You will not lose many hours in Chiang Rai itself. The countryside around it is a different story. Temples, tea fields, mountain roads and a border region with a history all of its own are within an hour’s ride, and two days will never cover all of it. That is fine, it does not have to.
A few things really belong on the list: the White Temple south of town, a morning on a scooter before the sun gets high, and a bowl of khao soi at the night bazaar. Others turn up in every list of northern Thailand and are a good use of a spare day. If you have just come from Chiang Mai and Pai, you have already seen your share of temples, so feel free to pick just a few here.
So where do your two days in Chiang Rai go, and what do you save for later?
Want the practical side first, like how many days you need, where to sleep and how to get there? That is all on our Chiang Rai page.
Wat Rong Khun, the White Temple
If you only visit one place around Chiang Rai, make it this one. The temple is almost entirely white, and it has been under construction since 1997 without ever looking close to finished. The longer you stand there, the more detail you notice, and it is nothing like the golden temples you see in the rest of Thailand.
Entry is about €2.50 and it is open daily from 8.00 to 17.00. It sits 13 kilometres south of the city, so a scooter gets you there in under half an hour, and every day tour stops there too.
Be there around opening time. From about ten the coaches fill the car park and you end up shuffling across the bridge in a queue instead of taking it in. Wear something that covers your shoulders and knees, because they really do check here.
Our verdict: absolutely, and ideally first thing that morning
A morning ride into the hills
This is why you rent a scooter in Chiang Rai. Ride out of town before eight towards the tea plantations and the viewpoints, and you are riding through the mist that still hangs between the mountains at that hour. No day tour gives you that, because they only set off once the mist has gone.
A scooter costs from about €5 a day. Count on a full day if you head for Mae Salong or Doi Tung, and carry an international driving permit, because they do check in Chiang Rai. Stop at the little coffee places and markets along the road, that is half the fun.
Two things to keep in mind. The mountain roads are full of blind bends, so this is not the place for your first ever time on a scooter. And in March and April smoke from the crop fires hangs over the hills: you see little of the view, and hours of riding without a mask is not a good idea.
Our verdict: a full day, and the roadside coffee stops are half the reason
Wat Rong Suea Ten, the Blue Temple
After a completely white temple, a completely blue one. The Blue Temple stands out with its bright blue and gold detail, and inside sits a large white Buddha that pops even more against it. It is a lot smaller than the White Temple, but just as bold in its colours.
You are done in half an hour and it is within scooter range of the centre, so it is easy to add on the same day as Wat Rong Khun. Most day tours do the two back to back as well.
Our verdict: definitely add it as a short stop along the way
Baan Dam Museum, the Black House
The counterpart to the two temples, and the strangest thing you can visit in Chiang Rai. The grounds are a collection of dark wooden buildings full of art, bones, skins and objects that do not come with an obvious story. It is not a temple and it does not feel like any museum either.
It is in the same part of town as the other two, so it makes sense as the third stop on your temple day. Allow an hour.
Know what you are walking into: this one is for people who like the strange and the unexpected. And if you are completely templed out, it is exactly what you need.
Our verdict: go, and make up your own mind afterwards
The night bazaar by the bus station
Chiang Rai is quiet at night, with one exception. Next to the bus station is the night bazaar, with a food court in the middle, stalls all around and usually live music on a stage. It is the only place in town that is properly busy after eight.
A plate of food costs a euro or two. Go for khao soi, the curry noodle soup you find all over the north, and order sticky rice from the basket with it instead of plain rice. Sour, spicy som tam hits the spot after a full day on the scooter.
Walk a lap past all the stalls before you order. Sit down at the first one and two minutes later you will spot what you really wanted.
Our verdict: every evening you are in town
The Choui Fong tea fields
Outside town the hills soon turn into rolling green tea fields, and Choui Fong is the best known of them. You look out over the terraces, drink tea that grew a few hundred metres away and, for the first time in days, sit still for a while.
It is a natural stop on your scooter loop through the hills, so combine it with the early morning ride rather than making it a separate trip.
Our verdict: the one place on this list where you sit still for an hour, and that is exactly why you go
The Golden Triangle
An hour north, Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet on the Mekong. From the viewpoints you see three countries at a glance, and the old opium trade gave the region a history you will not hear told like this anywhere else.
It is about 60 kilometres each way, which makes it a full day. A tour starts at around €20, usually with the opium museum and a boat on the Mekong included. If you ride there yourself, take the road slowly, because it is full of blind bends.
Our verdict: best saved for a third day
Got time to spare in Chiang Rai?
One more wat in or around town
The White Temple and the Blue Temple are so distinctive that they stand on their own. If you are coming from Chiang Mai you have already seen plenty of temples, so pick two or three here that speak to you and spend the time you save in the hills.
An evening in the centre
The centre is good for coffee, food and the night bazaar, and that is exactly the right way to spend your evening. During the day everything you came to Chiang Rai for is outside town, so make sure you get out for at least one full day and keep the centre for when the sun goes down.
The Golden Triangle if you have a third day
The spot where three countries meet, with a viewpoint, an opium museum and half an hour on the Mekong, makes a great day if you have the time. Only got two days? Give the second one to the hills closer to town, or cross straight into Laos: that saves you a day in a minivan.
Ride yourself or book a tour
The day tour that strings all the temples together is handy if you do not ride, and it gets you past everything in one day. For five euros you have a scooter, and then you decide how long you stay anywhere and where you stop along the way. Both work well here, so pick what suits you.
Our top five in Chiang Rai
Only got a few days? These are the five we would do no matter what:
- Wat Rong Khun, the White Temple, right at opening time
- The morning ride into the hills, out of town before eight
- Wat Rong Suea Ten, the Blue Temple, on the same day as the White Temple
- The Baan Dam Museum as the third stop on your temple day
- Dinner at the night bazaar by the bus station
Still got time after that? The Choui Fong tea plantation is the most beautiful place to spend an afternoon doing nothing, and if you have a whole day spare, the Golden Triangle is the big outing. Heading on to Laos? Keep in mind that the slow boat from Huay Xai only leaves once a day.
So what do you really have to do in Chiang Rai?
Honestly? Nothing on this list is compulsory. For most backpackers Chiang Rai is a stop on the way to Laos, and that is completely fine. The travellers who get the most out of it are rarely the ones who ticked off all five, but the ones who rode into the hills for a day with no plan at all.
If we had to pick just one thing: get up early once. Rent a scooter on your first morning, ride out of town before eight and find a spot looking out over the mountains while the mist is still sitting between them. You still have the whole day for the temples afterwards, and they will just be opening.
And finish at the night bazaar. A bowl of khao soi, sticky rice on the side, live music in the background and the knowledge that tomorrow you will be on a bus or a boat. For this city, that is exactly enough.
