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Voykit pocket guide · Thailand
Mae Salong
แม่สลอง
Stay one night, not a day trip: the 1,200 m ridge, Yunnanese food and tea terraces only pay off once the tour vans leave at dusk.
Mae Salong is a former Kuomintang army base turned oolong-tea village on a ridge at about 1,200 m in Chiang Rai Province. The road up is 13 km of switchbacks from the police checkpoint on Hwy 1089, so most travellers come for one night, eat Yunnanese food, walk the tea hills and leave. Two nights if you want to trek to Akha villages or reach Doi Tung and the Golden Triangle without rushing.
- Country
- Thailand
- Local name
- แม่สลอง
- Best months
- Nov–Feb (plum and sakura blossom, cool and misty)
- Avoid
- Mar–Apr (haze and heat), Jun–Oct (rain)
- Stay
- 1–2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- THB
- Money
- Currency is the Thai baht (THB, ฿). Cards work in malls, hotels and many restaurants; street food, markets, boats and small taxis are cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ฿700–1,200 excl. bed · Mid ฿1,200–2,500 excl. bed · High ฿2,500+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AIS and TrueMove H sell tourist SIMs at airport arrivals; passport registration is required.
- Emergency
- Police 191 · Ambulance and rescue 1669 · Tourist police (English) 1155
- Plugs
- Types A, B, C, O · 220 V · 50 Hz · Most sockets take flat US pins and round European pins; type O is the Thai three-pin standard. UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Street food: Nothing.; Sit-down restaurant: Leave ฿20–100 or the coins; skip it if a 10% service charge is on the bill.; Taxi / Grab: Round up to the next ฿10 or ฿20.; Massage: ฿50–100 per hour to the therapist, in hand.; Guide / driver day: ฿300–500 for the guide, ฿200–300 for the driver.; Hotel porter / housekeeping: ฿20–50.
- Water
- Not drinkable from the tap. Street refill machines charge about ฿1 a litre; bottled water everywhere.
- Toilets
- Western toilets in malls and hotels; squat toilets with a water bucket in rural stops. The hose ('bum gun') replaces paper; paper goes in the bin in older buildings. Some public toilets cost ฿3–5.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Yunnanese noodle soup | ฿40–80 |
| Oolong tea, 100 g | ฿200–1,000 |
| Coffee or tea in a café | ฿40–90 |
| Beer, restaurant / 7-Eleven | ฿60–90 / ฿35–55 |
| Motorbike rental, per day | ฿200–300 |
| Horse trek, 4 hours | ฿400 |
| Car with driver from Chiang Rai, high season | ฿1,200–1,600 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- CEI · Chiang Rai International (Mae Fah Luang)
- About 1.5–2 h by road via Mae Chan; no direct bus, so arrange a minibus, taxi or rental car.
Typical fares
- Minibus Mae Chan → Mae Salong
- about ฿100, 1 h
- Songthaew Mae Salong → Kiwsatai → Mae Chan
- about ฿30 + ฿30
- Motorbike cab to Pa Sang
- about ฿300
Get around
The village is spread along one ridge road; the centre is walkable in 15–20 minutes. Rent a motorbike (about 200 baht/day, tank empty — fuel first) for the chedi, General Tuan's tomb and the tea plantations. Songthaews and minibuses run to Mae Chan, not on a reliable timetable.
See and do
Known for
- Oolong tea plantations
- Yunnanese food and Kuomintang history
- Phra Boromathat Chedi and General Tuan's tomb
- Cool ridge climate and blossom season
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Doi Tung | Own car or motorbike via Rte 1234 and Hwy 1, or a songthaew from Mae Chan | About 1.5–2 h |
| Mae Sai and the Myanmar border | Down to Mae Chan, then north on Hwy 1 | About 2 h |
| Chiang Saen and the Golden Triangle | Own car via Mae Chan and Hwy 1, or a tour from Chiang Rai | About 2.5 h |
| Chiang Khong | Own car via Hwy 1 and Hwy 1020 | About 3 h |
| Chiang Rai | Minibus or songthaew to Mae Chan, then northbound bus | About 2–2.5 h |
Sleep
- Village centre around the 7-Eleven
- Guesthouses, noodle shops and the morning market within a 10-minute walk; best for a car-free night.
- South road and market side
- Mid-range hotels and resorts with valley views; 10–20 min walk uphill to the centre.
- East of town (Mae Salong Villa, Flower Hills)
- Quieter, garden settings, 2–3 km out; you need a motorbike or a hotel shuttle.Quieter, garden settings, 1.2–1.9 mi out; you need a motorbike or a hotel shuttle.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | สวัสดีsawatdee |
| Thank you | ขอบคุณkhop khun |
| How much is it? | เท่าไหร่tao rai |
| Not spicy, please | ไม่เผ็ดmai phet |
| Where is the toilet? | ห้องน้ำอยู่ไหนhong nam yu nai |
| Can I pay by card? | จ่ายบัตรได้ไหมjai bat dai mai |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A wai (palms together, slight bow) to return a greeting; a smile and nod for shop staff; avoid: Waiing children or service staff first — it confuses; hugging strangers
- Head and feet: Keep feet on the floor, sit with legs folded to the side in temples; avoid: Touching heads (even children's), pointing feet, stepping over people or food
- Temples: Covered shoulders and knees, shoes off, sit lower than monks; avoid: Women touching monks or handing them things directly; climbing Buddha images
- Monarchy: Stand for the royal anthem in cinemas and at 08:00 and 18:00 in public places; avoid: Any joke or comment about the royal family; stepping on a banknote
- Keeping calm: Stay polite and smiling when things go wrong ('jai yen' — cool heart); avoid: Raising your voice; public anger loses the argument
- Names: Khun plus first name ('Khun Somchai'); nicknames are normal; avoid: Using the family name alone
- Home visit: Shoes off; bring fruit or sweets; step over the threshold, not on it; avoid: Sitting with feet towards the family shrine
- Beckoning and pointing: Palm down, fingers waved towards you; point with the whole hand or chin; avoid: Pointing at people with a finger or with your foot
Scams and watch-outs
- The road up Hwy 1089/1130 is extremely twisty: take motion-sickness tablets and avoid riding a motorbike up after dark.
- This is a border area with police checkpoints; carry your passport and don't trek close to the Myanmar boundary.
- Stray and aggressive dogs in remote lanes and trails — carry a stick and avoid lone dusk walks.
- Guesthouse prices are negotiable outside peak season, but rooms are basic: check hot water and Wi-Fi before paying.
- There is almost no nightlife; kitchens and shops close early.
Very safe for a small border village: the real risks are the twisty road, stray dogs on trails and cold, misty nights — bring a sweater and decent shoes.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Mae Salong yet. Suggested stay: 1–2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Oolong tea plantations
- Yunnanese food and Kuomintang history
- Phra Boromathat Chedi and General Tuan's tomb
- Cool ridge climate and blossom season
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Tourism Authority of Thailand — Chiang Rai: www.tourismthailand.org/Chiang-Rai
- OpenStreetMap — Mae Salong: www.openstreetmap.org/#map=15/20.1656/99.6264
- Wikivoyage: Mae Salong, revision 5285131 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5285131
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Mae Salongแม่สลอง
ไปที่ที่อยู่นี้
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Mae Salong; the nearest consulates and embassy services are in Chiang Mai and Bangkok.
Carry cash: ATMs are scarce and cards are not accepted in most guesthouses and noodle shops.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/mae-salong). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.