Accommodation and Transportation

Set at an altitude of approximately 310 meters above sea level and about 700 kilometers away from Bangkok on the Mae Ping River basin, Chiang Mai is surrounded by high mountain ranges. The city is spread over an area of approximately 20,107 square kilometers. The weather in Chiang Mai is tropical with a more relaxed and easy going trend of living. It is a simple, unpretentious place where people are friendly, sociable making it convenient for the foreigners to settle.

Chiang Mai flaunts a wide variety of readily available accommodation as the city juxtaposes its ancient heritage with comfort and convenience of contemporary western amenities.

A simple room in a no-frills guesthouse is about 180 baht per night ($4.80). This can serve as a comfortable home base while you ask around about apartments. The best way to browse for an apartment is by talking to the locals. The guesthouse people, the restaurants owner, are generally very open and friendly and always willing to help, especially those who intend to stay awhile.

For 2,000 baht a month you can get a basic studio apartment within a 10 minute ride of the city, but you'll probably want to pay double that for the comfort of hot water, a/c and some decent furniture. Up to 10,000 baht you can have a very stylish place in Hillside (ex-pat towers!) Condotel with added facilities, cable TV and plush furniture. For this you can expect two bedrooms, and a balcony. Houses are equally good value. Shelling out 5,000 baht a month can get you a three bedroom house in a regular Thai suburb near the city (15 - 20 minutes), with modest garden. For something closer to the city or with more privacy, and furniture, the price goes up to 10,000 baht. If it's been designed to suit a farang it may be as much as 15,000 baht. A plush suburban house in a housing community can cost 20,000 baht and up and comes fully furnished. Furnishing something yourself isn't expensive if you go shopping for wicker furniture. If you insist on being in the centre of the city, expect to pay at least 3,000 baht a month for a simple guesthouse room.

The central part of the city or the old Town is fairly easy to navigate because it’s surrounded by a perfectly square moat. A maze of back roads and shortcuts lie within it. Transportation around Chiang Mai is easy with the public transport system of samlors, Tuk-tuks, songthaews, and the air-conditioned bus system. Bicycles can also be used to get around town. Motor bikes are one of the main sources of transportation for many, especially to get away from the tourist spots and into the nooks and crannies where one can experience the real flavor of Thai food and a true sense of the culture. Rentals are available at agencies all over town for about $3.65 per day (new ones cost about $1,000 but can be sold fairly quickly with little decrease in value).

A recommend rent option can be the reliable Honda Dream 125cc (or similar) that would only cost 2,500 baht a month, making life much easier. Fuel consumption is expect to pay average on 100 baht a week. A second hand bike costs about 15 - 20,000 and a new one 30,000+ baht. A bigger bike costs between 30,000 - 50,000 baht second hand. No new bikes over 150cc are made in Thailand. A second hand car costs anywhere from 50,000 baht (10 year old Mazda 323) to 300,000 baht (five year old Honda Civic).

Tuk tuks cost about 60 - 100 baht per ride, and songtaew minibuses 10 baht per ride. A decent new mountain bike costs about 12 - 15,000 baht (about 30 per cent cheaper than back home). To drive a motorized vehicle you will need an International Driver’s License (issued from your home country) and it will have to state what vehicle you are allowed to drive, i.e., automobile, truck, motor bike, etc. You will also need to make sure that you have insurance on your vehicle if driving in Thailand.