Chiang Rai, Thailand - Scooter Loop
Chiang Rai – Mae Salong – Mae Sai- Chiang Saen – Chiang Khong – Chiang Rai.
In North Thailand, we decided to do a scooter loop. Basically, you just rent a scooter and drive from one place to another until you come back to where you started from. It’s important to say that we did our loop at the end of November. Prices were still a little low because it was not high season yet (which is from December to February) and also this had an impact on the weather. Our guesthouse Tourist inn allowed us to store our big backpack there so we could travel light.
We started in Chiang Rai where we asked around for a scooter to rent. Almost every place offered a scooter for around 200baht/day for 5 days. We didn’t want to take the newest and shiniest ones since we were going to drive a bit of off the track but still needed one with enough affective motor (125CC) to run over the mountains. The best solution we found was from a scooter rental place called ST. The Lady who rented the scooter was really nice and not very interested in scratches. She also went down to 900baht for 5 days. We were ready to begin our loop.
The first day we drove from Chiang Rai to Mae Salong. The first bit of the route goes along the “Highway 1”. It is a bit busier road and should be driven with caution, but it is safe when you don’t try to race with the locals. Just before Mae Chan takes a left turn to Road 1089. That is when you get out of the big road and driving improves immediately. Small road with just a few other cars/mopeds. There are even a few options to take small roads to waterfalls. We took one of them and it was really worth it. A few kilometers drive on a bumpy road and then a little walk alongside the stream of the waterfall and we were there. Did took less than an hour in total and we were back on the road toward Mae Salong.
The next turn to the right is a bit tricky. There are no signs but we had an offline map downloaded called maps.me and we found the way pretty easy with this. The road is really small and you will be climbing the mountain. So I was happy we had enough power in our scooter. Didn’t go fast but the views were spectacular! From our maps, we did see that there is another road to Mae Salong as well but not sure how that road is. The road we drove was not too difficult but definitely good to have some driving experience and not the laziest motor at least if driven by two persons in one vehicle. There was a beautiful Buddha statue and temple on the top of the hills and a few tiny villages we passed as well before we arrived at our destination. Be aware that you have some warm clothes with you since it gets a bit chilly up there especially when driving.
Mae Salong is a small village with few guesthouses, restaurants, and one 7/11. There is a beautiful Buddhist temple on top of the hill where you can climb up. Around 700 stairs but definitely worth it. If you wish you can drive up as well from the other side of the mountain. We stayed in a guesthouse called Shin Sane Guesthouse for 400 baht/night. The owners are very friendly and welcoming. Our room was small, including a fan and a shared bathroom. It’s important to say that during this loop we did not care too much where we stayed. Important for us was that the price was acceptable and that we could have a warm shower. For one night it was also ok to have a shared bathroom. However, this guesthouse offers different room types with more privacy as well.
The next morning we visited tea plantations and had some tea tasting before we headed towards our next destination Mae Sai. You could drive back to route 1 and head north towards the border of Myanmar but we decided to drive small roads over the mountains which were supposed to have some gorgeous views and much more quieter roads. And that was definitely true! I would recommend downloading an offline map or having a real map with you since there are few crossroads where you have to know where to go or trust your luck! Unluckily we needed to do both. It started to rain heavily. I mean proper heavily. We stopped first for a while under the cover of the trees but after some time we realized it was not going to stop anytime soon and our cover also started to let rain in. We didn’t have any raincoats with us. But we did have a waterproof cover for our backpack at least. So we weren’t completely unprepared. (Do take raincoats with you.) We couldn’t use the map either because of the rain and there were not too many signs either. So we trusted in our luck. I would say we drove around two hours in the rain over the mountains before we came to the big road (Route 1) again. It was not our intention at first. But since the weather was not on our side we and/or our luck decided to come back to the big road a bit earlier than planned. We also thought it would be a faster way and that we could try to find some place to stay on the main road on the way to Mae Sai. We were completely wet and shaky as well. We decided to try the first guesthouse we saw. Around 5km before the city we saw a sign for a guesthouse and drove in. It looked really good and most importantly they had a hot shower! Luckily a bit of the season they still had their prices down and we got a deal to stay in for a night for 700baht. A bit pricy but we didn’t complain after we got into the hot shower.
The next day our clothes were dry again and we were ready to keep on driving. We skipped Mae Sai and started to drive towards the Golden Triangle. This is where Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar meet. Drove was really easy. The roads were fantastic and really quiet as well. I was expecting a real tourist place with expensive prices. My expectations failed me. There were only a few Chinese taking pictures of the “Golden Triangle” sign and you didn’t have to spend your money there unless you wanted to. It was more than a fine stop to take some pictures, walk alongside the river, and update your Snapchat MS. We really enjoyed it.
tea tastings
From the triangle, there is only a short drive to the next city Chiang Saen. Yes, I’m also confused with all these Chiangs, Meas and Saes. This town has some amazing temples around it! Two hilltop temples and some Angkor Wat stylish temple -areas as well. Definitely recommend visiting. There it was easy to find a good place to stay with a shower and air-conditioning for around 400baht/night.
Day three began rainy and cold. We stopped at 7/11 to find raincoats. They didn’t have any. Luckily across the street, there was another 7/11. We found Scoopy raincoats! They are so stylish. I genuinely love them. They also saved us. The first half of the drive towards Chiang Khong was really rainy and we would have been dropping again. But Scoopy coats were on the spot. They kept us pretty much dry and warm. Best 200baht spent ever.
You have two options to drive from Chiang Saen to Chiang Khong. Either alongside the river or over the mountains. We did the latter one. The road there is pretty good and new. Almost all the way to Chiang Khong. But the last bit which you will drive alongside the river is without asphalt on it. And I assume when it’s dry there are no problems. But when it is soaking wet. It is hazardous. Was the worst bit of driving in our loop. Very very slippery. Tabea even went off the scooter to let me drive safely alone. But she couldn’t even walk in the mud and started to sink in. There was a lot of construction work going on though and we think this part of the road will be covered in asphalt by next year this time! After some sliding, we made it to Bordertown, washed our muddy feet and scooter, and checked in to Nam Khong Guesthouse. There you can stay from 250 baht/night, it’s very central and this resort includes a pool.
In this border town to Laos, there are plenty of guesthouses, restaurants, and a few bars. Not too much to do otherwise. For food, we would definitely recommend the place called Padthai Baan Yim! Very cozy and they do serve really good local food.
For the last part of our loop, we got excellent weather to drive. The road to Chiang Rai is in great condition, isn’t too busy, and was easy to follow. Was around a 100km long drive from Chiang Khong to Chiang Rai but it went smoothly and pretty fast as well.
We arrived back to Rai around 4 pm, checked in to our previous guesthouse, and found our backbag safe and sound. Returned the scooter day after and got my passport back. They didn’t even check the scooter for new scratches or anything.
So if you are interested in exploring around the province of Chiang Rai. I can definitely recommend to do it by scooter. Amazing views, beautiful temples, delicious teas, and chilled vibe towns!
Safe drives! -Matias
