Day trips, Chiang Mai
 

We will arrive in Chiang Mai at 2:10 on Thurs, Aug. 2 and leave on Sun. night at 6:00 p.m. (all we could do with discovery pass). We are interested in seeing the countryside, but want ACTIVITY!! We are afraid to go up to Chiang Rai because of time limitations (and perhaps road conditions if it rains)---or should we be worried? Does anyone have any specific suggestions for an itinerary. We will miss the Sunday market to our chagrin!! Any suggestions as to a nice, upscale place to stay that has CHARM. I have been reading all of the postings, but I am confused. We want to pack in as much as possible.

You can book all kinds of activity tours once you get to Chiang Mai (I was there last February). Just choose the one you like the look of - there is a lot of choice with activities.
The road to Chiang Rai is a normal road, rather bendy going up the mountains, it took me about 4 hours in a small mini bus with driver. My hotel does not fit your description so I am afraid I cannot help you there. There was one called the Cheddi (not sure about the spelling) which I saw from the river Ping when I did a private trip up it in a long tail boat. It looked lovely from the river. The night bazar is every night and has masses of things for sale. I also missed the Sunday market.

do a search here for hotel in CM, much has been written about them...

how much do you wish to spend per nite?

you have the four seasons and the mandarin oriental at the top end and guest houses at the lower end...

yang come village (sp) and baan oprin are two favorites..

here is a good hotel site:

www.huahin.20m.com

An upscale place with charm in teh city sounds like Yaang Come Village. But if you want "ACTIVITY" it sounds like you'd rather be in the countryside. Chaing Mai is a large, sprawling city. There is a resort in the cuntryside that has been reviewed by a number of people here - filmwill is one I recall - that sounds like it might be perfect for you. I'll see if I can find the name for you.

Ok, I found it, it's called Baan Rai Lanna. Take a look at www.sawadee.com as I belive it is listed there.

Hi
I 've been to Chiang Mai twice and both times stayed at a guest house instead of a hotel. It was really alot of fun because of the people you meet. The guesthouse was Libra House on Moon Muang. We visited the Celedon factory, umbrella factory, and silk factory one day, and the next we explored some of the area around where we were staying. My husband golfed one day while I went to a spa that the guest house set up for me. At night we rode a tuk tuk to the night market(we went every night) and on Saturday we went to the walking market and found some of the most beautiful things. I enjoyed shopping for myself and for our grandkids. The whole bartering experience was something different. The Nancy Chandler map was very helpful if you decide to do a little exploring around the area you are staying.We ate at the Riverside and really enjoyed that. The first time we went to Chiang Mai we went to the Chiang Mai Cultural Center. It was worth it to see, but the food is just so-so. You may also want to check out Doi Suthrep which is country side but not too far away. We liked eating at the Whole Earth, but werent impressed with the food at Huen Puen. Some people didn't enjoy Chiang Mai but I found it a pleasant little city with lots of fun things to explore.

Hi there,

we absolutely LOVED the yaang come village... its a beautiful charming hotel, and right next to the night market. the rooms run a bit under 100 dollars a night (at least when we were there in August last yr). they have computers with internet in the lobby, and if i recall correctly, they have WIFI in the hotel - which is useful for looking up information when you are there. (most hotels dont offer this service!).
we booked our day trips and activities right then and there, the hotels all have brochures in the lobby for day trips etc.
we did ATV trecks in the mountains one day and that was amazing. there is also the option of white water rafting on the river (though the river was too high in August due to the monsoon season).
the hotel also hooked us up with a taxi driver who charged us 1600 bht for a full day of travel to elephant camp, factories, doi suthep etc.
So - to sum it up, you dont need to book your itinerary in advance, just go and have a great time! Chiang Mai is beautiful!