Le Méridien Chiang Mai

January 3rd, 2022

Posts in this series:

Getting Ready - Thailand Pass and Singapore Airlines Saga

Review - Intercontinental Boston

Review - Japan Airlines Business Class B787-9 Boston to Tokyo Narita

Review - Japan Airlines Business Class B787-8 Tokyo Narita to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi

Review - The Athenee Bangkok, A Luxury Collection Hotel

Review - Le Méridien Chiang Mai

Review - Renaissance Koh Samui Resort & Spa

Review - The Ritz-Carlton Koh Samui

Review - Emirates Business Class A380 Bangkok Suvarnabhumi to Dubai

Enroute:

After three nights in Bangkok, we flew north to Chiang Mai. I had never been to Chiang Mai, and quite frankly I couldn’t tell you what’s there (even after the visit). But every single travel documentary or every person who’s been there has raved about it, so I figured we might go check it out. Unlike most destinations people visit in Thailand, Chiang Mai is in the mountains.

Our flight was a short hop at just a bit over an hour. Once landed, it was a short 20min drive from the airport to Le Méridien. Chiang Mai doesn’t have a whole lot going on in terms of hotel options. Actually, Chiang Mai didn’t seem to have a whole lot going on period. Le Méridien appeared to be the best hotel in town. Our rate was around $70/night.

Check-in:

Check-in was quick, and we were upgraded to a room on the club level, even though the club lounge was closed during our stay. Chiang Mai felt like a place stuck in time. It’s the second largest city in Thailand, but the difference between Chiang Mai and Bangkok is day and night. Chiang Mai was bustling, but even the bustle was in slow motion. Compared to the rest of the city, Le Méridien was ultra modern.

Inside the lobby was a cute croissant cart, though I was unsure how long the croissants had been in that case.

Unpack:

Our room was located on the top floor.

To the left of the foyer was the bathroom, which housed separate shower and tub.

Right outside was the bedroom, which was spacious.

There was a daybed by the window, and through which you could see the beautiful mountain behind the city.

The view at sunset was gorgeous.

On the bed there were all sorts of pamphlets containing hotel info. One I found particularly amusing was the heat chart of breakfast rush hours.

Underneath the TV was a minibar, along with a small welcome amenity.

Rewind:

I thought the gym was pretty solid, albeit looking a bit dated.

The pool deck was a nice place to hang out in the afternoon, once the sun came up from behind the building. I was pleasantly surprised to see three different pools.

We only stayed in Chiang Mai for two nights, but we managed to go to the spa twice. I would say the spa was the highlight of the hotel - the staff were extraordinarily friendly and skillful, and the facility itself was extremely clean.

Per usual we were served tea and towel before our treatments.

And small rice cracker treats to conclude. Over the course of two days we had body scrub, Thai, hot stones and aromatherapy. Each treatment was better than the last.

Depart:

Originally we had planned three nights in Chiang Mai, but at the end we decided to skip the last night and head to Koh Samui early. Going in I didn’t really have any expectations for Chiang Mai as a destination. I had heard about all the cultural things such as temples, night markets and elephant sanctuaries. However, most of them were either suspended or scaled back due to the lack of tourism. The town was eerily sleepy - we were walking to a night market on a Saturday night and passed maybe 10 open stores on a 30-min walk. I couldn’t help but feel like I was in the movie Apocalypse Now on a few occasions.

That said, the people in Chiang Mai were still as friendly as any other Thai people you would cross paths with. The hotel was decent, and the spa was outstanding. If you’re ever visiting Chiang Mai, I don’t think you could find a place much better than Le Méridien. There’s a Four Seasons in Chiang Mai as well, but it’s outside the city.