Mae Hong Son

Mae Hong Son Province

Mae Hong Son, in the remote mountainous north-west corner of Thailand, is an area of outstanding natural beauty. For more than two hundred years the region has been intimately associated with the Asian elephant. With its lush valleys, indigenous wildlife, and rich tapestry of highland communities, it offers visitors a unique vision of rural life in Thailand, along with some of the best scenery in the kingdom.

Mae Hong Son covers an area of approximately 12,600km² and shares a border with Burma for 483km (326km of land and 157km of river). Burmese influence in the province is evident everywhere, in the architecture, customs, cuisine and overall ethnic mix. It’s ethnic diversity and Burmese influence combined makes Mae Hong Song province a particularly unique part of Thailand to visit.

Having spent most of its history in relative isolation from the outside world (a fully sealed road through the mountains to Mae Sariang, in the south of the province, was only completed in the late 1960’s – while the route beyond the town of Pai to the north had to wait until the 1980’s) the highland communities of Mae Hong Son have managed to retain their cultural integrity to an extent which is rarely seen elsewhere in Thailand today.

Mae Hong Son town, the administrative centre, has the nickname ‘Muang Sam Mok’, or ‘City of the Three Mists’, due to the surrounding mountains which appear to be shrouded in mist throughout the year. In winter the mist is caused by the cold atmospheric pressures, in the rainy season by low cloud and condensation, and in the dry season (March to May) the ‘mist’ is actually an off-white haze that hangs in the air caused by the traditional ‘swidden’ farming practices of the highland communities. This, often unscented, smoky haze descends across the whole of Northern Thailand and adjoining regions of neighbouring countries at this time. When the first rains arrive around June the haze quickly dissipates and the crisp misty green mountains return once more.

Today, the province of Mae Hong Son is considered one of the most charming destinations in Thailand. Where access was once limited, today a good quality asphalt road runs from north to south in a 600km circuit – the ‘Mae Hong Son Loop‘ – extending from the neighbouring provincial capital, Chiang Mai. The loop has become no less than legend in motorcycling circles, and a range of bus services and private hire mini vans ply the route on a daily basis. Three of the towns in the province – Mae Sariang, Mae Hong Son and Pai – also benefit from having their own airport. Two of which receive daily flights (30 mins) from Chiang Mai international airport.

The flight from Chiang Mai to the towns of Pai and Mae Hong Son allow passengers to literally peer at the canopy and forest floor through the aircraft window. Mae Sariang, in the south of the province, has a disused airfield (the location was used in the 1990 Robert Downey Jr. and Mel Gibson film ‘Air America‘).

More recently captured footage taken from a ‘Go-Pro’ type camera strapped to the outside of a single prop airplane landing at Mae Sariang, Mae Hong Son, and taking off from Pai give you a birds eye view of this wondrous landscape. And if those were not enough then this video taken by a passenger on a Kan Air flight landing in Pai is also very nice, taken at a different time of year it shows the vivid greens of the mountain landscape, and paddy fields in the lower reaches.

Since the 1980’s Mae Hong Son’s remoteness has drawn tourists looking for a laid back and relaxing break. The main focus in the province is the laid back town of Pai, with its wide selection of accommodation, exceptionally good restaurants, trendy coffee shops (northern Thailand produces some of the best coffee in the world by the way), and choice of nightlife.

However, there is plenty to see and do elsewhere in the province, and a combination of new government initiatives and attention from the UN Development Program, are helping the indigenous communities to use their knowledge and love of their mountain home to tap into the tourism market by offering a unique blend of ecology and culture based adventure tourism.