Is Chiang Mai Worth A Visit?

[TrashTalkinJames]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

[britmaveric]

Plenty to see/do in CM. Nightlife is less manic then BKK, Samui, Phuket, and Pattaya but was very relaxing. I enjoyed the 5days I spent there.

[TrashTalkinJames]

Plenty to see/do in CM. Nightlife is less manic then BKK, Samui, Phuket, and Pattaya but was very relaxing. I enjoyed the 5days I spent there.

thanks Britmaveric, yeah I assumed it was less hectic that those place, sounds good to me for 3-4 days. As long as you can still play pool and drink some beers.

cheers

[raybingham]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I am there now,

It is a super place. Incomparible with Bangkok and don't even think about Pattaya. Chiang Mai is a diamond of a place for Falangs who want to see Falangs at every other corner !

[femi fan]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

Hey mate, chiang mai must have one of the top quality pool leagues in the world. High class players all over the place! Fridays.

It is also a town with perhaps more things to do than just about anywhere in the world, and nearly everywhere is just 15 or 20 minutes away. And it is surrounded by a nature adventure playground.

The salaries are piss poor here, but lifestyle is very hard to beat.

[Tyke]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I wouldn't bother going - it's dullsville, with neither the advantages of a big city or those of a small country town. It's nightlife sends you to sleep, which is good as it finishes early, transport except to the standard places, atrocious, and the farangs rather sad (hence the darts league thingy mentioned here). There are some interesting looking tours to the surrounding countryside but they are so well-trodden, even the guides seem bored with the whole thing. If the pool, beer thing doesn't get boring after the first night, the provincial farangs certainly will. And this is a compliment to the little place.

[papajohn]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I wouldn't bother going - it's dullsville, with neither the advantages of a big city or those of a small country town. It's nightlife sends you to sleep, which is good as it finishes early, transport except to the standard places, atrocious, and the farangs rather sad (hence the darts league thingy mentioned here). There are some interesting looking tours to the surrounding countryside but they are so well-trodden, even the guides seem bored with the whole thing. If the pool, beer thing doesn't get boring after the first night, the provincial farangs certainly will. And this is a compliment to the little place.

Sorry Chiang Mai cannot satisfy your Pattaya trash tastes mate, please don't come back. You cannot even get your facts right ! Thanks for the compliment we hope to keep this "little place" as a true Thai experience with friendly Thai people, magnificent temples (over 100) and great food. CM is the trekking center in Thailand for visiting the Hilltribe cultures. CM is not just another Honky Tonk Town that you obviously are looking for. Chok Dee.

[lazeeboy]

chang mai's a great place to visit ,has many things to do in the day and many things at night ...

[britmaveric]

papajohn - nought wrong with Patters, nor is it trash as you eloquently state!

CM is very nice place and I was very impressed. Definitely worth a look and a highly recommend it for a visit.

[padfoot]

Yes, Chiang Mai is worth a visit. I have been there and will be back. It is not a place for the go-go bars. But there is much to do and see. There is a lot of good food, many temples and plenty of out of town sites to see. Like every place I've been in Thailand, I enjoyed it. It is not like Bangkok, Pattaya or Phuket, but that is why I like traveling to different parts of the country.

[Super Hans]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I wouldn't bother going - it's dullsville, with neither the advantages of a big city or those of a small country town. It's nightlife sends you to sleep, which is good as it finishes early, transport except to the standard places, atrocious, and the farangs rather sad (hence the darts league thingy mentioned here). There are some interesting looking tours to the surrounding countryside but they are so well-trodden, even the guides seem bored with the whole thing. If the pool, beer thing doesn't get boring after the first night, the provincial farangs certainly will. And this is a compliment to the little place.

I don't disagree with what you say but CM is my favourite place in Thailand. I won't go back but it's worth a visit. It's relaxing, the food's great and you don't get hassled so much.

The nightlife isn't great, but has enough for a short time. Forget about pool in CM - I've found it to be the worst place to play in Thailand, and I play a lot and have played everywhere. The tables are <deleted> - small, snooker type tables, which make potting difficult for those that are used to American tables ie all but locals. Nowhere beats Bangkok for pool, as long as you avoid the backpacking areas.

[Super Hans]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

Hey mate, chiang mai must have one of the top quality pool leagues in the world. High class players all over the place! Fridays.

There are a lot of good players there, that's for sure, although they do have the advance of playing on tables the rest of us are not used to.

[distortedlink]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I wouldn't bother going - it's dullsville, with neither the advantages of a big city or those of a small country town. It's nightlife sends you to sleep, which is good as it finishes early, transport except to the standard places, atrocious, and the farangs rather sad (hence the darts league thingy mentioned here). There are some interesting looking tours to the surrounding countryside but they are so well-trodden, even the guides seem bored with the whole thing. If the pool, beer thing doesn't get boring after the first night, the provincial farangs certainly will. And this is a compliment to the little place.

