New Central Mall in Mae Chan (Chiang Rai)

My BF just told me that developers have just bought 500 acres in Mae Chan and will develop Central Festival-Northern Chiang Mai (there is also a newish Central Festival mall in Phuket). The BF says it is slated to open in December and will be the biggest mall in Northern Thailand. It will have the usual run of mall stores, a Central, a Tops, a Tesco Lotus, a major cinema, a Hotel Sofitel, and more.

It seems the small Tesco Lotus in Mae Sai does gangbuster business because of the traffic from Mynmar, and it is hoped that the central location of Mae Chan will be a draw for the entire area as it really is an equal distance between Chiang Rai, Mae Sai, Chiang Saen, and is even closer to the mountain towns in the area including Mae Salong.

I wonder if this development might make the Chiang Rai area as the new IT area in Thailand for tourists and expats. It is truly is a beautiful area with a lot of natural beauty and historical significance. It also offers easy access to both Burma and Laos. The area in many parts of Chiang Rai province with its beautiful mountains and its agriculture reminds me very much of the California Wine Country.

Chiang Rai has a decent airport (located between Chiang Rai city and Mae Chan). It has some great resorts. It has two smaller but fun gay bars. It has a charming little night market. It is probably the coolest part of the country during most of the year. The people are very friendly.

The downsides are that one really needs a car to see the many attractions around the city, there are no taxis and limited public transportation options, the selection of Western style restaurants and bars is very limited, and there is little to do in Chiang Rai city itself (and even less if the big regional mall is built in Mae Chan).

It will be interesting to see how this area develops. I also get a chuckle that we recently discussed on this board what a sleeply little town Mae Chan is. Maybe that will change if this mall gets built.

Pete