# Chiang Mai



## bob86900711

What are the better districts of Chiang Mai to live in? And what are the areas that should be avoided? I'm planning on traveling to Thailand from USA in the fall and stay for a year. Chiang Mai is one of the areas I plan on possibly living in.


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## dhream

Hi bob,

I may be moving to CM soon too, and while doing my research I've noticed this question gets asked over and over by others, and to the best of my knowledge, for whatever reasons, always goes unanswered.

There are some CM threads with other good points to absorb, but they are scattered all over the forum, I guess the best advice is to set aside a few hours and search for clues to help answer your question, and hope for the best!

My educated guess is that there probably are one or two great wee neighbourhoods in CM but why would the local expats promote them? 

Bear in mind anyone could be reading these threads, and Thailand attracts its share of shady characters. Also, in general, two things will eventually happen, both of them BAD:

1. You get a farang ghetto happening, some people may be into that, but I suspect most did not move to Thailand to recreate their neighbourhood back home.

2. When you get a lot of farangs in one formerly reasonable place the prices start to go through the roof, and the more rubbishy dollar-driven enterprises may also follow. And I suspect most did not move to Thailand to pay the prices that they paid back home, or live on a mini version of Sukhumvit Road.

That's my theory about the lack of feedback on the nicer parts of Chiang Mai to live, and if I'm right, I'm cool with those reasons, they're being very wise!

My expat experience here in Portugal, has unfortunately been that when someone starts promoting their little piece of 'paradise', run the other way!


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## stednick

The question goes unanswered because it is far too vague to be answered. 

I’ve never resided in Chiang Mai although I’ve visited many times. I have never come across an “area” to avoid, or even an undesirable area. I have spoken to the Tourist Police concerning this issue (approximately a decade ago) and was told by them that ALL of Chiang Mai is safe, with little or no crime being reported. (possibly a biased response) 

As far as what are the “better” districts, again, too vague to answered. It is entirely a matter of personal preferences and/or desires. ? Partier, homebody, religious, food, quiet, noisy, transport, shopping, etc. etc. ? The list goes on and on. What is the yardstick by which you will evaluate?

The location I find "ideal" may be the very “pits” for someone else and vice versa.

Go, explore, use caution, don’t sign a contract “quickly”. Pay attention to noise, transport, pollution, smells, and easy procurement of desired supplies.

Good luck.


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## bob86900711

dhream said:


> Hi bob,
> 
> I may be moving to CM soon too, and while doing my research I've noticed this question gets asked over and over by others, and to the best of my knowledge, for whatever reasons, always goes unanswered.
> 
> There are some CM threads with other good points to absorb, but they are scattered all over the forum, I guess the best advice is to set aside a few hours and search for clues to help answer your question, and hope for the best!
> 
> My educated guess is that there probably are one or two great wee neighbourhoods in CM but why would the local expats promote them?
> 
> Bear in mind anyone could be reading these threads, and Thailand attracts its share of shady characters. Also, in general, two things will eventually happen, both of them BAD:
> 
> 1. You get a farang ghetto happening, some people may be into that, but I suspect most did not move to Thailand to recreate their neighbourhood back home.
> 
> 2. When you get a lot of farangs in one formerly reasonable place the prices start to go through the roof, and the more rubbishy dollar-driven enterprises may also follow. And I suspect most did not move to Thailand to pay the prices that they paid back home, or live on a mini version of Sukhumvit Road.
> 
> That's my theory about the lack of feedback on the nicer parts of Chiang Mai to live, and if I'm right, I'm cool with those reasons, they're being very wise!
> 
> My expat experience here in Portugal, has unfortunately been that when someone starts promoting their little piece of 'paradise', run the other way!



If those are the reasons. I'd be cool with that too. I have no problem traveling that area to figure it out. I definitely dont want to recreate what I'm leaving behind either.