I have lived in Chiang Mai for the last 5 years and what Tyke says just about sums it up.

If you want to be bored out your skull, than come to Chiang Mai.

Edited June 23, 2008 by distortedlink

[PeaceBlondie]

Not to hijack this thread, but with its title, the topic deserves some broadening, I think (IMHO). Who should come to visit Chiang Mai, if not a young pool player? My daughter just mentioned that her friend (and possibly the friend's wife) are coming here in August for a visit, mostly as tourists. I think they (middle-aged, educated, a strange mix of liberal and conservative) could spend a couple of weeks seeing the sights, maybe taking a cooking class or a rafting trip, visit an authentic Hill Tribe village, etc. We need more tourists, Thai and farang.

[papajohn]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

I wouldn't bother going - it's dullsville, with neither the advantages of a big city or those of a small country town. It's nightlife sends you to sleep, which is good as it finishes early, transport except to the standard places, atrocious, and the farangs rather sad (hence the darts league thingy mentioned here). There are some interesting looking tours to the surrounding countryside but they are so well-trodden, even the guides seem bored with the whole thing. If the pool, beer thing doesn't get boring after the first night, the provincial farangs certainly will. And this is a compliment to the little place.

I have lived in Chiang Mai for the last 5 years and what Tyke says just about sums it up.

If you want to be bored out your skull, than come to Chiang Mai.

5 years and still here? Somehow no make sense. Planes,trains and buses leave here everyday, unless the guards on the wall are

keeping you in.

[IonaBong]

Chiang Mai good but if you only look computer all day then not so good for you? Better you use your eye for something else. Pool snooker not so good very cigarette smell in that place. but pool swimming good i like so much for healthy and wear my swimsuit too.

[Jefferson]

Pictures please.

But seriously, "is there a lot to do in Chiang Mai".. Not really I think? I just came back to Chiang Mai from Pattaya with a visiting friend who hasn't been to Chiang Mai (or Pattaya) before and she found it remarkable how much better organized and peaceful Chiang Mai is compared to Pattaya City. "Traffic in Pattaya seems like India with all the suicidal drivers there." .. (And she never saw Beach Road / Second road overthere)

So anyway, while Chiang Mai is great to live for these and other reasons (not as #*$(#$& hot either), it's not like it's a spectacular place to visit if you need to be entertained..

But it's a great place to spend some time to relax and visit some sights and hang with some locals, all at a leisurely pace.

Edited June 23, 2008 by Jefferson

[raybingham]

Just got back from 5 day break to Chiang Mai.

In my opinion CM has everything you need with some excellent trips available to hillside villages, zoo, waterfalls, shows etc, etc.

Will certainly go again.

[bratpack]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

Hey mate, chiang mai must have one of the top quality pool leagues in the world. High class players all over the place! Fridays.

It is also a town with perhaps more things to do than just about anywhere in the world, and nearly everywhere is just 15 or 20 minutes away. And it is surrounded by a nature adventure playground.

The salaries are piss poor here, but lifestyle is very hard to beat.

You must have a tournament with the Pattaya boys at pool.There is a yearly event where bk play Pattaya,home and away.Each year Pattaya destroys them so i would tend to disagree with you on that score.The top players here are some ex pro snooker players and a couple of brilliant thai guys.Also they live here so we can always put out a very strong team.One guy was the best in phuket when he lived there.The quality is frightening here so lets get it on lol.

[britmaveric]

Only gripe with CM, quite daunting crossing the road moving out of the old city. Can wait quite a long time for a suitable gap to open. Other than that CM is cheaper and heaps to do. Not to mention the world famous Tuskers Bar is there. What more can one ask for???

[Maejo Man]

What more can one ask for???

A lady named off

[britmaveric]

What more can one ask for???

A lady named off

Now Off??? What happened to On???

[femi fan]

I've been to Bangkok, Samui, Phuket etc. before and it's all good, and fancy trying somewhere different for a few days. I'm interested in seeing historical stuff but more interested in playing pool, meeting people, beers etc. Would you say Chiang Mai is more 'off the beaten track' than those aforementioned places? I found there too many backpacking muppets in Bangkok.

also, is there much to do on day tours in the area?

p.s i'm a single 28 year old male, would be travelling alone.

thanks in advance for any advice.

Hey mate, chiang mai must have one of the top quality pool leagues in the world. High class players all over the place! Fridays.

It is also a town with perhaps more things to do than just about anywhere in the world, and nearly everywhere is just 15 or 20 minutes away. And it is surrounded by a nature adventure playground.

The salaries are piss poor here, but lifestyle is very hard to beat.

