Mae Hong Son used to be considered the furthest backwater of Thailand. When high-ranking Thai civil servants or military officers misbehave, they are generally transferred to the proverbial 'inactive post,' even to this day. Time was when Mae Hong Son was the most 'inactive' of postings possible, practically a place of exile. Read more on the history of Mae Hong Son…
Mae Hong Son town - all of it!
It's hard to argue that any place you can fly to is remote or isolated, but as your small (72 seats) plane threads its way through the mountains and onto the equally small runway practically in the center of town, you get the definite feeling that you're well off the beaten path.
The attraction to Mae Hong Son, as opposed to more mainstream destinations such as Chiang Rai, is it's small-town atmosphere and architecture heavily influenced by neighboring Burma. With many people looking for more 'adventure' in their vacations, Mae Hong Son's wild rivers are also a big attraction.
Mae Hong Son has become something of a magnet for those seeking a bit of 'adventure' in their vacation. What's on offer is basically two types of outdoor activities:
Rafting Trips down the Pai river, either on bamboo or rubber rafts, can easily be arranged through any travel agent in Mae Hong Son. Most trips are half-day in length and can often be combined with an elephant ride into the surrounding forest.
It takes only a day to see just about everything that the town of Mae Hong Son itself has to offer. However, there's a lot to see in the countryside around the city, whether you're interested in adventure, nature or cultural tourism.
Fish Cave About 17 kilometers (10 miles) from Mae Hong Son town is the small Fish Cave (tam plaa in Thai) national park. The name is a bit misleading.
Along Khunlumprapas street, which runs north-south through the center of town, is where you'll find many of the city's restaurants and shops. In the evening, the street is also lined with additional vendors selling mostly hill-tribe products.
Restaurants Most restaurants catering to tourists are found along Khunlumprapas street and on the west side of the lake. Most restaurants offer good Thai food in simple surroundings. The hotel coffee shops offer western dishes.
About 17 kilometers (10 miles) from Mae Hong Son town is the small Fish Cave (tam plaa in Thai) national park. The name is a bit misleading. There's no cave that you can really go into. The park surrounds a place where a small stream emerges from the rock face of a hill.
However, there are definitely fish. Big brook carp of a kind found only in a very few places in Thailand.
Next to Wat Hua Wiang, not far from the airport, is the city's main fresh market. Although you'll find many stalls open here all day, the best time to visit is in the early morning, when the market is in full swing.
The market seems unusually large for such a small city, but its the only market around. As with all Thai markets, although the emphasis is on fresh fruits, vegetables and meats, you'll find just about everything on offer, including clothes, cookware, and just about anything else needed for the Thai home.
View of Mae Hong Son's airport from Mu Kong Hill. You basically have only two options for getting to Mae Hong Son - air or road. Mae Hong Son's small airport is more or less in the center of town. Currently, only budget carrier Nok Air flies into Mae Hong Son from Chiang Mai. There are usually two to three flights a day between the two cities. By road, there is also regular bus service to Chiang Mai.
One of the long-necked ladies on display They seem to be a fixture of every package tour or day trip. We generally try to avoid tours that include stops at hill tribe villages. The idea of visiting people just to gawk at their 'strangeness' seems rude, to say the least.
Among the most 'popular' of the hill tribes are the Padaung, commonly referred to as the tribe of 'longnecked' women.
Phaya Singhanat Racha, first governor of Mae Hong Son The exact origins of the city are not known. In fact, archaeological digs in a cave north of town suggests that the area has been occupied by humans for thousands of years. What is known is that by the mid 19th century Mae Hong Son was still a small village, but well-known for its teak and wild elephants that could be captured and used in war.
Mae Hong Son does not have a huge selection of hotels. In fact, the ones listed below are pretty much it. If you don't like these selections, you can compare rates from dozens of sites using the search box. In addition to these, you'll find a number of guest houses which are mostly located around the lake in the center of town. Among these, the Piya Guest House is at the top end, with full-featured bungalows comparable to the hotels in town.
In a depression just south of the main center of Mae Hong Son is the small lake of Jong Kam. The lake is completely surrounded by a public park, making it a pleasant place to cool off later in the day.
A lion statue on the north side of the lake, looking across at the temples To the south of the lake are two of the city's main temples, Wat Jong Kam and Wat Jong Klang.
Mae Hong Son Mae Hong Son is really a rather small town. You can easily walk around to most of the sights, although the journey up to Wat Doi Kong Mu is quite a climb. If you like to explore places on foot, then choose one of the hotels in town.
There are several big annual events in Mae Hong Son that you will want to make note of, not least because they are the few times that the city's hotels and accommodations will most likely be full.
Poy Sang Long The Thai Yai (Shan) residents of Mae Hong Son celebrate a boy's (usually temporary) entry to the monkhood like no other Thais. Held at the beginning of April to coincide with the annual school holidays, boys between the ages of seven and 14 are dressed in elaborate 'princely' costumes and paraded on the shoulders of men to and around the temple.
The covered entry to Wat Kam Ko The most interesting things to see in Mae Hong Son town are its many Shan style temples. These are quite distinct architecturally from other temples in Thailand.
The most noticeable difference are the large wooden wiharns (prayer halls). In Mae Hong Son, these are usually open-fronted and the roofs will be trimmed with lace-like fretwork in silver, white or gold.
The ubosots (ordination halls) are usually the only buildings in stone in Mae Hong Son temples.
Rose Garden Tours If you don't want to go the whole packaged tour route, but do want to get out of town to visit hill tribes or go river rafting, then you'll want to contact one of the many small tour operators in town. Rose Garden is the only one we can find on the net. We used them for one trip and found the guide, driver and van all quite good.
The large multi-gabled wiharn (prayer hall). Next the the city's bustling market is the large temple compound of Wat Hua Wiang. The main feature of the temple is its huge multi-gabled wooden wiharn, housing a revered Buddha image. This wiharn, more than most, reminded us of the wooden orthodox churches built in the 18th and 19th centuries by Russian immigrants to Alaska and northern California.
The huge rambling sala of the temple.
The large wiharn (prayer hall) of Wat Jong Kam Sharing the same grounds as Wat Jong Klang is Wat Jong Kam. If it appears just a little less old and elaborate than its neighbor, its because much of the temple was destroyed by fire in 1970. The only remaining significant structure is the very unusual ubosot (ordination hall), which is a large rectangular slab with several stupas on the roof.
Wat Jong Klang Set on the south side of Jong Kam lake in the middle of town, Wat Jong Klang's white and gilded chedi has practically become a symbol of Mae Hong Son. Behind the chedi is a large rambling open-fronted wiharn.
The hundreds of small Jakata paintings on glass Within the wiharn are many altars and throne-like pulpits used by the monks of the temple when giving sermons. To the right of the altar, three walls are completely covered with small paintings on glass depicting the previous lives of the Buddha (the Jakata).
Overall view of Wat Kam Ko Kam Ko (or Kam Kaw) temple isn't featured in most guidebooks, but its right across the street from Wat Phra Non and well worth a visit. The temple appears to date from around 1901. Like all temples in Mae Hong Son, Wat Kam Ko is distinctly designed and decorated in the Shan style with delicate 'doily' like fretwork.
The covered walkway to the sala, with its elaborate roof.
The many towers (chedis) of Wat Mui Taw Next to Wat Phra Non at the base of Doi Kong Mu is the temple of Muo Taw. Although it's impossible to miss, this curious and obviously old temple is not in any guidebook, Thai or English, to the city. The temple lies next to one path leading up to the Wat Phra That Doi Kong Mu temple on top of the hill.
The stairway up Doi Kong Mu to the temple on top At the base of Doi Kong Mu is the small temple of Wat Phra Non (or Pra Nawn), which literally means 'temple of the reclining Buddha'. It's no surprise then that the major feature of the temple is a large reclining Buddha statue. The statue was commissioned in 1877 by Rama V and is rather more lifelike than most.
The two large chedis in the temple of Kong Mu The temple atop Kong Mu hill, Wat Phra That Doi Kong Mu, affords a spectacular view of the entire valley in which Mae Hong Son is nestled. The temple itself is notable for its two large white chedis and its typical Shan architecture.
The temple dates from around the time of the village's upgrade to a city in 1874. One of the huge chedis contains the ashes of a revered monk that were bought from Burma by two devotees.
