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Voykit pocket guide · Thailand
Nan
น่าน
Give Nan 2 nights: the old town wats and museum fit one full day, and the province needs a second day or a rented bike.
Nan is a small Lanna-era town on the Nan River in Thailand's far north, near Laos, with a compact old town of temples, a national museum and a teak noble house. It sees few foreign visitors, so English is thinner and transport is slower than Chiang Mai. Two nights covers the town; add a day for the province's mountains and national parks.
- Country
- Thailand
- Local name
- น่าน
- Best months
- Nov–Feb
- Avoid
- Mar–Apr (smoke and heat), May–Oct (wet)
- Stay
- 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 ฿900–1,500 excl. bed · Mid ฿1,500–3,000 excl. bed · High ฿3,000+ 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 |
|---|---|
| Coffee or iced drink | ฿40–80 |
| Noodle soup or khao soi | ฿50–100 |
| Beer: draught / can at a shop | ฿70–120 / ฿40–60 |
| Songthaew across town | ฿40–80 (check) |
| Motorbike rental, one day | ฿250–300 |
| Temple entry (many are free) | ฿0–40 |
| Nan National Museum entry | ฿100 foreigners (check) |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- NNT · Nan Airport
- About 1.5 km north of the centre; Nok Air and Thai AirAsia fly to Bangkok Don Mueang (DMK) only.About 0.9 mi north of the centre; Nok Air and Thai AirAsia fly to Bangkok Don Mueang (DMK) only.
Typical fares
- Nan Airport → old town, taxi
- about ฿100–150, 5–10 min (check)
- Bus station → old town
- about ฿50–80 by songthaew (check)
- Bus Nan → Chiang Mai
- about 6–7 h; fare check with Green Bus
Get around
The old town is walkable in 15–20 min end to end. Songthaews and tuk-tuks cover longer hops; agree the fare first. Motorbike rental is the way to see the province: expect ฿250–300 per day, higher than Chiang Mai or Pai because there is little tourist infrastructure. Cars are easy to drive here: roads are wide and quiet.
See and do
Known for
- Wat Phumin murals
- Nan National Museum
- Lanna and Tai Lü temple architecture
- Teak noble houses
- Doi Samer Dao and Si Nan National Park
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Wat Phra That Chae Haeng | Songthaew or motorbike southeast across the river, about 2 km past the bridgeSongthaew or motorbike southeast across the river, about 1.2 mi past the bridge | About 20–30 min |
| Nan Riverside Art Gallery | Songthaew toward Tha Wang Pha on Rte 1080, about 20 km northSongthaew toward Tha Wang Pha on Rte 1080, about 12 mi north | About 40–50 min |
| Wat Nong Bua | Motorbike or car north on Rte 101, about 45 kmMotorbike or car north on Rte 101, about 28 mi | About 1 h |
| Si Nan National Park and Pha Chu | Car or motorbike south, about 80 kmCar or motorbike south, about 50 mi | 1.5–2 h |
| Thung Chang and Doi Pha Phueng | Car or motorbike north on Rte 1080 | About 1.5 h |
Sleep
- Old town, Pha Kong / Mahayot / Sumonthewarat roads
- Walk to Wat Phumin, the museum and the night market; the best base for two nights.
- Riverside, east of Sumonthewarat Rd
- Guesthouses and small hotels facing the Nan River; 5–10 min walk into the old town.
- Bus station area, south end
- Practical for a late arrival or an early bus out; little to do on foot.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | สวัสดีsawatdee |
| Thank you | ขอบคุณkhop khun |
| How much is it? | เท่าไหร่thao rai |
| Too expensive | แพงไปphaeng pai |
| 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
- Smoke season roughly Feb–Apr: air quality can be poor; check AQI before booking.
- Few staff speak English outside hotels; have addresses written in Thai.
- Motorbike rental often means leaving your passport as deposit: negotiate a copy instead.
- Some temples close midday and many close before dark; plan around opening hours.
- Songthaew drivers may quote a flat tourist fare: agree the price before boarding.
Nan is calm and low-crime; the real risks are motorbike crashes on mountain roads, smoke-season air from Feb–Apr, and heat in the hot months. Keep valuables out of sight at the night market.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Nan yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Wat Phumin murals
- Nan National Museum
- Lanna and Tai Lü temple architecture
- Teak noble houses
- Doi Samer Dao and Si Nan National Park
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Nan city official site: www.nancity.go.th/
- Tourism Authority of Thailand — Nan: www.tourismthailand.org/
- Wikivoyage: Nan, revision 5059255 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5059255
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Nanน่าน
ไปที่อยู่นี้ครับ/ค่ะ
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Nan; most are in Bangkok. The US consulate-general is in Chiang Mai (check the address).
Tipping is not required; round up or leave small notes for guides and massage.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/nan). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.