7 hour stopover - Chiang Mai

[Startmeup]

I’ve got a 7 hour stopover in Chiang Mai on Saturday afternoon. Is there anything worthwhile doing in that time? 
 

Not really interested in temples or anything like that I’m more thinking a good restaurant and/or coffee shop I could go to that’s not a lot of hassle to burn 2 or 3 hours? 
 

Maybe go for a nice sauna/cold plunge/massage nearby? 

[GammaGlobulin]

Visit Chiang Mai University.

 

Plenty of coffee shops there.

 

You could probably plunge into the university swimming pool.

 

Also, you could hire a student to give you a few hours of basic Thai language instruction.

 

There are student cafeterias there with quite good food.

 

That is what I would do, anyway.

 

 

[AlexRich]

I'd head for Nimman Road for some decent cafes and restaurants. I'm pretty sure you'll find health/massage places there too. Across the road is the Maya Mall, has some great shops, food areas and a cinema. My favourite haunt when in Chiang Mai.

[Startmeup]

7 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Visit Chiang Mai University.

 

Plenty of coffee shops there.

 

You could probably plunge into the university swimming pool.

 

Also, you could hire a student to give you a few hours of basic Thai language instruction.

 

There are student cafeterias there with quite good food.

 

That is what I would do, anyway.

 

 

can anyone use the pool there?

[Dolf]

Book a hotel with swimming pool nearby the airport. There is also a Central Mall there.

[Prubangboy]

Live in Nimman, the road parallel (on the Nimman1 Mall side) is very low traffic, full of what you want, and 10 minutes away.

 

If you want a true spa experience like in the movies, Fa Lanna is the best (about 2,000 baht for an hour massage). It's popular, so book ahead.

 

Or just smoke a lot weed. You can't toss a rock without hitting a weed store.

[Startmeup]

Yes maybe a hotel with a day pass/min spend to access pool/sauna and gym and have some food, any suggestions? 

[khunphil]

With the nice polluted air coming just today, a refreshing indoor place could be more reasonable than wandering in a park/garden ... 😉 

Also take care of the traffic on Saturday afternoon near the airport. That's not Bangkok but it can be a little bit busy. Check Google Map 1 or 2 hour before.

Maya / Nimman are not far but the city center is also quite close, we are not in Bangkok 😉

150Thb to go to the city from airport. You can take a Grab car to go back. Plenty of massage shops from 300 to 3,000 thb. Enjoy !

[Startmeup]

2 minutes ago, khunphil said:

With the nice polluted air coming just today, a refreshing indoor place could be more reasonable than wandering in a park/garden ... 😉 

Also take care of the traffic on Saturday afternoon near the airport. That's not Bangkok but it can be a little bit busy. Check Google Map 1 or 2 hour before.

Maya / Nimman are not far but the city center is also quite close, we are not in Bangkok 😉

150Thb to go to the city from airport. You can take a Grab car to go back. Plenty of massage shops from 300 to 3,000 thb. Enjoy !

I was just reading the other day that the pollution isn’t bad in Chiang Mai this year? 

Can’t get grab at the airport to town? 

 

Does it ever take longer than 30mins from airport to Nimman? Wouldn’t want to miss my

flight. Maps is showing circa 20 mins? 
 

shangri la day passes seem reasonable 

 

🌞 Swim your worries away at one of the largest pool in town and enjoy the special promotion of our pool day pass.

Family day pass + THB 300 F&B credit(2 adults + 2 kids) THB 850
Single day pass + THB 200 F&B credit(1 adult + 1 kid) THB 450
Extra day pass(for kids ages 3 to 15) = THB 150

Open daily from 8am to 7pm 🏊🏻
🐳Pool day pass available at Health Club on level 1

☎️For more information, please contact 053 253888

 

[Prubangboy]

16 minutes ago, Startmeup said:

3 minutes ago, Startmeup said:

I was just reading the other day that the pollution isn’t bad in Chiang Mai this year? 

