Changwat NAN

[Powder]

hello everyone,

right now i live in the area of Kanchanaburi. Its a nice area, but very hot.

For me i would like to relocate to a cooler area and some people i know in my area suggested changwat or district NAN.

Great nature and good climat, i ve been told.

I would like to know if there are expats or pensioners who live or long stay in this area and what their opinion is about this area.

Ofcourse i will visit myself this area too within a few months, but the more i know the better.

Suggestions about renting a house, what about smog???, maybe i forgot something, but i hope you can help me a bit.

Thanks in advance.

 

[sceadugenga]

It's definitely cooler in the north, particularly in mountainous areas.

We get a bit of smoke/smog after the new year, some go away for awhile, others put up with it.

Coming up for a look yourself is the best idea.

[Powder]

thank you very much

[kevvy]

We love living in Chiang Rai  the vast amount of travel opportunities available. It  offers countless waterfalls, amazing hiking trails,  and hill tribe communities. Living here you will  discover the most amazing province Thailand has to offer.. The cool season is upon us soon , and I personally have witness frost on my windscreen .The peace and quite of the mountains is amazing. You have smoke early in the year but it is still amazing living here . 

[kevvy]

Houses are cheap here if you dont live in the city . At night where I live you can hear a mouse fart , and only 20klm from city

[Powder]

Thanks Kevvy,

much apreciated

[villagefarang]

Here are a few shot from our last visit to Nan.  I prefer Chiangrai but I am sure you can adapt to life in Nan if that is your goal.????

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Randell]

2 hours ago, villagefarang said:

Here are a few shot from our last visit to Nan.  I prefer Chiangrai but I am sure you can adapt to life in Nan if that is your goal.????

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi there VF. i certainly don't meant to sound like a stuck record but Your photos always make me respond well done just excellent. And a great representation of the area. Thanks again/

R

[cadwallader]

It seems that your main criteria are heat, smog/smoke, and retired expat life, so I'll focus on those topics.

 

1. For much of the year the very north feels hotter than southern regions, despite the official temperature readings, because of the lack of breezes. In the winter it can be very cool at night and in the mornings if you live on top of a mountain, but no expats do so. By lunchtime it’s the usual summer heat. I have never lived in Kanchanaburi, so I cannot make a direct comparison, but the coolest place to be is by the sea because of sea breezes, official temperature readings do not take this into account.

 

2. The smoke can be very difficult for many people. In fact a few of the respondents to your post are on record year after year complaining about it, despite their apparently encouraging posts and pretty photos. The official figures for air quality are online, they are not nice reading. Hospitals are regularly overworked for respiratory problems during that season even for Thais, who are used to it. I suggested to a couple of farang acquaintances who suffer very badly in that respect that they should take an apartment in the south for the hot season (3 months at least). They said they couldn't afford to. And that's the trap many expats in the north are in, not just for this issue, but in general.

 

3. There is zero expat life in Nan, and hardly anyone speaks English, even to a basic level. There are no services worth mentioning for expat residents. Maybe someone will respond saying “my wife has a snack shop”, well the various posters who have claimed somesuch in the past  are no longer operating of course.

 

Another point worth bearing in mind is that Nan is not easily accessible. There’s one very slow road north to Chiang Rai (several hours) through the mountains on roads and mountain bends that will make many drivers sick. There is a newer major road south to Phrae that goes on to Bkk, in fact the main highway to Bkk.

 

Having said all that, I like Nan very much, but unless you’ve got an extremely good reason to live there, it’s better for a weekend or occasional visit, rather than a place to live. If you are going to make a trial stay, then do it between March and May when you will be able to judge for yourself whether the heat and air pollution are manageable for you.

 

[villagefarang]

What a wonderfully cheerful post and thank you for the pretty picture reference.  I do have my phone on me most of the time and I tend to pull it out when something catches my eye during the course of the day.

 

We stay with Thai friends in Nan so I can’t comment on the expat situation but I find mornings in the North quite comfortable most of the year and air-conditioning helps a lot during the day.

 

I am a fan of speaking Thai regardless of where one lives in Thailand and of course age, health, interests, finances and adaptability should all be considered when one is contemplating  where to live.  With a positive attitude most things are manageable and quite enjoyable most of the year.  Then again some people are not happy, regardless of where they are.

 

Nan does have an airport and I have used two different routes to get there but prefer the more scenic 1148.  My drive time is roughly the same as to Chiangmai.

 

 

[cadwallader]

OP, regarding Nan airport. It is one of numerous provincial airports in Thailand that rarely open. I'm not sure what the current status is, but I've never known it to be open.

One of the most important things that I forgot to mention is that very very few expats live in Nan, so if you are looking for expat company, which you seem to be from your original post, Nan is definitely not the place to be. Although it is the capital city of Nan province it is a small provincial town, much smaller than Chiang Rai or Phrae.

As I mentioned before, very few people in Nan speak English to even a rudimentary level, quite reasonably so as there is no need for it. But even if you speak central Thai well you will find that the local language is substantially different. I know of at least one farang who claims to be an expert in Thai after 40 years here (though somehow he never managed to learn how to read it) who was completely flummoxed by the local language, the pronunciation of which is particularly strong in Nan, so much so that he proclaimed the locals to be uneducated. Of course most Thais can speak central Thai, but not as the language of everyday discourse in the north, even among the highly educated professional class.

