Northern · Thailand
Chiang Mai · เชียงใหม่
Old city moat, Sunday walking street, Doi Suthep, and Lanna culture.
- Region
- Northern
- Population
- 1,792,000
- Area
- 20,107 km²
- Stories filed
- 7
About Chiang Mai
History
Chiang Mai was founded in 1296 by King Mangrai as the capital of the Lanna kingdom — a prosperous, semi-independent state that ruled northern Thailand for more than two and a half centuries before falling first to Burma and later to Bangkok. The square-moated old city he laid out is still intact, enclosing a concentration of ancient teak temples rivalled only by Ayutthaya. Lanna culture — its cuisine, its written Tai Tham script, its silverwork and textiles — remains the province's living inheritance.
Landscape & geography
The province is cradled between the Daen Lao range to the north and the Thanon Thongchai to the west, with Doi Inthanon — Thailand's highest peak at 2,565 metres — at its southern edge. The Ping river runs south through the central valley, past the old city. Highland elevations give the province its famously cool dry-season mornings.
Why visit
The moated old town, a night-market culture, hill-tribe trekking, temple-hopping, artisan workshops in Baan Tawai, and a week's worth of cafés on Nimmanhaemin Road — Chiang Mai is the most comfortable long-stay city in Thailand. Doi Suthep at sunset, Doi Inthanon's twin royal stupas, and the sticky-rice-and-soup breakfasts in the alleys are the permanent classics. Build in Pai or Chiang Rai for longer trips.
Stories from Chiang Mai
Articles, reviews, and itineraries tagged to this province.
