Chiang Mai Annual County Fair

The Chiang Mai County Fair is held at the beginning of the new year, annually.  The fair is mainly geared towards Thai people and is a great experience to see the local culture of Thai families.  There are many events, games and activities for children including a mini motocross track, a mini four wheeler track and lots of carnival style rides, blow-up slides and play areas for the younger children.

There is entertainment for the adults as well, as you can see from the multiple stages which are set up to host live music, comedy and other cultural shows.  There is quite the assortment of food, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you will want to sample it all.  If you happen to be in Chiang Mai, Thailand at the beginning of the year, especially if you are traveling with children, this is an excellent event to experience.  It is convenient to get to, very inexpensive, and makes a great cultural experience for the kids as they will be interacting with other children on most of the rides.  It is more of a night time event, as a majority of the crowd rolls in after 8pm, however there are many families which attend much earlier in the day.

After the sun goes down, the tables surrounding the stages will fill up and the nightlife side of the fair begins.  A variety of local performers will get on stage and entertain the masses.  It is very much set up like a big family style picnic, and if you are just passing through it is a great experience to mingle with some of the Chiang Mai locals, in addition to being one of the only foreigners in sight.

Check in for the exact day that the fair ends, as it tends to vary year to year based on the lineup.  Generally speaking, its scheduled for the first two weeks of January immediately following the new year.