Chiang Mai has the most competitive car rental market in Thailand. I feel you'd be very hard pressed to beat the prices on offer there. e.g. 800 Baht a day for a Suzuki Vitara. Less for a Caribian. It's great.

Soon I'll be renting a car for a couple of weeks but my trip will be focusing on Mae Hong Sorn. Does anyone have any experience of renting cars in Mae Hong Sorn and if so, what kind of prices were asked for? If they are the same as Chiang Mai, I might as well save the fuel cost of renting in CM and then driving to Mae Hong Sorn.

Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences.

I don't know anything about car rental in MHS, but IMHO 95% of the attraction of the area is the drive there from Chiang Mai. Recommend a stop off at Cave Lodge, to the north of Soppong. Can return via Mae Sariang or Mae Chaem.

Agree with the above.. You could rent in Mae Hong Son, but as most of the attractions are in between Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son anyways, just rent in Chiang Mai where rents are competitive and drive.

You could do a loop through MHS and back to Chiang Mai.

Sometimes with the real cheap cars though you get what you pay for.. When going on a long trip it may be worth getting a slightly newer vehicle.

A good local company is www.northwheels.com Budget is also good but you need to hunt down the discounts. (Say you're a resident, and ask.

Indeed, I agree with what you're saying.

I did the loop 2 years ago but this year I was planning a trip focusing purely on Mae Hong Sorn and south of Amphoe Meuang down beyond Mae Sariang. Not sure if renting from MHS is a smart move as nobody has posted any direct experience of renting there.

It could be a case of "Go with what you know."