Chiangmai Versus Bangkok For Retirement

[Shah Jahan]

Haven't most foreign residents opted to leave Pai in the last year or two?

The 'cool' Bangkok people started showing up a few weeks ago and will last until after new years.

then they will go back to their country and pai will be quiet again

but it really doesnt matter - they pretty much stick to their resorts and downtown in the evenings. there is life here outside of the tourist downtown. ever been to the Wednesday market? bet you none of the bangkokers have.....

The amount of falang residents and tourists has stayed more or less steady over the past 5 years when pai was still unknown to the city of angels elite.

during the 9 months a year when Bangkok has forgotten about pai, the economy is subsisted by a handful of residents and a trickle of low-mid budget falang tourists.

[percy2]

Going back to the OP , have you thought about Cha-Am/Hua Hin?

You have the sea and the mountains.

Housing there is still reasonably priced.

Bangkok is only an easy 3hr drive away.

Cheers

[coldcrush]

Most Bangkok residents know that the place pretty much sucks.

It is not exactly Rome, Paris, Montreal or San Francisco, now is it?

Still Rome, Paris, Montreal or San Francisco dont offer what the BKK City of Angels does eh! There only one BKK! However I would retire to CM as you can get a flight down pretty cheap if you need the bright lights. Also BKK does have excellent Nightclubs compared to CM, its always been a lacking point in CM to get good quality dance music not that techno <deleted> at Bubble and the rest...apart from poser Warm Up...

Edited November 21, 2007 by coldcrush

[Ulysses G.]

Agreed.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE Bangkok for short periods of time, but rather live somewhere else and visit often.

[uptheos]

Bangkok is a great place to visit and I can't recall ever having a bad time there. However, I always know when I've had enough and its time to leave. Landing at Chiangmai is always a pleasant experience.

[sabaijai]

and I dont even live in CM

hop on SGA or drive up the mountain for 3 hours to Pai and one look and you will know if you want to live here. (yes we have high speed internet!)

Hmmmm....

My Thai friends refer to Pai as "Pattaya on the Hill"

Cheers

Your friends have either never been to Pattaya or never been to Pai.

Haven't most foreign residents opted to leave Pai in the last year or two?

I personally don't know any that have left. If so they've been replaced

Thais account for around 50% of tourism in Pai now, on average, and on weekends and Thai holidays it approaches 70%. Walk into Phu Pai or Be-Bop on a weekend night and Thais now outnumber foreigners, ditto for any restaurant outside of the guesthouses and the few remaining farang dives like Drop Inn or Burger House.

There are few tourist destinations in Thailand that have such a high ratio of Thais to foreigners. Most foreign visitors probably think all the Thais they see are local ....

[sabaijai]

Seems like Bangkok and Chiang Mai are roughly equal in terms of one activity: sitting in front of a computer posting messages on ThaiVisa. Perfect for retirement.

[sabaijai]

I coped by staying in my a/c office more than I usually would. Next year if we see another bad conflagration of weather and smoke, I may escape to northern Yunnan.

The whole idea of not staying there (or anywhere) the whole year is very appealing. But I guess it depends on my financial situation.

BTW, is it necessary to learn the Northern dialect or is central Thai spoken by everyone? I found that in Issan most folks could understand Thai well enough but had trouble speaking it.

Central Thai is spoken by nearly everyone as a 2nd language. After awhile you pick up a lot of the high-frequency northern vocab anyway. If you know Isan, it helps as northern and northeastern Thai share a lot of commonalities (though northerners hate to admit it, considering themselves more 'Thai' than their Isan cousins).

[percy2]

and I dont even live in CM

hop on SGA or drive up the mountain for 3 hours to Pai and one look and you will know if you want to live here. (yes we have high speed internet!)

Hmmmm....

My Thai friends refer to Pai as "Pattaya on the Hill"

Cheers

Your friends have either never been to Pattaya or never been to Pai.

I've been to both recentlyand I can see their point.

Cheers

[Cyberstar]

Seems like Bangkok and Chiang Mai are roughly equal in terms of one activity: sitting in front of a computer posting messages on ThaiVisa. Perfect for retirement.

