For Those Who Have Gone Before . . .

[JeffreyMcCollum]

Years here riding in Thailand and I have never done the MAe hong song loop

A few questions, and please answer why if you could

1.) clock or counter clock wise ?

2.) Ninja or wave ??

3.) How many days ?

4.) where would you stop along the way and for the night(s)

5.) Fuel avalability ?

6.) Decent hotels along the way, are they easy to find so reservations not needed ? Costs ?

Thanks for any help !

[moe666]

I rode it on a rented PCX last year. Left CM at 7am engine light came on and had to take it back. Finally got on the road around 815 am. Tanked up in Mae Rim. About 3 hours from CM there is a restrurant where the buses stop took a break there. Rode to Pai took a break there, chatted with a fella from Bangkok riding 3 up on a Lambretta. Went into town for a bite to eat then hit the road. Stopped in Sappong for a break and then again at Wat Tam Wua for another break and a chat with the monk there. I have spent two two month stays there in the past. Road into Mae Hong Song about 5pm stopped at the crossroads bar for a beer and then went to the Rom Tai inn for a room.

I stayed in MHS for the night and finally got up and left around 10am. Rode south on the 108 and took the 1263 to Mae Cheam (spelling) took a break there and into Doi Inthanon the backway, went up to the top had a bite to eat then back down the hill to the 108 into Chiang Mai.

Gas isn't a problem there are plenty of stations in the larger towns along the way and there not that far apart. Rooms are easy to fine. Starting out right or left up to you. Going on the 1263 saves you about 100k as you donot go to far south. You can ride this in one day if you are glutton for punishment but 2 days is easy and if you like to look at the sights 3 or 4 would work.

[JeffreyMcCollum]

Moe666 -

Thanks, sound much like anywhere I ride in Thailand, and only 1 time have I ever had a problem getting fuel in 10 years. Taking the mrs. along and will take 2 days.

Any other notes from anyone would be nice

Thanks

[onlycw]

Play it by ear - this is one of the great advantages. Not having to reach a certain guesthouse...

I always go counter clockwise, hitting the 1095 after leaving Chiang Mai.

Had some awful rooms, but they were in the 2-300 Baht range near MHS. (I somehow got sidetracked and stayed in

villages near that town).

Neither Ninja nor Wave are good for long touring. I kinda liked a CB 400 or a Phantom 200. There are some 400 cc bikes

you can rent. The Phantom is underpowered but okay for bimbling along.

Take a break, stretch your legs, get a cool drink and some meal every few hours. And don't let your tank run dry.

Have a good trip!

[nikster]

Rent a D-Tracker, Ninja, or CBR250... a Wave if it's more about sight seeing and less about the riding

[moe666]

Pai has plenty of rooms as it is back packer heaven, MHS also has a ton of rooms with a lot around the moat plus a few resorts on the north and south side of town. going south khun yuam also is good size. if you go on the 1263 there was a few resorts in mae cheam. out of mae cheam take the 1192 this brings you into the back side of doi inthanon they have rooms to rent at the national park . I haven't stayed at any of the guest houses south of MHS so cannot recommend any place.

In MHS I like the RomThai INN. If you come from the north on the 108 vere to the left at the post office this will take you toward the lake and the wat. Continue to the left as you pass in front of the wat. You will come to another north south road this time vere to the right and the Rom Thai is the second guest house on the left. They have a selection of rooms and bungaloos. Crossroads bar is agreat place for a beer and food.

[xen]

Just got back into CMX about 2 hours ago from doing the Loop for the very first time . But we did it in a hire car but i can see how a bike would be so much more fun. There is always next time . I did not see many touring bikes apart from a group of about 5 Beemas and one Harley down near Mae Sariang .( i mean big bikes ) We stayed in Pai for 2 nights but just relaxed rather than doing the sights , then we traveled through to Mae La Noi for a night. There seemed to be a lot of vacancys in Pai as they said nobody goes there for Songhan which surprised me being a backpacker scene. Very impressed with Mae Hong Son - probabaly one of the prettiest towns i have seen in Thailand.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Edited April 9, 2012 by xen

[Fishenough]

I prefer Counter clockwise, only because riding through Mae Rim's nasty evening traffic is a poor end to a great trip.

