Northern Thailand: everything you need to know about the Mae Hong Son Loop

We’ve just returned from 6 days and 5 nights on the roads of northern Thailand, and honestly, we’re absolutely head-over-heels in love with this region! We’re writing these lines with still a slight residual soreness in our backsides. After detailing the Mae Hong Son Loop itinerary, it’s time for a 100% practical article! You’ll have all the information you need to organize this amazing motorbike road trip from Chiang Mai! Let’s dive in!

Driving in Thailand

Personally, this was my biggest fear before departing on this motorbike loop! In Chiang Mai, being a pedestrian is already sometimes quite challenging, so driving here… Fortunately, I didn’t have to take the handlebars and could rely on my dear husband, who mastered it like a pro!

So here’s the clear assessment: driving in Thailand is dangerous, but despite this, it’s probably still one of the safest countries in Southeast Asia!

Let me explain:

• The roads are excellent! The main routes connecting the cities and villages of the loop are all paved (we particularly remember our motorbike loop in the Thakhek region of Laos, where this was far from the case at the time!). Otherwise, to get off the beaten path, you’ll have no choice but to take dirt roads most of the time.
• Thais drive fast and often give the impression that driving is a joyful chaos. But in the end, they’re pretty chill… Or let’s just say they know how to avoid obstacles quite well, even if sometimes it’s at the last second.
• Mountain roads are relatively uncrowded.

Actually, in my opinion, the biggest danger lies on the outskirts of Chiang Mai. When leaving the city or returning to it, you have to go through the highway, which is a real challenge for your nerves (I almost lost mine on the way back), especially on a scooter with hellish traffic!

My advice would be to avoid rush hours. To leave Chiang Mai, get up early and leave around 7:30-8:00 a.m. Since most shops don’t open until around 9 a.m., traffic is much calmer at 8 a.m.

For the return, we arrived right in rush hour… Honestly, if I had to do it again, I think I’d prefer to come back in the evening!

One last tip: don’t forget to drive on the left, incidentally 😉.

Renting a motorbike in Chiang Mai

Horsepower and price

There are numerous motorbike rental agencies in and around Chiang Mai. Prices are generally quite aligned and depend on the rental duration, as well as the power of your little machine. You can find scooters starting from 130 baht per day, but at that price, it’ll probably be a 110cc (or even less).

If the Mae Hong Son Loop is so famous, it’s because it will take you on mountain roads with 1,864 curves just between Mae Hong Son and Pai! The total elevation of the route? Well, nearly 12,000 meters of positive elevation and just as much negative!

You’ll understand, with a 50cc, it’s really not going to work!

If you’re traveling alone, then a 110cc should be sufficient. However, if you’re traveling with 2 people on one motorcycle plus a backpack, then we strongly recommend taking a 125cc! 125cc scooters can be rented between 150 and 250 baht per day for a weekly rental.

Ours was a 125cc, almost brand new (only 800 km on the odometer when we took it) and we paid 200 baht per day. We rented it from a local rental shop that belongs to The Core Hotel on Huay Kaew Road. Otherwise, you’ll find plenty of serious rental agencies in Chiang Mai’s old quarter.

Our tips for renting a motorbike in Thailand

• Try to get a motorbike that’s not too old. The newer the scooter, the better the brakes and overall comfort will be.
• Ask for good helmets. In the city, rental shops tend to hand out little nutshells as helmets. For riding 800 km, we really recommend a good helmet. It’s quite unlikely they’ll offer you a full-face helmet, but the minimum would be a helmet that covers the whole head well and comes down a bit over the face.
• NEVER leave your passport as a deposit! This is a practice that’s quite common here and it’s totally illegal. With your passport in their hands as collateral, rental shops have almost unlimited power. Bring a photocopy, let them take a photo of your passport if they want, or leave a cash deposit, but don’t give your passport!
• Before leaving, check the condition of the bike: tire pressure, brakes, headlights, horn, steering, scooter registration in the compartment… Also, have the rental shop note any small marks on the body.

The right driving license for scooter riding in Thailand

Make sure you have the right to ride a motorbike in Thailand. On your international driving license, you must have category A checked. Category B (car license) and A1 are not recognized. You’ll very likely get fined if stopped. Well, the fine is 500 baht and comes with a receipt that allows you to ride for 7 days without being fined again. But still!

Whatever the case, make sure your travel insurance covers you for riding two-wheelers before hitting the road! Be careful: if you don’t have a motorcycle license (see above), your insurance may refuse to cover you!

The right motorbike equipment

For the scooter, I know we’re going to sound like old fogeys saying this, but we really recommend having proper gear to hit the road.

Sure, living with your hair in the wind, in a tank top, shorts, and flip-flops feels very cool in Thailand, but it’s also frankly very risky in case of an accident. Of course, accidents always happen to other people, but believe us, it’s better to be careful. And when we see the collection of injured people with burns on their legs and arms wandering around Pai, I swear we don’t want that to happen to us!

So, for scooter rides: forget beach outfits and put on jeans, closed shoes, a jacket, and a helmet!

Don’t do in Thailand what you wouldn’t do on pristine European roads with soft-driving users!

Anyway, end of the we’re-being-killjoys-but-we-promise-it’s-for-a-good-cause section!

Fuel

Once on the road, it’s relatively easy to find fuel at major stations near major cities/villages or in small villages.

Be careful, in the latter, these are generally small pumps and the price per liter is almost double that of big stations.

