Greetings!

My friend James and I are moving to Chiang Mai from the UK, from mid-February for 3-6 months. I'm 28, he's 25, we both work on the internet, and fancy a change of scenery.

Thailand seems like an excellent choice and we have a friend who enjoyed his time in Chiang Mai. Chiang Rai was also suggested, and we may be tempted to a nice beach, but we want to avoid the touristy areas and keep it cheaper. Chiang Mai sounds ideal.

I was wondering if anyone here would volunteer to show us around during our first week and help us find a good place to live - we will of course compensate with dinners and entertainment, and it's always good to make friends. We probably won't really look at accommodation before we arrive beyond booking a hotel for the first week.

Particularly I'd like someone to take us on our first visa run.

I've been browsing the forum for the information below, I add it here mainly as an introduction, in case anyone is a particularly good match for us in terms of interests and lifestyle.

As we both work on the internet, good Broadband is essential and we need somewhere secure for our computers. 2 bedrooms and maybe a 3rd as an office.

We like partying, and one reason to go to Thailand is definitely the girls. We're not really sure what to expect but the Thai girls I've met in the UK have always seemed great. So we'll want to live near the good/big bars and clubs, but off the tourist track slightly.

cheers,

Magnus

Okay.

February is quite far away still, I typically don't plan too much ahead. Just send me a private message or email..

> we will of course compensate with dinners and entertainment

LOL.. so what kind of entertainment do you provide, typically? Nah just kidding. As for finding accommodation though, happy to discuss things, gives some hints and pointers but I'm not going to drive you guys around. Will definitely be able to tell you what areas you can drive around yourselved (moped, etc.) where you can find (long term) accommodation. Or contact one of the real estate companies and pretend you're interested, they typically drive you around. That will give you a feel for what's out there. Then just arrange things on your own which should result in dramatically lower rents.

Cheers,

Chanchao

I might be able to take you on a visa run.

PM me and we can discuss

Hey there, I'm another expat likely moving to the area in February, but a couple weeks before you guys, so I'd be happy to share my immediate experiences and impressions of the rooms available right then (and we will basically have to wait until at least March for the long-term stuff, sometimes a better rate and much much better selection).

Yeah, I was thinking of throwing an in-the-know get-together, closer to the date just posting something like "Want free drinks? Show up at (I'll pick a spot with more research). Newbie wants to meet the community and'll be buying a number of rounds. Might have some newbie questions - if you won't be annoyed at the occasional "How hard is the motorcycle driving test anyway? Can you really get it on a non-immigrant visa?" type of inquiries in a relaxed social setting, stop on by."

After the fact, I'll let you know how it goes, or if you guys are arriving in time you can join in (always helps to share the costs - judging by what I've spent in ChiangMai before I figure I can pay for a bunch of people with about the same amount of money a night out costs in Japan, but could always get burned...)