The mellow, green district along the Ping River just east of the Old City — leafy lanes, riverside restaurants, boutique hotels and a slower, more local rhythm. Quieter and more romantic than the centre, walkable to the markets; the base for travellers who want calm, good food by the water and a gentle pace.
A look around
What you’ll be living next to. Swipe through.
€40–100
typical per night in Thailand
The sensible middle
Typical prices for Chiang Mai — neither steal nor splurge.
Where it sits
The circle is Riverside and roughly a 10-minute walk around it.
How far is everything?
From the middle of this area to the city's headline sights — pick your own on the city page and these become your list.
- The Night Bazaar5 min walk449 m
- Sunday Walking Street13 min walk1.1 km
- The Old City temples21 min walk1.8 km
- Khao soi & northern Thai food12 min taxi3.9 km
- Nimman cafés & design12 min taxi3.9 km
- Wat Umong forest temple17 min taxi5.6 km
- Wat Phra That Doi Suthep26 min taxi8.7 km
- An ethical elephant sanctuary65 min taxi21.7 km
On your doorstep
What you’re living next to if you stay here.
- 6.A Thai cooking class — Chiang Mai is Thailand's cooking-class capital — a day that usually starts at a local market choosing ingredients, then a farm or garden, then hands-on cooking of curries, pad thai, spring rolls and mango sticky rice, which you devour. Fun, delicious and genuinely useful; you'll leave able to recreate the flavours at home. A highlight for any food lover.
- 10.A traditional Thai massage — Chiang Mai does some of the best and cheapest massage in Thailand — an hour of stretching, pressing traditional Thai massage, or a foot or oil massage, for a few pounds. Many places are run by former inmates trained in a respected women's-prison programme; a blissful, restorative ritual after a day on your feet, and utterly woven into the local pace of life.
- 20.Bo Sang umbrella village — The 'umbrella village' east of town where they hand-paint the famous parasols — watch them made, then get your phone or bag painted while you wait. Colourful fun.
When are you staying?
Booking.com & Airbnb open searched to Riverside; flights via Google Flights.