Can’t get grab at the airport to town? 

 

Does it ever take longer than 30mins from airport to Nimman? Wouldn’t want to miss my

flight. Maps is showing circa 20 mins? 
 

shangri la day passes seem reasonable 

 

🌞 Swim your worries away at one of the largest pool in town and enjoy the special promotion of our pool day pass.

Family day pass + THB 300 F&B credit(2 adults + 2 kids) THB 850
Single day pass + THB 200 F&B credit(1 adult + 1 kid) THB 450
Extra day pass(for kids ages 3 to 15) = THB 150

Open daily from 8am to 7pm 🏊🏻
🐳Pool day pass available at Health Club on level 1

☎️For more information, please contact 053 253888

 

Yes maybe a hotel with a day pass/min spend to access pool/sauna and gym and have some food, any suggestions? 

Def call ahead to the Shangri La to make sure that pool deal is still on offer. A lot of nice hotels haven't updated their websites since Covid. Shangri La has a good (but not great) unlimited dim sum lunch.

 

At rush hour, it could be an hour back to the airport. Unlikely, but it happens.

 

The pollution is only medium-bad right now. But soon to ramp up.

 

You can get grab at the airport, but it's a flat 150 baht from the taxi dispatcher into town.

 

 

[khunphil]

2 minutes ago, Startmeup said:

I was just reading the other day that the pollution isn’t bad in Chiang Mai this year? 

Can’t get grab at the airport to town? 

 

Does it ever take longer than 30mins from airport to Nimman? Wouldn’t want to miss my

flight. Maps is showing circa 20 mins? 
 

shangri la day passes seem reasonable 

 

🌞 Swim your worries away at one of the largest pool in town and enjoy the special promotion of our pool day pass.

Family day pass + THB 300 F&B credit(2 adults + 2 kids) THB 850
Single day pass + THB 200 F&B credit(1 adult + 1 kid) THB 450
Extra day pass(for kids ages 3 to 15) = THB 150

Open daily from 8am to 7pm 🏊🏻
🐳Pool day pass available at Health Club on level 1

☎️For more information, please contact 053 253888

 

Bad air just coming last night, not sure about tomorrow.

20mn / 30mn trip : it all depends ... Cannot be exact. If you have a 7h break, 10mn more or less will not make much more difference.

Grab FROM the airport can be "tricky" and maybe not much cheaper. Also, you often have to take it outside. Grap App shows "Drop off only" ... so ...Taxis are on the left, 150thb, and off you go

ShangriLa is  a nice place and quite easy access to the highway, but outside city center. If you wanna stay there, that's cool.

 

[Startmeup]

150 baht taxi is fine.

 

I think the easiest/most stress free thing to do is go to and from airport to Shangri la. I will have a small suitcase so I don’t want to be lugging that around a mall or university for half the day. I like the idea of getting in a pool/shower/gym half way through all the travel to freshen up a bit and get some exercise. Hopefully the pollution doesn’t get any worse 

 

My departure is approx 7pm so going from Shangri La to airport I would need to depart at maybe 1730 to allow for travel and check in?
 

How busy is the airport right now I’ve read about some dreadful Qs in Bangkok. 

[Prubangboy]

Why not just have a wander in the beautiful Old City? Even for the Temple-phobic, plenty of ambience and tourist pleasures to enjoy.

 

7 hours at the mall (partic the small Maya Mall)? 7 hours hogging a sun bed at the Shangri-La? That will be a draggy 7 hours.

[Prubangboy]

2 minutes ago, Startmeup said:

 

 

depart at maybe 1730 to allow for travel and check in?
 

How busy is the airport right now I’ve read about some dreadful Qs in Bangkok. 

That's the height of rush hour. Lines are usually not brutal at the airport, but you never know when you'll get stuck behind a Chinese group at check in.

 

Google, the most astonishing question answerer ever, reveals that you can check your bag at the airport for 140 baht.

