Chiang Rai travel guide

White Temple, Blue Temple and the Golden Triangle. Most people stay 1–2 nights. Best months: Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb.

Highlights

Wat Rong Khun (White Temple) · 1.5 h · about ₹250 per person. Opens 8am; arrive early. Shoulders and knees covered.
Wat Rong Suea Ten (Blue Temple) · 1 h · free
Baan Dam (Black House) museum · 1.5 h · about ₹200 per person. Animal skins and bones throughout — preview before taking young kids.
Golden Triangle & Hall of Opium day tour · 8 h · about ₹3,000 per person. Optional Laos-island boat trips need your passport.
Wat Huay Pla Kang Guanyin statue · 1 h · about ₹100 per person
Night Bazaar & clock tower light show · 2 h · free. The clock tower show runs at 7, 8 and 9pm.
Singha Park tea plantation & cycling · 3 h · about ₹300 per person

Clock Tower / Night Bazaar area (budget, ₹1,200–₹2,500 a night): Walk to the night market and bus terminal.
City-centre boutique hotels (mid, ₹2,800–₹5,500 a night): Central, 15 minutes to the White Temple.
Kok River resorts (premium, ₹7,000–₹16,000 a night): Riverside pools and gardens just outside town.

North culture: Bangkok, Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai · 8 days · 8 days, Bangkok → Chiang Mai → Chiang Rai · from ₹38,375 per person, base estimate before flights. Temples old and new, from the Ayutthaya ruins to Chiang Rai's White Temple, with a night-market every evening.
Grand tour: Bangkok, the north and the Andaman coast · 15 days · 15 days, Bangkok → Chiang Mai → Chiang Rai → Krabi → Phi Phi → Phuket · from ₹82,100 per person, base estimate before flights. Two weeks covering the capital, the old capital, the northern temples and three Andaman bases.