All our Thailand guides tagged Chiang Mai.
The route that fits without rushing: three nights in Bangkok, three in the north, four on an island, and why a cheap domestic flight beats every overland option.
Sky lantern releases around Chiang Mai are restricted to permitted zones and hours, the famous mass releases are ticketed private events, and flights get moved. What you can actually do, and what the festival leaves behind.
The float on the water and the lantern in the sky are different festivals that happen to coincide. What each one is, where each is best, why the famous mass releases are ticketed events, and what the dates depend on.
Three hundred temples in one city and one on a mountain: which four are worth your morning, the staircase of nagas, and the dress code that turns people away at the door.
Inside the moat, along the river, in the hip quarter south of it, or up in the hills: what each part of Chiang Mai is like to sleep in and who it suits.
No riding, no shows, no bathing scrums: the questions that separate a genuine sanctuary from a rebranded camp, and what a good visit actually looks like.
Your complete Chiang Mai guide: the old city temples, the famous night bazaar, ethical elephant sanctuaries, the best day trips, and where to eat khao soi in northern Thailand.