COOKING CLASSES Thailand is world renowned for its remarkable
cuisine. What better place to take Thai cooking lessons than in
the country itself? Contact the Chang Mai Thai Cookery School
on 206388 or 490456 for more information or email them on cmcook@infothai.com
CINEMA A rainy day activity, movies with English soundtracks
can be seen at the Vista chain of movie theatres. Call 262661
for more information.
CYCLING The Chiang Mai Cycle Club are the people to get
in touch with if you want off-the-beaten-track information or
wish to join fellow bikers on a ramble or is it rumble through
the hills with a group. The club organises a trip nearly every
Sunday. Visitors and enquiries are welcome. Meet in front of Tha
Phae Gate between 0700 and 0730 hours on Sundays. Find out more
details from any of the biking shops you'll find scattered around
the city or give the City Bike Shop a call on 01-9279211
DISCOS and NIGHTCLUBS can be found in almost all
the flashier hotels as well as there being a number of good nightclub
venues scattered around the city. The more popular of these are
Gigi, Climax, Discovery and Space Bubble. All discos in Chiang
Mai have to close at 02.00 a.m.
ELEPHANT RIDES are another way to see the fauna and flora
of the area. The guides are often hill tribe youths who commonly
speak Thai, English and various tribal dialects. There are a number
of places offering tours that involve elephant trekking. Take
a look at out tour pages and see what we at the Hotel Travel Network
can offer you in this area as well.
GOLF is always a popular pass-time and Chiang Mai has
a number of excellent courses. The following two are the more
popular. Lanna Golf Course 7,174 yards, par 72. Opened in 1972,
Lanna enjoys a truly spectacular setting at the foot of the famous
Doi Suthep mountain just outside Chiang Mai. The course is moderately
difficult with more than 20 lakes and water hazards, many trees
and elevated greens.
Open 6:00-8:00
Office: Lanna Golf Course
Highway 107 (Chiang Mai-Mae Rim Rd)
Resv Tel (053) 921911
Yim Cana Golf Course (9 holes) More correctly known as the Gymkhana
Club, this course offers the uncommon setting of a large cricket
ground surrounded by mature trees, including teak. The course
has a pleasant clubhouse.
Office: Yim Cana Golf Course
Chiang Mai Lamphun Rd, Chiang Mai
HILL TRIBES The Meo, Lisu, Yao, Akha, Lawa and Karen hill
tribes, live in the mountains around Chiang Mai. They share animist
beliefs and honour numerous spirits. Each tribe has distinctive
rituals, customs, languages and culture. They produce their own
handicrafts from silk fabrics, woven or carved items. If you have
the time, it's worth visiting as many tribes possible.
HORSE RACING The race course is one of the few places
in Thailand where betting is legal. Chiang Mai's course can be
found about 5km down the road after Lanna Gardens. Race meetings
are held on Saturday afternoons and like anywhere else in the
world, betting is fast and furious.
JUNGLE TREKKING Popular jungle treks, lasting from 2 to
7 days, take visitors through forested mountains and meadows and
include visits to remote high-altitude hill tribe settlements.
Visitors joining jungle treks are advised to contact the Tourism
Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in Chiang Mai - Lamphun Road
to get the Trekking Guideline Sheet which lists the common-sense
precautions would-be trekkers should follow to ensure personal
security and enjoyment.
There are currently three main trekking routes: the Chiang Mai
- Mae Taeng route which usually includes a raft trip down the
Mae Taeng River; the Chiang Mai - Mae Hong Song route through
spectacular mountains and some rough terrain; and the Chiang Mai
- Chiang Rai route with its exciting long-tail boat ride on the
Kok River. Other trekking areas are in Chiang Dao, Mae Chan, Ngao,
Phrao, Wiang Pa Pao and Lampang.
THAI MASSAGE Chiang Mai is one of the main centres in
Thailand for the study and practice of the healing and soothing
powers of Thai Massage. This popular therapy practice can be studied
here as a short course or you don't need to study at all, just
lie back and let someone else's hands do the deft work for you.
Contact the OMH or Old Medicines Hospital on 275085 for more information.
SWIMMING If your hotel doesn't already have a pool Chiang
Mai has a number of public pools and/or hotel pools that let the
general public use on those especially hot summer (or winter)
days. Public pools tend to be cheaper than the hotel pools averaging
around 20 - 50 Baht on a daily rate whereas a full membership
can cost up to 300 Baht. Contact the Chiang Mai Sports Club on
298327 for more information.
Restaurants
Besides excellent Thai and other eastern food, visitors can
also enjoy Italian, French and German food. Steakhouses, sandwich
bars, fast-food outlets, pubs and vegetarian restaurants offer
a broad range of cuisines as well. International fare is also
available in many teahouses and coffee shops.
Local culinary specialties include highly spiced Naem sausages
and mildly curried Khao Soi noodles.
Many visitors enjoy a traditional Khan Toke dinner which is
accompanied by a display of northern dances. Khan Toke is actually
a wooden tray for carrying dishes. In a Khan Toke dinner the
guests sit in groups of five or six on the floor. Many dishes
include glutinous rice, Burmese and northern Thai-style curries,
spiced mincemeat dishes, Chiang Mai sausage, highly seasoned
sauces and dips, and crisp pork rind.
Diners eat with their hands while groups provide entertainment,
performing popular Northern dances such as the graceful fingernail
dance, the candle dance and the sword dance.
Shopping
Shopping in Chiang Mai for many is an exciting and pleasurable
experience. Whether you are shopping for a suit or bargain hunting,
looking for that extra special 'something' for someone special
back home whatever it is, shopping in Thailand can be fun.
Street vendors often seem to be on every street corner showing
you their goods (with a calculator in one hand) from silk scarves,
hammocks and sarongs to laser pens etc. If you are interested
in any of the wares you find, then it is time to start bargaining,
If you are not interested in what is on offer, simply smile
and continue on your way.
TIP: The art of haggling is to never drop your guard. The first
price is there only for show and has no real meaning. There
is always room for negotiation. The starting price can often
come down to half or less, depending on your haggling skills
and those of the vendor. All the time, remember to smile. This
is a game, it should be fun. Don’t take it too seriously. The
price agreed for the transaction is always a “win-win” price.
Both sides benefit. You get a product much reduced in price
from the “decoration” price and feel happy with your newly acquired
bargaining skills and the vendor sells their product and still
makes a handsome profit. Remember that they will never sell
for a loss.
Chiang Mai is one of the major centres for quality handicrafts.
At any city shopping centre or at the Night Bazaar one can purchase
a variety of "antiques", silverware, jewellery, hill
tribe opium pipes and embroidery, Thai silks and cottons, basketry,
celadon, furniture, lacquer ware, wood carvings or parasols.
It's a shoppers delight.
The visitor can watch demonstrations of the various handicrafts
being made especially in many of the outlying villages. However
the visitor should be aware that many "factories"
along the Bo Sang - Sam Kamphaeng Road actually are not primarily
factories but retail outlets, and they charge not factory but
retail prices.
