Prepared to travel to one of the most beloved cities by tourists within Thai tourism. Tourist map Chiang Mai will show you all the secrets of this city… Take all the time you need to visit its urban corners and contemplate the most varied gastronomic street offerings, or the joy and vibrancy that emanates from its popular markets. Chiang Mai is one of the most accessible places in terms of budget, so it has become an option for tourism. Beautiful villages, curiosities and natural paradises with nothing to send from the main sites to visit in the country. In our guide we will show you what you need to access their tourist sites, what to do in them and even a good accommodation. The city with its urban and mystical charm at the same time makes sure that one day is not enough for you to visit.
Chiang Mai Tourist Map
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Chiang mai, with its temples and ancient Buddhist culture houses some of the country’s monumental treasures. Considered as the Rose of the North, it has a rich culture and natural reserves concentrated in only an area of 40,200 square meters. Its population is varied, since apart from native inhabitants the city is inhabited by permanent Western and Asian tourists. All enchanted by the beauty and peace that this city offers them. It is estimated that 300 thousand people live in the city and its surroundings. It was for a time the capital of the kingdom of Lanna, after Siam was founded. What we know today as Thailand this city becomes a bastion of Buddhist art and religion. A little of the history that hides every corner you can consult it with material provided by the tourist office Chiang Mai.
With a vast variety of temples scattered throughout the territory, exceeding 300, Chiang Mai offers you endless places to visit. The activities are varied, and you are free to choose the order of visits, having enough days. This city is famous for its popular markets, in which the offers, the colors and the bustling corridors have nothing to envy Bangkok. Especially those who run nights and weekends fun and good food open between its streets. Its old neighborhoods, with religious enclosures are located within the walled area, so the historic center is delimited and is perfectly consultable on our map Chiang Mai to print. There is nothing better than contact with nature, thanks to its reservoirs of protected fauna. You can also take walks in the park Doi Inthanon, the perfect disconnection.
Chiang Mai Tourist Guide
In our tourist guide Chiang Mai we will mention the main places to make your vacation or escape in any season of the year the most entertaining. In order not to lose you we place in our maps the routes to take. There are several ways to get around in and out of the city, from renting your own bike or taking a typical tuk tuk, although this means is usually r u little exaggerated in terms of prices for tourists. Anyway there are cheaper options like the songthaew, which is like a kind of tourist bus, ideal for tours in groups. We are sure that with our tourist routes you will plan an unforgettable trip that will leave a mark on your travel experience. It is definitely one of the destinations around the world that you should visit.
Route tourist sites of Chiang Mai
What to visit in Chiang Mai
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep
It bears the same name as the mountain on which it rests. Feel the magic and mysticism that radiates in a visit to its interior. It represents an important center of pilgrimage at national level by the believers of Buddhism. Its access is through one of the most peculiar steps of the enclosure. With a picturesque design, you’d better have the lungs to overcome the 300 steps before reaching the temple. Its origin dates back to the 1300s and its construction is brand new a huge dome, Thai style called chedi gold color. This point is the epicenter of legends related to the Buddha himself. In its internal courtyards you will find numerous bells that can be touched by visitors as a ritual to attract fortune. The mountain is located at a distance of 16 km from the city and we recommend taking a taxi to get there.
Wat Chedi Luang
To continue with an experience full of mysticism we recommend a visit to one of the most important temples in northern Thailand. To get there it will not be so difficult if we only have a street map of Bangkok. The origins of the temple go back to the 14th century and its culmination took almost a century. Its current facade is the product of restoration work, after an earthquake occurred that shook the city in the sixteenth century. This center of veneration represents one of the living constructions of the kingdom Lanna, very visited by the curious ones of the ancient Thailand. There are many legends in its interior. One of them represents a tree right at the entrance, which ensures that balance and peace in the country are sustained by the vitality of the tree.
Doi Inthanon
You can rent a car or organize a visit in the different tours offered from the city. The national park is located about 26 kilometers from Chiang Mai, and its importance within the natural offer of Thailand makes it essential to visit. The favorite destination for modern travelers or nomads, as they can establish direct contact with villages that live in healthy harmony with nature. This park has the highest peak in the country, Mount Inthanon, which rises to about 2,565 meters above sea level. During a walk you can visit numerous waterfalls. Its maximum splendor is manifested during the rainy seasons, between July and December. In the tour through their villages contact with different ethnic groups will fill you with joy for the experience of their customs and cultural atavíos. There are several trails decorated with an exuberant floral color, ideal for trekking with friends.
