Sights in Chiang Rai Province
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Doi Tung Royal Villa
On the theory that local hill tribes would be so honoured by a royal presence that they would stop cultivating opium, the late Princess Mother (the king's mother) built the Doi Tung Royal Villa, a summer palace on the slopes of Doi Tung near Pa Kluay Reservoir, which is now open to the public as a museum. The royal initiative also provided education on new agricultural methods to stop slash and burn practices. Opium has now been replaced by crops such as coffee, macadamia nuts and various fruits. The rest of the property, including the Mae Fah Luang Garden and Mae Fah Luang Arboretum,is also open to the public. There is also a top-end hotel, a restaurant, coffee kiosk and…
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Hilltribe Museum & Education Center
This museum and handicrafts centre is a good place to visit before undertaking any hill-tribe trek. The centre, run by the nonprofit Population & Community Development Association (PDA), is underwhelming in its visual presentation, but contains a wealth of information on Thailand's various tribes and the issues that surround them. A visit begins with a 20-minute slide show on Thailand's hill tribes, and exhibits include typical clothing for six major tribes, examples of bamboo usage, folk implements and other anthropological objects. The curator is passionate about his museum, and will talk about the different hill tribes, their histories, recent trends and the community …
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Hall of Opium
One kilometre north of Sop Ruak on a plot of about 40 hectares opposite the Anantara Golden Triangle Resort & Spa, the Mah Fah Luang Foundation has established the 5600-sq-metre Hall of Opium. The goal of this impressive facility is to become the world's leading exhibit and research facility for the study of opiate use around the world. The multimedia exhibition includes a fascinating history of opium, and examines the effects of abuse on individuals and society. Well balanced and worth seeing.
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House of Opium
This small museum with historical displays pertaining to opium culture is worth a peek. Exhibits include all the various implements used in the planting, harvest, use and trade of the Papaver somniferum resin, including pipes, weights, scales and so on, plus photos and maps with labels in English. The museum is at the southeastern end of Sop Ruak, virtually across from Phra Chiang Saen Si Phaendin.
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Phra Chiang Saen Si Phaendin
The first sight you'll inevitably see in Sop Ruak is Phra Chiang Saen Si Phaendin, a giant Buddha statue financed by a Thai-Chinese foundation. The statue straddles a boat-like platform, and visitors here are encouraged to donate by rolling coins from an elevated platform behind the statue.
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Wat Klang Wiang
This Buddhist temple appears thoroughly modern, but dates back at least 500 years. Extensive remodelling in the early 1990s has left several structures in the temple with a unique 'modern Lanna' style, but the elegant hŏr đrai (manuscript depository) appears to retain its original form.
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Wat Jet Yot
The seven-spired chedi at Wat Jet Yot is similar to that of its Chiang Mai namesake, but without stucco ornamentation. Of more aesthetic interest is the wooden ceiling of the front veranda of the main wí·hăhn, which features a unique Thai astrological fresco.
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Wat Rong Khun
About 13km south of Chiang Rai is the unusual and popular Wat Rong Khun . Whereas most temples have centuries of history, this one's construction began in 1997 by noted Thai painter-turned-architect Chalermchai Kositpipat.
Seen from a distance, the temple appears to be made of glittering porcelain; a closer look reveals that the look is due to a combination of whitewash and clear-mirrored chips. Walk over a bridge and sculpture of reaching arms (symbolising desire) to enter the sanctity of the wát where instead of the traditional Buddha life scenarios, the artist has painted contemporary scenes representing samsara (the realm of rebirth and delusion). Images such as a pl…
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Chiang Saen National Museum
Near the town entrance, this museum is a great source of local information considering its relatively small size.
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Museum
Situated adjacent to the Wat Phra Kaew is a two-storey wooden building which is a museum housing various Lanna artefacts.
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Wat Prathat Pukhao
Next to the House of Opium are some steps up to the Buddhist Wat Prathat Pukhao, from where you get the best viewpoint of the Mekong meeting of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.
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Wat Phra That Pha Ngao
Located 3km south of town in the village of Sop Kham, this Buddhist temple complex contains a large prayer hall built to cover a partially excavated Chiang Saen-era Buddha statue. The walls of the brick building are partially covered by stucco relief murals that have been painted, giving the surface the impression of polished wood or copper. There is a beautiful golden teak hŏr đrai, and a steep road leads to a hilltop pagoda and temple with views over the area and the Mae Nam Khong.
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Wat Phra That Doi Wao
Take the steps up the hill near the border to Wat Phra That Doi Wao, west of the main street, for superb views over Mae Sai and Myanmar. This wát was reportedly constructed in memory of a couple of thousand Burmese soldiers who died fighting the KMT here in 1965 (you'll hear differing stories around town, including a version wherein the KMT are the heroes).
