Chiang Rai Province is steeped in the history of the Lanna Kingdom. King Meng Rai established Chiang Rai in 1262 A.D. near the Kok River. The kingdom became a Burmese colony from 1558 to 1774 A.D and you can see the influence in the architecture. King Taksin (1767-1782 A.D.), the king of Siam of the Thonburi period, won it back in a war with the Burmese, and the Lanna Thai Kingdom became a dependency of Siam. When you get off the Tourist trail you can easily imagine yourself set back in history hundreds of years. Although not as well known as Chiang Mai and Sukhothai it deserves just as much, if not more time exploring.
One nice thing about Chiang Rai Province is that it’s easy to get around and the road system is well laid out. It’s even a good place to use as a start point to places like Laos and Myanmar which are both easily accessible. A day trip to both the Golden triangle where the Opium trade flourished along the Mekong where Burma, now Myanmar, Laos and Thailand converge and also the great little tourist trap town of Mae Sai. While a tourist trap Mae Sai is also a great place to get a good deal on many handcrafted items at very low cost. You can even slide over the Friendship Bridge into Myanmar for a short duty free shopping trip.
My Chiang Rai Direct is designed to give you good local interesting information from people who where born here and have actually lived and traveled in the area. We hope you find our site helpful and even humorous on occasion. We love the area and we will continue to find and present to you the best deals Northern Thailand has to offer.