Old Town
Like Bangkok, Chiang Mai has its own ghetto for backpackers. So if you have an adventurous spirit, you’d better not overlook this destination. Its streets are numerous and ready to get lost, so our tourist map will help you not to miss any detail. When we refer to the Old Town, we mean everything within the walls. Numerous temples surrounded by the Three King’s Monument complex will take you to a Buddhist experience. It is ideal for a retreat at the hands of wise monks. You will have the possibility to interact with them and to orientate yourself about this interesting philosophy. It is practically a city to walk in a quiet way, through its streets. The accommodation is attractive due to the low cost of its rooms, so you can plan a trip of a few days without worrying about the budget.
Night Market
Chiang Mai’s nightlife comes to life thanks to its commercial spirit. It is common to see thousands of people, natives and foreigners, visiting its main night markets, where the variety of products, the lights, the street food, and even the artistic spectacles inject vitality and dynamism into this city. The most popular bazaars specialize in specific items although they also sell a bit of everything. The Chiang Mai Night Bazaar is the largest and busiest, due to its proximity to the walled Old Town. Its specialty is food and imitations. The Sunday Night Market usually offers especially typical products of the ethnic groups of the mountains. The Saturday Market, apart from the gastronomy, offers a variety of artistic shows. Keep in mind that a visit to these places leads to a planning to coincide with the weekends whose opening honor their names.
Elephant Nature Park
It represents one of the most important elephant sanctuaries in Asia. The elephants living there have achieved peace and care after years of abuse and exploitation. In Thailand there are many exotic places to visit and animal husbandry is the order of the day. The recommendation is to make tourism responsible and friendly with life. In this way you can have the opportunity to see these beautiful creatures living together in their natural habitat. This unlike other sanctuaries in the city offers the guarantee and support of organizations that the lives of these noble beings concur in full. In fact, there are several modalities of visits and activities to do, intervening as little as possible in their day to day. So it is an excellent site that invites reflection on the life of these animals.
Safari Night Zoo
We are talking about the first of its kind in Thailand and one of the largest in all of Asia. The magic of this experience is to admire the behavior of its varied fauna, composed of giraffes, hippos, wildebeests. It also houses animals from Malaysia such as alpacas, sloths and tapirs. And of course it is home to carnivorous animals such as tigers, leopards, hyenas and jaguars. Herds of apes of different subspecies could not be missing. The peculiar thing about this is that you can opt for both day and night tours, where the nocturnal behavior of the animals is the main attraction. This zoo is enjoyed through an internal tram route. Reservations can be made online and the trip has a duration of 3 hours for a cost of 18 euros for adults and 9 euros for minors.
Chiang Mai Terracotta Garden
Baan Phor Liang Meun Terracotta Garden is the original name of this place. It is located in the heart of Old Twon of the city. It has a considerable quantity of objects and sculptures elaborated with terracotta and concrete, Let’s say that it is a coffee museum, since you can give yourselves the pleasure to taste a good coffee in a pleasant and comforting place. You will enjoy the green that sprouts so much from its trees and the vegetation that emanates from its stones is combined with mythological figures and Hindu deities and images of Lord Buddha, among other representations. If you like a piece, you can choose to buy it and take it as a souvenir on your visit to Chiang Mai. This is where the workshop of these curiosities takes place, so if you want you can observe how the master is in charge of giving life to the raw material. Entrance is free and you can buy a drink inside.
The Ruins of Wiang Kum Kam
Have you ever seen any vestiges of a Buddhist temple in an eighties movie? Maybe one by Jean Claude Van Damne. Well, the aesthetics of these scenes are usually inspired and realized in this wonderful place. Escape the city and go to the surrounding area for these ruins, which are considered as the lost city of Wian Kum Kam. Approximately in the thirteenth century the kingdom of Lanna was moved to this enclosure by King Mengrai. But what was not foreseen is that the conditions of humidity and rainfall were not the most suitable. These conditions affected the stability and integrity of these constructions. Today it serves as a tourist visit and an important archaeological site. So take a taxi or a motorbike and go to this site to see what was once an important part of the ancient kingdom.
Map of Hotels in Chiang Mai
Because Chiang Mai is not as big as it is if you choose to stay inside the city on the outskirts. Our map of hotels in Chiang Mai shows you all the offer available. Our recommendation is the Duangtawan Hotel. It is a great hotel with gyms, bars and swimming pool to relax. It is also located in the middle of the nightlife zone, right in the middle of the city bazaars. Apart from all the services offered by a 4 star hotel its breakfasts are highly recommended. Its restaurants and bars are an interesting mix of various cultures of the Indochina.