Pai & Mae Hong Son

A hippie mountain town reached via 762 curves from Chiang Mai, with sunsets at Pai Canyon, seas of clouds and night markets; farther west lies Mae Hong Son, a lakeside town with a Burmese flavour.

Pai and Mae Hong Son lie in Mae Hong Son Province in Thailand's far northwest, ringed by mountains and bordering Myanmar's Shan State; the population is mainly Shan (Tai Yai), Lisu, Karen and Yunnanese Chinese. Pai is a valley town about 135 km northwest of Chiang Mai, reached via the “762 curves” of Route 1095, where rice paddies and bamboo bridges coexist with backpacker culture amid a dense mix of night markets, cafés and guesthouses. The provincial capital, Mae Hong Son town, about 110 km farther west, is a lakeside town with a Burmese feel, often called the “City of Three Mists.” Linked with Chiang Mai, the two form the famous Mae Hong Son Loop (about 600 km with more than 1,800 curves), ideal for a road trip or motorbike ride. Getting there: minivans run from Chiang Mai's Arcade bus station to Pai (about 3 hours; motion sickness is common, so bring medication); minivans also run from Pai to Mae Hong Son, and Mae Hong Son airport has flights to Bangkok and Chiang Mai (routes change from time to time). Pai town is walkable; for the surrounding sights, rent a motorbike (international licence and helmet required) or hire a songthaew. Seasons: November to February is cool and dry, with frequent seas of clouds and mist at dawn and lows that can drop below 10°C – this is high season. In March–April, crop burning in the mountains causes heavy haze and poor visibility; May–October is the rainy season, when landslides are common on mountain roads. Allow 2–3 days in Pai plus 2 days in Mae Hong Son. Good to know: mountain roads are full of sharp bends, so inexperienced riders shouldn't ride motorbikes. Cannabis shops line Pai's nightlife strip; Thai regulations are still changing and taking cannabis out of the country is illegal – steer well clear. When visiting long-neck (Kayan) villages, respect residents' wishes and ask before taking photos. China and Thailand have a mutual visa exemption (stays of up to 30 days per entry); check official sources before you travel.

Top sights

• Pai Canyon – Narrow red-earth ridges and deep gullies carved by rain. Standing on an earthen ridge only one person wide to watch the sun sink into the v…
• Pai Walking Street – A night market on a street closed to traffic every evening. Northern Thai snacks, handmade crafts and backpackers from around the world gat…
• Tham Lod Cave – A large limestone cave between Pai and Mae Hong Son. You pass through an underground river by bamboo raft, and inside are giant stalactites…
• Yun Lai Viewpoint – A hilltop lookout west of Pai where a sea of cloud often fills the valley on cool-season mornings, making it the top spot for sunrise in Pa…
• White Buddha, Wat Phra That Mae Yen – A huge white seated Buddha on a hillside east of town; climbing over three hundred steps gives views across the whole Pai basin, and it is…
• Sai Ngam Hot Spring – A natural hot spring stream in the forest about 15 km north of Pai, where water just over 30 °C pools under big trees into clear shallow ba…
• Jong Kham Lake & Wat Chong Kham – A small lake in central Mae Hong Son with two white-and-gold Shan-style temples on its shore; morning mist and reflections make it the town…
• Wat Phra That Doi Kong Mu – Two Shan-style white pagodas on the hilltop west of Mae Hong Son overlook the town and airstrip, often wrapped in cloud at dawn, and serve…
• Pang Ung Reservoir – A high-altitude reservoir ringed by pine forest, where bamboo rafts and black swans drift through morning mist, nicknamed 'the Switzerland…
• Pai Memorial Bridge (Tha Pai WWII Bridge) – A steel bridge spanning the Pai River, said to stand on the site of a wooden bridge built by Japanese troops in WWII, and a classic photo s…
• Tha Pai Hot Spring – A natural hot spring stream in the forest southeast of Pai, where hot water flows downstream past shallow pools at varying temperatures for…
• Mo Paeng Waterfall – A series of small tiered waterfalls west of Pai, where natural rock slides and pools make it a popular spot for backpackers to cool off.
• Pam Bok Waterfall – A small waterfall tucked between steep cliff walls, like stepping into a narrow canyon, often combined with the bamboo bridge, Pai Land Spl…
• Boon Ko Ku So Bamboo Bridge – A bamboo footbridge about 800 metres long across rice paddies, linking villages with a hilltop temple, and Pai's most photogenic rural scen…
• Pai Land Split – A crack in farmland caused by the 2008 earthquake, now opened to visitors by the farmers, who serve them homegrown roselle juice and fruit.
• Wat Nam Hu – An old temple west of Pai, home to the bronze Buddha Phra Ong Muang, whose head has a small lid that is said to collect holy water, revered…
• Su Tong Pae Bamboo Bridge – Thailand's longest bamboo bridge, about 500 metres across rice fields and streams, linking a village with a mountaintop temple, where you c…
• Ban Rak Thai – A Yunnanese village founded by remnants of the Kuomintang army, known for its lakeside tea gardens, adobe houses and Yunnan cuisine, and ca…
• Pha Suea Waterfall – A multi-tiered limestone waterfall in northern Mae Hong Son, with plenty of water at the end of the rainy season, and a rest stop on the wa…
• Tham Pla (Fish Cave) – Spring pools fed by a limestone cave at the foot of a mountain hold large wild carp that locals consider sacred; visitors can buy vegetable…
• Huai Nam Dang National Park Viewpoint – A mountaintop lookout beside the road from Chiang Mai to Pai, where winter dawns bring rolling seas of cloud, one of northern Thailand's mo…
• Ban Jabo – A Lahu hilltop village in Pang Mapha district known for its 'dangling-legs noodle shop', where diners eat with their feet over the cliff ed…
• Kiew Lom Viewpoint, Pang Mapha – A mountain pass lookout on the Pai–Mae Hong Son road at about 1,400 metres, where mountain ranges and cloud seas appear at winter dawn, an…
• Santichon Village – A Yunnanese Chinese village on the western outskirts of Pai, with rammed-earth houses, a Chinese-style gate and Yunnan restaurants, often v…

Where to eat

• Charlie and Lek – The most-mentioned Northern Thai restaurant in Pai, known for its khao soi and green curry, with plenty of vegetarian o…
• Salween Home – Mae Hong Son's top-ranked Shan family restaurant. Tea-leaf salad and Shan curry are musts.
• Nas Kitchen – One of Pai's most popular dinner spots, known for garlic steamed fish and a range of curries. Expect to queue.
• Two Sisters Restaurant – A family-run Burmese restaurant in Mae Hi village outside town, famous for its Burmese beef curry and tea-leaf salad. F…
• Bai Fern Restaurant – A Northern Thai institution in Mae Hong Son town, open for more than 30 years. It occupies a two-storey wooden house wi…

Itineraries

• Mae Hong Son Loop – A counter-clockwise mountain road trip starting from Chiang Mai, looping through Pai, Mae Hong Son, Mae Sariang, and Do…