To most people, any mention of the phrase “I’m going to Thailand” conjures up images of beautiful islands, stunning beaches, and crazy parties where people dance the night away under the moonlight. This is certainly true, but the country is much more than that. There is an another dimension to Thailand, vastly different but equally beautiful, in the mountains to the north.
While the south of Thailand will leave you with amazing (and often hazy) memories of booze-infused late nights dancing on the beach, crystal clear emerald green water, and absolute stunning islands, Northern Thailand is the kind of place that touches your soul in a way that lingers with you long after you’ve left. The regions’ stark scenery features breathtaking landscapes, with some of the most awe-inspiring mountains and valleys you’ll ever see, and roads winding through them that just go on forever.
You’ll never run out of adventures, everything from incredible hikes to volunteering with elephants to close encounters with tigers to temple hunting and of course… globally renowned motorcycle trips. One of the most famous in the country, and really in all of Southeast Asia, is the Mae Hong Son Loop. An adventurous group of five of us teamed up to tackle this 4-day, 600 km journey that winds through the Mae Hong Son province, starting and ending in our home base of Chiang Mai.
Our modified version of the loop made stops in Doi Inthanon, Mae Hong Son, and the famous mountain town of Pai. For those looking for an authentic Thai experience, this adventure is complete with waterfalls, endless landscapes, incredibly fun curvy roads and breathtaking views. In my book, it’s a can’t miss experience. I know I’ll never forget it.
Preparing for the Trip
Difficulty: This loop is not for the novice motorbike rider. If you’ve never ridden before, I highly recommend spending at least a day getting the hang of your scooter before taking off into the mountains. The loop is predominantly winding roads with hundreds of S-curves and hairpin turns cutting through the mountainside. And I’m not exaggerating — there are 1,864 curves between Mae Hong Son and Chiang Mai alone — it’s wild!
Scooter Selection: Automatic scooters are fine, but you’ll want to get at least a 125cc bike to handle the steep inclines. I opted for a 150cc Honda PCX, and I highly recommend it. The slightly larger bike offers more underseat storage for your gear and has comfortable angled foot rests that allowed me to sit in what I called “lounge mode” — perfect for the long rides we did each day.
Rental Place: We rented from Mr. Mechanic #2 in Old Town, Chiang Mai. They offer great prices and a range of different scooter options. I wouldn’t recommend paying extra for the additional bike insurance — sounds good in theory except that there’s a USD $300 deductible. I can tell from experience that you really really REALLY need to mess up a bike to run up a repair bill anywhere close to that (the vast majority of repairs are less than $50).
Get an international driver’s permit if you can, as the police in Chiang Mai have started cracking down on tourists without them. Getting pulled over without one and you’ll be forced to purchase a 3-day license for 500 baht (only ~$16 USD, so it’s actually not that big of a deal). We called this the scooter tax (one guy ended up paying it about 4 times over the month).
Map: Google Maps works well in Thailand, so leverage that. We also made use of this awesome detailed map from Nomadasaurus → https://www.nomadasaurus.com/mae-hong-son-loop-motorbike-travel-guide/
And last, consider getting travel insurance. Accidents do happen (we had a few “minor” crashes along the way) and international health insurance is cheap and worth the investment for peace of mind. I purchased the Patriot Travel Plan and added the extra insurance covering action sports, which includes motorbiking.
Day 1 — Chiang Mai to Doi Inthanon (~150km)
We had heard great things about Doi Inthanon, so we elected to skip the traditional first stop of Mae Sariang in favor of spending the day exploring the waterfalls and mountains about the national park. The first several miles out of Chiang Mai are just highway, but when you make the turn off the highway towards Doi Inthanon, things start to get interesting.
One minute we’re on a highway the next we’re cruising through back streets in a small village, around blind corners, past little houses and markets, dodging chickens, dogs and cattle. Almost to a T what I imagined riding through the backstreets in this country would be like — incredibly fun.
Mae Ya Waterfall
When we arrived at the park an hour and a half later, our first stop was the Mae Ya waterfall. We didn’t know what to expect as we made our way back towards the waterfall, but my gosh were our expectations exceeded. Mae Ya towers into the sky over 250 meters tall, with millions of liters of fresh water splashing down over 30 tiers of rocks and boulders at a staggering rate. Just stunning (drone recap below).
From Mae Ya, we made our way back to the main entrance of the park and worked our way up the mountain, hopping from waterfall to waterfall. While a few of the others left a bit to be desired (they were tiny), the Mae Klang and Sirithan waterfalls were in the same league as Mae Ya and well worth visiting. The water at Mae Klang bounced violently off the rocks below, throwing a strong mist high into the air. If you walked down and stood in front, you’d quickly be covered from head to toe.
After getting our fill of falling water, we continuing on up towards the summit and coincidentally, the highest point in Thailand. Cool in theory (I had just climbed to the highest point in Korea the month prior), but there’s no view, or anything really, just a sign to take a picture in front of. Not worth the extra 20 minutes unless you’re just doing it to check off the box. However, slightly further down the mountain two sights are well worth visiting, the Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail and the Royal Twin Pagodas.
The Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail
The Kew Mae Pan Nature Trail is a one hour guided tour (~$6 USD per group for the guide) through the jungle and across an absolutely drop-dead gorgeous mountain pass high above the valley below. The entire hike lasts 60–90 minutes depending on how fast you go and how many stops you make for pictures.
