HomeAsiaSouth East AsiaThailand1 Month North Thailand Itinerary – DIY Backpacking & Travel Tips By Marcos Detourist on February 21, 2013I couldn’t have thought of a better destination to kick-start my trip around mainland South East Asian than in, drum roll, please …. Thailand! So cliché, I know, but this country took up the lion’s share of the “banana pancake trail” for a reason: It had something to offer for every traveler. Beaches, Diving, Mountains Waterfalls, Wild Parties, Classy Hotels, Modern cities, Delicious Local Cuisine, you name it…My reasons for traveling was a bit different this time. My trip wasn’t only about visiting different places but also the experience of taking my “work” with me and being away from home for longer periods. I wanted to fully experience living a location independent lifestyle and was determined to know if a nomadic life was really something I would find fulfilling.I didn’t plan an itinerary. All I started with were my flights to Chiang Mai and enough money to last me a couple weeks of backpacking.Northern Thailand ItineraryI spent the first three weeks of my trip in the Northern Thai city of Chiang Mai then, with a little more than a week before my tourist visa expired, I did a loop around few more tourist spots in Northern Thailand before crossing the border to Laos.The main areas I visited included Umphang Rainforest in Tak province, Kamphaeng Phet, Sukhothai, Phrae, and Chiang Rai.https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1mA0yxEycYxyuC1VtxnXmBes6_40 Chiang MaiChiang Mai, known as the cultural and tourism capital of Northern Thailand, had roughly 300 Buddhist temples scattered around the city and its outskirts. Wandering around these historic attractions was the main tourist activity in Chiang Mai. Additionally, the city was also a popular base for trekking and elephant park tours.I started most of my mornings in Chiang Mai with cheap breakfast and coffee at the local market. Then, I’d take the bicycle out or walk to nearby temples and discover the gastronomic goodness that is Thai street food.At night, I’d be on the rooftop terrace of my hostel or in my room, working on my blogs. Some days, I spent wholly for temple runs and food trips, while others were reserved as “work days.”I loved my short stint at “living” in Chiang Mai. Now I understand who so many bloggers raved about this city being one of the best places for location independent lifestyles. The city was peaceful and urbanized, modern conveniences within an easy walking distance, and most of all, cheap. A thrifty backpacker can budget around US$6-10 per day in Chiang Mai.I suffered from “temple fatigue” a few times after going overboard with my temple visits. Fortunately, I wasn’t in any rush and could spend the next day doing less intensive activities… like going to the mall :) So Filipino. Pad Thai, my ceremonial first meal in Thailand :)Cycling along the moat and brick fortress walls that completely surrounded the historic core of Chiang MaiGreen views on one of the corner walls of Chiang Mai fortBirds, locals, and tourists spending leisurely days at the lovely park outside Tha Pae gateMy “workspace” at the rooftop terrace of Malak Guest House.Wat Chiang Man, the first temple in Chiang Mai, located a block away from my hostel.Visiting the Silver Temple with another Filipino travel blogger, who was also traveling in Chiang Mai at the time.Wat Lok Molee, one of the lesser known yet exceptional temples in Chiang MaiMonk ceremony at the main hall of Wat Chedi LuangHiding behind the rain while visiting the huge stupa of Wat Chedi LuangBeautiful cloudy sunset after the rain at Wat Chedi LuangNight market stalls in front of Wat Phan Tao, one of the few wooden temples in Chiang MaiChiang Mai OutskirtsI also got to wander around a few interesting spots outside Chiang Mai City Center. The first ones I visited were Wat Chedi Liam and Wat Jed Yod, which were accessible by bicycle.Wat Chedi LiamWat Jed YodWat Phrathat Doi Suthep was a bit far and needed a ride aboard the local pick-up truck. Not only was it the most famous Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai, its hilltop location offered great overlooking views of the whole city and outlying towns.Wat Phrathat Doi SuthepWat Phrathat Doi SuthepDoi Inthanon, the tallest mountain in Thailand, could be easily conquered by joining one of the tours offered in Chiang Mai. Since my visit coincided with the rainy season, I wasn’t too interested in visiting the summit. I didn’t want to get disappointed by heavy clouds blocking the view.I was, however, really excited to go to Doi Inthanon