  than you can count. They offer goods to both tourists and locals. 

The best prices are in stores used by local Thais. For example, we purchased a Bluetooth speaker in a local electronics mall just north of the Old City on sale for 690 baht (less than $19). We found the same speaker for 2,500 baht at a night bazaar vendor.

Night Bazaar Near Le Meridien Hotel

We recommend you visit the Night Bazaar near the Le Meridien, which highlights handmade goods. Also enjoy the night market near the Old City western Tha Phae Gate. Both are unique experiences. 

Be prepared for crowds. Bargain on prices.

6  Money and Banking

ATM's at KSK Shopping Center

Thailand is a cash society. Consequently, we conducted most of our transactions using local Thai currency. These cash transactions required us to maintain a supply of currency for our daily needs. 
We used both ATM's, that are plentiful, and currency exchanges.

Exchange booths are found in the Maya and Kad Suan Kaew shopping centers.

Exchange Booth at KSK Shopping Center

We discovered that there are different exchange rates based on the denomination of the bills involved. US $100 US bills have the best exchange rate at the currency booths. The next tier was for $5s, $10s, $20s and $50s. The lowest rate is one dollar bills.

We typically used banks to break 1,000 baht notes into smaller denominations. A good supply of 20 baht notes worked well for the small meals and incidentals. Coinage is also widely used.

7 English

Sufficient English is spoken by everyone to enable day-to-day transactions. If  you are unsure of a price being quoted, write it down and verify.

8 Expat Community

There is a thriving and well-organized expat community in Chiang Mai.  Visit their website and plan to attend a breakfast and/or the monthly meetings. There are a large number of outside group activities, including a book club, ladies’ luncheons and a computer club.

This community is a great source of information. Friendships will naturally develop with this gregarious group, offering delightful dinner companionship and experienced travel partners. Many members reach out to newbies to make them feel welcome. It may feel awkward at first, but if you stay more than a week or two, it will be soon your turn to make the next explorer feel welcome.

9  News

The Chiang Mai News and City Life Magazine, online and print, are excellent news sources. Make note of the magazine’s ads as another way to understand services, dining and travel options available.

For information from back home, online newspapers and streaming services for outlets such as CNN were used. 

Your normal live streaming service may be blocked in Thailand. Some people suggested a paid VPN service such as Tunnel Bear to engage external streaming services.

We found, however,  Live News On was a great option for live streaming of news from the US, United Kingdom, India (English) and other options. 

10 Sightseeing

Art in Paradise 3D Illusion Art

Chiang Mai is the ancient capitol and there are over 300 temples in and around the city. The top two are Wat Phra Sing and Wat Chedi Luang. The dress code is no shorts, bare backs or low cut fronts. If you come unprepared, for 100 baht you can rent a sarong-style piece of cloth to cover up. Everyone is required to remove his or her shoes to enter a wat.

We also recommend Art in Paradise.

There are a number of out of the city excursions you can book online or at a local travel shop.

White Temple in Chiang Rai

We took a one-day trip (7:30 am to 10:30 pm) trip to Chiang Rai with Bon Voyage.  The White Temple is a must-see. The boat trip on the Mekong River to Laos was a bit oversold, but recommended.  When are you next going to be in Laos?

We never felt threatened or nervous about crime in Chiang Mai. We walked about the city and didn't worry about being robbed or mugged. It just doesn't happen, at least to tourists!

Enjoy your trip.

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