Fun things to do in Chiang Mai with your kids when visiting.

Chiang Mai for kids and families

Kids are endlessly amused playing in the many waterfalls in the area

Chiang Mai is a very appropriate city for travelling with kids, certainly more family friendly than Bangkok. It's easy to get around Chiang Mai with the kids and there are plenty of outdoor and indoor activities that cost very little.Travelling in Thailand with children.

National Parks

These are perhaps Thailand's greatest treasure, and with so many lush, waterfall-laden parks scattered about Northern Thailand you'll be spoilt for choice. Camping and daytrips are popular among the Thais who descend upon the popular picnic spots in large family groups every weekend. During the hot season they particularly like frolicking in the rivers and waterfalls nearby, and for kids this can be a real adventure. The most accesible from Chiang Mai is perhaps the Mae Sa valley (30 minutes drive away), which boasts a fantastic multi-tiered waterfall that is largely safe and has great picnic possibilities - don't forget the swim suit!

Animal shows

Also in the Mae Sa Valley are a number of animal shows. You can get close to cobras and other snakes, watch monkeys fetch coconuts, or see some dogs performing cute tricks. There are also ATV rides and pony rides in the area. Check out our section about Mae Sa Valley for more information.More on the Mae Sa valley.

Chiang Mai Zoo

Your first stop on a child-friendly tour of Chiang Mai should be the Chiang Mai Zoo, which encompasses a 1,442 square metre area specially designed to enhance kids's interactive skills and facilitate their optimal enjoyment and appreciation of animals and the environment. The two Pandas (animal exchange students from China) are a particularly big drawcard.

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Travellers footage: Funny monkey show

The kids's area includes a cognitive development centre, small and large animal exhibit, playground, adventure sector, sand area, rabbits exhibit, performing stage, exhibit hall, fish exhibit and lotus pond - all located in a grassy garden permeated with trees and flowers. The zoo is located on a hilltop overlooking Chiang Mai, and has as much to offer adults as it does kids. However, be warned it hilly and spread out, making it unsuitable for pushing strollers around or carting young kids. Rather use the free transport from one section to the next.

Elephants

Elephants are one of Asia's most precious treasures, and interacting with these gentle giants up close is an experience that shouldn't be missed by you or your kids. The Elephant Conservation Centre on the Chiang Mai-Lampang road is located about 70kms from the city centre, but is well worth the drive, being less commercial than many elephant camps in the region, and devoting their proceeds to the elephant hospital. Daily shows are at 10:00 and 11:00, but arrive at 09:30 if you want to see them bathing. Elephant rides are also available. Another excellent elephant camp is located in Mae Sa.

Arts and crafts

The doll museum in Baan Tawai is a must for kids.

ArtSpace offers children's art classes full of fun activities for children 6-12 years old. Classes are taught in English from 10am-12pm Saturday and/or Sunday. (tel: Chadwick on Tel: 0404 17982 e-mail: artspacecm@yahoo.comJust outside of Chiang Mai, in the Mae Sa Valley, you will find an array of attractions that can appeal to kids. Check out the Mae Sa Valley Craft Centre, a unique handicrafts village offering exciting courses in making sa paper or parasols, dyeing batik and painting ceramics, taught by local artisans. These courses are a great way to occupy your kids, and if you don't have the inclination to join them, you can take advantage of the herbal steam room, Thai massages and Thai cooking lessons that are also on offer here. Another unique attraction for kids is the Northern Thai Doll museum, which recently moved to the popular tourist magnet of Baan Tawai wood handicraft village, south of Chiang Mai. Here you'll find a delightful collection of dolls decked out in the colourful costume of Northern Thailand's ethnic minorities.

Bowling

Chiang Mai has a number of bowling alleys, the most convenient of which is Chiang Mai Bowl, located on the northwest corner of the old city. Your kids will love trying out their skills on any of the 34 bowling lanes, and the venue includes a refreshment centre to keep your appetites satisfied. There is another located in the Central Mall, which is nearby beyond the Northwestern corner.

Play areas

There are kids's play areas in both of the large shopping centers and in all the superstores such as Tesco Lotus and Carrefour. These play areas offer plenty of complex climbing areas and a few small rides, even a mini rollercoaster. They are best for toddlers and small kids; however, nearby you will usually find Sony Playstations© for the older kids. Additionally, check out Beetle Bug Discovery Club for Kids; 236/5 Siriwattana Villa, T Nonghoi, A Muang, Chiang Mai 50000. Tel: 053 276568, email: beetlebugdiscoveryclubforkids@hotmail.com.

Kids are immersed in plenty of fun activities in Thailand.

Gaming shops

Gaming is extremely popular with Thai kids, so much so that the government has banned kids from playing a popular game, Ragnarok, online from 22:00 to 06:00. For the serious young gamer, there are shops all across town offering a range of computer, Sony Playstation® and Microsoft X-Box® games. Even many internet shops have a gaming section and you'll find there are lots of young kids huddled around the computers. Additionally, game machines are found throughout the shopping centers.

Public swimming pools and parks

In the steamy heat of the day, it's nice to be able to cool off in a pool or at the park. There are quite a few public parks in the city, with lots of shade trees and vendors selling drinks and ice cream. If your hotel or guesthouse does not offer a swimming pool, you can join in the fun at a public pool for a minimal charge. Public pools are well-maintained but there may not be a lifeguard. Pools open to the public (at fees of less than 100 baht per person) can be found above the Lotus Suan Kaew hotel behind Kad Suan Kaew Mall, Chiang Mai Land at the end of Chang Klan road, and the Seven Hundred Year Stadium.

There is also a magnificient, under-promoted botanical garden and animail park out of town on the Chiang Rai road, called Tweechol Gardens and Horizon Resort (fairly obvious development on the left before you reach the hilltop temple of Doi Saket, 10kms from the city). This vast park has boating ponds, a mini-zoo and plenty of picnic areas for families.

Chiang Mai Night Safari

This new attraction is a fun and unique chance to see some of Asia and Africa’s rare predators in a safe environment, complete with nature trails, night safari trips, a mini zoo area and lovely grounds with a pavillion set about a pretty lake. It’s all located on a large area of the national park to the southwest of the city and is best from 5pm onwards. Adults 500 baht, Children 300 baht, open daily from 1pm to midnight. More on the Night Safari.

Food and desserts

ids can be fussy eaters, especially while travelling. Fortunately Chiang Mai offers an array of dining options. Kids may enjoy some of the milder noodle dishes or fried rice. If all else fails, there are plenty of restaurants serving Western food and even fast-food outlets like McDonald's.

With all the hot weather, there is plenty of ice cream available, with Western ice cream parlours being popular places to have a treat (Bud's, Swensen's and Baskin Robbins are favourites). Additionally, there are vendors pedalling around coolers with ice cream bars and cones from Foremost or Wall's. Kids may also have some fun trying traditional Thai desserts, such as bananas with coconut milk.

Songkran holiday

Songkran water festival is riotous fun for the whole family.

Taking place annually for a few days in mid-April, Songkran celebrates the New Year with various ceremonies and parades. Most fun for kids though, is the custom of throwing water on everyone, everywhere in the streets! There are plenty of water pistols and even big super-soakers for sale around this time of year, and everyone has a good time.

Traveller tale: Visiting the Chiang Mai Zoo

Kids, hang out with clowning pandas, beautiful Bengal tigers and singing gibbons at Chiang Mai's lovely zoo more