Speaking about Thai visa - Chiang Mai immigration office has a special fast lane dedicated to retirement extensions (which sort of put the retirees in the same category as tourists, which also have a special fast lane dedicated their 30-day extensions). The rest of us (ED, B, marriage, etc.) have to share one lane among us. A few days ago I spend a couple of hours down there. There never were less than 4 guys in the lines neither at the shared lane nor at the tourist lane. At the retiree lane there were about 20 minutes between each client, who consequently were out of there in the wink of an eye - so, I'm sure the retirees in Chiang Mai must have an advantage of at least a couple of hours per year over their colleges in Bangkok regarding how much time is available for posting.

[PeaceBlondie]

I hadn't thought of comparing the two Immigration Police offices, but that's a good point. One nice air/con building in Chiang Mai is used for the chiefs, getting proof of residence, and other minor things. The open air pavilion across the parking lot is for extensions, and the copying shop is right behind, cozy and convenient. Even a coffee shop in the pavilion. That surely beats the multi-level congestion of hundreds of aliens at Suan Phlu.

[camerata]

Going back to the OP , have you thought about Cha-Am/Hua Hin?

Not really. I've been there and it didn't appeal to me much, whereas there's a lot in CM that does appeal. My favourite place in the world is Kyoto, and like Kyoto CM has the mountains, rivers and temples.

[camerata]

Is the mail reliable in Chiang Mai? I've been using Amazon and other online vendors since Day 1 and only ever had one videotape not arrive. I've had no problems receiving vitamins and other natural supplements by mail either.

[Ulysses G.]

and I dont even live in CM

hop on SGA or drive up the mountain for 3 hours to Pai and one look and you will know if you want to live here. (yes we have high speed internet!)

Hmmmm....

My Thai friends refer to Pai as "Pattaya on the Hill"

Cheers

Your friends have either never been to Pattaya or never been to Pai.

I've been to both recentlyand I can see their point.

Cheers

Really? Could you spell it out for us?

[percy2]

and I dont even live in CM

hop on SGA or drive up the mountain for 3 hours to Pai and one look and you will know if you want to live here. (yes we have high speed internet!)

Hmmmm....

My Thai friends refer to Pai as "Pattaya on the Hill"

Cheers

Your friends have either never been to Pattaya or never been to Pai.

I've been to both recentlyand I can see their point.

Cheers

Really? Could you spell it out for us?

I did in an earlier post.

Cheers

[Ulysses G.]

[

I don't think it was a reference to prostitution , rather a comment on the Thai - foreigner ratio.

I'm not conviced.

[PeaceBlondie]

Camerata, as for the mail, I get all mine, including credit cards mailed from the USA, IRS letters, pension statements, etc. Your mileage may differ.

[Cyberstar]

Just for the record:

(The month-long 300 mpcm pollution level in Bangkok should be compared to mid March, 2007 where Chiang Mai hit the world news because of 3-4 days in the 200-240 mcpm bracket)

QUOTE begin

Sukhumvit most POLLUTED

Only seven of BMA's 60 'green roads' have safe air, probe finds

Published on November 25, 2007

Bangkok's Sukhumvit Road is the most polluted among the 60 major roads that the city administration has earmarked for improvement.

According to the latest survey, conducted from July to September by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), the air on Sukhumvit has over 300 micrograms of dust particles per cubic metre (mpcm), far above the standard of 120 mpcm.

QUOTE end

Source: The Nation 25/11/07 - http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/11/25...es_30057321.php

[Ulysses G.]

The month-long 300 mpcm pollution level in Bangkok should be compared to mid March, 2007 where Chiang Mai hit the world news because of 3-4 days in the 200-240 mcpm bracket.

Chiang Mai had that kind of pollution only once - for only a few days. Bangkok is constantly polluted.

NO COMPARISON!

[jaideeguy]

Well, it looks like you are getting a lot of positive [convincing?] feedback for retiing in CM.

I'll add my 2 satangs....

" What are the features that make CM a better place to retire than Bangkok? I have PR, so visa stuff isn't a problem. I don't drive in Bangkok because I live near a BTS station. I do appreciate the good medical facilities in Bangkok, shops like Villa, UBC cable TV and decent ADSL access, but the place has zero charm these days and the suburbs are boring."

there are excellent and more affordable medical facilities here.

You will need a car, if you choose to live outside CM as public transport is a bit behind BKK.

many shopping opportunities here as well, but not as upscale as BKK.

and you can get UBC anywhere in thailand....cable in the city.

i assume that adsl is the same, as we are dealing with the same molopies.

and we do still have a little charm left, if you get up here quick.

as others have posted, give it a trial and test the waters before you dive in.