A Day at Huay Tung Tao Lake in Chiang Mai.
Visiting Huay Tung Tao Lake in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Jaime (who I’d previously met up with for La Tomatina and traveled with around India) was traveling through Chiang Mai for a few days. While he was in town, hima nd I and some other travelers from our hostel wanted to spend a relaxing afternoon by the water, but since there is no beach in Chiang Mai, we settled for the next best thing: Huay Tung Tao Lake on the outskirts of the city.
Huay Tung Tao Reservoir in Northern Thailand is a short 15-20 minute drive northwest from Old City Chiang Mai, and is located at Don Kaeo Sub-District, Mae Rim District. You can arrange a songthaew (a converted pickup truck with two benches in the back) to take you round trip. There was a park entrance fee of 20 baht per Thai person or 50 baht per person for foreigners like us.
Once there, you can spend a peaceful day at the lake, admiring the stunning view of the nearby mountains (it’s on the opposite side as Wat Phra That Doi Suthep). We wandered around the lake for a bit and went swimming and wading in the cool water. I tried to get the others to agree to take a ride in one of the swan-shaped pedal boats (it is, after all, on my life list), but no one obliged. Being a slow weekday, they didn’t look to be in service anyhow. (When we were there, the lake was pretty quiet, but on weekends it’s supposed to get pretty busy with locals.)
For most of the afternoon, we secured a bamboo and grass hut at one of the many restaurants that line Huay Tung Tao Lake in Chiang Mai. We had some noodles and vegetable stir fry and drank some Coca-Colas. (while there are over 100 huts on the lake, they are all owned by restaurants so you’ll have to order food to stay.
Huay Tung Tao Lake in Chiang Mai, Thailand:
