Activities – Doi Mae Salong; a few “must see / must do” tourist activities include;
- Tea tasting & plantations
- Phra Boromathat Chedi
- Wat Santikhiri
- Chinese Martyrs’ Memorial Museum. Has a very interesting & informative history of the Chinese KMT in North Thailand.
- General Tuan’s Tomb
- Morning Market
- Hot soy milk with deep fried dough sticks at the Morning Market
- Evening Market
- Mae Salong Villa historical photo display
- Mae Salong Flower Hill Resort
- Horse Trekking
- Enduro riding. The local dirt & enduro riders meet & ride every Sunday, starting from the Little Home Guesthouse.
- English language teaching in Akha villages on Mondays with Joyce from Ban Bon Doi restaurant.
- Thoed Thai. Visit Khun Sa’s old headquarters as either a day or over night trip from Doi Mae Salong
- Akha villages & homestays. There are numerous Akha villages with homestays around Doi Mae Salong & if you are looking to experience the real thing, then check some of these out for a night. Lojangchon, Mae Salong & Jabusee are three good ones to start with.
Santikhiri is noted for its High Mountain Oolong, a high grade traditional Chinese tea, which makes up about 80% of all tea production in Chiang Rai. The province produces about 200 tonnes (200 L/T/220 S/T) of tea a year. The combination of climate and soil conditions at Santikhiri is ideal for growing high quality Oolongs (“black dragon” in Chinese). Such teas are cultivated at elevations ranging from 1,200 to 1,400 metres (3,960–4,620 ft). In 2005, Santikhiri was selected by the Tourism and Sports Ministry as an OTOP (“One Tambon One Product”) tourism village in recognition of its fine oolong tea.
The goals are to stimulate the grassroots economy, increase the number of tourists, and develop Thailand’s products and services. Taiwanese experts work alongside local farmers in tea processing plants which produce top-quality tea for both the local and export markets. The number of tea plantations in the village has increased significantly since the mid-1990s, and includes Choke Chamroen Tea, Wang Put Tan and 101 Tea.
From 28 December to 2 January each year, Santikhiri hosts the annual cherry blossoms festival, which is organised by Mae Salong Nok Tambon Administration Organisation in association with Mae Fa Luang District. The festival celebrates the culture of the hill tribe people from the Chiang Rai area, and includes a handicraft sale, a light and sound show, a parade by the tribes people, and a beauty contest.
General Tuan Shi-wen died in 1980, and was buried in a pagoda-like tomb on a hill-top reached via a 300-metre (984 ft) climb. From the top, there is a panoramic view of the village.There is a also a memorial to the KMT soldiers who died in their fight against communism, The Martyrs’ Memorial, a museum whose wooden panels bear the names of the dead, set on an altar in the main building. It was constructed in the style of a large Chinese shrine. The museum also features exhibits describing the struggles of the KMT soldiers and the development of the Doi Mae Salong valley.
Phra Boromathat Chedi is a chedi built on a hill near the village, in honour of the late Princess Mother, Srinagarindra. There is an excellent view of the Myanmar frontier from the top, an area that was off-limits when it was under the control of the warlord Khun Sa.
*Source: Wikipedia
