---
node: dest_chiang_rai
type: destination
slug: chiang_rai
title: "Chiang Rai"
lead: "Chiang Rai is the far-northern gateway to the Golden Triangle, best known for its dazzling contemporary temples. The all-white Wat Rong Khun and a blue temple set it apart, amid tea hills and hill-tribe country near the Laos and Myanmar borders."
published: 2026-08-10
updated: 2026-08-10
image_file: chiang_rai.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20171107_White_Temple_Chiang_Rai_0221_DxO.jpg"
image_author: "Jakub Hałun"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

## Overview

Once the first capital of the Lanna kingdom, Chiang Rai is a quieter northern town than Chiang Mai, set among mountains where Thailand meets Laos and Myanmar at the Golden Triangle. Its fame today rests on a pair of striking modern temples and on the surrounding country of tea plantations, waterfalls and hill-tribe villages. Cooler than the lowlands and less crowded, it makes a base for the far north and the Mekong border.

## Highlights

The White Temple, Wat Rong Khun, is a fantastical all-white shrine encrusted with mirrored glass, matched by the deep-blue Wat Rong Suea Ten. The Golden Triangle, where the Mekong divides three countries, lies to the north with its opium-history museum. Tea plantations, waterfalls and hill-tribe villages fill day trips into the mountains around the town.