[Startmeup]

1 minute ago, Prubangboy said:

Why not just have a wander in the beautiful Old City? Even for the Temple-phobic, plenty of ambience and tourist pleasures to enjoy.

 

7 hours at the mall (partic the small Maya Mall)? 7 hours hogging a sun bed at the Shangri-La? That will be a draggy 7 hours.

Between to and from travel times to airport it’s likely closer to 5 hours. 
 

I would do an hour in the gym. Get some food and have a swim and sauna. 3-4 hours worth which would leave me with plenty of time to get back to airport for my flight without rushing. 

[Prubangboy]

Your dull dithering has finally worn me out.

[GammaGlobulin]

1 hour ago, Startmeup said:

can anyone use the pool there?

 

In the recent past, yes.

Anyone can use the pool, for a fee.

I forget the price; but maybe Bt.50, or so.

It is a a very nice pool.

There are times when the pool is available to anyone, but you need to shower before entering the pool, I think.

 

Note:  Please do call and check for times and availability...because....in Thailand...all is constantly in a state of flux.

 

 

[Startmeup]

9 minutes ago, Prubangboy said:

Your dull dithering has finally worn me out.

I’ll dither my way to the pool for a nice swim tomorrow 

[GammaGlobulin]

12 hours ago, Startmeup said:

I’ve got a 7 hour stopover in Chiang Mai on Saturday afternoon. Is there anything worthwhile doing in that time? 
 

Not really interested in temples or anything like that I’m more thinking a good restaurant and/or coffee shop I could go to that’s not a lot of hassle to burn 2 or 3 hours? 
 

Maybe go for a nice sauna/cold plunge/massage nearby? 

 

By the way:

If you have never been there, the CMU campus is large and beautiful, with plenty of places to relax and stroll among the sights of nature.

 

If I had 7 hours in Chiang Mai, then I would spend all of the time on the campus of Chiang Mai University, and would be sorry to leave at the end of the day.

 

 

[Startmeup]

19 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

By the way:

If you have never been there, the CMU campus is large and beautiful, with plenty of places to relax and stroll among the sights of nature.

 

If I had 7 hours in Chiang Mai, then I would spend all of the time on the campus of Chiang Mai University, and would be sorry to leave at the end of the day.

 

 

Under different circumstances I would choose the uni over the other options. Looks like a nice place to wander around for a half day. 

[scorecard]

6 hours ago, Startmeup said:

can anyone use the pool there?

Contact the uni and ask.

[scorecard]

2 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

By the way:

If you have never been there, the CMU campus is large and beautiful, with plenty of places to relax and stroll among the sights of nature.

 

If I had 7 hours in Chiang Mai, then I would spend all of the time on the campus of Chiang Mai University, and would be sorry to leave at the end of the day.

 

 

My Thai granddaughter is in her second year of her Bachelor Of English in Civil Society at CMU (all conducted in English) and the 1 year of Japanese language study is conducted in English by a Japanese lecturer. 

 

G/daughter says CMU is very friendly and staff / students very helpful (and seems that's enhanced in the last 5 years or so when the uni retired a large number of old mostly female dragon professors in many faculties). 

 

She's mentioned that Maya shopping centre is popular with students and lots of good coffee shops / restaurants / small restaurants with good food.

CMU and Maya are both not so far from CM airport.  

 

G/daughter often uses BOLT from her faculty area or from Maya to get home, her father (my Thai son) asks her regularly if the BOLT service is reliable and on time, always YES, and he asks if the drivers even suggest 'other activities', answer NEVER.

 

Actually she's a professional swimmer, very fit and has studies martial arts and she's not easily intimidated.

 

With her father she made a plan. If anything untoward happened quickly and loudly demand the driver stop and get the door open a little to be sure driver can't lock passenger in the car.

 

If driver doesn't stop hold the car door fully open and yell HELP at all passing cars. 

