Pai Crowded, Expensive

[hellodolly]

Oh dear, more pai bashing. If you don't like this kind of place then simply don't go back there. The OP liked the countryside, well that IS the main reason for going there. Just keep out of the town. And incidentally there's plenty of places that are less than 800 baht, one just needs to look a bit better. But why stay in the town when the countryside is so nice? Why not stay out there?

Pai certainly attracts the moaning farang. Crikey, how some farang just bloody moan and moan and moan about being here. Places like chiang mai and pai, even as they are developing, are magnificent when compared to so much of the world, yet they just have to be moaned about.

Pai is a truly magnificent place with so many guest houses, so many restaurants and eating places, so many drinking places, so many interesting other kinds of places, excellent walking and cycling, magnificent nature opportunities and so much else to commend it. Yet farang who go there, don't like it, just have to moan about their experience and project that into some kind of objective reality.

Keep away from these places if you don't like them. And as for going at the height of the high season when half of bangkok have left their city is asking for problems for the moaners. There again, perhaps it's the best time to go there if one is a moaner because it provides some class moaning material.

1. I went to around 12 places in Pai and the cheapest one was B 800 and was a dump (mattress on the floor; no aircon, although not needed now; no fan; no fridge; no view) and tiny.

2. I would never call Pai a "magnificent place"; bad restaurants (also overpriced), too many visitors; without the beauty of Chiang Mai.

3. For your information, I also visited many other places at almost the same time and found them to be far more charming and inviting than Pai was. I will not name them because I don't want them to turn into Pais.

Doesn't speak well for your ability to act as a critic.

You were expecting what in a small town that has two 7/11s for westerner shoppers and a small population that doubles to triples in size during the high season.

[rene123]

the roads up are treacherous too! (more deaths this week with a mini-bus overturning)

What else is new, considering the way so many vans operate. While riding my motorbike on what pass for Thai highways I've been run off the road more times than I can mention, and most of the time it was those silver vans.

[uptheos]

I will not name them because I don't want them to turn into Pais.

Yeah right.....do your bit.

[mic6ard]

The actual town is sleepy and boring.

That has always been my take on Pai, but I didn't mind so much when it was cheap.

That's actually what I like about it. A break from work, nice quiet place to literally do nothing during the day, then get ready for the night, hit a couple of bars.

I GO THERE TO RELAX.

[femi fan]

3. For your information, I also visited many other places at almost the same time and found them to be far more charming and inviting than Pai was. I will not name them because I don't want them to turn into Pais.

So where's the balance then? You're trying to put people off from going to pai with your criticisms of it, yet even though you have found some decent alternatives you're not prepared to offer people alternatives to pai? I think if you're so keen to rubbish pai, you have to show posters where they can go now, now that you've put them off from visiting pai. Especially since you say you've found some other places to go to instead.

And the question is begged, if you've found all these other places why were you going to pai, and at the height of the peak high season?

[femi fan]

The actual town is sleepy and boring.

That has always been my take on Pai, but I didn't mind so much when it was cheap.

That's actually what I like about it. A break from work, nice quiet place to literally do nothing during the day, then get ready for the night, hit a couple of bars.

I GO THERE TO RELAX.

Exactly. Luckily the people who get put off by the place never seem to be in evidence when i go there, i only ever meet interesting and varied people there.

Or, you can hit the countryside during the day and do nothing in the evening...!

[cloudhopper]

For your information, I also visited many other places at almost the same time and found them to be far more charming and inviting than Pai was. I will not name them because I don't want them to turn into Pais.

Thanks Vicar there must be thousands of people who follow your advice on where to eat and travel.

[femi fan]

I trust you are inwardly quite grateful for the post, femi fan, as you seem to have enjoyed yourself very much moaning about it.

Guilty i guess! However, my moaning is hopefully just reserved for the bashing thailand stuff. Also, when pai gets bashed i feel the need to come out and help the place out a bit...

and my moaning is in reaction to a moaning. I try not to proactivate moaning.

[Thailand]

Thanks Vicar there must be thousands of people who follow your advice on where to eat and travel.

[Mestizo]

I've never really understood the attraction to Pai. Chiang Dao is more scenic, closer, less crowded, cheaper. To my way of thinking it beats Pai in every way yet it's never captured the popularity of Pai .