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## Mweiga

dhream said:


> 1. You get a farang ghetto happening, some people may be into that, but I suspect most did not move to Thailand to recreate their neighbourhood back home.
> 
> 2. When you get a lot of farangs in one formerly reasonable place the prices start to go through the roof, and the more rubbishy dollar-driven enterprises may also follow. And I suspect most did not move to Thailand to pay the prices that they paid back home, or live on a mini version of Sukhumvit Road.


These observations are spot on. My own objective when moving to Thailand eight years ago was absolutely to avoid both of the above and set about finding my own undiscovered piece of paradise by hunting alone without seeking advice from other expats. Takes time , patience and a certain amount of luck never goes amiss. Bought land and built house eventually in a quiet rural setting.

There's no substitute for coming out and doing a thorough recce on your own without any rush.


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## godfree

*Where to Live in Chiang Mai?*

Like all of Thailand, Chiang Mai is not zoned or regulated, so there are few 'neighborhoods' in the sense that we think of them. It makes for a wildly higgeldy-piggedly environment, which I've come to appreciate after living in Beverly Hills – which feels and looks like a well-tended cemetery.

That said, the two neighborhoods to start your search in are Niemannhamen and Hang Dong. The former is urban and upmarket where condos comprise 90% of housing. The latter is suburban, where standalone homes make up 90%. Both types of housing start around $500/month for new, high quality accommodation. Prices vary wildly. Some house-renters simply want a tenant who will care for the place and thus charge nominal rent to the right applicant. Some are looking for take foreigners for every penny they can get. 
So it pays to shop around. <Snip>


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## cnx_bruce

I agree with Stednick's answer. Many newbie queries that include subjective terms like comfortable, nice, cheap, expensive, reasonable etc etc get few responders as the answer depends on the personal perspective of the person asking the question. A cafe that is reasonable to one person can be cheap or expensive to others. You also need to specify what things you need to be close to (or away from) and what your budget is, for example.

To find the area you'll want to stay in long term, you'll need to get a room in a guesthouse for a week or so in a central location (in or within walking distance of the old city areas) and go out in a different direction each day and explore in a small car.


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## godfree

Yep. There's no substitute for shoe leather, particularly in Thailand, where people prefer to do things facer to face.


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## bob86900711

Sounds like good advice. I'll get me a room and travel the area and find my ideal location. I love to play golf and I would like to be with walking distance or a short ride to coffee shops, restaurants some night life but not so close that the area is noisy or dangerous. I will have a monthly budget of $2800USD. 

I plan traveling the country but would like to live in tje Chiang Mai area because it seems to have all of what Im looking for. Thanks everyone.


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## dhream

*Non-Touristy Map of Ching Mai*

Hi to all following this thread, and related very much to house searches, is there in existence, and available in CM itself, a decent map of the city? i'm thinking Michelin style, not those useless tourist maps that don't even number the Sois inside the moat. 

I went into a service (gas) station no maps, but plenty of.... handbags! Well, now I have something pretty to put my map in.

Cheers.


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## dhream

To answer my own question (I'm doing it a lot lately...) I found a Google Map of CNX that has been meticulously modified by an expat from another board. I'm not sure if I can share the link as it may be deemed unsolicited posting, and I'll be sin-binned. Anyway, it was created in 2011 and I imagine much of the info on it is relevant. An internet search should guide you to it if you are interested, sorry I can't be of more help! it's not allowed...


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## Asian Spirit

dhream said:


> To answer my own question (I'm doing it a lot lately...) I found a Google Map of CNX that has been meticulously modified by an expat from another board. I'm not sure if I can share the link as it may be deemed unsolicited posting, and I'll be sin-binned. Anyway, it was created in 2011 and I imagine much of the info on it is relevant. An internet search should guide you to it if you are interested, sorry I can't be of more help! it's not allowed...