 

 

[villagefarang]

Nan airport has at least three daily flights to and from Bangkok Don Mueang airport.

 

All expats are different and have different needs.  The OP appears to be from Holland and asked for opinions from any expats or pensioners who live or long stay in the area.  That doesn’t necessarily sound like a plea for farang companionship but I suppose it could be.  I would not be so bold as to write-off Nan as definitely not the place to be.  It could very well be, that the OP would find Nan to his liking for any number of reasons.

 

I am not sure how many of us who live in and around Chiangrai and the surrounding provinces are overly dependent on expat companionships.  I know I can take them or leave them.  For example, tomorrow I have to go to the airport early in the morning and plan to hit the gym afterwards.  Depending on how I feel after my workout, I may or may not stop by the monthly Potluck.  I can always find a couple people to talk with there but it is not important enough in my life to go out of my way.  Some people are quite happy with or without the company of other expats.????

[sceadugenga]

Three flights a day seems about right.

 

https://www.airasia.com/select/en/gb/DMK/NNT/2019-10-30/2019-11-06/1/0/0/R/N/THB/ST

[cadwallader]

Dear OP

"I would like to know if there are expats or pensioners who live or long stay in this area." No-one who has answered so far lives in Nan, or ever has done. As a pensioner who is not fluent in any form of Thai you will need a lot of support, Nan is close to zero.

My experience with Nan airport is that like numerous very small provincial airports, it is seasonal, open sporadically and its published schedule is unreliable and extremely limited. No-one who has responded so far claims to have taken a flight to or from Nan.

[sceadugenga]

Which is why I suggested that he goes there for a couple of weeks to check the place out.

Who knows, a limited farang population could very well be part of the places attraction.

[villagefarang]

You seem to have a very poor opinion of Nan and perhaps need to update your information.  I have friends who fly in and out of Nan regularly but I have not done so personally.  Does that mean my friends are lying?

 

You very conveniently shortened that quote to accommodate your perspective.  The meaning changes considerably when you do that.

"I would like to know if there are expats or pensioners who live or long stay in this area and what their opinion is about this area."

 

Anyway, in this modern age everyone seems to be entitled to their own truth.????

[cadwallader]

Dear OP, you should also be aware that some people on this forum have been trying to sell their properties for some time, unsuccessfully. Would it be cynical of me to suggest that's why they are trying to talk things up?

For what it's worth, as I said before, I like Nan very much, and have a very good opinion of it. But my opinion, as someone who has spent more time there than anyone who has responded so far, and has more personal experience with the airport than anyone who has responded so far, is that it does not meet your stated requirements at all.

If you do chose to spend your time and money checking it out, I would be very interested to hear your own opinion. As I mentioned in my first post, March to May would be the best time to experience the heat and air pollution in its full glory, as attested by my co-respondents who complain about it every year (despite their coyness in admitting it).

Best regards.

[ripstanley]

"For what it's worth, as I said before, I like Nan very much, and have a very good opinion of it." 

 

cadwallader

 

The above statement is from your post.

 

Could you please tell us why you like it so much. All we have heard are negatives about Nani

[villagefarang]

Rereading the OP I don't see where he has stated any requirements.  All he has asked for are some insights and opinions, which we have given.  His friends suggested Nan has great nature and good climate, something I think we can all agree on. 

 

In my opinion it is always more about the person than the place.  What one person loves, another will hate so what matters is what the OP thinks when he visits.  I would recommend now or before the end of the year, to see Nan at its best and get an idea of the upside.  You can always come back later in the year if you really want to experience the smoke.

[sceadugenga]

I see there was a thread on Nan last year that I missed while in hospital.

Like the current topic people agree to disagree but one contributor not only lives there but owns a business and is happy to discuss the locality by PM with interested people.

 

I see that my absence from the forum allowed it to run off topic....

 

https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1057867-whats-happening-in-nan/page/2/#comments

 

[CharlieH]

A trolling post has been removed and a response to it, (purely to maintain flow).

[Powder]

Some people tried to sell their houses for a while? For what reason if i may ask?

because i read nature and climate is great.

Is it because of air polution? is it that bad?

Or are there other matters why people want to relocate

 

[villagefarang]

I doubt anyone really likes the burning season but we find ways to manage it and have no desire to leave Chiangrai. Those with health concerns should probably weigh their health risks. 
 

Nature and climate are indeed great in my opinion. 

[Big Gary]

Don't forget about the "Flesh Eating Disease" in Nan as well.

[Powder]

we find ways to manage??????

so it is not that bad.

Better i have a look myself in the area of Nan and ank around.

if it isn't the dirty water of the ocean and rivers, its the air polution in many areas around the world.

[villagefarang]

I consider all things manageable...smoke, weather, traffic, immigration, health, aging and even trolls. Tolerance and adaptability are the way to go in my opinion. ????????

[Powder]

????Right!!!