It lacks all the Pai night life. It also lacks all the likeminded younger tourists out having a great time. Pai for me is getting lost outside the town on a motorbike, taking in the scenery, relaxing, eating some good cheap food during the day time. And then partying the night away with a bunch of cute farang tourist girls in places like Ting Tong Bar, Beebop, Yellow Sun, and Don't Cry.

That party atmosphere is lacking in Chiang Dao. I guess if I was 70 years old, Chiang Dao might be attractive, but I'm still young (at heart) and still enjoy my Pai getaway weekends immensely!

-Mestizo

[Fishenough]

If you live here on a pemanent basis you don't travel to Pai, or similar, during the high festive season.I would have thought that was basic common sense. There are convoys of vehicles coming up north fron Bangkok to northern Thailand and local businesses are making hay while the sun shines. Low season Pai is delightful and accomodation very reasonably priced. No differnt in CM where low season "buy 2 nights get one free" at hotels/guesthouses is quite common.

Looking at old photos found that I was first in Pai 13 years ago, and enjoyed it for the same reasons than as now; endless socializing with outgoing people from all over the world. If your open, outgoing, and friendly you can find company for your entire stay in Pai, I actually can't think of another place in Thailand where most visits included sitting around a fire all night talking with people from all over the world. Sat around fires in lodges, and camp fires, in other parts of Thailand, but only in Pai found myself going turning in at dawn after an enjoyable night. Added plus was so often young backpacking gals needed assistance to get back to there rooms (and that dreads don't stink like they did in the 70's)

Noted the only place I've witnessed road rage, from locals, was in the hills of the 1095 during peak season.

[mic6ard]

The actual town is sleepy and boring.

That has always been my take on Pai, but I didn't mind so much when it was cheap.

That's actually what I like about it. A break from work, nice quiet place to literally do nothing during the day, then get ready for the night, hit a couple of bars.

I GO THERE TO RELAX.

Exactly. Luckily the people who get put off by the place never seem to be in evidence when i go there, i only ever meet interesting and varied people there.

Or, you can hit the countryside during the day and do nothing..!

@Femi: That's exactly what I did. day1 was travelling to see the sites, visit some temples, hotsprings, the usual touristy things then hit the bar in the evening. But the second day was just plain chill, then hit the walking street again in the evening.

Edited January 5, 2013 by mic6ard

[mic6ard]

Oh dear, more pai bashing. If you don't like this kind of place then simply don't go back there. The OP liked the countryside, well that IS the main reason for going there. Just keep out of the town. And incidentally there's plenty of places that are less than 800 baht, one just needs to look a bit better. But why stay in the town when the countryside is so nice? Why not stay out there?

Pai certainly attracts the moaning farang. Crikey, how some farang just bloody moan and moan and moan about being here. Places like chiang mai and pai, even as they are developing, are magnificent when compared to so much of the world, yet they just have to be moaned about.

Pai is a truly magnificent place with so many guest houses, so many restaurants and eating places, so many drinking places, so many interesting other kinds of places, excellent walking and cycling, magnificent nature opportunities and so much else to commend it. Yet farang who go there, don't like it, just have to moan about their experience and project that into some kind of objective reality.

Keep away from these places if you don't like them. And as for going at the height of the high season when half of bangkok have left their city is asking for problems for the moaners. There again, perhaps it's the best time to go there if one is a moaner because it provides some class moaning material.

1. I went to around 12 places in Pai and the cheapest one was B 800 and was a dump (mattress on the floor; no aircon, although not needed now; no fan; no fridge; no view) and tiny.

2. I would never call Pai a "magnificent place"; bad restaurants (also overpriced), too many visitors; without the beauty of Chiang Mai.

3. For your information, I also visited many other places at almost the same time and found them to be far more charming and inviting than Pai was. I will not name them because I don't want them to turn into Pais.

1. 800Baht, of course it's going to be a bit run down. What were you expecting?

2. Yeah, I agree with most of the comment on this one, you really have to pick and choose your restaurant and hope for the best.

[Ulysses G.]

1. 800Baht, of course it's going to be a bit run down. What were you expecting?

A lot more than a mattress on the floor; no aircon, no fan; no fridge; no view for 800 baht in a guesthouse in Pai.

[wigantojapan]

but the real question is where can you get a PIE.or who ate all the pies

[crashman]

I skipped Pai and went to Doi Inthanon instead. It's 2 hours tops from Chiang Mai by bike. Fantastic place, beautiful, way less crowds and way less touristy. Underdeveloped, to be sure. Not a whole lot of facilities, but sounds like you like it that way.

[Thailand]

I skipped Pai and went to Doi Inthanon instead. It's 2 hours tops from Chiang Mai by bike. Fantastic place, beautiful, way less crowds and way less touristy. Underdeveloped, to be sure. Not a whole lot of facilities, but sounds like you like it that way.

Did you stay on the mountain or Chom Thong or-----?

[crashman]

I stayed in the foothills, at a place called Little Home Resort - http://www.littlehomeinthanonresort.com/

B500/day, standard thai food with a few Western meals.

40 mins on the scooter to the top of the mountain (I drive fairly fast). Two people on a bike would slow you down A LOT.

I drove up for sunrise (6am) one morning and froze my ass off on the bike. I had a beanie, gloves, long pants, three t-shirts on... freaking freezing.

Worth it though.

[MESmith]

I wouldn't exactly describe Doi Inthanon as less touristy than most places in Thailand, unless you're planning to do something like a hike along the ridge north from the summit car park. This thread is about Pai being overcrowded at NY. I'm sure DI is too. The last time I did the nature trail just below the summit, visiting families were trying their upmost to scare away any birds that might have been visible.

[LarryBird]

I skipped Pai and went to Doi Inthanon instead. It's 2 hours tops from Chiang Mai by bike. Fantastic place, beautiful, way less crowds and way less touristy. Underdeveloped, to be sure. Not a whole lot of facilities, but sounds like you like it that way.

Mae Yaa waterfall is extremely underrated.. Also love the coffee shop, gai yaang, and salted fish up at the Waterfall part way up the mtn.. waterfall is watcha... something.. neat little spot.

[happysanook]

I've never really understood the attraction to Pai. Chiang Dao is more scenic, closer, less crowded, cheaper. To my way of thinking it beats Pai in every way yet it's never captured the popularity of Pai .

The recent Thai invasion in Pai has to do with a film saome frieds of my wife made. Oddly enough they own land in Chiang Dao and not Pai. I asked the husband and wife producer/director, knowing what you know now about your films affect on Thai awareness of Pai, would you ever make aq film featuring Chiang Dao? They said NEVER!

What is the name of this movie that people keep referencing?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruk_Jung

no, it was "pai in love" that really put pai on the map for thai tourists and sent the place soaring.

Sent from my K-TOUCH W806 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Sparkles]

I've never really understood the attraction to Pai. Chiang Dao is more scenic, closer, less crowded, cheaper. To my way of thinking it beats Pai in every way yet it's never captured the popularity of Pai .

The recent Thai invasion in Pai has to do with a film saome frieds of my wife made. Oddly enough they own land in Chiang Dao and not Pai. I asked the husband and wife producer/director, knowing what you know now about your films affect on Thai awareness of Pai, would you ever make aq film featuring Chiang Dao? They said NEVER!

Agree that Chiing Dao is a beautiful and relatively undiscovered destination and we go there quite often with friends but only as a day,or max 1 night stay. I am sure you would agree there is absolutely no night life in Chang Dao, a very small handfull of places you can eat and limited accom. At Pai you have a variety of restaurants,excellent and average, and loads of accom,the night market is interesting with some good street food and for those intested in live music at least 4 venues throw that lot in with elephant camps,river rafting etc and you have enough to do for several days.Chiang Dao may well turn,in the future into a mini Pai. I hope it doesnt.

[Fookhaht]

Chiang Mai very crowded and expensive too, where can we go? Krung Thep!

Yup, spent the 4-day New Year holiday there (BKK) and it was wonderfully uncrowded. Travel to/from was easy, because I was going the opposite direction of the masses exiting from/returning to The Big Mango. Couldn't believe it when the BTS/MRT wasn't crowded at all as I expected. They all must have gone to Pai!

[mikey88]

Sorry Larry Bird....don't mean to rile you but Phuket's not nice.

[Ulysses G.]

It sure was 20 years ago. I loved Patong back in those days.