MHS, definitively get the Ninja and enjoy the curvesssssss

One day or 2 weeks, you could do anywhere in between and still have a good time. At 600 km's it's not necessarily long, that's just a full days ride on a Wave, but there are plenty of places to visit and check out. One times exploring the loop, my son and I covered 1300 km, with plenty of exploring and stops. You may want you include Mae Chaem and the options it offers to access the MHS loop (I've ridden to Mae Chaem via 4 different routes on street tires).

Scour the biker forums (GT R and Ride Asia) for recommendations on places to stay to your liking, from 150 baht shared bathrooms rooms to luxury rooms. I've got my favorites, but found out this year that one I like didn't measure up for someone else along for the ride (Riverside guest house in Mae Sarieng). Sometimes it's nice to stay in the 3 biggest towns around the loop, but there's plenty of choices in between. I quite like chilling at Cave Lodge. This season is such that you should have no worries finding a place to stay.

No worries with fuel availability: Along the main loop food, water, and fuel are never very far apart.

[pieandmash]

I did the MHS Loop clockwise over 3 days/2 nights a few years back on a Honda Bros, great bike. I stopped overnight at Mae Sarieng and Pai but if I did it again I'd do it over at least 4days/3nights as it wasn't enough time to stop off at the numerous sights along the way. I'd add in a overnight at Mae Hong Song. I'd go for a Ninja or even better a ER6, nice to have plenty of power to overtake trucks when going up mountain roads. Had a fantastic time doing the MHS Loop, hopefully it wont be too long before I do it again.

[KRS1]

I go counter clockwise, since upon return it can get dark and youll have street lighting once you get to the area of Inthanon.

On the first day you can stop in Pai if you leave around 11am-12pm and have lunch and a break, once in Pai go straight up the road where all the tourist stay with the night market,it'll take you to a Chinese village, go straight past a few meters then veer left at the Y intersection theres a restaurant there that has the best viewpoint of Pai, great fried rice (they use mountain rice) and roasted cashews too.

You'll get into MHS right at dusk.Once in MHS find the lake in the middle of the city, dont stay anywhere else, it'll be worth it when you relax, have dinner and a brew, get a guest house in that area, there's some ok guest houses around the back of the lake close to the temple, and one hiso hotel on the main road that is within walking distance to the lake. On the lake there is a restaurant called Monkey Box thats run by an expat from the US, nice guy and cheap beer, almost 7-11 prices, its the biggest place on the lake. Theres also a small night market around the lake.

If you leave early theres only a couple of places on the lake that open early enough for breakfast.

Its ok done in 2 days, but id prefer to do it in 3 next time, so the whole experience sinks in better if you want to enjoy it to the fullest extent. Leaving MHS at 9-10am will get you into CNX barely after dark, but with 2 up you would get in after dark for sure if you take 108 the whole way. If you ride a lot you wont be that tired, but if you dont get out much you'll get tired on the MHS-CNX leg of the trip if you do it in a day.

I like MHS people theyre still friendly, but would get bored to death if i lived there, and no... there's no girly bars there. Take the Ninja if your 2 up.

Edited April 9, 2012 by KRS1

[nikster]

Just got back into CMX about 2 hours ago from doing the Loop for the very first time . But we did it in a hire car but i can see how a bike would be so much more fun. There is always next time . I did not see many touring bikes apart from a group of about 5 Beemas and one Harley down near Mae Sariang .( i mean big bikes ) We stayed in Pai for 2 nights but just relaxed rather than doing the sights , then we traveled through to Mae La Noi for a night. There seemed to be a lot of vacancys in Pai as they said nobody goes there for Songhan which surprised me being a backpacker scene. Very impressed with Mae Hong Son - probabaly one of the prettiest towns i have seen in Thailand.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Pai has an unbelievable amount of guest houses & hotels because they're ready for the onslaught of Thai tourists in the winter - December/January. The rest of the year nobody goes there, especially compared to winter, and in summer it's basically completely dead. And before Songkran is still summer even though the rainy season has set in early this year.