While the Old City of Chiang Mai is a great place for first-time visitors and remains a firm favorite of the backpacking crowd, if you’re looking for something a little different, head slightly west to Nimmanhaemin. Also known by the shorthand “Nimman,” this ultra-trendy neighborhood of Chiang Mai was once the hangout of hip university students. While this particular group has moved on to the next it place, the cafes and bars they left behind sowed the seeds for what has become a vibrant and artistic section of town, especially popular with weekenders from Bangkok, digital nomads and other tra ..read more

This morning, a Sunday, I woke up in a basic, concrete beach bungalow at a dive shop on the tiny island Koh Lipe in southern Thailand as the friend I’m staying with got up to go take customers out diving. I took my sweet time getting ready then walked a little ways along the beach through the sea at high tide to get to a nearby resort where I ordered coffee, a coconut shake and set up my computer to do a few hours of work outside facing the Andaman Sea. This is not a normal day for me. Usually I’m not on an island, usually I try to not open my computer on Sundays (though usually uns ..read more

I’ve never considered myself an island person. I prefer the mountains and jungle of northern Thailand to the expensive beaches of southern Thailand and always find getting to, from and in between the islands a huge hassle. Recently, however, I’ve spent a lot of time visiting the Thai islands. In fact, in the month of December I went island hopping more than I have in the past several years. Starting with a couple days in Phuket, I then spent a week sailing and hitting a ton of destinations with The Yacht Week, and then I enjoyed a sneaky WiFi-free week in Koh Lipe on the first true ..read more

I’ve gotten pretty spoiled living in Thailand getting regular massage and spa treatments. Before moving to the country, I had only had two massages total in my life…now I get at least two a month. I also have been fortunate enough to try out a range of massage shops and spas in Chiang Mai from the small, simple shop run by a local family offering massages, to more therapeutic treatments (i.e. not so comfortable or relaxing but beneficial), to 5-star, full-on, oh-my-God-I-can’t-believe-I’m here spas at some of the city’s most impressive hotels. If you’re looking for something special, these ..read more

Chiang Mai, Thailand is a city well known for culture and creativity. With its rich Lanna heritage and a new generation’s eye-catching talent for mixing traditional styles with modern amenities, there’s no shortage of beautiful hotels in Chiang Mai. Over the past 8+ years I’ve lived here, the number of hotels has seemed to quadruple and new ones are still going up all around, especially in the Old City and around the Nimmanhaemin neighborhood. Since there are always more options, I’ve updated this post, originally published in 2018, with some of my newest recommendations. Phra Singh Village ..read more

At the risk of sounding cliché, a travel quote made me move to Thailand. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did so. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” While it may seem tired and overused now, the first time I read this quote it stopped me in my tracks. I had been thinking in circles for months about making a move, knowing wholeheartedly that I wanted to quit my job and move abroad but also not knowing where I would begin or when wou ..read more

Want to make real Thai food at home? Then you need these Thai cookbooks. Tasty (authentic) recipes, dishes that go beyond phad thai, and gorgeous food photography – these are the best Thai cookbooks around. Pok Pok: Food and Stories from the Streets, Homes, and Roadside Restaurants of Thailand Andy Ricker opened a small restaurant called Pok Pok in a Portland neighborhood in 2005 after spending years traveling and eating around Thailand. The shop soon became a national phenomenon (and now has more locations in Portland and New York) and in Pok Pok: Food and Stories from the Streets, Homes, a ..read more

I know I may be in the minority now, but I still like guide books. Whatever arguments people make that they’re outdated as soon as they’re published and blogs or websites have more up-to-date is not necessarily true – I have plenty of posts on this site that haven’t been updated in years – and often bloggers or writers who haven’t spent significant time in a place don’t share any true insight into a destination’s history, culture and lifestyle. Unlike a blogger writing their list of “best restaurants” in a place they just spent five days (the amount of times I’ve seen posts like these for C ..read more