We don’t normally write about the guesthouses/hostels/bungalows we stay in but we were so impressed with this place we had to share it with you.
Our first night in Chiang Rai we stayed in a run down (and frankly dirty) guesthouse run by a very sweet and very old Thai lady whilst her husband eyed us suspiciously. Returning from dinner, and walking down the unlit drive, past empty . It was the kind of place you’d love for it’s quirks, if only it were clean but a giant spider incident sealed the deal and the next morning I headed off to find alternative accommodation.
Which is when I stumbled across the pretty, green courtyard of Chat House, down a small Soi. We settled into two double rooms – one 250 THB and one 300 THB (the more expensive room was slightly more spacious and had a T.V). They were both fan rooms – the cool night temperatures in Chiang Rai made air-con unnecessary and had hot water! (Perhaps this is not exciting to you but living in the hottest part of Thailand and not having hot water in our flat, the combination it being cool enough to want a hot shower and actually being able to have one was quite a treat!
The wifi is great and reaches all the room, the staff are friendly – we rented some scooters through them and they gave us a map and suggested some routes and destinations. It has a restaurant and they can arrange tours but there’s no pressure to do anything through them – you are cry welcome to just chill out in the communal garden area and read, chat or play cards…
So if you’re planning a few days in Chiang Rai and don’t want to break the bank, you could do a lot worse than staying here. It’s walkable to pretty much everything in Chiang Rai and is just around from the corner from a bustling market where you can pick up some grilled pork, fresh fruit, or whatever else takes your fancy.
