Getting around Chiang mai.

[sidjameson]

No car.

Never ridden a scooter.

How easy and costly is it to get around?

 

Im thinking of studying thai at the ymca. Go to live music pubs a few nights a week. Hopefully meetup a future friend for coffee and a chat. Join an expat group or two. Chess anyone?????

 

Love walking, would consider a bicyle as that was my transport many years in Japan. I fear taxis (cost) would deter me from going out as much as id like

 

Is the above lifestyle doable in CM without spending a lot on transport?

[BritManToo]

I did it for years, lived in Santitham Rd, enjoyed the student beer bars in Santitham Plaza, not to mention Oxide and T-bar, walked to the YMCA. Walked and cycled everywhere. Zero taxies or songtaew.

Don't miss the Oxide 'Scary Hospital' Halloween party or the Nana Bakery breakfasts bacon, egg, croissant, and coffee for 65bht. Emporium Residence in Santhitham road is a decent place, 6,000bht/month + utils (1-month deposit).

 

Edited October 30, 2018 by BritManToo

[sidjameson]

Wow, great reply.????

Those prices recent? They seem unbelievable after Bangkok.

[BritManToo]

4 minutes ago, sidjameson said:

Wow, great reply.????

Those prices recent? They seem unbelievable after Bangkok.

Those were the prices earlier this month.

YMCA is a great place to learn Thai, they do speaking and reading/writing courses at very reasonable prices usually running 3 days a week at 2 hours a lesson.

Edited October 30, 2018 by BritManToo

[simoh1490]

It gets very hot at the end of January plus the burning season will be in full swing by then, walking around CM at that time may not be the most pleasant experience.

[AlexRich]

I used to walk a lot and occasionally used the red Baht bus. I even walked to the large shopping mall at the other side of Chiang Mai, but took a change of clothes and freshened up in the restroom. If you enjoy walking it’s great. The point about the smokey season is a good one, and a reason why I wouldn’t stay there all year round.

[sidjameson]

Ah! So outof curiosity where did ou guys choose to live?

 

[Mangkhut]

I have done a lot of walking in and around Chiang Mai. But traffic isnt exactly on a pedrestians premises - so be alert! Rawang rawang! 

And as mentioned, in the middle of the day it gets very very hot. And fumes and exhaust and smoke from burning are also negative aspects of walking in CM. 

If you never have ridden a motorbike or dont have a valid license for it I wouldnt recommend that alternative. 

Learn the songtheow routes so you can use them as an alternative to walking. 

Bicycle sounds tempting - although I have never tried it in CM.

[hakancnx]

Bicycle is the best way of transportation in this town. 

 

It will be perfect if you study at YMCA and live in Santitham. 

 

 

[budrico]

You can buy an electric bike and no license is required. You choose to peddle or use battery assist. I love mine and it is a great way to cover more distance with gettin so sweaty and tired. Check Lazada if you cannot find them for sale in Chiang Mai. 

[elgenon]

15 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Those were the prices earlier this month.

YMCA is a great place to learn Thai, they do speaking and reading/writing courses at very reasonable prices usually running 3 days a week at 2 hours a lesson.

I took a class there. Took a songthaew. I liked that the teacher included cultural bits like that the seafood is transported in formaldehyde so you will get sick if it is not properly washed. And that ice that is not the hollow cube type is walked on.

[elgenon]

3 minutes ago, budrico said:

You can buy an electric bike and no license is required. You choose to peddle or use battery assist. I love mine and it is a great way to cover more distance with gettin so sweaty and tired. Check Lazada if you cannot find them for sale in Chiang Mai. 

I assume you mean both no DL and no vehicle license.

[1FinickyOne]

If you are in Bkk - - yes, much easier to get around... 

[ZeVonderBearz]

Bicycle is the way forward. Smokey season is on its way so invest in some N99 masks with valves and you can cycle in some comfort. I wear mine all year round because the songtaews, tuks tuks and the countless number of filthy fuel vehicles makes it essential to me.

 

Edited October 31, 2018 by ZeVonderBearz

[Catoni]

Don’t take the taxi unless really, really necessary. 

      I mostly walked, but also often taken a songthaew. Songthaews come by every thirty seconds or couple of minutes. Just wave your hand to the side up and down and they’ll stop. Tell ‘em where you want to go. Arrange price. Good to go. Once in a while I would use a tuk tuk. Might be best to make friends with one good tuk tuk driver that you use most. He’ll give you his number. 

   Bicycle would be good, and probably your best bet. Great to keep you health and in shape also. Like you, I would prefer not to use a motorbike, although I have used them in the past a number of times. 

[Saladin]

Very easy and very cheap. The roads are flat and easy to walk, Much is within walking distance if you are living close to the Old Town, Songtaews are 30B. GRAB is cheap and offers a good service. Only a wood duck would use a tuktuk unless it was absolutely necessary. With the most dangerous roads in the world and kamikaze motorbikes, a push-bike is inviting early death or disaster 

[Johnnyngai]

1 hour ago, elgenon said:

I took a class there. Took a songthaew. I liked that the teacher included cultural bits like that the seafood is transported in formaldehyde so you will get sick if it is not properly washed. And that ice that is not the hollow cube type is walked on.

I always wonder how they keep octopus fresh without a refrigerator.   

I like Thai style grilled octopus.   You just saved my life.  

