You’ve probably already noticed it on the map: Chiang Mai is a big square. "Chiang" is the Thai word for "city", and "Mai" means "new". So, “New City” — although it’s not so new anymore, as it was founded around the year 1300, complete with a large surrounding wall.

Chiang Mai was once the capital of the kingdom of Lan Na — which explains why you see the word "Lanna" everywhere in town: Lanna Massage, Lanna Toyota, Lanna Restaurant. Around 1900, Lan Na became part of Siam, which later became Thailand.

In the northwest corner of the square, you’ll find the “new city” — a city within a city, with its own unique vibe. This area is called "Nimman", and it really comes to life after sunset. It’s known as *the* trendy neighborhood. Chiang Mai is home to several large universities, and students love going out here. In big bars and restaurants with hundreds of seats, you’ll find them hanging out throughout the evening. There are restaurants from all over the world — Italian, Indian, Japanese — you name it.

On the eastern side of the square, between hostels like Stamps and Sylvis and the river, you’ll find the neighborhood called Chang Moi. You might have guessed it already — 'chang' means elephant, and 'moi' means small. So: Little Elephant. If you look at the map and squint a bit, you might even recognize the shape of an elephant’s head — hence the name. The area, centered around Chang Moi Road, has been on the rise in recent years. Every month, new shops, restaurants, and coffee spots seem to pop up.

Chiang Mai has a small airport located very close to the city. Depending on the traffic, you can be at a hotel in the city center in about 20 minutes. After you arrive, head to one of the exits, where a woman will approach you offering a taxi ticket. The fixed taxi price is 150 THB: with your ticket, you walk outside to find a driver waiting to take you to your hotel, and then you pay the 150 THB. Pretty straightforward.

Chiang Mai has three bus terminals. Terminal 1 is only for local routes, so you probably won’t need to use that one. Bus Terminal 2 is also known as the Arcade Bus Station, and right next to it is Bus Terminal 3, also called Wat Ket Bus Station. If you’re arriving from or departing to Bangkok, that will be at Bus Terminal 3. Buses and vans to and from Pai arrive and depart at Bus Terminal 2, the Arcade Bus Station.

Chiang Mai’s train station is located a few kilometers south of the bus terminals.

Public transport in Chiang Mai consists mainly of the “red taxis,” also known as songthaews, which you’ll see driving around here and there. You can flag one down, but they only stop if they have space and feel like picking you up. The fare is 30 THB per person, and they only go to places in and around the city center. For the airport, bus station, and train station, they always charge 150 THB.

Take a look around Chiang Mai: if you see people walking, they’re almost always tourists. Thai people generally don’t like to walk. They use motorbikes, cars, or taxis, and with an urban area of over one million residents, traffic can get quite busy, with sometimes long waits at intersections and traffic lights.

Chiang Mai’s city center is so small that you really don’t need a motorbike to get around. The red “hop on - hop off” trucks, known as songthaews, will take you anywhere in the city for 30 THB. You can also use Bolt or Grab to get to many places for around 100 THB. Traffic here is pretty crazy, and there are few traffic lights where you can easily turn right or left: if you want to turn right, you often have to look for a U-turn first, move into the right lane, do a 180-degree turn, and then turn left. And the eternal question: who has the right of way — the vehicle on the right, the one on the left, or just whoever arrived first?

Tired of asking for the Wi-Fi code at every restaurant or bar? Then buy a local SIM card for your phone. You can get SIM packages at any 7-Eleven, but you’ll always need to show your passport. The catch is that 7-Eleven is only allowed to sell you tourist packages, which are more expensive than regular ones. For about 350 THB, you can get a 30-day package, but it’s for internet only — no calls included. So sometimes you’ll have to visit a few 7-Elevens before finding one that will sell you a regular SIM. If you spot one of the small phone shops around town, they’re more likely to sell you a regular SIM.

Shop owners probably get a commission for having an ATM in front of their store: there are countless ATMs all over Chiang Mai. The system works pretty much the same everywhere: the fee is 220 THB, no matter how much money you withdraw. At the end, you’ll always be asked “with conversion” or “without conversion” — always click “without,” that will save you a few euros on the exchange rate.

7/11, pronounced “seven-eleven,” makes a huge difference for every traveler: everything you need, from mosquito spray to sunscreen, SIM cards, shampoo, vitamins, motion sickness pills, condoms, cola, and beer (alcohol is only sold between 11 AM and 2 PM and between 5 PM and midnight), chips, and at any time of day — even in the middle of the night — if you’re hungry you can just walk in and heat something from the freezer in the microwave. And last but not least: grab the famous 7-Eleven toasted sandwich from the shelf; it’s grilled fresh for you on the spot for about 29 THB.

There’s one every few hundred meters, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Getting a tattoo done in Thailand is definitely much cheaper than abroad. You won’t be the first, that’s for sure. But before you get covered in an elephant or your new flame’s name, here are a few quick tips:

• Don’t just pick the cheapest option. Hygiene is more important than a discount. Simply check Google Maps reviews to filter for quality.
• Don’t get a Buddha tattoo. Religious tattoos are a sensitive topic in Thailand — they really don’t like Buddhas being sold as souvenirs and ending up on a chimney somewhere.
• Sak Yant with bamboo? Cool, awesome, or as your grandma would say: “badass” — but these magical tattoos from an Ajarn come with rules. For example, you’re not allowed to drink alcohol afterwards... hahaha.
• Sun, sea, and sweat don’t mix with a fresh tattoo. Keep your new artwork away from the sun, the sea, and sweaty parties. Yeah, be a little boring for a while for the best results.

In short: don’t get carried away by impulse or Chang beer. Do your homework, choose a good artist, and go for a tattoo you’ll still be happy with in 10 years. Or at least one you won’t regret too much. Good luck!

Pai, a small town about 4 hours north of Chiang Mai, is often part of travel plans and a great place to spend a few nights. So what is Pai exactly? A small town still carrying an old hippie vibe — from young people with dreadlocks and bare feet on the main street to, well, older folks with dreadlocks and bare feet on the main street. It’s a place with plenty of parties, but just 500 meters outside town you can be relaxing in a resort overlooking rice fields.

A popular topic, especially when you’re on vacation. First of all: weather forecasts in Thailand are quite unreliable, simply because that heavy downpour might just fall 5 kilometers away, leaving you dry all day.

In Chiang Mai, there’s almost no rain between November and February/March. Outside of that period, of course, it’s the rainy season (from May to October/November), which means sometimes heavy showers — and sometimes those showers don’t clear up in just 10 minutes, as some might suggest. The upside: the rain is warm, and the air in the North feels fresh and clean.

So dress accordingly, bring an umbrella, and you can buy disposable ponchos for a few baht at 7-Eleven. Just know that trips to the mountains or rafting might be off if the weather turns bad.

You may have heard about it: the Smoke Season or Smoky Season. This is the time when the air in Chiang Mai is filled — too filled — with PM2.5 particles. It usually happens from late February until sometime in April when the rains start and wash the air clean and fresh again.

The problem arises at the end of the dry season, caused by forest fires here and there combined with farmers burning their crop waste, and other farmers setting fire to the bush because it allows them to harvest very special and valuable mushrooms. All of this happens over a large area, crossing borders.