The Most Beautiful Area Around Chiang Mai To Live?

[LaoPo]

The Most Beautiful Area Around Chiang Mai To Live?

What is considered to be the most beautiful, nicest, quiet area around Chiang Mai to live ?

Is that WEST of the city in/around/close to the mountains ? More EAST....SOUTH or NORTH ?...

To my shame, I've never been to Chiang Mai so I have no idea.

Your input will be most appreciated and if you could post a link, even more!

http://maps.google.nl/maps?f=q&source=...mp;t=h&z=14

LaoPo

[Maccheroncini]

have you considered Chiang Dao?

[elcent]

Be careful, you may fall in love with the "Rose of the North"

To your question. I can only advice to go there and look around. Too many places that are nice to be.

[lannarebirth]

I'm a little biased because my wife owns land there, but I think the prettiest place to live near Chiang Mai is in Ban Mae Ann, out past the Prem school. Samui Spa recently opened a spa there too.

http://www.thesparesorts.net/residence-inv.../why-chiang-mai

In the city I like the area west of Wat Jed Yod. I agree with you that the nicest living is to he west of the city. In the NW especially, but also in the SW.

[LaoPo]

have you considered Chiang Dao?

No, not yet; as I said I don't know anything about CM and studying the options.

How far would Chiang Dao be with normal traffic to CM or to the Airport? And, is fast internet no problem or am I asking something dumb now ?

Are there nice villas for rent?

Cheers

LaoPo

[LaoPo]

I'm a little biased because my wife owns land there, but I think the prettiest place to live near Chiang Mai is in Ban Mae Ann, out past the Prem school. Samui Spa recently opened a spa there too.

http://www.thesparesorts.net/residence-inv.../why-chiang-mai

In the city I like the area west of Wat Jed Yod. I agree with you that the nicest living is to he west of the city. In the NW especially, but also in the SW.

1. Is Ban Mae Ann (Google doesn't show that place but gives: Nam, San Pa Tong, Chiang Mai 50120,) a little south west of CM ?

2. Wat Jed Yod; is that west, in the mountains ?

I think I better follow the advise and go and have a look for a few weeks since I was a little naive to think it would be easier...

Thanks a lot,

LaoPo

[jaideeguy]

The OP doesn't state how far from the city center does he want to be. But, an easy half hour from the moat [city center, you can be in the foot hills in Doi Saket area where the air is cleaner and mostly rural. My favorite area and fewer falangs than the area south of CM, which seems to be a lot more congested with falangs and you get the airport noise.

[Fishenough]

Have you visited Mapjack for a Chiang Mai city virtual tour? And Map Guide Thailand is a more accurate map than Google maps.

Anywhere outside the ring roads, away from a busy center, has cleaner air than downtown.

Cheers

[LaoPo]

The OP doesn't state how far from the city center does he want to be. But, an easy half hour from the moat [city center, you can be in the foot hills in Doi Saket area where the air is cleaner and mostly rural. My favorite area and fewer falangs than the area south of CM, which seems to be a lot more congested with falangs and you get the airport noise.

Max half an hour by car would do I think.

LaoPo

[LaoPo]

Have you visited Mapjack for a Chiang Mai city virtual tour? And Map Guide Thailand is a more accurate map than Google maps.

Anywhere outside the ring roads, away from a busy center, has cleaner air than downtown.

Cheers

Thanks a lot!

LaoPo

[flying]

That MapJack

http://www.mapjack.com/

Is pretty cool software

[msg362]

Try east, around San Kamphaeng, a really nice town 20 Km out ( 20 min to the airport) mountains, rural quiet yet accessible.

[Bill97]

So it is about a location not more than 30 minutes from downtown which has nice villas for rent and reliable fast internet(your dream?). And what else, schools? mountain views? river/lake views? security like in a housing estate?

I think you were right when you say that you should come and have a look around for a few weeks. Opinions are so variable.

[Maccheroncini]

It's a nice if you're a nature lover, very far from the airport aprox 77 km.  Check the website.

http://www.1stopchiangmai.com/northern_thailand/chiang_dao/

Cheers,

have you considered Chiang Dao?

No, not yet; as I said I don't know anything about CM and studying the options.

How far would Chiang Dao be with normal traffic to CM or to the Airport? And, is fast internet no problem or am I asking something dumb now ?

Are there nice villas for rent?

Cheers

LaoPo

[zippydedodah]

not to belabor the point... but didn't someone say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

one man's ceiling is another man's floor...

[LaoPo]

So it is about a location not more than 30 minutes from downtown which has nice villas for rent and reliable fast internet(your dream?). And what else, schools? mountain views? river/lake views? security like in a housing estate?

