Bob & Janette's Travel Adventures

Flight details:

 Gold Coast to Kuala Lumpur AirAsiaX Flt D72703

Depart Tues 27Oct09 0905hrs arrive KLIA-LCCT Tues 27Oct09 1525hrs

 Kuala Lumpur to Chiang Mai AirAsia Flt AK762

Depart Wed 28Nov09 0720hrs arrive Chiang Mai Wed 28Nov09 0900hrs

NOTES:   For return flights see Laos 09 trip.

                  Exchange rate during trip -  AU$1 = 30 baht

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AirAsiaX and Kuala Lumpur

How lucky were we to score a fantastic bargain, $165 each return airfares for this trip and Laos (see separate blog).  Once again our Airasiax flights were all on times and apart from a little cramped were fine.  Thankfully Airasia will be changing the seating on these flights sometine in 2010, perhaps even upgrading to the A350 aircraft, which will have reclining seats in economy.

Our overnight stop was at the Tune Hotel.  A budget, but very clean transit type hotel which is within walking distance from the terminal.  A shuttle bus runs to the hotel if you happen to have heavy bags.  The room is very small with an ensuite and that is about it.  Beds are made but if you want towels and toiletry pack you do pay extra.  Our room was booked during an opening  special for $5.00

Chiang Mai

After an early morning flight from KL we arrived on time in Chiang Mai.  It was then a short taxi ride to the "Old City" and our accommodation at CM Blue House.  CM Blue House was very economical at 400baht per room but for our next trip we would probably choose somewhere else a little more upmarket.

This trip was booked to coincide with Loy Krathong Festival or Yi Peng as it is know in Chiang Rai.  You can find a full review of the Festival Here.

Hiring a bike in Chiang Mai is quite economical and traffic quite moderate so we hired a bike from Jaguar Motorcycles (150baht/day).  This enabled us to be totally independent and see a lot more of the city than our previous trip.  It's great being able to stop when and where we want and Jaguar were nice people to deal with.

One place we wanted to check out on this trip was the Tiger Kingdom at Mae Rim, located a pleasant 20 minute ride from town.  The Tiger kingdom is also quite near the Mae Sa Elephant Farm which we visited during our Thailand 05 trip.  The Tigers all appeared well cared for and were housed in pleasant surroundings.  In our opinion, much better than the Watpha Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi.  We opted to spend some time with a group of cubs which were about 3 months old.  What a fantastic experience to interact and play with these majestic creatures.  We were lucky enough to have 2 cubs play and climb all over us.

We always manage to do something out of the ordinary whilst away and on this trip we did Jungle Flight.  It was a fantastic day spend high in the tree tops of the jungle, zipping along wires from tree to tree. We especially liked our guides who injected just the right amount of humour to easy any nerves.  Prior to returning to Chiang Mai we were served lunch at a local restaurant and downed a few changs.

We had 8 days in Chiang Mai and the time went so quick.  We could have easily spent another week just sampling the great restaurants alone.  Naturally we took in the Sunday Walking street market, a few massages here and there as well as a trip to the zoo.  Note to self.... allow more time when we next visit Chiang Mai.

Chiang Rai

Time to head on, so we booked the Green VIP bus from the Arcade Station (a few Ks out of town).  It is a fantastic bus, aircon, big reclining seats and snacks provided.  All this for 270baht.  The 2hr trip to Chiang Rai was all on good roads and quite scenic.  Perhaps next time we will hire bikes in CM and ride to Chiang Rai.  It would be a comfortable enough trip with only light traffic.  Note though, that in Chiang Rai the bus station is a good few klms out of town and you will need to negotiate a tuk tuk to take you the final 5 ks or so.

We booked into the Orchids Guesthouse in Jed Yod Road and what a nice place this turned out to be.  Lovely staff, free wifi, free tea and coffee, great room and in a great location, all for 400baht per night without aircon (450 baht with a/c).  We even hired our bikes through the G/H and they were delivered within minutes. 

Right from the start we knew we would love Chiang Rai.  The town is quite a bit smaller than Chiang Mai and has a lovely feel to it.  It was good to wander the streets and the Saturday Night walking street market is on par with the one in Chiang Mai.  Naturally we had to sample the food stalls that night.  Walking back to our hotel we just happened to catch the clock tower being lit up.  It is quite beautiful during the day but when the lights are turned on at 7 and 8pm it is spectacular.  Apparently it was designed by the same architect as the White Temple and easy to see why.  We have devoted a full page to THE WHITE TEMPLE and a picture of the clock tower can be seen there.

Whilst in Chiang Rai we booked Jermsak, for a day tour to the Golden Triangle.  As arranged, Jermsak  picked up from our guesthouse and we headed off to Doi Tung and the Golden Triangle, stopping off at the Monkey Cave along the way.  We weren't too fussed with the monkeys as we both know how aggressive they can easily become.

At Doi Tung we visited the King's  Mother's summer palace gardens.  In her 80's, the King's Mother adopted the region of northern Thailand that was known for opium production and built her summer villa there. She raised awareness of sustainable farming and set out on a mission to reforest the mountains.  Instead of opium, farmers now do sustainable farming and are known for their excellent coffee and tea production.

From Doi Tung we headed further North to the Golden triangle and the town of Sop Ruak.  As we stood at the viewpoint we could look down the convergence of the Ruak and Mekong Rivers and the physical triangle made by Thailand, Laos and Burma.  Also whilst in Sop Ruak we toured the Opium Museum which was quite interesting.  No samples were given out or sampled during this tour LoL

After a delicious lunch at a local restaurant we headed off to the Doi Mae Salong tea plantations where Jermsak arrange for us to sample some very refreshing teas.  Finally a stop off to visit a hilltribe market before heading home.  It was a fantastic and highly recommended day out with Jermsak.  His knowledge of the area and his kindness made for a very memorable day out.

After a wonderful stay in Chiang Rai we catch a local busfor the bumpy 2hr ride to Chiang Klong where we catch a longtail across the Mekong and into Laos.

 

 

 

Read all about our continuing journey through Laos HERE...