Looking For 5-star Serviced Aprtment In Chiang Mai

[marc69]

I will be working in Chiang Mai for 3 months in January-March next year and I am looking for a nice serviced apartment in the same

class as Emporium or Amanta in Bangkok.

Monthly rents up to about 65,000 THB would be fine (my employer will be paying for the expenses). Of course I can google and find

something myself but I would like to get information from those who have actually stayed in such apartments in CM. I am not in

Thailand at present and I would appreciate if anyone could provide some contact info or websites for such apartments. Thanks.

[PFV]

Try the Kantary Hills on Nimmanhaemin Soi 12. They also have a very good restaurant on site.

Here is the Website: http://www.kantarygroup.com/kantaryhills-chiangmai/

[ctrunfree]

We had a fairly good look around at apartment options in CM when we were there earlier this year, as planning for another extended stay. The only one we saw which we thought 5 star class was Kantary. Local advice suggests getting a room away from a noisy local pub/disco, but I can't remember which side of the building it faced.

[Maccheroncini]

The Empress and Kantary Hills on Nimmanhaemin are probably the best in town but no match for staying in a 5 star hotel.

[chiangmaiexpat]

The Kantary is quite nice, but to be honest it is overpriced and thus a waste of money. If you stay short-term, you get better accommodation and services at one of the city's upscale hotels for the same price. If you stay long-term (at least 6 month) you can probably rent a beautiful house within the same budget.

Cheers, CMX

[ctrunfree]

But for a 3 month stay, its probably good value- a 3 month lease of a great, well located house might be hard to come by, and 3 months eating hotel breakfasts and take away off you lap in your room would get old very quickly

[marc69]

Thanks to all who have responded. I had a look at Kantary Hills' website and it looks fine. CMX mentioned that I might be able to get a room in a 5-star hotel for the same price. If anyone has some specific suggestions regarding good hotels please let me know.

One thing I forgot to mention in my post was that I really need to be able to work during the weekdays so I would prefer a place away from noise and night life area.

[Stumbo]

Would imagine you could cut a deal with a good hotel for a suite for that period. The Shangrila doesn't seem busy, might start there.

[Drew Aitch]

Would imagine you could cut a deal with a good hotel for a suite for that period. The Shangrila doesn't seem busy, might start there.

Heck, i could stay there just for the gardens at the back. That place has so many nooks and crannies, both inside and out, that you could read your book or entertain freinds in a differnt location for weeks Bit pricey though I've had 3 lots of friends stay that this past year and the double room was between 7-10,000 Baht/night depending on when and from where they booked.

Aitch

[jackr]

The Kantary is quite nice, but to be honest it is overpriced and thus a waste of money. If you stay short-term, you get better accommodation and services at one of the city's upscale hotels for the same price. If you stay long-term (at least 6 month) you can probably rent a beautiful house within the same budget.

He doesn't care if it's overpriced as he won't be paying. Also extremely unlikely going to get a suite at Le Meridien or Shangrila for 2k a night, and in any case, who would want to stay in a hotel for three months knocking about with tourists?

Kantary looks nice and hear they do one and two bed apartments. Nimbleheadman is good for coffee shops, nice bars and uni students and is well away from loud Europeans and Yanks

[marc69]

The Kantary is quite nice, but to be honest it is overpriced and thus a waste of money. If you stay short-term, you get better accommodation and services at one of the city's upscale hotels for the same price. If you stay long-term (at least 6 month) you can probably rent a beautiful house within the same budget.

He doesn't care if it's overpriced as he won't be paying. Also extremely unlikely going to get a suite at Le Meridien or Shangrila for 2k a night, and in any case, who would want to stay in a hotel for three months knocking about with tourists?

Kantary looks nice and hear they do one and two bed apartments. Nimbleheadman is good for coffee shops, nice bars and uni students and is well away from loud Europeans and Yanks

Yes, noise is one of my main concerns. I need to be able to work in the day time and sleep at night without being concerned about "loud Europeans and Yanks"!

I wonder also how easy it is to go around in CM. I mean can I walk from Nimbleheadman to the central area? It is easy to find a taxi in CM like in Bangkok?

[WinnieTheKhwai]

The Kantary is quite nice, but to be honest it is overpriced and thus a waste of money. If you stay short-term, you get better accommodation and services at one of the city's upscale hotels for the same price. If you stay long-term (at least 6 month) you can probably rent a beautiful house within the same budget.

He doesn't care if it's overpriced as he won't be paying. Also extremely unlikely going to get a suite at Le Meridien or Shangrila for 2k a night, and in any case, who would want to stay in a hotel for three months knocking about with tourists?

Kantary looks nice and hear they do one and two bed apartments. Nimbleheadman is good for coffee shops, nice bars and uni students and is well away from loud Europeans and Yanks

...but really NOT away from loud Thais.. It's a very popular pub area and is very congested on weekend nights.

Also extremely unlikely going to get a suite at Le Meridien or Shangrila for 2k a night

Well, Meridien gave us a little over 3K for a suite, and that was for 2 nights. For a three month commitment, it's worth a try.

As for walking: No, you can't walk all the way across town; it's a small town but not THAT small. Though, if they pay you 65K for accommodation in Chiang Mai then I bet a rental car (possibly including a driver) also wouldn't be much of an issue. There ARE meter taxis like Bangkok, but nowhere near the numbers / coverage so you can't just stand at any street and expect to flag one down. However you can call by phone, and very soon you'll have the numbers of a couple taxi drivers you can call at any time to pick you up anywhere. Not cheap by local standards, but nothing that would raise eyebrows on an expense account.

(The most common local transport option are those converted pick-up trucks that are milling around.. Those work very well once you know the lay of the land, but probably not something you want to deal with if you're on business, especially not at first. So I'd either rent a car, or pursue the 'meter' taxi route where you have a couple on call.

What part(s) of town do you need to be?

Edited November 28, 2009 by WinnieTheKhwai

[marc69]

Thanks for the info, WTK. Renting a car sounds like a good suggestion. I don't speak Thai at all and my experience from other places in Thailand is that most taxi drivers do not speak English.

[jackr]

...but really NOT away from loud Thais.. It's a very popular pub area and is very congested on weekend nights.

Don't know if you've noticed but the entire town is populated by loud Thais. For high end apartments in the city, choices are minimal and will inevitably involve being near potential noise. Also think it's set back off the road some and is quite large.

Meridien gave us a little over 3K for a suite, and that was for 2 nights. For a three month commitment, it's worth a try.

I thought the standards were around the 3k mark (in the low season). Nice as it is, though, would you really want to stay there for 3 months?