The Best Hotels in Chiang Mai

By Santorini Dave

Our Favorite Hotels in Chiang Mai

• 5-star: Four Seasons
• 4-star: Maladee Rendezvous
• 3-star: JARITT NyMMANH
• New Hotel: Maladee Rendezvous
• Boutique: Inside House
• Cheap: BED
• For families: Shangri-La
• For couples: Ping Nakara
• Pool: Na Nirand
• Near Airport: Smile Lanna

The 22 Best Hotels in Chiang Mai

1. Maladee Rendezvous

This beautiful luxury boutique hotel sits on historic Charoen Prathet Road. The design is inspired by the townhomes built in the area in the early 1900s. The Cobalt blue and patterns used throughout the hotel reference the historic blue and white porcelain, a sign of wealth. All rooms have pool views; some have private patios with direct pool access. There are floor-to-ceiling windows, hand-crafted blue celadon sinks, and clay and wood floors. The rooms are spacious, but they also offer suites, the largest with two living rooms, two bedrooms, three bathrooms, and up to four beds. There’s an outdoor pool with a heated jacuzzi and poolside service, a fitness center, and a private lounge for suite guests. Next to the pool is Tiger Bar, which serves personalized cocktails. Rosemary Bistro restaurant, open all day, has an international and Thai menu with locally sourced ingredients. The hotel is a 10-minute walk to Rimping Supermarket, a 15-minute walk to the Night Markets, and a 20-minute walk to the Old City gate.

2. Inside House

Our favorite boutique hotel in Chiang Mai sits inside the Old City walls. An old Bodhi tree shades the interior courtyard garden. All rooms are uniquely designed and decorated in a 1920s Lanna Colonial style with art by local artists. Several pool suites have a living room, one bedroom, and one bathroom, and some have a glass-walled pool on the balcony where you can swim and see into the room. Other suites have a private pool and an outdoor or semi-outdoor shower and bathtub. There is also a large central pool for all guests. Ghin restaurant serves international and Northern Thai cuisine. The location is excellent and walkable to all that Old City offers.

3. Four Seasons Resort

Exquisite, secluded, Thai-village style resort set in 20 acres of lush grounds (15km north of Chiang Mai) with a working rice farm, lakes, waterfalls, and lily ponds with magnificent Lanna (Northern Thai) style pavilions, pool villas, and private residences. Accommodations have vaulted ceilings, artwork, teak floors, mini-bars, tea/coffee makers, soaking tubs, iPod docking stations, and furnished outdoor Thai salas. Pavillions have salas with swing sofas and outstanding terraced rice field/garden views, pool villas have private pools & gardens, sundecks, and Thai dining salas. The top-end, wide range of private residences ranging from 1-bedroom spa residences to 4-bedroom split-level residences with pools, all include luxuries like kitchens, live-in butlers, and buffet breakfast. Resort also has plenty of activities like rice planting, a cooking school, and guided nature trail tours. Very family-friendly but with so much privacy the villas are also wonderful for a honeymoon holiday.

4. Makkachiva

Tasteful, welcoming, central – and shoes off, please! This classy 4-level boutique hotel is immediately likable with an entrance shaped like a temple, a lobby of elegant Thai furnishings, corridors lined with colorful art and an internal courtyard smothered with ivy. The Deluxe Rooms are designed very much with Buddha in mind, and also contain a rocking chair and extended desk, but oddly there are no cupboards (so hang clothes from hooks on the wall). Best are those on the top floor, which feature a raised arched ceiling. Views from balconies of the temple across the road are marred by electricity poles and wires, and all rooms facing the front would suffer from traffic noise, although the double-glazing is effective. Facing a busyish street lined with cafés and shops in the center of the Old City, the hotel is narrow, inconspicuous and easy to miss.

5. Rachamankha

Exuding old world charm and colonial-style elegance, this 25 room boutique hotel set in the old city, with architecture reflecting Lanna & Chinese influences (lime plastered brick walls, Chinese cabinets, antiques, courtyards) features very elegant rooms and suites. The larger suites add big living rooms, kitchenettes, and tea/coffee facilities. The interiors are as exquisite as hoped: bursting with antique furniture and Lanna (old Chiang Mai) rugs, plus all the expected modern facilities. Other attractions include the fashionable breakfast café, extensive floor-to-ceiling library, and pool, which is deep blue and inviting. Along a peaceful suburban street in the western edge of the Old City, it’s adjacent to arguably the city’s most famous (but least visited) temple, and a 10-minute walk to a cluster of tourist facilities. With such sophistication and only 25 rooms, book far ahead.

