chiangmai place to stay

Hi, we%26#39;re planning to visit chiangmai at the end of May.We%26#39;re a party of 14 (3 families) and around half are kids. I%26#39;m asking for recommendations on where to stay. I want to be in a convenient location, can be a hotel or a bungalow preferably with family rooms, with price range of around us 50 us dollar for small rooms up to 100 us dollars for big rooms.

thanks

chiangmai place to stay

Hi jackiec7,

Finding specific family accommodation in Chiang Mai is difficult. That is, there are not many places that have family rooms as such. You really need to find a family friendly hotel and book two adjoining rooms. Having said that - children are welcomed with open arms.

You mentioned a convenient location.... not sure if you prefer to stay in the old city/moat area, or somewhere around the night market area. The old city is all low rise while around the night market area you will find some high rise hotels.

We have stayed near the night market in the Imperial Mae Ping and the Centara Duangtawan with our children. Both are close to the night market area and various food outlets. Of the two the Centara is our favorite. It fits your budget - probably less than 50US per room per night. The rooms are spacious and it has a large pool that wraps around the hotel. Have a look on the hotels own web page for good deals.

Others may have other recommendations.

Caroline.

chiangmai place to stay

Thanks. I%26#39;l be checking it.

Suggess Baan Gongkham very nice resort and convenient located in downtown Chiangmai 15 mins from the airport, less than 15 mins from railway station and bus station by car.

thanks. will be checking that also.

hi caroline,

1. how far is the airport to donwtown chiangmai?

2. since we%26#39;re plenty, would it be better for us to get a van with a private tourguide rather than join the tours?

3. we only have 3 full days. arriving on a saturday night and departing wednesday morning,can you suggest the places to see? there seems to be so plenty that i%26#39;m confused and i dont know the directions the places of interest.

I%26#39;m thinking of

saturday nite : walking street

1st day: doi suthrep, local tour and sunday walking. Can i add more? Maybe dinner by the river?

2nd day : interaction w elephants. elephant nature park or patara? maesa?

3rd day : ???

Thanks.

Hi Jackie,

Will try to answer of your questions....

1) The Airport is only about ten minutes from central Chiang Mai. Very close. Cabs are plentiful.

2) Yes. You would be better off having your own guide and driver with a larger group. It will work out far cheaper for you to do it this way. You could try searching the words guide and driver in the fourm search box. This is a much discussed topic - there are a lot of recommendations on the forum. You could try emailing a couple of the suggested people and asking about the possibility of getting a number of vans.

3) The main Walking Street market is on Sunday night. With children it is best to go early - around 5/5.30pm, start at the Tha Pae Gate and wander down the street. It gets crowded. Walk along until you find somewhere to sit down and eat. There are local food stalls, and also places to sit down.

Saturday - You could go to the Night Bazzar on Saturday night. There is another Saturday night market in the moat area - but with limited time I%26#39;d suggest just doing Sunday night there. The night Bazzar has things to interest the children - games, T.Shirts etc. There is a great open food court area called Kalare in the Night Bazzar area. Not your average food court - it has some atmosphere.

Sunday - Visit Doi Suthep. Maybe then wander around the moat area to take in some of the spectacular temples.

Monday - Mae Ping River Cruises. They pick you up from your hotel and take you to their boat landing. A two hour return trip to a small Thai Farm. Aimed at tourists of course - but a good way to have a boat ride and a stop on the way.

Tuesday - Elephants/Bamboo Rafting day trip.

Our children enjoy some of the arts and craft villages. The umbrella village is interesting for children - also the silk weaving. These are all in the same area, so you can visit three or four villages in about 2/3 hrs.

Also - fit in a river side restaurant. The Gallery is lovely - also Tha Nam is another good one.

Caroline.

Thanks so much!

Am i right in thinking that we should join a tour for mae ping cruise and elephant/bamboo rafting, then that means for those 2 those days we shouldnt rent a van and our private guide?

I read that there%26#39;s a 13 kms stretch with stores/factories selling different stuff like silver, carvings, handmade items. can we include this in our local tour?

I imagine chiangmai to be like Bali.

jackie

Hi Jackie,

The %26#39;Mae Ping River Cruise%26#39; is a company and can be booked the day before by calling their phone number in Chiang Mai. As mentioned - they pick you up and drop you back to your hotel. For three families you will need to give them as much notice as you can. You won%26#39;t need a guide or driver for this.

The 13km stretch of road (San Kamphaeng) is the stretch of road that includes the umbrella village, paper village, silk weaving, silver ware etc. It%26#39;s not very far from the centre of Chiang Mai - you can see a lot in 2 - 3 hrs if you don%26#39;t stay long at each place. You would need a driver/taxi to take you to these places.

The elephants/bamboo rafting etc should be booked as a day trip either with a guide/driver or with a tour company.

Caroline.

just wanted to mention studio 99 apartments, just off thae pae rd and nr to the old city and night market, they have 2 x 2 bed apartments and 4 other 1 bed units, the studios have sofas and so you could maybe get everyone into the 2 bedroom units. It%26#39;s a nice quiet area and clean and modern, I spent a great week there last october.

cheers