Chiang Mai  also sometimes written as “Chiengmai” or “Chiangmai”, is the largest and most culturally significant city in northern Thailand, and is the capital of Chiang Mai Province. It is located some 700 km (435 mi) north of Bangkok, among some of the highest mountains in the country. The city stands on the Ping river, a major tributary of the Chao Phraya river.

In recent years, Chiang Mai has become an increasingly modern city. It has several attractions for the approximately 1 million visitors who come each year. Chiang Mai has also gained prominence in the political sphere, when in May 2006 the so-called Chiang Mai Initiative was concluded here between the ASEAN countries and the “+3″ countries (China, Japan, and South Korea). Chiang Mai’s historic importance is derived from its strategic location on the Ping river as well as trade routes. Long before the modern influx of foreign visitors, the city served as a major center for handcrafted goods, umbrellas, jewelry (particularly silver) and woodcarving.

While officially the city (thesaban nakhon) of Chiang Mai only covers most parts of the Mueang Chiang Mai district with a population of 150,000, the urban sprawl of the city now extends into several neighboring districts. This Chiang Mai Metropolitan Area has a population of nearly one million people, more than half the total of Chiang Mai Province.

The city itself is subdivided into four wards (khwaeng): Nakhon Ping, Srivijaya, Mengrai, and Kavila. The first three are on the west bank while Kavila is located on the east bank of the Ping River. Nakhon Ping district covers the north side of the city. Srivijaya, Mengrai, and Kavila cover the west, south, and east side respectively. The central part (the old walled town) is covered mostly by Srivijaya and partly by Nakhon Ping and Mengrai wards.  

 Religious sites

Chiang Mai has over 300 Buddhist temples (called “wat” in Thai). These include:

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep: the most famous temple in the area, standing on Doi Suthep, a hill to the north-west of the city. This temple dates from 1383. Its builders allegedly chose its site by placing a relic of the Lord Buddha on an elephant’s back and letting it roam until it came across a place where it trumpeted and circled before it lay down and died. The onlookers took this as marking an auspicious place for building the temple. The temple’s location also affords superb views over the city on a clear day.

Wat Chiang Man: the oldest temple in Chiang Mai dating from the 13th century. King Mengrai lived here while overseeing the construction of the city. This temple houses two very important and venerated Buddha figures – Phra Sila (a marble Buddha) and Phra Satang Man (a crystal Buddha).

Wat Phra Singh: located within the city walls, dates from 1345 and offers an example of classic northern Thai style architecture. It houses the Phra Singh Buddha, a highly venerated figure, transferred here many years ago from Chiang Rai. This temple is one of the most important temples in the city. Visitors can also take part in meditation classes here at set times.

Wat Chedi Luang: founded in 1401 and dominated by the large Lanna style chedi which dates from the same time, but took many years to finish. An earthquake damaged the chedi in the 16th century and now only two-thirds of it remains.

Wat Ched Yot: located on the outskirts of the city, this temple, built in 1455, hosted the Eighth World Buddhist Council in 1977.

Wiang Kum Kam: the site of an old city situated on the southern outskirts of Chiang Mai. King Mengrai used this for ten years before the founding of Chiang Mai. The site has a large number of ruined temples.

Wat Umong: a forest and cave wat in the foothills in the west of the city, near Chiang Mai University. Wat U-Mong is known for its fasting Buddha, the representation of the bodhisattva at the end of a fruitless fasting period. It illustrates a canonical text in which Buddha admonishes his monks not to fall into self-torture since this is just as “fruitless” as self-indulgence. There are hundreds of pithy Buddhist proverbs in English and Thai posted on trees throughout its grounds. During the eighties they were collected by a German monk, phra Santi, at that time living in this wat. Among the English languages ones there are no more than approx. 2 or 3 sayings of the Buddha; the rest of the English language sayings are aphorisms by the Vedanta saint who used to inspire the earliest Theosophists (Vedanta being a Hindu denomination).

Wat RamPoeng (Tapotaram): near Wat U-Mong, known for its meditation center (Northern Insight Meditation Center) with over 100 Thai and foreigner meditation students and monks attending at any time. The temple teaches the traditional vipassana technique where students stay from 10 days to over a month when they try to meditate at least 10 hours a day. Wat RamPoeng houses the largest collection of Tipitaka, the complete Theravada canon, in several Northern dialects or languages.

Wat Suan Dok: a 14th century temple located just west of the old city-wall. The temple was built by the King of Lanna for a revered monk visiting from Sukhothai to spend the rains retreat. The name translates as “the field of flowers temple.” There are several unique aspects to this temple. One is the temple’s large ubosot (ordination hall). This is unusual not only for its size, but also that it is open on the sides instead of enclosed. Secondly, there are a large number of chedis housing the ashes of the rulers of Chiang Mai. The temple is also the site of Mahachulalongkorn Rajavidyalaya Buddhist University.

There are also around 20 churches,  13 mosques, two gurdwaras (Sikh Temples) and one Hindu temple.  7 out of 13 mosques belong to Chinese or Chin Haw.  One of the biggest mosques in Chiang Mai is the Baan Haw Mosque. The two gurdwaras are Siri Guru Singh Sabha and Namdhari Silk Temple; the one Hindu temple is the Devi Mandir.