I think you were right when you say that you should come and have a look around for a few weeks. Opinions are so variable.

You're right; maybe I should write down our requirements, since schools etc are of no importance to us, no kids.

1. security important

2. house with min. 3 bedrooms/bathrooms

3. large garden and if possible pool

4. no more than 30 min from CM centre/ ie shopping/food markets; but if Chiang Dao is so nice as member Maccheroncini says (link; thank you!) who knows; depends if there are nice villas for rent...?

5. fast Internet connection is an absolute must; can't do without.

6. no further than 30-45 min from CM airport; see 4.

7. buy or rent good 4-wheel drive

8. 1 or 2 staff (couple?)

9. view would be nice but not as important as other points.

Well, that's about it I suppose but maybe I'm dreaming and is all that an Utopia ?

You guys know better than me.

LaoPo

[clinique]

try te Mae Rim/ mae sa valley area out near the Four Seasons Hotel..

also best for climate...

[zippydedodah]

define fast internet.....

No matter how "fast" it is NOW... it might not (almost guaranteed) be that fast all the time. There are so many variables....

Having said all of that... i live in San Kamphaeng and my 3mbit line operates at that speed for about 90% of the time... believe me, i feel very lucky

[LaoPo]

try te Mae Rim/ mae sa valley area out near the Four Seasons Hotel..

also best for climate...

Looks nice! Any links for real estate in that area?

LaoPo

[LaoPo]

define fast internet.....

No matter how "fast" it is NOW... it might not (almost guaranteed) be that fast all the time. There are so many variables....

Having said all of that... i live in San Kamphaeng and my 3mbit line operates at that speed for about 90% of the time... believe me, i feel very lucky

Be able to see YouTube movies...is that fast for Chiang Mai area ?

I don't know, I really don't....

LaoPo

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Well... In the end you will end up weighing beauty against convenience. You will likely find that an absolutely stunning area may be far away from anything and everything. At the risk of stating the obvious, the most beautiful areas in Chiang Mai likely involve mountain views, possibly waterfalls and so on. Here another real-world-consideration enters the equation, namely that most of the natural beauty is inside national parks and/or in areas with un-defined land ownership. That make those areas more challenging to live especially if you're looking at owning the property: even a Thai wife/partner owning land in those areas is tricky, especially when they're not native to those areas.

You then added some requirements & considerations:

schools etc are of no importance to us, no kids.

1. security important

2. house with min. 3 bedrooms/bathrooms

3. large garden and if possible pool

4. no more than 30 min from CM centre/ ie shopping/food markets; but if Chiang Dao is so nice as member Maccheroncini says (link; thank you!) who knows; depends if there are nice villas for rent...?

5. fast Internet connection is an absolute must; can't do without.

6. no further than 30-45 min from CM airport; see 4.

7. buy or rent good 4-wheel drive

8. 1 or 2 staff (couple?)

9. view would be nice but not as important as other points.

The thing is, 1 through 6 are things you find in commercial developments though large gardens are rare there.

7 and 8 are completely unrelated to the place where you live: buy car, hire staff.

9 gets back at the original title of the post: beauty.

I think the challenge you have is weighing (sub-)urban conveniences with a beautiful spot with a view. That's the main challenge. The urban conveniences are fairly easy to find, good 3 bedroom houses are all over the place in any direction from town. The views by and large consist of the 3 identical houses surrounding you.

So, seeing that you're willing and able to employ 2 staff, that also takes care of security.. So to meet all requirements you may be looking at getting some land somewhere nice, and building a house to your specification. A big garden and views can be had that way, and with two staff who are always there, that takes care of most of the security concerns: two live in staff (live-near, in their staff house attached to the garage) that you get along with are always going to be better than the security staff at commercial developments..

So I'd make that choice first: commercial development or not. They're largely similar in any direction from town, with few significantly more beautiful than any other.

Edited January 31, 2010 by WinnieTheKhwai

[LaoPo]

Well... In the end you will end up weighing beauty against convenience. You will likely find that an absolutely stunning area may be far away from anything and everything. At the risk of stating the obvious, the most beautiful areas in Chiang Mai likely involve mountain views, possibly waterfalls and so on. Here another real-world-consideration enters the equation, namely that most of the natural beauty is inside national parks and/or in areas with un-defined land ownership. That make those areas more challenging to live especially if you're looking at owning the property: even a Thai wife/partner owning land in those areas is tricky, especially when they're not native to those areas.

You then added some requirements & considerations:

schools etc are of no importance to us, no kids.

