Sounds great.You can definitely eat cheaply in Chiang Mai but I also would pay the extra 200 baht for breakfast there. Not just for convenience but because it might be fun to meet other people staying there. There are a couple of wonderful restaurants on the same block as Baan Orapin as well as one of my absolute favorite shops -- Sop Moie. And it's a really easy and pleasant walk to the night market etc.

I just wish I had known about it before my last trip in January. I must have walked by in 10 times and never knew what it was or checked it out. :-)

Looking forward to your report.

We stayed for 3 nights at the Tamarind Village in a deluxe ground floor room and thought it was great. We had no problems with mosquitos and liked the location and the staff very much.

Janak, Gloria- I just heard back from the owners of Baan Orapin, and they have provided some additional information, First of all, they stated that they have never had a complaint or problem concerning cockroaches, they do have yearly pest control services, but they do not use those individual spray chemicals in rooms.

As to the mosquito issue, they advise that because of the lush landscaping, mosquitos are attracted to the place, but they have so far had no complaints about mosquitos in the room. To combat the problem, they use mosquito coils outside the entrance to the room, have mosquito netting over every bed, and have an electric bug repellant for use as well.

The Baan Orapin cafe is open for breakfast from 6:30-10:30, which is served as a set, rather than buffet style- American, Continental or Thai to choose from, with fresh fruit juices, fruit and freshly brewed coffee or tea, among other things. There is a good noodle shop across the street, and the Thai lifestyle shops are just a few minutes walk down the road, along with other restaurants and cafes.

Baan Orapin has only been open since 2003. Because they are so new, they are open to any suggestions as to how to improve their services for guests.

Sounds good to me. I'll be looking forward to hearing reports from everyone who is planning to stay there.

It's going to be great to actually get reports back on Baan Orapin.

I am a little confused, has anyone here actually 'stayed there'??

James -- I heard from someone privately who actually stayed there and posted his comments (if you can't find them I'll repost) and I also posted comments from a friend who went to look at it for me but was staying elsewhere.

Not only that, but there's someone else who posted on this board a while back who stayed there, and liked it very much. The reason I mentioned Baan Orapin initially is because a friend in BKK had recommended it, and had provided the website.

Spygirl-- I can't seem to find the "original" report on Baan Orapin you mention from someonw who stayed there. I did a search but all that came up were the 3 reports I posted from people I know. Would love to see others. There are several people from this board who were going to stay there or are staying there this month whom we have not yet heard reports from.

I'm really looking forward to staying there.

based on a true sense of adventure and 2nd hand recomendations,I've booked at Baan Orapin (and have a flashlight that goes everywhere anyway if the lights are too low/inconvenient to read by)for early April. promise to post....Jan

If you stay in a non-western style structure the chance of you having to deal with bugs...as well as geckos/lizards(I even had a tokay situation at the Galare guesthouse in Chiangmai)are very high. I left the guesthouse and checked into the Suriwongse Hotel...western style...right next door to the night market which was VERY convenient. I would go out and shop, go back to the hotel room, drop off my purchases and then go back out and shop some more.Plus, I didn't have to deal with critters all over the place and the air conditioning was QUIET and regular. At the Galare I had a noisy unit that would come on....get cold...stay on a while...and then cut off and then the room would get hot again.I got very little sleep. It was a headache.Happy Travels!

Gloria-I'm sure I saw a post here (other than your friend's) on this board from someone who had stayed at Baan Orapin. I'll have to try and do a search when I have some time.

Remember that Geckos east Mossies ! When we moved into our new house some while back we had some mossies around and noticed no geckos, now we have Gekos the Mossies problem has gone !

I'd rather deal with mosquitos than nasty,slimy geckos/lizards running across the ceiling and pooping everywhere and falling off into one's bed. I usually don't have a mosquito problem....due to traveling with a FLYSWATTER! Happy Travels!