 

 

[Startmeup]

3 hours ago, scorecard said:

My Thai granddaughter is in her second year of her Bachelor Of English in Civil Society at CMU (all conducted in English) and the 1 year of Japanese language study is conducted in English by a Japanese lecturer. 

 

G/daughter says CMU is very friendly and staff / students very helpful (and seems that's enhanced in the last 5 years or so when the uni retired a large number of old mostly female dragon professors in many faculties). 

 

She's mentioned that Maya shopping centre is popular with students and lots of good coffee shops / restaurants / small restaurants with good food.

CMU and Maya are both not so far from CM airport.  

 

G/daughter often uses BOLT from her faculty area or from Maya to get home, her father (my Thai son) asks her regularly if the BOLT service is reliable and on time, always YES, and he asks if the drivers even suggest 'other activities', answer NEVER.

 

Actually she's a professional swimmer, very fit and has studies martial arts and she's not easily intimidated.

 

With her father she made a plan. If anything untoward happened quickly and loudly demand the driver stop and get the door open a little to be sure driver can't lock passenger in the car.

 

If driver doesn't stop hold the car door fully open and yell HELP at all passing cars. 

 

 

Some great info thanks a lot. 

[Nick Carter icp]

6 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

By the way:

If you have never been there, the CMU campus is large and beautiful, with plenty of places to relax and stroll among the sights of nature.

 

If I had 7 hours in Chiang Mai, then I would spend all of the time on the campus of Chiang Mai University, and would be sorry to leave at the end of the day.

 

 

 

   Some ASEANNOW posters go to that University just to look at the female students , sit outside and look at the students in short skirts 

[GammaGlobulin]

5 hours ago, Startmeup said:

Under different circumstances I would choose the uni over the other options. Looks like a nice place to wander around for a half day. 

 

Absolutely, it definitely is a very nice campus.

Very relaxed.

The people there are all very nice and welcoming.

The students are respectful of old people, too, and helpful if some old person might ask for directions, etc.

The campus is one of the best places to spend time in Chiang Mai...maybe for walking around the reservoir, or reading a book under a tree, or relaxing at one of the coffee shops.

 

If you don't have enough time, this visit, then maybe next time.

 

The food in the student cafeterias, I enjoy every much, and it's the cheapest place to eat, and they do a great job of preparing the food hygienically.

Never got sick once, to quote the Purple Berries song.

 

 

[Dolf]

9 hours ago, Startmeup said:

was just reading the other day that the pollution isn’t bad in Chiang Mai this year? 

It gets worse. March is the worst month.

[Dolf]

18 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

There are student cafeterias there with quite good food.

 

Compared to proper restaurants? I find that hard to believe. 

[Dolf]

6 hours ago, Startmeup said:

Under different circumstances I would choose the uni over the other options. Looks like a nice place to wander around for a half day. 

Drove through it. It did not look interesting to me. Lots of students on motorbikes. Nothing to see.

[Nick Carter icp]

17 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

Absolutely, it definitely is a very nice campus.

Very relaxed.

The people there are all very nice and welcoming.

The students are respectful of old people, too, and helpful if some old person might ask for directions, etc.

The campus is one of the best places to spend time in Chiang Mai...maybe for walking around the reservoir, or reading a book under a tree, or relaxing at one of the coffee shops.

 

If you don't have enough time, this visit, then maybe next time.

 

The food in the student cafeterias, I enjoy every much, and it's the cheapest place to eat, and they do a great job of preparing the food hygienically.

Never got sick once, to quote the Purple Berries song.

 

 

 

   Universities are for students to study , its not a place for tourists to hang about passing their time.

   Why do you like hanging around places with lots of students ? 

Older man hanging around schools is an arrestable offence in some Countries 

[GammaGlobulin]

9 minutes ago, Dolf said:

Compared to proper restaurants? I find that hard to believe. 

 

I enjoy the student food (at CMU).

Fact!