6. Ping Nakara

Serene, Lanna colonial-style, boutique hotel with gorgeous rooms featuring hand-carved fretwork, hardwood floors, high ceilings, hand-crafted furniture. With whitewashed walls, tiled terraces of clunky fans, and dark-stained wooden stairs, this gorgeous hotel feels like it was built in 1880 rather than 2010. And with only 19 rooms, service is impeccable. Rooms feature hardwood floors, antique furnishings (e.g. a handlebar telephone), wooden shutters and a balcony overlooking the pool or cluster of trees in the empty lot across the street. Upgraded rooms have a private jacuzzi. Perfectly matching the white exterior, the dazzling blue pool is raised and lined with bamboo poles, while the open-air poolside lounge is bursting with chess sets, books, ancient maps and antiques. Halfway along a tranquil dead-end street, it’s a 10-minute stroll to the famed Night Bazaar lined with eateries and a short tuk-tuk trip to the Old City center.

7. Tamarind Village

So different, so elegant and so worth a splurge. The entry lane of arched bamboo plants leads to a curved corridor lined with art and a lobby choked with lovely Thai furniture. Adding to the appeal are the terracotta roofs, whitewashed walls and wooden railings, all reminiscent of a colonial-era military barracks. Rooms are in 2-level blocks facing gardens of ivy, chrysanthemums and immaculate lawns featuring the namesake 200-year-old Tamarind tree. Because of the old-style design with thick stone walls and minimal windows, many rooms are dark inside, but they all feature likable colonial touches, as well as a bathroom containing a copper sink and accessible through a rattan cupboard. The pool is broad and shady and flanked by delightful decking. Activities for guests include painting, flower-weaving and a guided walk of the nearby streets. It’s a peaceful 100m back from the main road lined with tourist facilities in the Old City center.

8. Na Nirand

Incomparable riverside refinement and classy colonial elegance. Based around a magnificent 100-year-old Rain Tree along the Ping River, this marvelously graceful hotel of only 45 rooms boasts an old-world charm that extends to staff wearing majestic uniforms. The Deluxe Rooms face the saltwater pool, which has black tiles, wicker chairs in the shallow end, and ‘islands’ of trees. These rooms feature a Lanna (old Chiang Mai) décor with cloth wall-hangings, shuttered windows and rattan furniture. The colonial-style Riverfront Suites are truly regal and individually-named (e.g. ‘Siamese Love’). They contain abundant Thai arts and crafts, an arched ceiling, and substantial balcony overlooking a second pool alongside the river. The attractions continue with a pool bar shaped like a rice barn, yoga and cooking classes, and an exquisite upstairs library. Along a quiet dead-end street, it’s a quick stroll to the cafés along the renowned Night Bazaar and a speedy tuk-tuk to the Old City center.

9. G

This unique minimalist modern hotel is oval-shaped with the pool in the center. From the sky, it looks like a wheel. The colors are neutral, mainly white. Rooms are minimal, but the Suite offers a living room, one bedroom, and one bathroom. Room doors surround the pool, and most rooms have windows but no views. It’s in the Nimman neighborhood and close to restaurants and museums.

10. Panviman Resort

Marvelous mountain retreat, ideal for families, but notably isolated. Although spread extensively across a lofty valley, this self-described ‘Heaven in the Hills’ is admirably limited to just 55 rooms and villas. Many are distant, and most paths are steep, so buggies are provided. The very spacious Valley Deluxe Rooms feature modern facilities with an old-world charm. The suites are even more serene, stylish and comfortable, although the poorly-lit sofa alcove seems pointless considering the size of the brightly-colored balcony offering jaw-dropping views. Also appealing are the colossal spa/yoga center with ‘meditation cave’, outdoor games area, and lagoon-shaped pool. And it actively encourages families, with a kids’ club and a range of activities. The isolation (one hour from the Old City and airport) is offset by free shuttle bus services. There are a couple of cafés nearby, but the hotel restaurant offers top-notch meals at reasonable prices and the sublime views are free.

11. The Bridge

This beautiful, eclectic luxe hotel has modern furnishings while decorated with antiques. Carefully curated and displayed are wood-carved pillars and Naga Panels from India, Chinese-carved wood doors from Myanmar, and paintings from the Ayutthaya period. Each unique room has wood floors and is filled with collectibles and art. There’s a restaurant, outdoor swimming pool, and garden. It’s just across the Nawarat Bridge on the east side of Ping River – about an 11-minute walk to the Night Markets and an 8-minute walk to Rimping Supermarket.

12. 137 Pillars House

Stunningly beautiful, 30-suite boutique hotel set in a historic, restored teakwood building featuring sumptuous suites with hard wood floors, high ceilings, 4-poster/super king beds, free standing colonial style claw bathtubs, dressing rooms with walk-in closets, mini-bars, espresso coffee machines, music systems with iPod connectivity and vintage tiled verandahs with expansive daybeds, rattan rocking chairs & lovely garden views. The top-end suites have private outdoor plunge pools, sunken bathtubs and butler services.

