Chiang Mai Wellness Retreat - 7 Days in Thailand

You unpack once. There are no transfers to catch, no early flights, no towns ticked off. Chiang Mai sits in a bowl of hills with an old walled quarter at its centre, and a week is enough time to stop being a visitor in it. Mornings are given over to one thing done properly. Afternoons are free, and we mean free: no suggestion follows in brackets.

The skills come first. You are taught the massage rather than only given it, you cook the northern dishes rather than watch them made, and you sit with a monk instead of photographing one. Anything can be run vegetarian, and much of it already is. This suits people coming off a hard year, travellers who dislike being moved about, and anyone who has done the temples of Thailand at speed once and did not enjoy it. What it costs is quoted in writing once we know your dates and party size.

Worshippers kneel before a golden Buddha statue inside the ornately gilded hall of Wat Phra Singh in Chiang Mai.

Day by day

Day 1

Arrival in Chiang Mai. The airport is close to the old quarter, so the drive is short and you are in your room within half an hour of the bags. Nothing is asked of you today. When the heat drops, walk a stretch of the moat and the brick walls, eat something simple, and sleep early. The week works better if you begin it rested. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 2

A morning learning traditional Thai massage as a practice, not a treatment. It is done on a floor mat, both of you clothed, with no oil: the teacher walks you through the pressure lines, the palm and thumb work, and the slow assisted stretches that give it its reputation. You work on a partner and are worked on in turn. Lunch follows. The afternoon is yours, and your forearms will want it. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 3

Out early, while the courtyards are still cool. Lanna temples are low and wide, with roofs that sweep almost to the ground, teak pillars and serpents running down the stair rails. At one of them you join a sitting session led by a resident monk, twenty minutes or so of quiet breathing with time afterwards to ask him whatever you like. Back by lunch, and the day is then empty. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 4

The market first, to learn what the north actually cooks with: turmeric root, long beans, galangal, fermented soy discs, chilli by the sackful. Then a home kitchen, where you make the local dishes yourself. Khao soi if you eat meat, a chilli relish with steamed vegetables and sticky rice if you do not. Lunch is what you have cooked. The afternoon is free. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 5

The day for doing almost nothing. Begin with yoga if you want it, on a terrace before the heat. Later there is a full treatment: a herbal compress steamed until the lemongrass and camphor come through the cloth, then pressed along the back and legs, followed by foot work and a long soak. Lunch is light and unhurried. Then an afternoon in which nothing happens. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 6

Into the craft villages beyond the eastern edge of the city. Silver beaten into bowls, lacquer built up in layers over months, mulberry paper dried in sheets on frames, cotton on a hand loom. You sit with one maker for an hour rather than passing through five workshops. Lunch nearby. The last hour is set aside to write down what you want to take home from the week. Overnight in Chiang Mai.

Day 7

Breakfast without a clock. If your flight is in the afternoon there is time for one last hour on the mat before you go. The transfer to the airport is short, which is one of the quieter pleasures of this city. Your guide sees you to the terminal and the week ends there.

What the price covers

Six nights of accommodation in Chiang Mai with breakfast each morning
The traditional Thai massage session with a teacher, mats and clothing provided
The guided temple morning and the sitting session with a resident monk
Market visit and the northern cooking session in a home kitchen
One full spa treatment with herbal compress, and a yoga session if you want it
The craft village day with time at a working maker's bench
Lunches on the massage, cooking, spa and craft days
Private car and driver, and an English-speaking guide on arranged mornings

Not included

Flights into and out of Chiang Mai
Travel insurance, which we ask every traveller to hold
Visa or entry fees where your passport requires them
Dinners, drinks and meals not listed above
Extra massages and treatments beyond the one included
Tips, laundry and personal spending

Good to know

Nothing here is physically demanding, though the massage morning uses muscles you have forgotten about and sitting cross-legged is harder than it looks. November to February is the season to choose: dry, bright, and cool enough at night for a jumper. March and April are hot, and smoke from agricultural burning in the valleys can hang over the city for weeks, which we will tell you about honestly rather than after you book. The rains from May bring the hills back to green.

Bring loose trousers and a top with sleeves. You will wear them for the massage and they cover you at the temples.
Say beforehand if you are vegetarian, vegan or avoiding chilli. The kitchen can be adapted; a last-minute request cannot.
Thai massage is firm. The word for softer pressure is bao, and using it is normal.
Tell us about back trouble, pregnancy or recent surgery so treatments can be adjusted or left out.
Afternoons are genuinely unscheduled. If that unsettles you, ask us to fill one or two and we will.

Colorful patterned fabrics and batik-style clothing hang side by side at a market in Chiang Mai.

Plan this trip

Book this tour

Days: 7

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Frequently asked questions

Is traditional Thai massage painful?

It is firm, and the first session can be uncomfortable where you are tight. It works through pressure along lines in the body and assisted stretches rather than kneading, so the sensation is deep and steady rather than sharp. Say bao for lighter pressure at any point; nobody takes offence. Most people ache a little the next day and sleep unusually well that night.

Do I need experience of yoga or meditation to join this?

No. The sitting session at the temple is short and guided, and the monk explains what to do with your attention before it starts. The yoga is optional and pitched at whoever turns up. If sitting cross-legged on the floor is difficult, a chair is always available and no one will comment on it.

Can the whole week be vegetarian or vegan?

Yes, and northern Thai cooking takes to it easily. The cooking class can be run entirely without meat or fish, including the shrimp paste and fish sauce that usually carry the flavour, using fermented soybean instead. Chiang Mai also has a long-established vegetarian eating culture around its temples. Tell us when you book so the market list is written for it.

Is a week in one city too long?

That depends on what you want from a holiday. If you count places seen, yes. If you want to leave knowing how a dish is built and how a massage sequence runs, a week in one place is the shortest that works. Three of the seven afternoons are empty, and that is where the rest actually happens.

Can we add trekking, an elephant sanctuary or a night in the hills?

We can add days at either end, and the free afternoons can take a half-day trip out of the city. We are careful about elephants and will only suggest places that do not offer rides or performances. Adding activity to every day, though, works against what this week is for, so we would rather extend it than compress it.

Chiang Mai Wellness Retreat: 7 Days