You must have a tournament with the Pattaya boys at pool.There is a yearly event where bk play Pattaya,home and away.Each year Pattaya destroys them so i would tend to disagree with you on that score.The top players here are some ex pro snooker players and a couple of brilliant thai guys.Also they live here so we can always put out a very strong team.One guy was the best in phuket when he lived there.The quality is frightening here so lets get it on lol.

All i can say is that chiang mai is full of very good pool players, and has a strong league. The only external comparison i can make definitively is with samui, and that contributed to my description of the quality of the chiang mai league. I can also add that one of our team is an ex-snooker player with a 145 to his name. I stand by what i said about the quality. Maybe you can destroy bkk, but does that mean chiang mai can be destroyed?!

Reading some of the other posts about chiang mai amazes me. The town has just so much to offer by way of doing things, and visiting things, and being things.

[femi fan]

I have lived in Chiang Mai for the last 5 years and what Tyke says just about sums it up.

If you want to be bored out your skull, than come to Chiang Mai.

Why on earth would you want to live somewhere for five years to be bored out of your skull? What the hel_l is wrong with you man?

[femi fan]

And this is a compliment to the little place.

So then big man, what big place do you reside in?

It's interesting to see you making such a good effort at belittling somewhere. Why would that be then?

[Sao Jiang Mai]

Interesting opinions on Chiang Mai, and it simply shows that we all move in different circles and have differerent interests and priorities. I find Chiang Mai almost too busy at night. I just want to stay home and have more quiet nights, but there is always something going on. But I suppose that is my job. For me Chiang Mai is ideal for a week's visit. There are 34 temples within the 1 square mile moat. That is a lot. Doi Suthep has about three very easily accessible waterfalls that take less than half an hour to get to from the city centre...I love taking a bottle of wine after work and sitting by a waterfall, dipping my feet in the stream as I enjoy the evening (taking plenty of mossie repellent obviously!) There is some of the best food you can find anywhere. The people are rediculously friendly (I am in Phuket for a month, taking a break and trust me, many locals and expats here want nothing to do with strangers. They are most unfriendly. I go up and talk to people...some move away!) and within an hour's drive you can be in some of the most splendid environments in the country. It is cheap, it is easy to get around and it is filled with little weird and fascinating things if you look for it.

Still, it is just my opinion, I can understand that hard core partiers would find it boring, or city slickers find it dull. Nevermind, that is why the world has so many places to suit all of us. No need to slag off anywhere, just find whatever suits you.

[StevieH]

i've been all over thailand in the past four months and chiang mai is unquestionably my favourite place. i love it here, the people, the city, the layout, the entertainment, the lifestyle. it's got about everything i want and i've just come off the back of living twelve years in london.

incidentally i also think there's more to chiang mai than pool.

[Steve2UK]

Hmmmm.............. between this topic and the "if CM is too noisy, dusty, busy" topic, difficult one to call.

On balance, I liked things better when the standard CM-dweller's response to people asking about coming here was "Go south, definitely south". No mean pool player myself, yet I'm not disposed to join the Pattaya/Phuket versus the rest of you contest. What it boils down to is this: Chiang Mai has its own character and there doesn't seem to be anything else in LOS that comes close. That character suits me fine after nearly two years of living here and numerous long-term stays before that. I rent a house just off the superhighway and a friend who stayed here a week told me that the birdsong woke him up early - yet we can get to the heart of a busy city 10 minutes drive away.

If Patong/Silom/Pattayaland are your thing, then the CM equivalents will seem a pale imitation......... so "Go south, definitely south".

I'm still a book addict, so maybe I'll have to come to some accommodation with UG about how many books have to be bought to keep him OK with the rest of us trying to keep CM from becoming just another entertainment strip - but I know he's grown-up about the pro's & cons either way..........

Did I mention that CM doesn't have a beach?

[miltonbentley]

Hmmmm.............. between this topic and the "if CM is too noisy, dusty, busy" topic, difficult one to call.

On balance, I liked things better when the standard CM-dweller's response to people asking about coming here was "Go south, definitely south". No mean pool player myself, yet I'm not disposed to join the Pattaya/Phuket versus the rest of you contest. What it boils down to is this: Chiang Mai has its own character and there doesn't seem to be anything else in LOS that comes close. That character suits me fine after nearly two years of living here and numerous long-term stays before that. I rent a house just off the superhighway and a friend who stayed here a week told me that the birdsong woke him up early - yet we can get to the heart of a busy city 10 minutes drive away.

If Patong/Silom/Pattayaland are your thing, then the CM equivalents will seem a pale imitation......... so "Go south, definitely south".

I'm still a book addict, so maybe I'll have to come to some accommodation with UG about how many books have to be bought to keep him OK with the rest of us trying to keep CM from becoming just another entertainment strip - but I know he's grown-up about the pro's & cons either way..........

Did I mention that CM doesn't have a beach?

Spot on

[highonthai]

Ditto...