If the map link is not to the other board, please post it .
I found a pretty cool {free} map download for mobile devices on the Google Play Store called Maps With me. I put it on my cell phone and tablet. Works well and might be of value to those in Thailand as well.


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## dhream

*useful map for CNX Expats*



Jet Lag said:


> If the map link is not to the other board, please post it .
> I found a pretty cool map download for mobile devices on the Google Play Store called Maps With me. I put it on my cell phone and tablet. Works well and might be of value to those in Thailand as well.


Thanks Jet Lag,

Here is the map: http://tinyurl.com/oplhkdk it links directly to Google Maps. With acknowledgement to its original creator 'Greenside'.


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## Asian Spirit

dhream said:


> Thanks Jet Lag,
> 
> Here is the map: http://tinyurl.com/oplhkdk it links directly to Google Maps. With acknowledgement to its original creator 'Greenside'.


Hey, Thanks for posting. That should help a lot for many people..


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## dhream

I rented a car with satnav/GPS for 4 days to get a feel for the geography, and a taste of driving here.

First off, you need not be overly concerned about driving here. You will find that motorbikes and bicycles (rare) break ALL road rules including overtaking on the nearside and running red lights, all the time.

Don't expect much courtesy, it's a very macho road culture, you either muscle in, or wait your turn... forever...

Lane discipline? hahahah what are you? A wimp?

Many bike riding Thais, and car driving Thais, are unlicensed, and many on bikes are mere teenagers.

But the general pace of traffic is much slower than BKK, the average speed here on regular city roads is 30 kph (20 mph?) there are few street/traffic signs, many blind corners, and many Soi's (alleys) are single-lane.

Your hire car will be battle-scarred, try not to add to those...  Take out max-insurance on your insurance!

Understand that you will have to be creative with the satnav/GPS as there are infinite ways to spell place/street names in English, every print map you see will have different ways to spell every street in Thailand! Your device may not (will not) be updated with the latest condos and malls.

For example type in 'Chiang Mai' it does not exist... well, stupid, you should have typed in Muang or Muaeng, or Mueang, (Metro/City) Chiang Mai... but you're expected to just know that -by osmosis or something.

Finally, Americans and Europeans will have to grapple with driving on the left, even I found it difficult after eight months driving on the right in Portugal, having driven the 'British' way for most of my life elsewhere...

Chok Dee! (Good Luck!)


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## dhream

*Niemanheaman? No thanks!*



godfree said:


> Like all of Thailand, Chiang Mai is not zoned or regulated, so there are few 'neighborhoods' in the sense that we think of them. It makes for a wildly higgeldy-piggedly environment, which I've come to appreciate after living in Beverly Hills – which feels and looks like a well-tended cemetery.
> 
> That said, the two neighborhoods to start your search in are Niemannhamen and Hang Dong. The former is urban and upmarket where condos comprise 90% of housing. <Snip>


Not intended to attack the views of godfree, but having seen Niemanheaman (spell it however you want, everyone else does!) This is exactly the sort of place you want to avoid if your reasons for coming to Thailand are to live in Thailand!

As an ex-Sydneysider, this part of town is, in my opinion, basically CM's answer to Double Bay (aka Double Pay) and Neutral Bay, I suppose Rodeo Drive would be the US equivalent?

The usual yuppie diversions abound, pretentious boutiques, seriously overpriced coffee shops (expensive iced coffees that are 90% crushed ice anyone?) it's Thailand done Disney.

I like a little luxury now and then, there's nothing wrong with a regular dose of western comfort, be that a Bordeaux or a Burger done right. But IMHO choosing to cocoon oneself in this part of town, begs the question of why move to Thailand at all? It showcases everything that's wrong with the mantra of consumerism as the path to happiness. 

In the two weeks I've been here it is already very apparent that just about every part of CM has some degree of Western influence, there are malls of various sizes and demographic appeal everywhere. It's simply as has been said before, a matter of budget and personal appetite for the degree of cultural immersion one desires.


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