to visit its waterfalls, which should be at the peak of its beauty around that time.Mae Ya waterfall particularly stood out. Its impressive size and fan-like cascades were unbelievably stunning. Best of all, I had the waterfall all to myself! No other tourists around because the waterfall wasn’t included in most of the “tour group” itineraries. I had to go there DIY style.Mae Ya Waterfall at Doi Inthanon National ParkUmphang, Tak ProvinceNow it was time for the main course: trekking to Thee Lor Su, the highest and largest waterfall in Thailand.To get there, I got on the bus to the Thailand-Myanmar border town of Mae Sot, then rode aboard the long pick-up truck ride to Umphang, situated deep in the rainforests of Tak province.Fortunately, there was a group of Spanish backpackers who also wanted to see the waterfalls when I arrived in Umphang. We booked an overnight trekking tour to Thee Lor Su, which involved a scenic 4-hour river cruise on a slow raft and another 4-hour light trek to the campsite near the waterfall.Top loading a songthaew (local pick-up truck) on my way to Umphang town.Beautiful countryside views on the ride from Mae Sot to Umpahng.Our awesome guide masterfully navigated our slow raft through the scenic Klong River, which was bordered by thick forest and tall limestone formation. Some even had waterfalls flowing down its rugged walls.Our trekking guide goofing around during our the trek to the camp site.Finally, the view of Thee Lor Su Waterfall. The rainy season wasn’t actually the best time to visit the falls. The strong water flow filled the whole area with a thick haze of cold mist.Sukhothai and Kamphaeng PhetThe remnants of the ancient Sukhothai Kingdom was a popular backpacking destination in Thailand. UNESCO included Sukhothai ruins in its list of world heritage sites under the category Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns.Kamphaeng Phet was one of these “Associated Historic Towns” that tourists often overlooked. I enjoyed cycling around two of the bigger temple complexes at Kamphaeng Phet without sharing the space with bus loads of tourists. Most people I met were Thai tourists and locals doing their afternoon jog around the historical park. Wat Chang Rop within Khet Aranyik temple group in Kamphaeng PhetTall stupa ruins at the main temple complex in Kamphaeng PhetMe under a big treeSukhothai Historical Park was also beautiful and worth a visit. The temple ruins were larger and more impressive. There were also more tourists around, though. Late afternoon at the Wat Mahathat, the main temple ruins in SukhothaiSunset view beside one of the larger ponds beside Wat MahathatPhraeOn my way to Chiang Rai, I broke the long land journey by spending one night in Phrae, a peaceful town 120 kilometers north of Sukhothai. Phrae was a charming little town with a couple of interesting sights like old teak wood houses and temples. The main draw there, however, was the experience of being on the non-touristy side of Thailand.Welcome to Phrae ^_^Detailed wood carvings on the facade of one of the temples in PhraeChiang RaiChiang Rai, the northernmost major urban center in Thailand, was an excellent place to visit for a few days before crossing the border to Laos.The city seemed like the awesome “wicked” little sister of Chiang Mai. I had been waiting all month to see the insanely interesting conceptual architectures of the White Temple and the Black Houses.Twilight at the Chiang Rai ClocktowerCountless sculpted hands depicting purgatory on the path to Wat Rong Khun a.k.a “The White Temple” in Chiang RaiThe biggest out of nearly 40 mysterious black houses, built on the outskirts of Chiang Rai. These structures exhibited the work of Thai National Artist, Thawan Duchanee.One of the devilish black houses that caught my attention. Almost all of the structures had bizarre and innovative designs that played with the mix of traditional Thai elements and modern contemporary concepts.Looking out from inside the main hall, which was filled high teak wood beams and long tables laid out with beastly remains like with animal skulls, deer horns, leopard, and snake skin.Nothern Thailand Backpacking Summary Total duration of the trip: 30 days Total budget: US$500 (approximately) or $15 to $20 per dayDon’t leave yet. There’s more!19 Days Laos Itinerary — North to South Traverse10 Days Thailand Itinerary — Ayutthaya and BangkokAmbot-ah Travel Season 2012 Preview10 Weeks Indochina Itinerary — Thailand, Laos, Cambodia,…Planning a Trip to Bangkok, Thailand Speedlinking3 Weeks Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia ItineraryComments