Just go, C!
I'm Charity, a proud auntie, wine lover, semi-nerd, and dreamer who can't stay in one place for too long.
With only six weeks remaining of my glorious year+ in Thailand, I wanted to pay tribute to my home for the past several months. Phayao was not originally part of my "plan" - I wanted to stay in Tak for another six months and teach there. I was reluctant to leave, but I didn't have much of a choice. In retrospect, I'm so glad it happened the way it did. As you may recall, I had to have an emergency appendectomy back in early November and the staff at the school where I hadn't even yet begun to teach were with me every step of the way and showed me what it meant to be truly, unconditionally loving and caring human beings. I learned a lot from that experience and I'm so grateful that I was here in Phayao when it all happened. I wanted to document some of my experiences here, not just because I want to help myself remember this place, but because Phayao is actually slowly becoming more popular with tourists. There isn't a lot of information out there right now about the area, so I thought I'd help out those who might be looking to come to Phayao in the future, whether it's for an overnight stay or perhaps for an English teacher who might be here for 6-12 months. In any case, I hope someone finds this useful. My aforementioned surgery experience is testament to the fact that the people of Phayao, and indeed all of Thailand, are the ones who make this town (and country) so lovely. Northern Thailand is more well-known for its kindness and hospitality compared to other regions of Thailand. My experience here is that everyone is friendly, warm, helpful, and welcoming. I'll never forget the time I took a tumble off my motorbike and about 5-6 Thai men came running out of a little family restaurant to look after me. One of them kept saying, "Sorry! Sorry!" as if it was his fault that I was a complete novice on the motorbike. Bless his heart. For any prospective tourists, there is plenty to see and do in Phayao to keep your eyes delighted, your stomachs full, and your social media feeds well-stocked. Read on for more. Where to stay: I have stayed in two hotels in Phayao - the Win Hotel and the Sabuy Residence. Both are located in central Phayao city, not far from each other, actually. They're both comparable in quality and price. You can book online (use the link below for $20 off your stay) or you can sometimes get a cheaper rate by showing up in person and asking for a price. If I had to choose between the two, I would probably choose the Win Hotel. Book your stay online here for $20 off: www.booking.com/s/12_6/2e83f8ce Where to eat: Maybe I should have started with this first, because really, is there anything more important than the food when you travel? Exactly. I knew you'd agree. As the Australians like to say, you are "spoilt for choice" when it comes to dining options in Phayao. If you're just passing through town for a short period of time, then you definitely need to choose something along the lake (Kwan Phayao) around sunset time. There's a nice mix of sit-in restaurants, family cafes with your typical Southeast Asian tables & plastic chairs set-up, and there are also some street food stands scattered about if you'd rather get something to go and set yourself up with a picnic by the lake. Some of the restaurants even have menus in English. Otherwise, the ol' "point to the picture" trick works just fine, too. Not far from road that runs alongside the lake is a fabulous khao soi joint. If you hop on Google maps, it's directly across the street from Al Forno restaurant. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that khao soi is likely the meal I would request as my last meal if I were ever on death row. This place has the best in town. Make sure you get there around 11ish because they fill up very quickly for lunch. They are not open for dinner. Incidentally, Al Forno is an okay place to have pizza or lasagna. Bear in mind that in most of Thailand, the quality that you come to expect from Western countries' pizza and "Italian" type food won't be present. But if you have a craving that must be satisfied, it's worth a go. If you're looking for something a bit nicer in terms of ambiance, there are a couple of restaurants further up Donsanam Road - one of the main roads in Phayao that runs parallel to the lake as you're heading north. The best one in my opinion is called So Good. Again, get there around 6pm so you can enjoy that famous Kwan Phayao sunset. Expect the prices to be higher, but the food quality is good and the view is awesome. They generally have live acoustic music in the evenings, as well, so you can enjoy hearing interesting renditions of your favorite English songs. They also have outdoor seating, but bring the mosquito repellant. If you'd like more of an authentic experience, there is a night market each Friday and Saturday evening, starting around 5pm and finishing around 10-11pm, located alongside the lake on Chaykwan Road. Here, you'll find lots of food stands serving all the local favorites: Northern Thai sausage, fried or salted fish, meatballs, papaya salad, smoothies, fish cakes, and plenty more. There is seating just behind the market if you don't mind