13. Meliá

This tall luxury resort is within walking distance to the Night Markets. Rooms are modern with city views. There are some good options for families, some rooms with kids’ play areas and adjoining doors. The hotel has a 24-hour gym, outdoor pool, a Kids club, and YHI Spa. For restaurants, there are Laan Na Kitchen and Mai Restaurant & Bar on the 21st floor. One level up is Mai The Sky Bar, which has panoramic views perfect for cocktails at sunset.

14. At Gate Thaphae

This charming boutique hotel is east of the Old City wall and is a three-minute walk to the Tha Phae Gate. The area is also close to the Night Markets. It’s a modern hotel with Lanna period Thai architecture. Rooms have wood floors, a balcony with garden views, and silk wallhangings. There’s a restaurant and garden but no pool.

15. JARITT

This charming boutique hotel resides in the Nimman neighborhood, about 2 km northwest of Old City. The rooms are spacious, but the Deluxe Family Room offers two private bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a living room. One bedroom has two twin beds, the other a king to accommodate up to four people. There’s a beautiful courtyard with a coy pond but no pool. It’s close to the area’s museums, restaurants, and Chiang Mai University.

16. Siri Village

This colonial-style boutique hotel is in the heart of the Old City. It’s close to restaurants, historic temples, and markets. Rooms have a terrace with garden views, and some have hardwood floors, while others feature patterned tiled floors. There’s a restaurant, outdoor swimming pool, and a bar with signature cocktails.

17. De Chai the Deco Hotel

Trendy, friendly, and quiet location. One in a chain of boutique hotels across Chiang Mai, the exterior of brick and glass resembles an office block, but it’s pleasant inside and with only 50 rooms on 5 levels service is personable. Perhaps trying to be too fashionably Art-Deco, the layout of the Deluxe Rooms is odd. The quasi-entrance lobby with a minuscule desk leads past a cubicle with a bathtub and shower side-by-side to the bedroom with a corner sofa and another desk. The mirror behind the bed makes the rooms appear more spacious. Some face the quiet street, but most overlook the L-shaped pool which could be noisy. Although deep and sunny, the pool does lack shade. Inexcusably not signposted, it’s along a laneway, which is a 5-minute stroll past plenty of shops and cafés to the eastern walls and moat of the Old City.

18. Kantary Hills

This modern hotel in Nimman offers studios and suites, some with kitchenettes and pool views. The outdoor swimming pool and whirlpool have lounge chairs with umbrellas. There’s a sauna, steam room, and fitness center. The Nimman Bar and Grill is known for its steaks from local and imported beef. There is also a breakfast buffet.

19. Pingviman Hotel

Beautifully carved wood and Thai accents adorn this wonderful hotel inside the Old City. There are lots of room options. Lounge chairs with colorful pillows surround the outdoor swimming pool. Free breakfast and complimentary bicycles make getting around the Old City easy.

20. Bella Nara

This luxury colonial-style hotel sits northeast of the Old City wall. The 91 charming rooms are close to Nimman’s shopping and restaurants. Bella Nara Cuisine restaurant offers breakfast and a local and international menu. The outdoor swimming pool has poolside service and lounge chairs with umbrellas. There’s also a fitness center and sauna.

21. Hillsboroug

Hillsborough The English Country House Hotel sits on two acres in the mountains. It’s a farm with several houses, two restaurants, and a pool. There are ten luxury rooms or suites in three houses, all decorated with an English country theme. Some rooms offer up to 3 beds, claw-foot tubs, terraces, sitting areas, and mountain or pool views. The English garden has fountains and 250 rose bushes. There’s an organic orchard with strawberries, grapes, peaches, cherries, avocados, and a sheep farm. For activities, there are cooking classes, afternoon tea, strolling the gardens, swimming, picking fruit for yourself or the chefs, feeding the sheep, fishing in the creek, or cycling through the village. Grandma’s Restaurant serves a full English Breakfast buffet plus an a-la-carte lunch and dinner. Hillsborough Café is great for sunsets and offers smoothies, coffee, Italian sodas, grilled meats, pizza, and banana Roti. This lovely escape is not far from the city, about 26 km (16 miles) from the Old City walls.

22. Art Mai Gallery

This boutique hotel in Nimman has guest rooms showcasing original work from local Thai artists. Each of the eight floors represents a different art style. The themes range from Nude Art, Op Art, and Pop Art to Impressionist and Lanna Romantic. Each floor also has a signature Thai artist room featuring their work designed around their art. There are six rooms in total. The Artist Signature by Jitsing room has exposed wires, and the Artist Signature by Pomme Chan room has surreal designs and furniture. There is also a rooftop pool, fitness center, and art shop. Surr Bar on the eighth floor, next to the rooftop pool, offers eight Signature Cocktails and great views at sunset. Jarid restaurant provides authentic Thai cuisine with curated wines.