The Highland People Discovery Museum — Attraction in Chiang Mai Province

The museum is in 2 parts: A building with some items from the minority peoples, as well as some text about them. It's acceptable, though it's a bit messy. The items are not organised very well. The texts were insightful though. The second part is some kind of village that is supposed to show up houses and living conditions of minority peoples. This place feels abandoned. Nothing to see here sadly.

This visit felt like there is so much potential to actually make an amazing museum.

With just a little bit of budget and work, this could be an increadible place, with activities for children and stuff.

A suggestion: charge a small fee for the entrance, and use this money to restore the village, and organise activities for children.

But now it's just a sad visit that is very representative of how much Thailand care about its minorities: not at all

Note: the picture shows the surroundings of the museum that are very peaceful...

The conical-shaped museum has a pretty setting on a little island in a reservoir on the north side of Chiang Mai. Exhibits provide a good introduction to Thailand's many tribal groups. The collection could use a little love, however, as lighting and labeling need improvement. Downstairs has a gift shop with crafts and postcards. The museum also has a collection of tribal houses just south of the reservoir, but finding them can be tricky due to lack of signs. You'll pass the main entrance, flanked by two big elephant statues, for the houses on the road to the museum, but this might be closed; in that case turn onto the road that follows the south shore of the reservoir past restaurants, and a gate should be open on the right. You can go into some of the houses, but they and signage could be in better shape. The museum is open 8:30 a.m.-12 noon and 1-4 p.m. except closed Sat.-Sun. and holidays....

This museum consists of a number of displays of tribal costumes, primarily, and some tribal folk implements used in daily life—all on the second floor of the main building—and at a nearby location (300 meters away), a sort of village comprised of homes in the style of a number of the minority tribes of the hill people. Here, the homes are in a sad state of disrepair, poorly maintained and with minimal, but interesting, signage to explain a little about the traditions and clothing of each tribe.

Very interesting, but with no guide and many huts locked and others wide open, no lighting to be found in one or more of the darkest huts and lighting where it wasn’t needed, it was a disappointment, as I find this aspect of Thai culture to be the most interesting of all. Look forward to my visits to...