I think we paid around $70pp in December.

no matter what the price it is well worth it...!!

As I continue this post, I do want to mention that we had not originally planned to visit the north of Thailand but, having read and heard so much about it, are SO grateful for the experience. We really felt this was so much "the real Thailand" and would not have wanted to experience the country without seeing this region.
I mentioned earlier that driving in the regions we travelled was simple and, for the most part it was. On thing, however, we were grateful to the GM at the Anantara for was telling us about the spot where the road ran out!
It was during the drive from the Golden Triangle to Chiang Mai (the more adventurous country route)...We'd been driving along an excellent highway for miles, traversing incredible mountainous roads and visiting hillside tribal regions, when suddenly we were thrust from the highway onto a dirt road. Thanks to our GM advice, we didn't panic and think we'd gone the wrong way....We just kept going and after about a mile, it comes back again!

One other piece of advice I have for anyone doing this drive is to get a clear idea of how to find the airport! I was navigating on a somewhat obscure map and ended up getting us to the air force base instead of the airport! It was a little disconcerting as the officials would not let us through (we thought we were in the airport) and, once we realized our mistake, had no idea how to find the airport.
Luckily we came upon two girls on a motorbike who said "follow us" and proceeded to lead us through the streets of Chiang Mai to our destination or we'd still be driving around today

Our flight from Chiang Mai to Mae Hong Son was a mere 25 minutes (on a prop plane -- which I'm not too crazy about) and we departed and landed on time in Mae Hong Son where we stayed at the Fern Resort.
I cannot say enough good things about this place as it is located on a rice paddy field and in a beatifully quiet and secluded spot (yet only 10 mins from town). It is an ecotourism resort which was built with funds from the government in order to preserve the area, and all the employees are from the surrounding villages. The cabins are spacious and comfortable (and very reasonably priced) and we loved getting up in the morning to the aroma of rice and the playful dogs rolling around at your feet in the open-air breakfast room.
It was during our days here that we spent a day elephant trekking and visiting the coffee and tea plantations which sit high on the mountains of the region. We sat and drank home-brewed coffee with the toothless Burmese owner of one of the plantations and drove to the top of the mountain to see the Queen's incredible gardens which were planted to replace the poppies that contributed to the opium trade in and around the country.
At night, the Fern provides transportation into town where there's a terrific little market around the lake as well as several funky little restaurants with great food and ridiculously low prices. We went to the LakeHouse Bar and had a very interesting dinner where you select your own food from a buffet table (many items which were unrecognizable to us) then cook them at your table over a steaming wok-type dish along with a variety of spicy sauces. Lots of fun and confusion.

On our second day, we rose very early and went into town where the monks come down to accept gifts of food from the townspeople (and visitors), then explored the colorful market which is filled with food, clothing, accessories, and many other temptations.

Back at the Fern, we decided to do the hike into the nearby Mae Surin National Park. Since our time was limited as we were departing later that day, we opted for the two hour hike and set off with our map and one of the dogs from the resort. This hike, we found, is not for the feeble as it winds up through very steep paths, across broad leafy rocks and bridges and down again into the valley.
After hiking for more than an hour and not being even halfway on our map, we started to get a little concerned (particularly since we had seen nobody else on the trail and I was a little disconcerted by the steep downgrade of the paths). Two and a half hours later we emerged -- hot and dirty and proud of our accomplishment. Our guide was patiently waiting for us at the hotel and we subsequently discovered that we had not taken the two hour hike at all...we had taken the four hour hike! So, I'd suggest making sure you're on the right route if you decide to do this hike -- it's very beautiful and worthwhile, but easy to take a wrong turning and get more than you bargained for!
Our time at Mae Hong Son coming to an end, we decided to stop in town for a foot massage on the way to the airport. This was our first taste of cheap and wonderful foot massages -- four dollars for a one hour foot massage. We were hooked!