Welcoming visitors is an art perfected in Chiang Mai, and recent decades have
seen the city emerge as one of Asia's most popular and best value
destinations. People come to experience the beautiful mountainous scenery of
Northern Thailand, go trekking, eat, drink, party, delve into history and
seek out adventure.
The quiet winding lanes of the old town, the rustic old
wooden guest houses,and Bed & Breakfasts, lively riverside restaurants,
colourful hill tribe folk and bustling night bazaar all contribute to make
Chiang Mai an unforgettable destination. With it's rich cultural heritage,
and rapidly growing contemporary music and arts scene ,Chiang Mai offers
visitors an eclectic and rewarding cultural experience.
The city of Chiang Mai is considered to be Thailand's second most important
city and one its largest. Despite this, it remains a tenth of the size of
Bangkok, with an estimated 400,000 people living in the greater urban area
of the city. A growing community of long stay foreign residents and tourists
swell this figure by an estimated 100,000 during the tourist season.
Chiang Mai is located approximately 700kms north of Bangkok and 250kms south
of the Myanmar border. It sits well within the tropics, and is surrounded by mountain ranges which form the tail end of the Himalayan range.
Chiang Mai sits in a broad valley at an elevation of 330 metres above sea
level. The valley is dissected by the Ping River - one of the four main
tributaries of the great Chao Praya - and it runs roughly from north to
south.
As much as 70 per cent of Chiang Mai province is covered in mountains and
forests. Agriculture, mainly fruit, vegetables and some rice cultivation, is
the mainstay of the local economy. In the past ten years, tourism has become
an increasingly important economic growth point for the city. Other industry
includes cottage industry, handicraft production, exporting, small scale
business and manufacturing.
The city dates back to 1296 when it was founded as the new capital of the
thriving Lanna Kingdom. Lanna (meaning 'a million rice fields') predates the
kingdoms of Sukhothai and Ayuthaya and incorporated an area stretching from
Chieng Sean, on the northern reaches of the Mekhong river, to Lamphun, just
to the south of Chiang Mai. It is one of the few cities in the world that
boasts a fully preserved square mile moat and, even today, the corner
ramparts and restored gates remain.
Chiang Mai has been continuously inhabited for more than 700 years, but its
fortunes have waxed and waned at the hands of invading armies from Laos,
Central Thailand and Burma. From the pinnacle of its strength under King
Mengrai (c.1300) to its submission as a vassal state under the Burmese in
the mid 16th century, the city has managed to remain largely independent and
was only formally included in the greater Thai Kingdom when the Lanna
monarchy was extinguished early in the 20th century.
More facts on Chiang Mai
The rooftop "Kalaes" are a unique Lanna icon found everywhere
Eighty per cent of the local population are deemed 'Khon Muang' (meaning
Northern folk) and they speak a slightly different dialect to the central
Thai language. The last census determined that there are 1,547,085 residents
in the Chiang Mai province, although this figure doesn't include the
minority hill tribes whose status is often in limbo.
Chiang Mai is bordered by the provinces of Lamphun and Lamphang to the
south, Mae Hong Son to the west and the country of Myanmar to the north.
Chiang Mai is also home to Thailand's highest mountain, Doi Inthanon, along
with five other peaks counted among the country's ten highest. It also has
five main national parks and more than a dozen smaller ones.
The region enjoys a mild tropical climate, regulated by the mountainous
terrain and the monsoon season. Three distinct seasons dictate the weather
in Chiang Mai. The cool season arrives in November and is typified by dry
weather and temperatures ranging from 15?C (60?F) to 25?C (80?C) in the
valley. From March onwards, the hot season arrives, culminating in
temperatures reaching 40?C (105?F) at midday in April but averaging 30?C
(85?F). The first rains begin in late May and the rainy season continues
through to October, with humidity above 80 per cent and daily afternoon
downpours. Rainfall tops 250mm in September with lengthy overcast spells and
all-day showers.
