{"id":29462,"date":"2018-09-25T13:20:00","date_gmt":"2018-09-25T03:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures?p=29462&preview=true&preview_id=29462"},"modified":"2025-06-11T19:48:34","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T09:48:34","slug":"best-places-in-northern-thailand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/best-places-in-northern-thailand\/","title":{"rendered":"5 places you need to check out in Northern Thailand"},"content":{"rendered":"

For a lot of travellers, Thailand<\/a> begins and ends with Full Moon parties, a bucket of vodka (seasoned with regret) and beaches straight out of postcards (if, you know, the postcards had somehow mentioned thousands of tourists). <\/strong><\/p>\n

And while it\u2019s a shame that the southern archipelago draws the vast majority of the Bintang tank top-sporting crowd, it means there are opportunities up north.<\/p>\n

This is the\u00a0jungly bit of Thailand<\/a>. The bit that\u2019s probably more representative of what the country used to be 30 years ago before ping pong shows became a thing. Up in Chiang Mai, or even better Chiang Rai, you can still find quiet Buddhist stupas, waterfalls all to yourself and hill tribes like the Akha and Lahu that live pretty much like they always have. A fire-twirling Full Moon party this ain\u2019t. But if you care about culture, point your Thai compass due north.<\/p>\n

Here are 5 of our favourite spots in northern Thailand.<\/p>\n

Sukhothai<\/h2>\n
\"Temples

Photo by Kim Hay<\/p><\/div>\n

Sukhothai may not technically be \u2018northern\u00a0Thailand<\/a>\u2019, but it\u2019s more north than a lot of tourists get, and it\u2019s cool, so we\u2019ll overlook the geography. Think of the \u2018old city\u2019 in Sukhothai as a mini Angkor Wat. Not quite as big, but just as impressive in its own way. It\u2019s basically the preserved remains of the Sukhothai Kingdom, a short-lived dynasty that survived until the 14th<\/sup>\u00a0century. The old city is known as\u00a0meuang g\u00f2w<\/em> and stretches through the jungle for about 45 square kilometres (or 17 square miles). The nearby town of \u2018new Sukhothai\u2019 isn\u2019t all that interesting, but it\u2019s got good transport links to Bangkok and makes a good enough pit-stop on\u00a0your route further north.<\/p>\n

RELATED: FIRST-TIME TRAVELLER? HERE\u2019S WHY THAILAND IS THE PERFECT DESTINATION FOR YOU<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Chiang Mai<\/h2>\n
\"Golden

Photo by S-F<\/p><\/div>\n

Despite a boom in popularity over the last decade (mostly due to\u00a0peace-seeking travellers escaping the frenzied buzz of Bangkok and Phuket<\/a>), Chiang Mai still has that classic Northern\u00a0Thailand<\/a>\u00a0laid-back vibe. It\u2019s the glowing capital of the north, the former seat of the old Lanna Kingdom. That\u2019s the Old City, central Chiang Mai, but around the crumbling monasteries and their ancient brick\u00a0chedi<\/em>\u00a0(stupas), there\u2019s a bustling modern town with a cracking night market, great street food and fish pedicurists (Google it, it\u2019s a thing). The other good thing about Chiang Mai is its location: a quick day trip and you\u2019re suddenly swimming in pools beneath Monthathan waterfall, or trekking through mist-covered jungles.<\/p>\n

Chiang Rai<\/h2>\n
\"White

Photo by MEDIASECTION<\/p><\/div>\n

We hate phrases like this, but Chiang Rai is probably the \u2018next Chiang Mai\u2019. Slightly further north than Chiang Mai, and with fewer flight options, it\u2019s an even more<\/em> serene and laid back version of its nearby neighbour. Food will be cheaper here (and spicy too \u2013 watch out for the \u2018jungle curries\u2019) and there\u2019re lots of small backpacker-style accommodation at a very reasonable price. The main reason to visit Chiang Mai (apart from its charm and bone-white Wat Rong Khun temple) is its proximity to the Golden Triangle region: the border between\u00a0Thailand, Myanmar<\/a> and\u00a0Laos<\/a>. A great jumping-off point for further adventures.<\/p>\n

RELATED: THAILAND IN ONE WEEK: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Lampang<\/h2>\n
\"Mae

Photo by mpbboom<\/p><\/div>\n

A lot of places are labelled\u00a0as \u2018stepping back in time\u2019, but Lampang (along with the northern railway’s line between Bangkok and Chiang Mai<\/a>) is the real deal. There aren\u2019t even any tuk tuks here, guys. People get around on horse and carriage. Legit. There\u2019s a tiny airport, but that\u2019s as high tech as this place gets.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Why make the journey? Apart from the quaint rural charm, Lampang is where you go to see elephant sanctuaries like the Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital.\u00a0We visit it on our tours.\u00a0There are a number of elephant-based tourist activities in the north of Thailand, but try to pick places like this, where it\u2019s less about tourism and more about what tourism can\u00a0do<\/em>: help rehabilitate and care for endangered elephants. If you\u2019re in Lampang on a Saturday or Sunday night, make sure to hit up the Gad Gong Tha Night Market too: it\u2019s street food Nirvana.<\/p>\n

SUBSCRIBE TO INTREPID\u2019S NEWSLETTER FOR TRAVEL TIPS, COMPETITIONS, GIVEAWAYS & MORE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Mae Salong<\/h2>\n
\"

Photo by pixy_nook<\/p><\/div>\n

Mae Salong is one of those cute little pockets of the world that makes absolutely no sense until you know the history. Walking down the street, you\u2019d think you were in Yunnan province,\u00a0China<\/a>. The shops are playing Chinese TV. There\u2019s Chinese food in all the restaurants, and a big tea-drinking culture, thanks to the plantations nearby. The reason for all this is that Mae Salong was originally settled as a regiment of the Kuomintang (the Chinese national party) after communism took over China in 1949. They crossed into Myanmar, and then later into Thailand, and set up a cool little community that continues to thrive and stick to its roots.<\/p>\n

Mae Salong is a great place to chill, sip some tea and maybe visit a hilltop village or two. It\u2019s close to Chiang Rai as well, up in the hills beyond the town,\u00a0so it\u2019s\u00a0worth a couple of nights\u00a0if you\u2019re in the area.<\/p>\n

Want to check out Northern Thailand now? Of course, you do. All you need is our\u00a0<\/strong>One Week in Northern Thailand<\/a> small group adventure, exclusively for 18 to 35-year-old travellers.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s all about the history, the culture, and the epic jungle curries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15437,"featured_media":29613,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1313],"tags":[2181,180,385,35],"class_list":["post-29462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides","tag-18-to-29s","tag-asia","tag-south-east-asia","tag-thailand","ipf_theme-18-to-29s","ipf_region-thailand"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNorth Thailand: The 5 best places to visit | The Good Times by Intrepid<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Our top 5 destinations for visiting Northern Thailand; 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