To give you an idea, a liter of fuel at big stations costs about 25 to 27 baht. At small stations, it’s around 35 to 40 baht per liter…

The ideal would be not to forget to fill up each morning when leaving and use small stations only to top up a bit during the day.

Are you ready to rent a motorbike in Chiang Mai?

Preparing for the Mae Hong Son Loop from Chiang Mai

By motorbike, car, or public transport

By motorbike

You’ll have understood through this article and the one dedicated to the Mae Hong Son Loop itinerary and must-sees, we did this road trip on an almost brand-new scooter. But it’s not necessarily every traveler’s preferred means of transport. It certainly offers a certain freedom and is probably the most economical way to do this road trip. But if you don’t feel comfortable doing so many kilometers, know that it’s entirely possible to do the Mae Hong Son Loop by car or public transport! In any case, if you’re not comfortable with the idea of riding a two-wheeler, don’t insist – the game isn’t worth the candle.

By car

We’ve had several feedback from readers (especially families) who told us they did it by car and loved the experience. Budget-wise, a car rental obviously costs a bit more. But if you’re several people and don’t feel comfortable riding a two-wheeler (or don’t have the appropriate license), this is a very good option!

By bus

To do it by public transport, the idea would be to use buses and minivans to connect the villages where you sleep, then rent a scooter, take a taxi (car or motorcycle), or a songthaew on site to explore around, for a few kilometers. However, we won’t hide that this alternative will probably cost you a bit more and you won’t be able to stop wherever you want along the way. Here are the travel times between the different stages:

• Chiang Mai – Pai: 4h20min journey, ticket price from 240 baht per person (check schedules).
• Pai – Soppong: 1h drive, fare: 150 baht each.
• Soppong – Mae Hong Son: 1h30min drive, 150 baht ticket with departures every hour.
• Mae Hong Son – Mae Chaem via Khun Yuam, bus stop going to Mae Sa Riang: 3h30min journey.
• Mae Chaem – Chiang Mai: 2h20min drive.

Note: the only bus company we know of that makes the journey between the different stages is Prempracha Transports. To find the terminal or buy your tickets, look for the AviaBooking sign.

Duration of the road trip

Basically, lots of options are possible! We talk about it more below in the itinerary section. The loop proper is about 600 km, but you can easily end up doing 800 if you wander around the villages along the way. Anyway, 600 km is doable in 2 or 3 days, but honestly, we don’t really see the point of embarking on this loop if it’s not to enjoy the scenery a bit 😉.

For our part, we did 6 days and 5 nights and found it perfect! While visit-wise, we probably could have done a few more days, 6 days on a motorbike, we admit we’d clearly had our fill by the end. My backside will remember this trip for quite a while!

The ideal season for the loop

The best period to do the loop is during the dry season, particularly from late November until about late February. It’s actually in November that you’ll see the sunflower fields in bloom at the end of the loop!

Obviously, it’s possible to do the loop throughout the year, but the winter months are those that will optimize your chances of good weather: no rain, no fog due to crop burning. From March to May, you’ll have little chance of rain, but temperatures soar! This can make having your backside glued to a scooter and a helmet on your head a bit less pleasant.

Between May and October, it’s the rainy season… Know that it doesn’t rain every day and rain can be limited to a small half-hour during the day. But statistically, you have a hell of a lot more chance of getting soaked. Nothing is ever guaranteed, though…

Map and itinerary of the Mae Hong Son Loop

Here’s a little map where you can get a better idea of the loop. We’ve placed all our accommodations, visits, and little detours we made. To not miss any of the must-sees, check out our second article dedicated to the Mae Hong Son Loop itinerary!

There are obviously plenty of possibilities! For example, for the last stage, we decided to go through Mae Chaem, but know that it’s possible to return to Chiang Mai via Mae Sariang.

Direction of the Loop

As its name suggests, this itinerary can be done starting in either direction. For our part, we decided to opt for a counterclockwise tour, but it makes no difference!

Clothing for a road trip in Northern Thailand

Here, our only advice would be to plan for layers and for that, we’ll explain the onion technique!

When it’s sunny, the temperature easily climbs above 30°C, even in winter… But as soon as the sun goes away, or worse, if rain gets involved, it can get quite chilly, especially on the scooter! Evenings are generally cool, but we handle it very well just with a sweater and possibly a windbreaker depending on the weather…

So plan for a good fleece and a waterproof jacket, just in case!

Budget for the Mae Hong Son Loop by motorbike

The Mae Hong Son Loop is really within reach of almost all budgets! To give you an idea, we’re going to open our books a bit. Here’s what we spent in 6 days and 5 nights on the loop. As a reminder, 10 baht = 0.27 euro.

This comes to a total of 8,184 baht (or 221 euros) for 2 people, which corresponds to 216 euros, or 18 euros per day per person.

The budget is divided into 4 expense categories:

• Visits: the different entrance fees we paid;
• Transport: scooter rental for 7 days plus fuel (scooter: 1,400 baht, fuel: 308 baht);
• Food and drinks: all food expenses, coffee, water, etc.;
• Accommodation: the 5 hotel nights. We chose not to book any accommodation in advance and had no trouble finding rooms in our price range. We traveled comfortably, sleeping in guesthouses with private bathrooms and hot water (between 400 and 500 baht per night). If these last two points aren’t essential for you, you can easily find accommodation from 200 baht, especially in Pai and Mae Hong Son. If you want to book in advance, we recommend checking Booking for the best hotel prices.

There you have it, you have everything you need to prepare your little road trip in northwest Thailand! Are you ready to try the experience from Chiang Mai 😉?

Take care and see you soon on the roads!