paul | walkflypinoy saysFebruary 20, 2013 at 4:21 pmgreat photos. and you visited Wat Lok Molee, my favorite temple. Chiang Mai does get you templed-out at times. but yeah, I liked the city because it doesn’t force you to see the sights. doing nothing just taking in the atmosphere (and the food) is completely acceptable. killerfillers saysFebruary 21, 2013 at 2:39 pmAnother awesome set of photos. wish i had the time to travel like you do. Drew saysFebruary 21, 2013 at 3:27 pmSohoooobrang! Namimiss ko ang Chiang-Mai! Ang saya dyan! Simpleng buhay. Definitely a place I can live in. Lady saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 2:26 amWhat a beautiful place and your photos are stunning, as always! Can’t wait for more :) renee saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 12:00 pmMarky,Amazing shots….feasting my eyes on ur shots mesmerizes me, as if im travelling wd ds places too..keep up the good work!Cheers:-) rene saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 12:12 pmMarky,Hey how ru? Feasting on d photos of ur Thai sojourn mesmerizes me..awesome shots…i feel like im travelling those places too…thanks buddy and keep up the good work.:-)Cheers! Michael Talabucon saysFebruary 23, 2013 at 9:47 pmyou reminded of me except that i dunno how to set up a website and not a professional photographer ( i dont even have a dslr cam coz it’ll bug me down reading a manual beside i was abit expensive)… i love to travel especially solo and usually off-the-beaten tracks. that made me felt in love with the nature and the Philippines. few travel blogs have really kept me interested like solosister and journeyingjames and now your blog added to my local list that really perks my interest in travel. BluePhilippines saysApril 14, 2013 at 4:34 amThe pictures are breath taking! Thats all i know to say. Have been in Thailand already 3 times and i still love the country. But for now i never made it to the northern area. Thats the next trip for sure :)Thanks for the great work, Marcos Mariane [TheChroniclesofMariane] saysJuly 16, 2013 at 5:58 pmNakakaexcite yung Indochina mo! More specifically etong Thailand na part. Nagbook ako for 8 weeks, arriving in Cambodia and going out of Thailand. haha Sana wala tayong visa limit sa Thailand para pwedeng mas matagal! Marcos saysAugust 13, 2013 at 3:59 pmSana nga! Abanagan ang 2015. Let’s see how much integration there will be between ASEAN Countries. thepinaysolobackpacker saysAugust 14, 2013 at 1:02 amMarc! magnificent photos as always! you made my trip planning easier! thank you! :) if I get to renew my passport on time,might push through with my trip. I’ll be visiting an old friend in northern Thailand and hopefully visit Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. Tagal ko ng plano to, like 3 years ago pa. d matuloy tuloy. LOL I rmmbr Edcel was also bragging how perfect Chiang Mai is for digital nomads. I didn’t know ang ganda pala ng mga waterfalls dun, makapagdala nga ng tripod. haha thepinaysolobackpacker saysAugust 14, 2013 at 1:13 amalso, I’m curious…how did you find the location independent lifestyle? Marcos saysAugust 14, 2013 at 11:05 amThanks friend :D Yeah, andaming pwede magawa sa Chiang Mai and surrounding areas. Even though it can get touristy, there were always a lot of off beat things to do.Personally, if I had the choice, I can do away with living a fully location independent lifestyle. I love living in Iloilo too much maybe, hehe … but I am comfortable with location independence if it means being able to live my dream of traveling indefinitely.Ang perfect scenario ko talaga… being based in Iloilo and then being able to travel anywhere anytime. This is, unfortunately, impractical for me right now. I can maximize my budget better if I travel more long term. Eva saysAugust 30, 2016 at 5:37 amYou are a very talented photographer! Even your cloudy pics from Laos are stunning. I particularly love the colours, compositions and perspectives. Keep it up! Posting of new comments is disabled temporarily.Connect with Marcos on:Detourista.comMarcosDetourist.comFacebookInstagramTwitterDetourista.comDiscover more travel guides and blogs about the Philippines and beyond by Marcos DetouristChoose your next destination: Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam
paul | walkflypinoy saysFebruary 20, 2013 at 4:21 pmgreat photos. and you visited Wat Lok Molee, my favorite temple. Chiang Mai does get you templed-out at times. but yeah, I liked the city because it doesn’t force you to see the sights. doing nothing just taking in the atmosphere (and the food) is completely acceptable.
