Bangkok and Northern Thailand Itinerary

After landing in Bangkok, I met my friend who flew in from Australia and we spend 2 nights in the city. We checked out some of the luxury life of Bangkok by visiting 2 five star hotel (Novotel and Hilton). The view over the city at night is beautiful. Afterwards we spend some time walking through the center with its lively nightlife. There is a lot of drinking and prostitution going on which is not my favorite vibe. In daytime we walked around the city and enjoyed some nice Thai food. I did not spend too much time in Bangkok and I am quite happy about that. It is a very busy city with tons of traffic and too stressful for me. 

We took a flight to Chiang Mai and spend another 2 nights there. Chiang Mai is very beautiful with lots of temples to visit, restaurants and cafes to see and a relaxed flair that differs a lot depending on where you are in the city. The old city is very impressive with so many small temples that you can discover just walking randomly. Wat Chedi Luang temple and Wat Phra Singh temple are very beautiful to visit. We stayed in Kamala's guesthouse, which I can recommend. In the same area there are many more hostels, restaurants and bars. Chiang Mai is quite hippster, so it is definitely fun to check out nice cafes around the city. It is easy to rent a scooter but also Grab bikes and taxis as well as walking works really well. 

Next step from getting from Chiang Mai to Pai. From Chiang Mai, we took a bus and went up the mountains to the beautiful mountain village Pai, which is already quite a famous spot for backpackers which a large community of long-term travellers. Pai and its surroundings are impressive - lots of waterfalls and beautiful nature to explore by scooter. At night there are quite some parties (techno, raggea, regular bars...), so you will definitely never get bored. Pai is well known among low-budget travellers, musicians and backpackers as it catches lots of people who do not want to leave. From Feb to June, the fields are getting burned, so this is not a recommended time to go. We spend our time there, checking out restaurants. For vegan and veg restaurants, I can recommend Fat Cat,  Earth Tone. Good Life Dacha is the place to be for all kinds of spiritual practices like yoga, meditation, kirtans etc. In general it is a very open-minded and spiritual community. I will definitely go back and stay for a few month next time.