This Thailand Town is My Expat Retirement DREAM 🇹🇭

I often spend time thinking about destinations I would like to retire to, Pai in Northern Thailand, some 100km away from Chiang Mai is right at the top of my list!
www.buymeacoff...
Instagram; joninchiangmai

[@annecy49]

Very nice to see Pai again. True it's very touristy, it even gets noisy at night with loud music coming from people partying... I spent two nights there a few years ago, my hotel was located around a rice field, within a rice field, well, bordering it. I remember opening the window in the morning and seeing a sea of green that felt so natural. But at night that "boom boom", so unnatural. There is also a canyon around worth going, and they also have hot springs. I like nature; it's true that tourism in excess destroys the charm of those places. Have you been to Chiang Kan?

[@jondcanton]

Never been to Chiang Kan. Where I stayed in Pai was nice and quiet but yeah it can get noisy in some places :)

[@annecy49]

@@jondcanton I recommend you Chiang Kan if you have a chance.

[@DanielAdisi-ps6wq]

I really enjoyed watching this video. Getting ready to rumble

[@jondcanton]

Thanks mate :)

[@EspenWJ]

I was there for 5 nights, a month ago. Loved it... 😊 Stayed at The Quarter.

[@jondcanton]

Ah cool, yeah I stayed there last time, great hotel!

[@le_th_]

Reminds me of Ubud and Candidasa in Bali, back in 2000.

[@darryl.c7972]

An hour out of Pai on the way to Mae Hong Son is a beautiful cave you can go through on a bamboo raft, maybe you have done this before..spent the night there at Cave Lodge, really nice!

[@cryptocrusader6078]

Got a location on google maps?

[@jondcanton]

ah cool, no not heard of that I'll have to check it out for next time :)

[@darryl.c7972]

@@jondcanton Yes, it's great. Spend the night cave lodge, great Farang and Thai food, they bake their own bread and there's a fire pit with a swing in the middle of the eating area.. 😂

[@alanlovebeer7952]

OMG..that my first boom boom place with a Thai gal🤭🙈🤣

[@johnflynn4923]

I'm pretty certain I actually walked across that rickety bridge when I was in Pai at Nam Yang Kung Fu school back in around 2015.

[@jondcanton]

Yeah it was open 2 years ago when I was there last time :)

[@chrisgray9972]

Stay up right Jon.

[@jondcanton]

😀👍

[@roberthornbrook8374]

Many people find it boring John it’s more of a tourist place people stay for 2 days

[@jondcanton]

Yeah it is popular with tourists but a lot of expats live there, for me it’s the countryside and availability of western food mixed together that is hard to find anywhere else :)

[@TNKeith]

50 and slow down, settle? Nah I`m 51 and going strong. Don`t settle and slow down til you have to in this short time we have on this world!

[@jondcanton]

👍

[@douglasmartin9346]

Are we saying that breakfast was really good or really inexpensive?

[@jondcanton]

Bit of both :)

[@HairyPixels]

Pai is ruined because of tourism. It's all tourism everywhere all the time. Doesn't feel like Thailand even.

[@jondcanton]

With those 80 baht sandwiches I’ll take that 😂

[@HairyPixels]

@@jondcanton The tourists do bring interesting food so there's that. Stunning valley too. I visit about twice a year to see my uncle. Going to go next month in fact since the smoke has cleared now. Not a place to live though because the sheer levels of tourism totally overwhelms me.

[@carstensanonym7527]

Ruined is exactly the term. I can imagine it is the crowd you find in places like Phuket (even so i have never been there)

[@rayn3038]

Been away twenty years...breif stop 10 yrears ago...huge difference...getting Americanized like all the Asian Cities...fast pace of life ...junk food...dropping traditions...cellphones and malls and unnecessary vehicle trips making insane traffic and noise...

[@SeanBunzick]

I myself prefer Mae Hong Son itself, not Khao San Rd North, but to each their own, right?

[@jondcanton]

Yeah I get that. I’m in Mae Hong Son right now and it’s an amazing place, just wish I was having the dinner I had in Pai here but it’s not available :)

[@pauljacobs4302]

Do they have a local Bangkok Bank branch?

[@jondcanton]

I didn’t see one but I would think they do

[@carstensanonym7527]

Pai unfortunately is overcrowded/abused by short-term tourists, even the thai locals working there seem to have lost their friendlyness compared with average Thailand. Other then this and the heavy burning season it would be a very nice gem (may be was 30y ago). Vegeterian and healthy options are great, even halal food due to a community immigratet long time from China (Yunnan)

[@jondcanton]

Yeah it is busy, but I think that's the price to pay for being able to live in the countryside and being able to buy nice food everywhere :)

[@petersellers8415]

Pai is a lovely place. But you keep referring to it as a city… it’s a town.

[@jondcanton]

👍

[@jnsa9454]

Are overall prices there similar to CM or less or more expensive?

[@jondcanton]

I’d say most things seem cheaper than Chiang Mai overall :)

[@jnsa9454]

@@jondcanton good to know. What do you recommend --- how to get from CM to Pai? Bus?

[@thailandheron]

You probably see 20 times more farang in the town than Thais . If thats your thing.

[@clivebaxter6354]

I will keep well away then!

[@jondcanton]

Yeah it is a poplar place but for me I love the fact it’s countryside with western conveniences which is hard to find anywhere else :)

[@clivebaxter6354]

@@jbb8600 But is essentially an open air brothel