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The sun setting over rolling hills and hazy valleys from Doi Samer Dao, Nan province

Sample journey · 10–12 days

Northern Thailand, slowly: hill country, crafts and quiet temples

Chiang Mai, Mae Chaem & Doi Inthanon, Mae Hong Son, Nan & Lampang

Photo: niti Khiensuk / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Most travellers see northern Thailand in a few days: Chiang Mai's old city, a hilltop temple and perhaps the White Temple in Chiang Rai. This route turns elsewhere: west over the country's highest mountain into the valleys of Mae Hong Son, where Shan and Yunnanese culture are close at hand, then east to quiet Nan, whose temple walls record daily life from a century and a half ago.

It's a journey for people who like to walk, listen and stay a little longer: half-day walks between rice terraces, a morning at the market, an afternoon with a weaver or a potter. Mountain roads are full of bends, so the transfers are arranged to leave at least two nights after each one. The pace, the length of the walks and the stays, from simple guesthouses to comfortable hill lodges, would be shaped around you.

The route

The journey

  1. Chiang Mai
  2. Mae Chaem & Doi Inthanon
  3. Mae Hong Son
  4. Nan
  5. Lampang
  6. Chiang Mai
  1. The roofs of Mae Kampong village in a forested valley in the hills east of Chiang Mai

    01Days 1–3 · Chiang Mai

    The old city and the craft villages

    After the long flight, three nights in Chiang Mai give your body time to adjust. In the mornings, chanting drifts from the old city's monasteries, and the ruined chedi of Wat Chedi Luang is at its best while the air is still cool. The next day could be for the craftspeople: the umbrella workshops of Bo Sang, the woodcarvers' lane at Ban Tawai or the silk looms of San Kamphaeng. A third morning might go to Mae Kampong, a village in the forested hills beyond the city where tea and coffee are grown, returning in time for a bowl of khao soi.

  2. One of the royal chedis on Doi Inthanon, surrounded by terraced flower gardens

    02Days 4–5 · Mae Chaem & Doi Inthanon

    The highest mountain and a valley of weavers

    South-west into Doi Inthanon National Park. Thailand's highest summit is often wrapped in cloud, and its slopes hold waterfall and cloud-forest trails best walked with a local guide. On the way it's worth stopping at the two royal chedis set among flower gardens. On the far side of the mountain, the Mae Chaem valley is all rice terraces and villages where women still weave the patterned teen jok borders of traditional skirts. The nights are spent in a village guesthouse or a simple hill lodge; evenings are cool, especially in winter.

  3. A Chinese-style pavilion above tea terraces and a lakeside village in Mae Hong Son province

    03Days 6–7 · Mae Hong Son

    Shan temples and Yunnanese tea

    The road north through Khun Yuam follows the mountain ridges: a long but lovely day's drive with stops along the way. Mae Hong Son is a small town around a lake, where the Shan-style temples of Wat Jong Kham and Wat Jong Klang are mirrored in the water. In the morning you could climb to Wat Doi Kong Mu above the mist, and the next day drive to Ban Rak Thai, a reservoir village founded by families from Yunnan. Tea is grown here, and it's best tasted slowly, looking out over the terraces.

  4. A winding road over green hills in Nan province

    04Days 8–9 · Nan

    Murals, salt wells and quiet valleys

    A short flight back to Chiang Mai (or, if flights aren't operating, the road via Pai), then a long but scenic drive east past Phayao's lake. Nan is one of the quietest towns in the north. The murals of Wat Phumin show 19th-century daily life: lovers, traders, river boats. The next day, a road that loops over the hills like the number "3" leads to Bo Kluea, where salt is still boiled from mountain wells, and in the evening you might watch the sun set from the cliff at Doi Samer Dao.

  5. White chedis on a rocky summit at Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat, Lampang province

    05Days 10–12 · Lampang

    Horse carts, ceramics and a temple on the rocks

    Past the teak houses of Phrae to Lampang, a town where horse-drawn carriages still clip through the streets. The old Kad Kong Ta street is lined with teak merchants' houses, and the ceramics workshops make the famous rooster bowls. Wat Phra That Lampang Luang is one of the finest wooden Lanna temples in the north. For stronger legs, a morning at Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat, whose white chedis seem to hang from the rocks of a mountaintop; the final stretch up is quite steep. From Lampang it's roughly an hour and a half by road to Chiang Mai airport.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    Time with the makers

    Umbrella, woodcarving, silk, teen jok weaving and ceramics workshops: not souvenir stops, but places to talk and try your own hand.

  2. 02

    Cloud forest on Doi Inthanon

    Mossy trails, waterfalls and cool air on Thailand's highest mountain, with a local guide.

  3. 03

    The murals of Wat Phumin

    Some of the north's finest temple painting: daily life, humour and tenderness on a temple's walls.

  4. 04

    Tea at Ban Rak Thai

    A Yunnanese village by a reservoir, where a tea tasting turns into a long, quiet morning.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • More walking

    Add a two-day walk in Mae Chaem or Mae Hong Son with a night in a village home, guided by someone local who can help with language too.

  • Less time on the road

    In a ten-day version, Nan could wait for another trip: return from Mae Hong Son to Chiang Mai and finish in Lampang.

  • Via Pai

    Returning from Mae Hong Son by road, two nights in the Pai valley are possible; just know the road has hundreds of bends.

  • With Chiang Rai

    From Nan the journey could continue north to Chiang Rai and the tea hills near the Laos border, flying out from there.

Practical considerations

  • The coolest, clearest weather is usually from about November to January. From roughly February to April the north is often hazy with smoke from field burning, and in the rainy season the hills are green but roads can be affected by landslides.
  • The roads to Mae Hong Son and Nan are very winding; if you're prone to travel sickness, tell us early and we'd break the drives up.
  • Flights between Mae Hong Son and Chiang Mai don't always run, or run daily, so the route has an overland alternative.
  • Shoulders and knees are covered in temples; mornings at the top of Doi Inthanon can be only a few degrees above freezing, so a warm layer helps.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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