Edited October 31, 2018 by Johnnyngai

[Kurtf]

20 Baht or approximately 65 US cents will get you a ride on a red taxi to anywhere in Chiang Mai.

[PerkinsCuthbert]

22 minutes ago, Saladin said:

Very easy and very cheap. The roads are flat and easy to walk, Much is within walking distance if you are living close to the Old Town, Songtaews are 30B. GRAB is cheap and offers a good service. Only a wood duck would use a tuktuk unless it was absolutely necessary. With the most dangerous roads in the world and kamikaze motorbikes, a push-bike is inviting early death or disaster 

As a foreigner, songthaew fares very much depend on your familiarity with routes and whether you can speak sufficient Thai to make it clear that you don't want to 'mao rot' (เหมารถ) - meaning hire the vehicle for your exclusive use for the journey - but just want the fare for the regular route, which stops and starts as it picks up and drops passengers off, Pattaya-style. Most drivers stopping empty when you hail them will assume that a foreigner wants to 'mao rot' and quote a price accordingly - 30B up - but if you take the regular route songthaew with passengers already aboard, and can make it clear you expect the ordinary fare, the price should be around 12-15B.

Of course this lack of understanding opens the door to lots of opportunities for the drivers in a tourist town like CM.

[NancyL]

I'm surprised no one mentioned the new Blue Buses.  Aircon, free wifi and an online app that shows the routes and the little buses moving around, so you can determine when one is coming soon.  Great way to get across town just for 20 baht.  A push-bike might be OK for the relatively quiet streets of Santitham around the YMCA, but you're risking death to venture onto the roads that surround the Old City or to try to go across town on one.  

 

We've lived in Chiang Mai for 10 years without a car or motorbike.  Easy to get around.  Grab and the new Blue Buses have improved the situation in the past few years.

[Dick Crank]

Walk a couple blocks on each end and take the colored baht trucks that go down every Main Street. 20-50 baht (may have gone up)

 

did it for 5 years, no need for a motorbike.

[changmaichillin]

I use the blue bus regularly 20b to get from one side off the city to another is great value, limited too 3 routes though. Grab are brilliant. Not a fan off Tuk Tuks, expensive and often don't know the way. Bhat bus cheap/good if on route but can be a pain if dropping off in multiple locations before your stop. Blue and yellow taxis should just be avoided unless there are a few off you as very expensive. Thought about getting a bicycle but just looks so dangerous.

[MrBrad]

 

 

From my experience of riding a bicycle in town and out in the countryside for about a dozen years now, I’ve rarely met up with any dangers other than some really rough stretches of street and a few neighborhood dogs.  Sure, there’s always been the occasional driver of a vehicle who’s bent on passing me only to slow down not more than 30 meters in front of me to make a left turn, causing me to veer out of the way to avoid rear-ending him, and imbecilic drivers who open their car doors without checking for approaching traffic, but that’s something for a prudent biker in every country.

 

The air quality, too, has never caused a problem to where I've worn a mask of any kind.  I truly don't like having to breathe that crud, but other than occasional watery eyes on the worst days, I experience no other immediate health issues.  A chest x-ray from last month appears to indicate that I’m good for at least another year of breathing Chiang Mai’s air.

 

I and a number of other older guys whom I’ve come across when out and about put thousands of kilometers on our bicycles every year.  The Thais generally dress like ninjas, but most non-Thais will be without masks.  Always wearing a helmet, however, makes good sense no matter where you ride.

[johnnysunshine]

Wow!   Has everyone forgotten about GRAB?    They are so efficient and affordable.   I have a car and motorbike and bicycles and Grab is still my preference for less traffic, less danger, and time to relax and let someone else traverse our Chiang Mai city for us.   Bicycle is great also, minus the inherent dangers.

[ZeVonderBearz]

1 hour ago, johnnysunshine said:

Wow!   Has everyone forgotten about GRAB?    They are so efficient and affordable.   I have a car and motorbike and bicycles and Grab is still my preference for less traffic, less danger, and time to relax and let someone else traverse our Chiang Mai city for us.   Bicycle is great also, minus the inherent dangers.

How exactly do Grab cars manage to avoid the traffic?

[alfieconn]

On 10/30/2018 at 4:30 PM, simoh1490 said:

It gets very hot at the end of January plus the burning season will be in full swing by then, walking around CM at that time may not be the most pleasant experience.

It doesn't get very hot at the end of Jan, what are you on about ?

[simoh1490]

9 hours ago, alfieconn said:

It doesn't get very hot at the end of Jan, what are you on about ?

I always associate the end of January as the beginning of the hot season, by the end of the month the cool nights are giving way to increasingly hot weather so perhaps it seems hotter than it actually is. Mind you, when your days are spent sitting in an arm chair watching replays of Spurs matches you probably wouldn't know such things.

[amexpat]

15 hours ago, ZeVonderBearz said:

How exactly do Grab cars manage to avoid the traffic?

Of course they don't avoid the traffic, they just ease the pain and frustration while you read, chat, surf, whatever. 

 

Back to bicycles, are they really safer than motor bikes?  I think maybe less safe because you can't just twist the handle

to get out of a dangerous situation and cars don't pay as much attention to bicycles. 

[alfieconn]

4 hours ago, simoh1490 said:

I always associate the end of January as the beginning of the hot season, by the end of the month the cool nights are giving way to increasingly hot weather so perhaps it seems hotter than it actually is. Mind you, when your days are spent sitting in an arm chair watching replays of Spurs matches you probably wouldn't know such things.

Total baloney, plus the burning season is not coming into full swing by the end of Jan.

Are you sure your talking about CM ?

Edited November 1, 2018 by alfieconn

[simoh1490]

6 minutes ago, alfieconn said:

Total baloney, plus the burning season is not coming into full swing by the end of Jan.

Are you sure your talking about CM ?