sitting on a cushion on the ground. Where to get caffeinated: Again, you have plenty of options here, but I will give you my personal favorites. I picked my favorites based on the quality of the coffee, the atmosphere, and the friendliness of the staff. It's definitely difficult to narrow it down to a few - you really can't go wrong here. Pick #1: Phoon Café, at the junction of Hwy 1 and Hwy 1021 Delicious Americano, several choices of beverages, fast Wi-Fi, love the old schoolhouse-type décor. The staff are very friendly and always smiling. Pick #2: Norbulingka Café, along Donsanam Rd near Phayao Hospital Good coffee, great snacks - try the samosas. The owners are a mom/son team who I think are from Nepal or Tibet or have the heritage of some kind. The café is decorated accordingly and it's beautiful. Norbulingka is the name of the palace that housed the Dalai Lama in the summer. Cool, huh? Pick #3: Shine Coffee, along Hwy 1 near the Shell station and Makro It's a small, quiet, and very cozy café with beautiful photographs of hill tribe people. They have a blueberry cheesecake that is dreamy, as well. Owners are extremely pleasant. What to do: Other than hanging around Kwan Phayao, there are many options for sight-seeing around Phayao. The ones I'm listing here are all within a 20-30 minute car or motorbike ride of Phayao city, if they're not within the city itself. Wat Si Khom Kham This temple complex is situated along the lake, just off Donsanam Road. This wat is locally famous for its Buddha statue, which is the largest Chiang Saen (or Lanna) style Buddha in the country. The statue was constructed around the year 1500. What also makes this wat particularly interesting is the sculpture garden located on the temple grounds. The theme of these pieces of art seems to be about life and death, or what can happen afterwards depending on your life's choices. It's a little bit creepy, but still worth checking out. While you're there, you can snap a couple of photos of the Cultural Center of Phayao, in Lanna style, with a lovely view of the lake. Wat Analayo This is another very interesting temple complex outside of Phayao by about 20 minutes. It's easy to get to; just follow the signs as you're heading north out of Phayao along Hwy 1. It's actually a lovely scenic ride on motorbike with views of rice fields and the mountains on a clear day. The temple grounds are in the foothills so you can get some nice glimpses of the lake and downtown Phayao while you're up there exploring. Don't forget to swing around and explore the interesting temple (photo included above) and the tall standing Buddha at the hilltop. I'm not sure of the name of the temple, unfortunately, but it's definitely worth checking out. Champa Thong Waterfall This waterfall is also about 20-30 minutes outside of Phayao, heading in the same direction as Wat Analayo, but instead turning right (going north) on Hwy 1193. There are also several signs leading you in the right direction. You'll pass through the village of Ban Tom on your way if you would like to stop for snacks or coffee. There are also a couple of really beautiful views of the mountains and rice fields, so feel free to stop for a couple of photos while you're at it. Getting to the waterfall itself is a very easy and short hike - I wore my Tevas and did just fine. I would imagine it gets busy on the weekends, so try to get there during the week if you can. It's a beautiful spot to relax and have a picnic, or to soak your feet. It's not good for swimming, though, so don't expect any pools or watering holes to dunk yourself. Wat Pa Dong Bunnak I found this place completely by accident and I was very pleasantly surprised to see a chedi ruin in Phayao. The temple itself isn't anything much, but if you take a short walk through the forest, you'll encounter this beautiful 500 year old ruin. It's like getting a small taste of Sukhothai or Chiang Saen in Phayao. Definitely worth checking out if you're into this kind of thing like I am. The location is not far from Phayao Ram Hospital and you can actually plug it into Google maps to find the specific spot. Outside of Phayao city, it's worth just hopping on a motorbike and exploring some of the surrounding small towns and villages like Mae Chai north of town, or Dok Kham Tai east of town. It's fun to visit some of these villages where they rarely see farangs, and you can find some great deals shopping for local goods since they cater to local buyers.
Phayao really has a lot to offer, and it's quite likely that they will continue to add and build upon attractions to bring in more tourists in the coming years. The ideal location of the city, only 1.5 hours to Chiang Rai and 2.5 hours to Chiang Mai, ensures that they will get more passers-by and will likely attract farangs who are looking for somewhere to reside outside of the heavily-expatted and touristy bigger cities nearby. I hope you enjoyed this little tour of my home away from home, and that you'll have fun exploring Phayao if you come to visit in the future!
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AuthorHi! I'm Charity. I'm from Omaha, Nebraska, USA. I quit my job in October 2016 to travel the world. Archives
June 2022
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