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Wat Phra That Doi Tung
At the peak, 1800m above sea level, Wat Phra That Doi Tung is built around the twin Lanna-style chedi. The chedi were renovated by Chiang Mai monk Khruba Siwichai, famous for his prodigious building projects, early in the 20th century. Pilgrims bang on the usual row of temple bells to gain merit. Although the wát isn't that impressive, the forested setting will make the trip worthwhile. From the walled edge of the temple you can get an aerial view of the snaky road you've just climbed. A walking path next to the wát leads to a spring and there are other short walking trails in the vicinity.
A bit below the peak is the smaller Wat Noi Doi Tung, where food and beverages ar…
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Wat Phra That Doi Chom Thong
The Buddhist hilltop Wat Phra That Doi Chom Thong has partial views of the river and gets an occasional river breeze. The Lanna-style chedi here most likely dates from the 14th to 16th centuries, and may cover an earlier Mon chedi inside. King Mengrai, Chiang Rai's founder, first surveyed the site for the city from this peak. It's located just west of town on Th Kraisorasit.
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Wat Phra That Chom Kitti & Wat Chom Chang
The remains of Wat Phra That Chom Kitti and Wat Chom Chang can be found about 2.5km north of Wat Pa Sak on a hilltop. The round chedi of Wat Phra That Chom Kitti is thought to have been constructed before the founding of the kingdom. The smaller chedi below it belonged to Wat Chom Chang. There is nothing much to see at these chedi, but there is a good view of Chiang Saen and the river.
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Wat Phra Singh
Housing yet another copy of a famous Buddha image, this temple was built in the late 14th century during the reign of Chiang Rai's King Mahaphrom. A sister temple to Chiang Mai's Wat Phra Singh, its original buildings are typical northern Thai-style wood structures with low, sweeping roofs. The impressive wooden doors are thought to have been carved by local artists. The main wí·hăhn houses a copy of Chiang Mai's Phra Singh Buddha.
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Wat Phra Kaew
Originally called Wat Pa Yia (Bamboo Forest Monastery) in the local dialect, this is the city's most revered Buddhist temple. Legend has it that in 1434 lightning struck the temple's octagonal chedi, which fell apart to reveal the Phra Kaew Morakot, or Emerald Buddha (actually made of jade). After a long journey that included a long stopover in Vientiane, Laos, this national talisman is now ensconced in the temple of the same name in Bangkok.
In 1990 Chiang Rai commissioned a Chinese artist to sculpt a new image from Canadian jade. Named the Phra Yok Chiang Rai (Chiang Rai Jade Buddha), it was intentionally a very close but not exact replica of the Phra Kaew Morakot in Ban…
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Wat Pha Khao Pan
Inside the grounds of Wat Pha Khao Pan, a living wát near the river, stands a magnificent Lanna-period chedi. The large, square base contains Lanna-style walking Buddhas in niches on all four sides. The Buddha facing east is sculpted in the mudra ('calling for rain') pose, with both hands held pointing down at the image's sides – a pose common in Laos but not so common in Thailand.
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Wat Pa Sak
About 200m from the Pratu Chiang Saen (the historic main gateway to the town's western flank) are the remains of Wat Pa Sak, where the ruins of seven monuments are visible in a historical park . The main mid-14th-century chedi combines elements of the Hariphunchai and Sukhothai styles with a possible Bagan influence, and still holds a great deal of attractive stucco relief work.
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Wat Chedi Luang
Behind the museum to the east are the ruins of the Buddhist Wat Chedi Luang, which features an 18m octagonal chedi in the classic Chiang Saen or Lanna style. Archaeologists argue about its exact construction date but agree it dates to some time between the 12th and 14th centuries.
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Tham Tu Pu & Buddha Cave
If you follow Th Winitchaikul across the bridge to the northern side of Mae Nam Kok, you'll come to a turn-off for both Tham Tu Pu and the Buddha Cave. Follow the road 1km, then turn off onto a dirt path 200m to the base of a limestone cliff where there is a steep set of stairs leading to a main chamber holding a dusty Buddha statue; this is Tham Tu Pu. Continue along the same road for 3km more and you'll reach Buddha Cave, a cavern by the Mae Nam Kok containing a tiny but active Buddhist temple, a lone monk and several cats. The temple was one of several destinations on a visit to the region by King Rama V in the early 20th century.
Neither attraction is particularly amaz…
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Oub Kham Museum
This privately owned museum houses an impressive collection of paraphernalia from virtually every corner of the former Lanna kingdom. The items, some of which truly are one of a kind, range from a monkey bone food taster used by Lanna royalty to an impressive carved throne from Chiang Tung, Myanmar. Guided tours (available in English) are obligatory, and include a walk through a gilded artificial cave holding several Buddha statues, complete with disco lights and fake torches! The grounds of the museum are equally kitschy, and include a huge golden naga (mythical serpentlike being with magical powers) statue and countless waterfalls and fountains. Truly an equal parts biz…
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