You ask for it and you will get it at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar. Colours, lights, food, music, crafts, clothes, culture – Almost Everything!!
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After a hectic day exploring Wat Phra That Doi Suthep (Buddhist Temple) and Huay Tung Tao Lake (Lake Reservoir) in Chiang Mai, we left from our Hostel at around 9 PM to explore another attraction in Chiang Mai. We had read about Thailand Night Markets and especially Chiang Mai Night Bazaar but believe us, you do not get its real feeling till you are actually here on these walking streets of Chiang Mai.
Chiang Mai Night Markets: A Snap shot
Chiang Mai has 3 major night markets that you can look to explore on your trip –
- Chiang Mai Night Bazaar: This is a night market that opens everyday till 12 mid night on Chang Khlan Road. There are multiple street markets between Tha Phae and Sridonchai Roads with stalls selling almost everything. Anusarn Market and Kalare Bazaar are part of this market only
- Sunday Night Market: This is a weekend affair only open on Sundays till 10 PM at Rachadamnoen Rd.
- Saturday Night Market: This again is a weekend market on Wua Lai Road only on Saturdays.
Click here to check the locations of these 3 Night Markets.
So in case you are in Chiang Mai on weekends, you can plan to visit Sunday and Saturday night markets. On all other days, you can plan to head to Chiang Mai Night Bazaar. They are not too far from each other, so you can also plan to go to Night Bazaar after visiting one of the Weekend markets.
On our trip, we had visited Chiang Mai Night Bazaar and this blog is an account of our visit to Night Bazaar only. However, you can expect similar kind of feel and vibrance in weekend markets too.
Chiang Mai Night Bazaar: A Video
Before we write more about our trip to Night bazaar, it is better to give you first hand experience through a video that we shot during our visit.
So what can you expect at Night Bazaar. Certainly shopping!!
While weekend markets are more about food, Chiang Mai Night Bazaar is more about handicrafts, paintings, souvenirs and clothing. You will find plenty of shops to purchase any of these as you will walk from one corner to another. In case you find something unique, do go for buying that, otherwise we will suggest not to purchase too many things from here as rates are slightly on higher side compared to other cities both in North and South Thailand.
Food in Chiang Mai Night Bazaar
Like every night market in Thailand, you will find ample food options here too – both delicious and cheap!!
There are plenty of restaurants where you can enjoy your food with live music. And also there are good street food options where you can have tasty freshly prepared dishes be it famous Pad Thai or homemade Coconut ice cream. Just keep on walking through the streets and you can easily find a stall whose smell or sound would attract you to peep what you can taste there. However, in general, we found lesser food option at this market compared to other night markets in Thailand.
Prices and Bargaining at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar
In general, prices are reasonable but considering that main visitors are tourists so some of the prices, you will find on higher side. A simple example is the postcard rate – All across the market, you will find a postcard at 40 Bahts. This is too high compared to rates in any other city where you can get a postcard in 5-10 Bahts easily. Small handicrafts, you will get 3 for 100 Bahts. At other places, you can easily manage to get 4 for 100.
In case, you like something and find rates on higher side – please do not hesitate to bargain. But do not haggle. Our experience is that the second rate that Thai people land is usually the final. After that, it is take or leave decision :).
Hope this helps you plan your visit to Chiang Mai Night Bazaar. Please do drop a comment in case you want to know more or tell more based on your experience.