Chiang Mai With Kids: Where To Stay, Eat & Best Things To Do
Chiang Mai with kids offers a mix of jungle adventures, elephant sanctuaries, temples, and night markets, making it one of Thailand’s best family destinations. For families wanting more than beaches, Chiang Mai adds culture, cooler weather and outdoor experiences older kids genuinely enjoy. Five to six full days offer plenty of time to explore the sights and enjoy the best of the national parks and adventure activities. We recommend staying over a Sunday to experience the famous night market. We didn’t visit any temples in Chiang Mai, we went purely for the adventure!
Looking for more family-friendly tours and activities in Chiang Mai? Browse our Chiang Mai activities link below & we also have more details about the activities we enjoyed further down in this post!
Key Facts
When to visit
The best time to visit is between November and April. Avoid February to April, as this is the burning season for crops and can affect people with respiratory conditions. We recommend that you stay at least 4/5 nights if you want to experience adventure activities, as most are at least 1 hour from Old Town
How to get there
Fly to Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX) with a 1-hour direct flight from Bangkok. It’s also a 3-hour flight from Singapore. Many families also decide to take the overnight train from Bangkok. We have not done this as we’ve heard that it’s loud, and lights are kept on overnight so I guess this comes down to your budget and comfort levels.
How to get around
You can rent a car, use Grab (similar to Uber), or hire a personal driver. Many of the exciting activities are located at least 30 to 60 minutes away from town. If you need a reliable driver recommendation, feel free to email us for their details or send a DM via Instagram
Best Things To Do in Chiang Mai
Sunday Night Market
A 1km stretch of handmade crafts, clothing and food stalls that takes over the Old City every Sunday, 5pm–11pm. It runs along Ratchadamnoen Road — worth knowing there’s a separate market on Saturday nights on Wualai Road, so check which night you’re planning for, and get there early if you can. It’s much easier to move around before 7pm, after that it gets packed. The temple courtyards along the route open up as food areas, which are a bit calmer than the main street if you need somewhere to sit. Bring cash in small notes as most stalls don’t take cards
Ethical Elephant Sanctuary — Chang Chill
Chang Chill is genuinely ethical: no riding, no tricks, no bathing with the elephants. You watch them from a distance being elephants, which sounds less exciting than the photos you’ve seen — and it is — but it’s the whole point.
What parents should know before booking: it’s a big day. Pickup is 7:30–8am, it’s a 1.5-hour drive each way, and you’re not back at your hotel until around 4:30–5pm. Full day is 2,500 THB per adult and 1,800 THB for kids under 10, with a vegetarian Thai lunch included. They’ve got two sites — View Doi is on top of a mountain and involves more walking; Hillside is easier going. Worth asking which one you’re booked into if you’ve got smaller legs in tow.
Dantewada Land of Angels Park
Dantewada Land of Angels Park is a huge man-made waterfall park featuring bamboo paths, flowers, animals, a playground & a café. It’s 80B entry, &1 hr drive from town. We recommend that you tag this on with your trip to Sticky Waterfall given they’re only 30 minutes apart. This is what we did, and it worked out well. We ate lunch at Sticky Waterfall too, rather than at the Cafe at Dantewanda.
Sticky Waterfall (Bua Thong Waterfall)
Sticky Waterfall (Bua Thong Waterfall) is a real waterfall you can climb barefoot. Made of limestone. Free entry, and local Thai restaurants for lunch. 30 mins from Dantewada. Highly recommend this. Kids under 6 years old are not allowed to climb the waterfall, and there are no lockers for storing belongings. You need to keep them at the top of the hill as you walk down to the bottom of the waterfall.
Carp Cafe
At Carp Café you will be in koi fish heaven – even in the bathroom! Kids can feed the fish while sipping their fruit shake. Arrive at 9.30am to beat crowds. 25 min drive from town. The food is western and Japanese-inspired.
Grand Canyon Waterpark
Grand Canyon Park is a massive outdoor water park with floating obstacle courses, zip lines, and cliff jumping. Seriously fun. Cost is $48.50 pp AUD – includes locker & towels. There is also an on-site restaurant with a vast menu, and we were extremely impressed by the staff’s commitment to safety around many of the floating obstacles. It’s great fun for parents – I will warn you, it’s a DARN good workout but so much fun!
Skyline Adventure Park
Skyline Adventure Park will see you fly through Thailand’s longest zipline (900 m). This was the best day. Includes lunch, transfers & luge kart. The staff were excellent also. The extreme package is $115 pp AUD. If you’re staying in Old Town, it’s about a 1.5 drive to the park. We booked directly via their website, but you can also book via Klook. Feel free to use our code for 10% off, which is FOOTLOOSE10KLOOK.
Doi Inthanon National Park
Doi Inthanon National Park: Thailand’s highest peak, 1.5 hours from town, with waterfalls, hiking trails and the iconic twin pagodas. Budget properly for this one, because the fees stack. Foreigner park entry is 300 THB for adults and 150 THB for kids, plus a small vehicle fee and the twin pagodas charge a separate 100 THB that isn’t covered by your park ticket. Two things that catch families out: the Kew Mae Pan nature trail is only open November to May and closed through the rainy season, and it requires a compulsory local guide. And it is genuinely cold up top — around 10–15°C, sometimes near freezing on winter mornings while Chiang Mai city is 15–20 degrees warmer. Everyone turns up in shorts and singlets. Pack actual jackets
Cooking class for Khao Soi
Thai Cooking Class is a must in Chiang Mai! Khao Soi is the local northern Thai curry & it’s delicious. It’s a coconut curry soup with crispy noodles on top. Most classes start with a trip to a local market to buy the ingredients, which the kids got just as much out of as the cooking itself. You’ll eat everything you make, so don’t have a big breakfast beforehand.
Where to stay in Chiang Mai
Old City is the central hub of culture and entertainment in Chiang Mai, & is just a 15-minute drive from the aiport. This area is home to the famous Sunday night market and is surrounded by ancient temples, a moat, restaurants, and more budget-friendly accommodations for families. We stayed at Buri Gallery House. It’s across the road from the Good Kitchen restaurant (best Thai food!), and also the Sunday night market. The staff are very welcoming, and they have a resident dog that is friendly with kids.
Riverside is more peaceful along the river, and home to most luxury resorts, but still relatively central to good cafes and restaurants. It’s a 15-minute walk to Old City, or 5 minutes in a tuk-tuk.
Nimman is more suitable for longer stays, as you will find more serviced apartments. It’s about just a 10-minute Grab ride from Old City attractions.
We use Traveloka to book most of our accommodation in SE Asia. They offer a 10% discount for new users on the app. It’s HELLOTRAVELOKA
Favourite Places to Eat in Chiang Mai
Below is a list of our recommended family-friendly restaurants and cafes in Chiang Mai that also offer gluten-free options. Don’t stress if your stay doesnt extend on a Sunday night because there is a food market every night in Chiang Mai!
- Lanna Night Market
- Carp Cafe
- Its Good Kitchen
- Sunday Night Market
- Garden to Table (great GF!)
- Chom Cafe (expensive but yum)
- Kat’s Kitchen
- Sub Seafood
- The Old City Inn
- Sompetch Kitchen
