Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai (เชียงใหม่) is the hub of northern Thailand. On a plain at an elevation of 316 m, surrounded by mountains and lush countryside, it is much greener and quieter than the capital and has a cosmopolitan air and a significant expatriate population, all factors which have led many from Bangkok to settle permanently in this "rose of the north". Wikivoyage
Population 1,198,000 (Wikidata)
Before you go
Emergency numbers in Thailand
Getting there
Remembered in this browser only, with the last few you used.
Best-documented sights
All of them in the guide-
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Night Market Attraction · 980 m -
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Wat Chiang Man Attraction · 980 m - White Chedi Memorial · 80 m
- พงษ์เดชขนส่ง Viewpoint · 300 m
- Wat Ket karam museum Museum · 510 m
- Fruit market Attraction · 530 m
- Chaeng Siphum Ruins · 550 m
- Cornerstone Monument Monument · 670 m
Within a kilometre of the centre, ordered by how well documented each is — not by a "best" anyone decided. Each opens on the map in the guide. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited there.
Through the year
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Bo Sang Umbrella & Sankampang Handicrafts Festival
January
Takes place around the third weekend of Jan at Ban Bo Sang, Sankampang. The festival is in the form of a "street fair" in which the central road of the village is used, with shops on both sides.
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Chiang Mai Flower Festival
February
It is a three day festival staged every year starting the first Friday in February (in 2026, due to elections one week later).
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Cricket
April
Northern Thailand may seem an odd place to find an international cricket tournament. Every year since 1988 more than 200 cricketers from around the world gather at Chiang Mai for the tournament.
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Songkran Festival
April
Thai New Year, also known as Songkran (Thai: สงกรานต์, pronounced [sǒŋ.krāːn]), or the Songkran Festival (Songkran Splendours), is the Thai New Year's national holiday.
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Inthakin or Tham Boon Khan Dok
May – June
City Pillar Festival in Chiang Mai. This is a six-day festival where the city pillar spirits are propitiated to ensure the continuity of the city. Occurs in May or Jun as part of the Northern Thailand lunar calendar.
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Loi Krathong and Yi Peng Festivals
November
If you like candles placed in colourful paper lanterns, fireworks, beautiful girls in traditional dress, parade floats, lots of food and parties.
Annual events from Wikidata and Wikivoyage (Chiang Mai); descriptions from Wikipedia where it has one, photos from Wikimedia Commons. Dates move year to year — check before you plan around one.
Markets
Markets mapped on OpenStreetMap, with their hours where someone has added them. Check locally before you go.
Places © OpenStreetMap contributors, as of 9 October 2026. Description from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA). Events from Wikidata and Wikivoyage, population from Wikidata.