Mike wrote:

Hi

GF and I are off to Koh Samet and then on to Chiang Mai in two weeks.
We will be staying about 3-4 days in Koh Samet and about the same in
Chiang Mai.

Can anyone recommend some good places to stay in these two places? We
would prefer not to be sleeping over a disco but would like it to be
in an interesting place not too far from places to see and things to
do. . :-) Air conditioning would be nice but is probably not
essential ( I hope).

Living here in Chiang Mai, I can say quite honestly that you can find a
range of accommodations from 100 baht per night to 600 baht per night,
all offering you clean rooms, quite neighborhoods, good food, and close
to many different things to see and do. For the general sight see-er,
finding a guest house between the Night Bazaar and the Old City would
probably fit the bill, as that puts evening entertainment (at the Night
Bazaar) and day walks (around the Old City) within 10 minutes. Of course
you may prefer to wander the Old City at night, and take a morning
stroll around the Warorrot Market along the river. All are safe and
interesting. You can find local maps in any of 7 Chiang Mai
publications, (Good Morning Chiang Mai News, Welcome Chiang Mai and
Chiang Rai, Compass, City Life, Tourist Guide, Here's Siam,) plus
others, and each of these magazines offer suggested things to see and
do. Here's an example...
http://www.gmorning.info/september/photo_vision.htm for my own
preference. )

Your guest house will probably have, or be close to, a tour agency that
will be happy to book full day or half day trips for you, or enroll you
in classes in Thai cooking, meditation, jewelry making, photography, and
more.

As to guest houses here, my favorite is Namkhong Guest House on Soi 3
off Thapae Road. It's small, quiet, absolutely clean, with friendly
staff, good food, and a tour desk. The guest house is about an 5 minute
walk to the Night Bazaar, 5 minute walk to the walls of the Old City at
Thapae Gate, and offers air-con rooms for 250 baht. You can see them at
http://www.namkhongtravel.com/ratchada.asp for very complete info about
Chiang Mai itself.

If you'd like more information about Chiang Mai, please don't hesitate
to e-mail me directly.

Steve Kramer
Chiang Mai, Thailand
http://www.photoenvisions.com


--
"The voyage of discovery lies not in seeking new horizons,
but in seeing with new eyes." - Marcel Proust