Rinrada Resort — Hotel in Chiang Mai Province

Unbeknownst to us, if you choose a 2 or 3 day stint with Thai Elephant Care Center, you will be lodged here. Not sure of the price, as it was included with our fee to the elephant center. Stayed for 1 night in November 2018.||||Anyway, I wouldn't call this a "resort" as there are very few amenities and it certainly isn't 5 -- nor 4 star -- service. It is NOT near Chiang Mai, but that's part of the appeal. If you choose to stay here you'll pay a good bit in taxi fare and hit a lot of Chiang Mai's traffic, especially during Loi Krathong (which is when we were there). This hotel is off a main busy road in Mae Rim; very easy to find. The property is beautiful with a creek running behind it and lush vegetation all around the location. Due to being off a busy road, there aren't many amenities. 1 restaurant/bar nearby and a random convenient store (not a 7-11 or anything fancy) just across the street. Plenty of parking if you drive here.||||Our room had a king bed that was hard as nails (seemed common throughout Thailand). It was bit cramped with a small table + chair in the room and we only brought carry-on bags! If brought a lot of luggage you would need a bigger room. TV and wifi were good. Oddly, there were no hand towels nor washcloths in the bathroom. Just 2 bath towels for 2 adults and 1 bathmat. Likewise, no soap provided and overall absolutely zero amenities (necessities?) There was a closet provided though and the bathroom was spacious. THE WORST WAS THE MUSTY/MILDEWY SMELL. I suppose it's to be expected in this country but it was permeating (clothes, hair) and honestly I didn't encounter that smell even when we were in the southern stretches of the country. Yuck.||||We ate at the restaurant and I swear we were the only guests there in November. Not a problem. The wait staff were all very sweet but none of them spoke English save knowing the menu items. I honestly don't know if they had wine/beer/liquor as I never saw it and it was not mentioned in the menu. Only the front desk staff spoke English in our encounter so I wouldn't assume there to be a concierge and it may prove tricky for non-Thai speakers.||||There are a good bit of bugs, as this is a jungle-type vibe. Bring good bug spray if you want to enjoy the scenery outside! This place isn't awful, but considering 1) how cheap lodging in Thailand is 2) its lack of amenities, you could do...

When we booked the hotel we didn't check where it was located, so it was a bit of a surprise that it turned out to be about 27km from Chiangmai. When we asked the receptionist how to get to the centre, the only thing he could offer was a taxi, but this was expensive. Eventually we managed to hitchhike.||||When we left we wanted to make use of the free shuttle service that was mentioned on their flyers and web site, however it turned out that they no longer offered it for over a week. The manager came to talk to us, was really friendly and helpful. She gave us a free ride to a place where we could take a saengthaew to the centre, which we really appreciated!||||If you want peace and quiet in the beautiful countryside, this place is great, can certainly recommend - room was nice too, next to riverside. Also there are lots of activities around. Do keep in mind though that it is far from Chiangmai (27km) and that taxi drivers will charge between 400 and 700 baht. The road to get there is easy however, so you could easily manage with...

I can't believe we got to stay in a mushroom house! 🍄💕 They also have a tree house room! It was sooo much nicer then hotels in the U.S. and it only cost us around $29 a night with a delicious breakfast! You can dine at the restaurant for lunch or dinner for an additional cost. The room was large, clean, with a super comfy bed. The grounds are a peaceful and quiet sanctuary complete with gardens, rivers, lawns, gazebos and even a shrine. We had a great time doing acrobatics on the huge lawn at the resort. The kind and helpful staff arranged rides for us or let us rent a moped for super cheap. They even took care of us after we had a moped accident. 💖 I would highly recommend staying at...