On a clear day you can see for miles down into the valley below; the path you walk along the ridge on is straight out of a dream (I’ll let the pictures do the talking). We were there on a cloudy day and the scenery was still stunning, with almost a mystical vibe. Don’t miss this.
The Royal Pagodas
The Royal Pagodas sit a few hundred meters further down the mountain and were built by the Thai army in 1987 and 1992 as presents to commemorate the King and Queen’s 60th birthdays. These magnificent structures are striking against the backdrop of the mountains above and valley below, and the large gardens surrounding them are gorgeous as well. We spent 45 minutes walking around up here before starting our ride back down the backside of the mountain to our hotel.
The ride down the other side of mountain, if timed right, is a beautiful sunset cruise winding along a series of hairpin turns snaking their way down to the valley below. Unfortunately for us, one member of our group was going verrrrry slowly on the descent from the Pagodas and fell behind, missing the right turn at the bottom of the mountain. To make matters worse, we couldn’t contact him because he had his phone on airplane mode! Great rule of thumb for group trips like this — have everyone either use the Find My Friends app or all share your live locations on WhatsApp.
After searching for and attempting to contact him for the better part of an hour, the sun had set — which made this final leg of Day 1 a heck of a lot more treacherous. We did eventually make contact with the lost rider when he turned off airplane mode an hour later. He had mixed up the resort address and had been backtracking towards Chiang Mai!
That night we stayed at the Navasoung Resort (about $30/room). Nothing fancy (the term resort is a big stretch), but I always remind myself that there’s merit to staying in “authentic” places. After all, this is an adventure! Not a cushy, relaxing vacation. Roughing it is part of the fun. That being said, we did order in-room massages to help work out the kinks from a long day of riding. When it’s only $10 for a full hour massage, why not??
All in all, Day 1 was an awesome start to the journey. Here’s the recap video with my favorite drone highlights.
Day 2: Doi Inthanon to Mae Hong Son (~160km)
The second day is a stunning cruise that winds through the countryside and along the edge of the Namtok Mae Surin National Park. The famous Mae Surin waterfall is slightly out of the way on the southeast edge of the park, but it’s yet another impressive waterfall worth seeing if you have the time.
Along the way, you’ll find a beautiful field of sunflowers and some picturesque little towns to stop in for a bite to eat. There aren’t any other major attractions, but the road itself leading to Mae Hong Son is an attraction in and of itself. Get comfortable on your scooters and start leaning into some of the perfectly shaped S-turns!
Hot tip: wait to for a beautiful view to stop for lunch or drinks. We took a couple pit stops in the towns we passed through, only to pass by little restaurants/rest areas high on the mountain passes with seating overlooking the valleys below.
We stayed at the Lakeside Garden in Mae Hong Son. This little hotel offers unobstructed views of the lake in the center of town, and is a short walk from the street markets on the other side of the lake. Great location and great value. The markets have great street food and local items for purchase, and there are massage parlors around the corner offering $9 massages :-)
And of course, here’s the recap video from Day 2…
Day 3: Mae Hong Son to Pai (~107km)
Day 3 was all about the drive. While the shortest distance of any day’s travel, the windy road connecting the two towns boasts 1,102 curves! In the spirit of one team one dream, we decided to scoop up some matching jerseys for Day 3. Definitely got some looks from the locals as we drove by.
We did stop at a famous Fish Cave to feed the fish and go on a nice little nature walk along the river. I forget the name but you’ll find the location on most maps of the area.
The string of perfect weather caught up to us today, with a bit of rain dampening the second half of the ride by making the corners just a little more nerve wracking. All things considered, the views were still stunning and taking our time was actually kind of nice.
Pai is one of my favorite little towns of all time. Nestled up next to a mountain with a river flowing through it, the quaint village has a great mix of restaurants and nightlife, while offering some adventurous activities to do during the day.
We shacked up at the Pai Loess Resort — definitely the nicest place we stayed at on the trip and well worth the $30 bucks or so the double room cost. Each little bungalow came equipped with two hammocks on the decks — a great treat after a long cruise through the mountains.
Day 4: Pai to Chiang Mai (~130km)
Probably the most famous and popular section of road on the journey, the roads out of Pai are among some of the most picturesque driving roads you’ll find anywhere. Difficult for a novice rider but incredibly fun for those with some experience, the well-maintained road winds through the mountains with an astonishing 762 curves over a relatively short distance.
With several nice viewpoints and villages to stop off at for coffee or lunch, you’ll thoroughly enjoy this final leg of the trip…I know we did. Same advice from Day 2 — wait for great viewpoints to take your breaks. We stopped in a couple villages, which while very nice, couldn’t ever compare to sitting high up on a mountain pass sipping a cold one looking out over the valley below.
The Pam Bok waterfall is short 25 minutes on the way from Pai towards Chiang Mai. Great place to take a break, swim and meet some other travelers.
Final Takeaways
For me personally, this is one of my all time favorite things I’ve ever done in my life. I will never forget the breathtaking views, mammoth waterfalls, picturesque villages, and the adrenaline-pumping windy roads. We had a great crew and shared so many fantastic memories. What an adventure.
Try to plan around the weather. Rain can put a big damper on the drive, especially if you don’t have proper rain gear or a visor on your helmet. If at all possible, make the leap to do the trip after confirming that the weather is clear for the duration of the time.
Get a helmet with a visor if there’s any chance of rain. With a visor and rain-gear, driving through a steady shower isn’t actually all that bad. Just slow things down a bit and you’ll be fine.
