Pai, the adventure mountain town

ℹ️ Top Things to Do in Pai

Wat Phra That Mae Yen

Wat Phra That Mae Yen, perched on top of a hill immediately southeast of Pai, is our top choice Buddhist temple in town. Among its buildings, golden chedis and statues, a huge white seated Buddha stands out as the most iconic element, which can be seen from almost anywhere in Pai. But the main reason to climb the 352 steps of the stairway that leads up here is not really the architecture or any detail of the temple itself, but the magnificent views over the Pai Valley, which you’ll enjoy especially if you are there for sunrise or sunset.

Pai Markets

Pai’s Night Market, also known as Walking Street, is set up every evening around 17:00 along Chaisongkran street, a street market selling food, crafts, clothing and souvenirs, that becomes the busiest part of town once the sun goes down. Besides this, if your stay coincides on Monday and/or Wednesday and you want to have an authentic local experience, you should start the day by visiting one -or both- of the two biggest local weekly morning markets. Go early, as they get started around dawn, soon reach their peak of activity and then start to decline until completely disappearing around 12:00. The largest one is Wednesday market (Kad Phut), which is installed near the river 1 km south of the center of Pai, while Monday Market (Kad Chan) is a smaller version, located on the outskirts about 1 km northwest, along the road that leads to Mae Hong Son.

Ban Santichon

Ban Santichon is a town founded by the Kuomintang, former units of the Republican Army of China who escaped to Thailand after their defeat under Mao’s Communist Party. They were allowed by the Thai government to settle here in exchange for their help in fighting the indigenous communist insurgency. In the last decades the surrounding area has been developed to become some kind of odd theme park, with a small Chinatown that among many other kitsch attractions includes the replica of a small section of the Great Wall of China. The original town is located uphill, and it’s pleasant to walk among the Yunnan-style houses with large patios. Following the steep road further up you can reach the mountaintop, with magnificent views over the Pai valley.

Pai Canyon

Okay, they may have been smoking something other than tobacco when they came up with the name, and it can easily lead to exaggerated expectations, but the truth is that Pai Canyon is one of our favourite spots around Pai. It is a good place to go for a hike, especially in the afternoon, when it’s not too hot and the soft light of sunset allows to appreciate the landscape at its best. It is a beautiful area of ocher sandstone that time has eroded and molded into picturesque shapes, creating deep ravines and sharp ridges. At some points there are wooden platforms to help admire the views, and there are plenty of trails that allow you to explore the area, but be very careful: some of them are really narrow, follow ridges surrounded by ravines, and the ground can be quite slippery both in rainy season –due to mud– and dry season –due to gravel–. Following the same road that you came from the Memorial Bridge heading north, you will find the entrance to the Pai Canyon on the left after 1.5 km. Admission is free.

Trekking

The natural surroundings of Pai are a good area for hiking, although you should know in advance that Pai is a veteran adventure destination where trekking routes have been set and running for decades, so do not expect to find very remote forests and villages. All Pai tourist agencies offer a variety of organized treks, and many of them are not actually done in the vicinity of Pai, but in the nearby regions of Soppong and Mae Hong Son. Another good option is the Huay Nam Dang National Park, whose main entrance is located about 40 km east of Pai. The price of trekkings is quite variable depending on the number of participants -normally a minimum of 2 is required, and price goes down the bigger the group- and the activities included, but in general they usually cost around 1000 THB/person/day. Some treks combine hiking with rafting, bamboo rafting, and even elephant riding.

Mo Paeng Waterfall

Mo Paeng Waterfall (Nam Tok Mo Paeng) is located about 8 km west from Pai, next to Ban Mo Paeng village, of the Lisu ethnic group. It’s a beautiful place to relax, with a medium sized natural pool perfect for a dip, surrounded by jungle and big wide boulders heavenly designed for sunbathing. Not surprisingly, its proximity to Pai, combined with its easy and free access, makes the place often crowded. To avoid this possibility, try visit the place early in the morning.

Hot Springs

Pong Nam Ron Tha Pai is an area of natural hot springs in the middle of the forest, inside Huay Nam Dang National Park and near it’s entrance. Be careful and take notice of the signs: some of the natural pools have a bearable temperature and are suitable for bathing, ¡but others boil so fiercely that in just a few minutes you could cook an egg! It’s open every day from 07:00 to 18:00. It’s usually a quiet place that doesn’t gather large crowds, no doubt related with the quite expensive entrance fee to the Park, 300 THB/adult.

Water Sports and Activities

The Pai River experience is radically different depending on the time of year: it flows slow and calm during the dry season, and mighty and wild during the monsoon rainy season.
• Tubing: for about 250 THB/person, a tuk-tuk or songthaew will take you a few kilometers upstream and leave you on the shore with a large inflatable tire: sit in the hole of the huge donut and let yourself float downstream for about 1 hour until you reach Pai again.
• Bamboo raft: for about 1000 THB/raft you can experience this fun local transport system, sailing downriver on a rudimentary platform made of a dozen bamboo poles tied together. On the most common rafts you can fit up to 4 passengers of standard Thai size… ¡Although for larger sizes we recommend reducing the limit!
• Rafting: if you really want to experience the river you should not miss the opportunity to do a real rafting -no previous experience required-, which can be either a 1-day excursion from Pai or a 2-day excursion starting from Pai and ending in Mae Hong Son. The forested landscape along the river is beautiful, and stops are made to bathe, have a picnic on the shore or visit neraby small waterfalls and hot springs.

Tham Lot Cave

With over 1.5 km in length, Tham Lot is one of the most spectacular and accessible caves in Pangmapha district… ¡which has over 200 caves! Tham Lot contains a lot of chambers, huge stalactites and stalagmites, rocky vaults up to 30 meters high, and has the peculiarity of being crossed by the Lang River, which makes it a navigable cave. The cave is open between 09:00 and 18:00, it is mandatory to hire a guide for 150 THB, and optionally you can take a bamboo raft ride inside the cave, for an additional 400 THB . Tham Lot Cave is located 49 km northwest of Pai, and to get there you have to take the road to Mae Hong Son until the village of Soppong, and from there take the detour north for about 9 km. Sunset is the best time of day to visit Tham Lot Cave, since every day in the evening thousands of bats pour out of the cave to go hunting for dinner -or perhaps we should say breakfast, being bats a nocturnal animal-.

🏨 Where to stay in Pai

Best Town Areas to Stay:

Pai’s popularity has rocketed over the past two decades, and accommodation options continue to increase year after year, with literally hundreds of hostels, hotels and resorts in town and surrounding area. Although it may seem way too excessive compared to the small size of the town, in high season -especially in December and January- it can be very difficult to find accommodation without a previous booking. The really cheap hostels that crowded the area have been progressively been replaced by fancier hotels, although there are still quite a few good options for the tight budgets. On the other hand, room prices fluctuate notably throughout the year, and in low season –generally between May and October– many hotels apply great discounts.

Pai town

Best for:  All budgets, value urban over rural

Accommodation available: Hostels and Hotels up to 4 stars

Advantages:
✔️ Livelier atmosphere
✔️ Lots of restaurants and bars
✔️ Some nightlife
✔️ Many travel agencies

Surrounding area

Best for: All budgets, value rural over urban

Accommodation available: Hostels and Hotels up to 4 star

Advantages:
✔️ Quiet area
✔️ More upscale options
✔️ Green surroundings

🧭 Itinerary to visit Pai

Provided you can ride a scooter, one full day is enough to explore the most outstanding sites in the Pai Valley: