Attraction - Wat Lok Molee Review

Short stop

4*

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We came across this temple just by chance while wondering around Chiang Mai. It is free to enter the grounds and there are several buildings including the main temple, in which you have to remove your shoes of course. The area is very picturesque and relatively calm despite being located adjacent to the main road. We didn't stay for long as there isn't a great amount to see/do but it was worth the time we spent there. I think they also have free wifi and there were several small stalls offering food and drink. I would probably say it was on par or maybe slightly better than some of the other temples around the area.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g293917-d2465952-r734211956-Wat_Lok_Molee-Chiang_Mai.html

Attraction - Elephant Nature Park Review

Okay but disappointing

3*

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We did the 'sunshine for elephants' tour - I booked this tour for my boyfriend's birthday and the day didn't start well.

We were told to wait from 8-8.45am to be picked up from our hotel (Holiday Inn). We were ready outside at 8am and didn't get picked up until 9:20am with no communication from the tour guide or company despite our hotel reception even calling them at 9:05am after they had failed to turn up. When they eventually arrived they did apologise, but then the bus was full so my boyfriend and I had to sit at opposite ends of the bus for the whole journey which was annoying especially as it was for his birthday celebration.

Then, 20 minutes into the journey a hungover passenger threw up in the bus, so we had to pull over and get out to clear the sick up. Granted not necessarily their fault, but still not a pleasant start to the trip.

Once we arrived at the nature park we had a great experience feeding and walking with the elephants, and the guide was very helpful and took loads of photos of us on our own cameras and also their own which was great! They don't try and charge you for the photos as well, they are up on Facebook free of charge shortly after the trip. The elephants are clearly very well looked after and the guides and carers know their stuff.

The main reason I booked this tour was to bathe with elephants and we didn't get to at all!

The reason for this was that the elephants found the river temperature too cold which is fair enough. However, throughout the tour there was an emphasis on "no food, no friends" (elephants will only follow and interact with you if you have food). Yet, when we arrived at the river they were directed with food to a shelter and not the river (so of course they would follow the food). I suspect that they maybe would have gone in otherwise as it was still a reasonably warm day and river temperatures, in this region, do not vary considerably day-to-day, despite the guide telling everyone that the river was "alot colder" that day... I know that doesn't happen over night. River temperature rarely changes by even a few degrees annually, which would imply they would never want to get in the river? They also took the elephants to bathe in a river which was busy with people rafting, so another reason the elephants wouldn't want to go bathing. In all honesty it felt like no effort was made to encourage the elephants to bathe or to provide a nice environment for them to do so, which was really disappointing as the tickets are very expensive and it's what we looked forward too most.

I would have thought given the high price of the tickets and the great care the elephants receive that the company would use/make a watering hole environment which elephants would enjoy bathing in and customers would be pleased that they got to fulfill the itinerary. Instead we were taken to a busy river and just sat there as the elephants ate in their shelter.

I appreciate that the aim of this programme is to provide care for the elephants, but I think they could provide this and make customers happy by changing where they take the elephants to bathe.

Also included was lunch which was decent for a remote location and fills you up. There were a lot of dogs around though which was frightening for those afraid of them, however on the most part they were very friendly and didn't bother anyone.

Overall, a good tour if you want to feed and walk with elephants, but don't book this based on bathing with elephants like I did.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g293917-d601884-r734212556-Elephant_Nature_Park-Chiang_Mai.html

Accommodation - Holiday Inn Chiang Mai Review

Six days while travelling

4*

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The hotel had a very impressive entrance and lobby, as well as kind staff and a great swimming pool area which was open 06:30-20:00. The gym also looked good with plenty of equipment and was open 24 hours.

In terms of location, as Chiang Mai is not that big it meant that even being located outside the city centre, it was still within a 40-80 baht, 5-10 minute journey of anywhere within the vicinity you may want to visit. And there was a free shuttle bus to popular locations like the Saturday night market at Wualai Road & the Tha Pae Sunday walking street, and a daily shuttle bus to the Night Bazaar. We got from the airport to the hotel using the 150 baht fixed price taxi service which only took about 10/15 minutes. There's also a 711 and Tesco's located just outside.

The rooms, however, could really do with an update. Our room had no main lights, only lamps, which meant after 5pm our room was very dark. Secondly, the overall colour scheme and furnishings are very dated (dark green bathroom tiles, discoloured toilet seats, dark green walls in the room) and the shower temperature was a bit unstable where it would go scolding hot and then back to warm cyclically. The bathroom, though fairly clean, had a few stains and hair on the ceiling and walls which wasn't pleasant. The walls of the room are quite thin and we could hear our neighbours most nights, who for some reason were choir singing until about midnight? There is also a high deposit of 1000 baht per night to be aware of. Furthermore, one day we planned to go to the pool after a day out only to find it closed at 4pm to guests as there was a private function, this was disappointing as when you pay for a room you are paying for all the facilities advertised within the hotel, yet we were not allowed to use the pool on this day.

Other than that, the rooms and hotel in general were spacious, for two people we were given a room with two double beds and a fantastic view of the Ping River. Housekeeping was adequate and the room included most of the expected amenities like a safe, fridge, TV, toiletries (which are replenished), free bottled water and so on. There was even an ironing board and iron, as well as a bath tub.

Overall, a nice hotel with good facilities and kind staff, but it could do with some room renovations to improve the standard of the hotel.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g293917-d301807-r734084198-Holiday_Inn_Chiang_Mai-Chiang_Mai.html