1. security important

2. house with min. 3 bedrooms/bathrooms

3. large garden and if possible pool

4. no more than 30 min from CM centre/ ie shopping/food markets; but if Chiang Dao is so nice as member Maccheroncini says (link; thank you!) who knows; depends if there are nice villas for rent...?

5. fast Internet connection is an absolute must; can't do without.

6. no further than 30-45 min from CM airport; see 4.

7. buy or rent good 4-wheel drive

8. 1 or 2 staff (couple?)

9. view would be nice but not as important as other points.

The thing is, 1 through 6 are things you find in commercial developments though large gardens are rare there.

7 and 8 are completely unrelated to the place where you live: buy car, hire staff.

9 gets back at the original title of the post: beauty.

I think the challenge you have is weighing (sub-)urban conveniences with a beautiful spot with a view. That's the main challenge. The urban conveniences are fairly easy to find, good 3 bedroom houses are all over the place in any direction from town. The views by and large consist of the 3 identical houses surrounding you.

So, seeing that you're willing and able to employ 2 staff, that also takes care of security.. So to meet all requirements you may be looking at getting some land somewhere nice, and building a house to your specification. A big garden and views can be had that way, and with two staff who are always there, that takes care of most of the security concerns: two live in staff (live-near, in their staff house attached to the garage) that you get along with are always going to be better than the security staff at commercial developments..

So I'd make that choice first: commercial development or not. They're largely similar in any direction from town, with few significantly more beautiful than any other.

Thank you for taking so much time and effort; much appreciated!

Definitely NOT into buying; no Thai wife at hand and we also don't want to go through the property hassle although many villas are a good opportunity and a some a "steal" but not enough a steal to be tempted and buy........and we want to be free also and leave the country if needed for many kinds of reasons, health is one of them, family is one of them, business another, traveling next to that etc.

Renting is the only way.

7, 8 and 9 are indeed not related just wanted to describe our wishes.

Thank you!

LaoPo

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Understood..! in many ways that makes it easier.. Don't have to worry about the status of the land. You hit mountains in every direction from town, so I'd plan an extended stay and look around.. Areas of interest may be beyond Sankamphaeng towards Mae On, the Mae Sa Valley to the North / Mae Rim area, and towards the South-West off the Canal Road, and the Doi Saket area to the North-East.. (Like I said, pretty much every direction. )

[Asmerom]

Understood..! in many ways that makes it easier.. Don't have to worry about the status of the land. You hit mountains in every direction from town, so I'd plan an extended stay and look around.. Areas of interest may be beyond Sankamphaeng towards Mae On, the Mae Sa Valley to the North / Mae Rim area, and towards the South-West off the Canal Road, and the Doi Saket area to the North-East.. (Like I said, pretty much every direction. )

I've lived in Mae Rim, Chiang Mai and Doi Saket and wouldn't describe any of these areas as beautiful. If you think acres of rice fields, clusters of ramshackle huts,and poverty are beautiful then it's all around you. There are the occaisional local beauty spots such as Huay Tueng Tao Lake or walking in areas with a distant view of the mountains but you can't actually live there.And the mountains are only beautiful from a distance.

When you get to, and up them ,the views are very few and far between.Its all so densely forested.Thais don't think of the countryside as something beautiful to be contemplated,to raise the spirits; there's no Lake Disrtict around here and no Wordsworth to glorify it or Alfred Wainright to chart its hundreds of paths; no Yorkshire Dales, no South Downs to attract thousands of eager seekers after beauty.There's no Pennine Way, no Alpine playground; no GR 10 which draws thousands of French into exploring their beautiful Pyrenees.

There may be some limited visual beauty in the National Parks but hardly the ideal place to actually live. And the mountain treks are solely from one poor hilltribe village to another and not with the purpose of ascending a difficult climb to stand and stare at the awesome sight of distant mountain peaks.

No,Thailand is definitely not a beautiful country. And I wager that wherever you find your house you will be assaulted on all sides with all manner of domesticated wildlife to shatter any peace and quiet you may think you have found. Thais can't stand silence and don't know what beauty is.

[Ulysses G.]

No,Thailand is definitely not a beautiful country.

Much of the Southern West coast is as beautiful as anywhere in the world - Krabi is just one example. The North is pretty, but it all looks alike, so not as striking as some other places.

[Asmerom]

"No,Thailand is definitely not a beautiful country" : Asmerom

Much of the Southern West coast is as beautiful as anywhere in the world - Krabi is just one example. The North is pretty, but it all looks alike, so not as striking as some other places.

Yes, I should have qualified that by saying "Northern Thailand"

[Ulysses G.]

I agree with you.