You will be heading in that direction already and only need to continue and extra minute or two to reach the bridge. Ride your scooter south out of town, the bridge itself is right next to the bridge that you will ride across to cross the Pai river. It is 10km from the centre of town and will take 12 minutes on the scooter. The bridge can be done at any time. Come here as a part of your day when you go to Pai canyon, the land split, Pam Bok waterfall or any of the other activities south of town.
Just relax in the hot springs, the water is warm, but just cooler than body temperature so eventually you might get cold. I was in there for 30 minutes with no issues though. Ride north out of town for 12km on road and then there will be a right hand turn onto the road that leads to the hot springs.
After or thereabouts you are likely to be sharing the hot springs with others. For me it was 11 Spanish people who rocked up and started speaking loudly and ruining the atmosphere, then as I was leaving another 4 tourists rocked up as well. It is pricey, so it is up to you if you want to relax in the hot springs then go early.
Although the waterfall is open all the time, there are charges. I am unsure what hours the gate is manned though. Ride south out of town towards the WW2 memorial bridge and the Pai canyon. Follow the signs for either of these 3 attractions as they are all going to the same spot more or less. After the turn off it is 4km to Pam Bok Waterfall. If you are going elsewhere in Thailand like Khao Sok National Park , or even out to Chiang Rai, then you can comfortably give this a miss.
A split in the land formed by an earth quake in Entry is free, but you make donations for things if you sit down and eat especially, but also if you want to be nice. When you enter you will be offered snacks and drinks from the local farmer who owns the property. It is all stuff off his own farm, including a nice rosella juice. The walk itself will only take about 20 minutes to complete the loop and stop for some quick photos as you go.
It is not a challenging hike or anything, more of a pathway around the farm and through the split in the land. Taking the road out south of town, there will be a turn on your right hand side after 4km. There will be signage for: bamboo bridge, land split, and pam bok waterfall.
All three activities are along this one turn off. After you make the right hand turn, the land split will be the first of the three activities that you come across, about 1. You can do it now, or go to the others and do it on the way back out to the main road.
So there you have some great, and not so great activities available to you with 5 days in Pai. Pai offers a lot of outdoors beauty, the sunsets in particular are great here. Pai has some of the best roads around for those who want to go an an adventure with a rented motorbike or even a scooter. There are three different locations for hot springs close to town that are cool enough for people to swim in which will be mentioned below.
These bamboo bridges make for an incredible place to visit, with a nice scenic walk over the rice fields on the bamboo bridge providing great photo opportunities and a relaxed atmosphere. Unfortunately for me I came here in the burning season, at the peak of the dry season and was therefore met with a sea of dead grass.
Not quite the same as you will see in Google images. Reviews show a lot of disappointed customers. This is different to the hot springs mentioned above! People report that it is dirty and regret going in the dry season. In the wet season it would be fresh water. These waterfalls create a slide on the smooth rocks that you can go down. The water is very cold though.
In a future trip to Pai, I will try time it for the very beginning of the dry season when the fields are lush and green. This map should help visualise the layout of the area. As you can see there are things to do all around Pai. To give you a sense of scale, Tham Lod Cave is 50km away by road. Most of the best things to do in Pai can be reached in under 15 minutes.
A lot of people will get to Pai and decide to stay longer, it has a different pace than the rest of Thailand. Your email address will not be published. Instagram RSS. Are 5 days in Pai Enough? Contents hide. Things to do With 5 Days in Pai Pai is an outdoorsy sort of place.
Pai Canyon What is it? How much does it cost? Opening Hours? Whenever you feel like coming, it is open. What do you do here? How do you get here? How long will I spend here? When to come? Sunrise or sunset. Do you recommend it? Again you can either do this by an hour and a half or so bike ride, or as an organised trip from Pai. Aya offered this for baht when we checked, including entrance fee and a raft trip inside the cave.
Savoei organise very good half-day classes so you could do a morning one which would allow for say a tubing or bamboo rafting trip in the afternoon, making for a varied and fun day. If this is your last night, then splurge on a riverside barbecue at Kanad or some classy eats at Reverie before hitting Bar Street, ensuring a decent hangover for the tortuous drive back to Chiang Mai.
Pai is very much the sort of place where you simply chill out in cafes, chat in bars or sit around a camp fire. If you do have more time or energy, then adding a few days for a trek or white-water rafting expedition is strongly recommended.