killerfillers saysFebruary 21, 2013 at 2:39 pmAnother awesome set of photos. wish i had the time to travel like you do.
Drew saysFebruary 21, 2013 at 3:27 pmSohoooobrang! Namimiss ko ang Chiang-Mai! Ang saya dyan! Simpleng buhay. Definitely a place I can live in.
Lady saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 2:26 amWhat a beautiful place and your photos are stunning, as always! Can’t wait for more :)
renee saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 12:00 pmMarky,Amazing shots….feasting my eyes on ur shots mesmerizes me, as if im travelling wd ds places too..keep up the good work!Cheers:-)
rene saysFebruary 22, 2013 at 12:12 pmMarky,Hey how ru? Feasting on d photos of ur Thai sojourn mesmerizes me..awesome shots…i feel like im travelling those places too…thanks buddy and keep up the good work.:-)Cheers!
Michael Talabucon saysFebruary 23, 2013 at 9:47 pmyou reminded of me except that i dunno how to set up a website and not a professional photographer ( i dont even have a dslr cam coz it’ll bug me down reading a manual beside i was abit expensive)… i love to travel especially solo and usually off-the-beaten tracks. that made me felt in love with the nature and the Philippines. few travel blogs have really kept me interested like solosister and journeyingjames and now your blog added to my local list that really perks my interest in travel.
BluePhilippines saysApril 14, 2013 at 4:34 amThe pictures are breath taking! Thats all i know to say. Have been in Thailand already 3 times and i still love the country. But for now i never made it to the northern area. Thats the next trip for sure :)Thanks for the great work, Marcos
Mariane [TheChroniclesofMariane] saysJuly 16, 2013 at 5:58 pmNakakaexcite yung Indochina mo! More specifically etong Thailand na part. Nagbook ako for 8 weeks, arriving in Cambodia and going out of Thailand. haha Sana wala tayong visa limit sa Thailand para pwedeng mas matagal!
Marcos saysAugust 13, 2013 at 3:59 pmSana nga! Abanagan ang 2015. Let’s see how much integration there will be between ASEAN Countries.
thepinaysolobackpacker saysAugust 14, 2013 at 1:02 amMarc! magnificent photos as always! you made my trip planning easier! thank you! :) if I get to renew my passport on time,might push through with my trip. I’ll be visiting an old friend in northern Thailand and hopefully visit Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. Tagal ko ng plano to, like 3 years ago pa. d matuloy tuloy. LOL I rmmbr Edcel was also bragging how perfect Chiang Mai is for digital nomads. I didn’t know ang ganda pala ng mga waterfalls dun, makapagdala nga ng tripod. haha
thepinaysolobackpacker saysAugust 14, 2013 at 1:13 amalso, I’m curious…how did you find the location independent lifestyle?
Marcos saysAugust 14, 2013 at 11:05 amThanks friend :D Yeah, andaming pwede magawa sa Chiang Mai and surrounding areas. Even though it can get touristy, there were always a lot of off beat things to do.Personally, if I had the choice, I can do away with living a fully location independent lifestyle. I love living in Iloilo too much maybe, hehe … but I am comfortable with location independence if it means being able to live my dream of traveling indefinitely.Ang perfect scenario ko talaga… being based in Iloilo and then being able to travel anywhere anytime. This is, unfortunately, impractical for me right now. I can maximize my budget better if I travel more long term.
Eva saysAugust 30, 2016 at 5:37 amYou are a very talented photographer! Even your cloudy pics from Laos are stunning. I particularly love the colours, compositions and perspectives. Keep it up!