Reviewed by Mark Ord. These tours are provided by Travelfish partner GetYourGuide. Three days in Pai. Tours in Thailand Your dates.
Send your enquiry. Our top 10 other sights and activities in and around Pai. One-day Pai by scooter itinerary. When time is tight I even tried the raw, sour leaf! It was a fantastic insight into the way of life in relaxed northern Thailand. Safe to say I enjoyed the experience enough to tip a few dollars.
This area comes alive with sizzling barbecues offering a wonderful variety of foods and the chatter of locals and tourists alike. While I would like to try everything I never did make it to the dumplings , I have a few suggestions of what I deem to be unmissable along the chaotic walking street.
A few stalls offer an amazing selection of BBQ skewers. Try the Okra! Cheap, filling and satisfying. All three nights ended with my stomach way too full for its own good! A few words of warning for Common Grounds guests: When this street closes to vehicles, you are not supposed to drive your bike through the hordes of people.
To pedestrians: People do drive through, even though it is not technically allowed. To the drivers like myself : Take it slow! While Pai is a backpacker haven, lots of people, including children, are out and walking.
Heading west from Pai, toward the Myanmar border, finds the majestic lookout of Pang Mapha. It signals roughly the halfway point between Pai and the caves, including the unique Tham Lod Cave. Driving to this lookout takes around 90 minutes, obviously depending on your speed and any stops along the way.
This view at Pang Mapha is the most popular along the road between the caves and the town of Pai, and with great reason. The vista looking down towards Pai is amazing. While it is walkable, I recommend driving — just take your time on the derelict road.
Judging by the guard outpost I drove past, with faded admission prices and a boom gate that is now permanently tied open, this road used to be a lot more popular with tourists. I drove up this section, around 1 km of steep hill and parked near a fenced-off tower. I parked my bike at a gated compound and continued on foot along the only possible path.
While there are a couple of shacks and structures, grass has overgrown the smaller paths. I enjoyed the walk just to stretch my legs! After a small search online, I decided to visit only one of the many caves near Pai.
It was absolutely amazing and is one of my favorite caving experiences I have ever done. Check out my dedicated blog post to Tham Lod Cave! It is, with good reason, an extremely popular viewpoint to watch the sunset over the close mountains. This wide-open valley, with soft, inspiring colors, it was magnificent.
It was high enough in elevation to give a beautiful view of the valley below. Along with a gorgeous flower garden surrounding the vantage points, all up it is a very beautiful place to visit. Like usual in Asia, insurance is a made-up word and your passport is needed for renting a moto.
As a backpacker for over half a decade now, this still makes me sweat just thinking about handing it over. I asked around for good motorbike recommendations in the hostel common area. My usual tactic for hiring a motorbike in an Asian country is to do so through my hostel. I am yet to run into a problem through this method, while I constantly hear horror stories of scams and poorly maintained bikes.
While that is the end of my three-day itinerary of Pai, Thailand, there is one last thing that deserves a mention. As the title suggests, I was drug searched on a back road of Pai. By searched, I mean vigorously searched. To read more about my unexpected experience, check out my more detailed blog post here!
I was stopped by an officer, who announced to me I was being searched for marijuana. All officers, including the commanding officer who was sporting a glistening golden holstered pistol, were incredibly professional and nice. The even had a sense of humor by making fun of the cold Canadian winters after I told him where I currently live.
This was amplified when my searching policeman apologized for what he was about to do. With a stern two fingers and a gentle grope, he checked…down there over the clothes.
He was extremely thorough…. As I drove on to Yun Lai Viewpoint, it became obvious what was going on. I was offered weed by around eight ladies, shouting at me from their front yards. One even running out on the road in front of me, as if to announce some sort of emergency!
Nope, just weed. All of these sights can be easily viewed with three days of solid driving. A few sections of the road cross mountains, and while the asphalt is smooth, driving the roads can be daunting. While these sights are stunning, so many amazing vantage spots can be found along random streets, like the sunset view on my second night in Pai.
As I mentioned before, Common Grounds is an amazing hostel to relax and meet like-minded travelers. There are also plenty of guided tours to places around Pai, as well as shuttles to Chiang Mai you can book online so you have more time exploring this northern Thailand gem.
Want to swap out a few things listed in this 3 day Pai itinerary? Or just got some spare time and want some extra things to do in Pai? Read on below, this section is for you!
The Sunset Bar in Pai does exactly what the name suggests. Have a drink while watching the sun set!
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