Chiang Mai, Thailand: Cats, Elephants & My AirAsia Baggage Story

Chiang Mai was my second stop in Southeast Asia after Hanoi. Two nights, one very good hotel, a cat cafe, an elephant sanctuary, a cooking class — and an AirAsia baggage situation on the way to Phuket that I'm still shaking my head about.

November 8, 2024 — Next stop: Chiang Mai

Before my trip, I had already booked an airport transfer through GetYourGuide to take me from the airport to my hotel. Once I was in Thailand, I was able to use Grab throughout my entire stay, which made getting around Chiang Mai pretty easy.

When I arrived, it was cold! I was so happy I had packed a cute sweater in my checked bag because I definitely needed it.

Where I stayed: POR Arak

I stayed at POR Arak for two nights, and my first impression was great. Check-in went smoothly, the front desk staff was welcoming, and the hotel felt modern and up to date.

My room was very clean and had a balcony with a city view overlooking the alley beside the hotel and the restaurant across the way. Just like at my hotel in Vietnam, you had to insert your hotel key card into a slot on the wall to turn on the lights.

As a solo female traveler, I felt safe staying here. I mainly used Grab to get around Chiang Mai rather than walking everywhere, and I would recommend POR Arak to other solo travelers.

Dinner at The Good View Restaurant & Bar

After landing, I was hungry, so I got dressed and headed to The Good View Restaurant & Bar for dinner.

The restaurant was packed, but I asked if I could sit by the water and was seated there right away. Since it was already dark, I couldn't really see much of the water, but the breeze felt amazing. There was also live music playing, which made the atmosphere even better. I was dining alone and felt completely comfortable.

What I ordered

• Pad Thai with shrimp
• Thai fried shrimp cakes
• Mango sticky rice
• Mojito

Everything was sooo good, but the Pad Thai was my favorite. This was exactly what I wanted on my first night in Thailand — good, authentic Thai food and a great atmosphere.

November 9, 2024 — Cats, elephants & more Thai food

The next morning, I got up early for breakfast at the hotel.

POR Arak had a huge display of food, and the breakfast was amazing. I decided to have a Thai breakfast, and one of the staff members even walked me through what was being offered. That was such a nice touch.

Cat Brothers Cafe 🐈

After breakfast, I called a Grab and headed to Cat Brothers Cafe, which was already on my itinerary. I'm a cat person, so when I found out Chiang Mai had a cat cafe, of course I had to go!

When I arrived, I ordered a Thai tea latte and bought some cat food so I could feed the cats. The cafe was clean, and the cats appeared to be well cared for. I fed them, played with them, and the staff even helped take pictures of me with the cats.

There was one cat in particular that I really bonded with. Once the food was gone, a lot of the cats wandered away, but a few stayed around — and this one stayed with me. And yes… I definitely thought about adopting him/her. 😂

After finishing my latte and spending some more time with the cats, I called another Grab back to POR Arak so I could freshen up before my next excursion. If you're a cat lover visiting Chiang Mai, I would definitely recommend stopping here.

My elephant sanctuary experience 🐘

Originally, I had booked a visit to Elephant Nature Park, but before my trip, my reservation was cancelled because they had experienced flooding and could no longer continue with the tour.

I still really wanted an elephant experience while I was in Chiang Mai, so I booked another excursion instead: the Chiang Mai Half Day Elephant Sanctuary Observation and Waterfall excursion.

Chiang Mai Half Day Elephant Sanctuary Observation and Waterfall

My biggest complaint about this excursion was actually the driver.

During the pickups, I noticed that it seemed like he didn't really know where he was going. We appeared to be going around in circles, and when we finally arrived at the elephant park, the tour guide mentioned that he had been expecting us an hour earlier.

We also stopped for a break at a shopping mall that wasn't very nice. I immediately thought about my Ha Long Bay excursion in Vietnam, where our tour bus stopped at a really nice place where I could walk around and even buy souvenirs. This stop was the complete opposite.

Another thing I encountered during this particular excursion was a public bathroom without toilet tissue. I had actually read before traveling to Thailand that it was a good idea to carry your own tissues or wipes, but that's not something I'm normally used to carrying around with me.

Once we actually arrived at the sanctuary, though, the tour itself was organized and I had fun. The issue was really with the transportation getting us there.

I got to feed the elephants, interact with them and take plenty of pictures. There was no elephant riding — which I appreciated, since riding elephants is actually harmful for them. From what I observed during my visit, I felt that the elephants were being treated well.

I also met travelers from the UK and Switzerland. One of the things I enjoy about traveling solo is meeting people from completely different places, so it was fun talking with them and learning about their countries.

Lunch was included, and they served vegetable Pad Thai. I'll be honest — I didn't really like it. It wasn't hot and was actually kind of cold, which made it hard for me to enjoy. Maybe I'm a little OCD about certain things 😂, but I just wasn't completely comfortable eating a full Pad Thai meal at the elephant park. I probably would have preferred something simple like a small snack.

The funny part came at the end of the tour. Our tour guide joined us for the ride back and started giving the driver directions — which was probably a good thing since our driver had gotten lost earlier that morning. 😂 Eventually, the driver stopped and dropped our guide off at his house.

The other travelers and I started laughing because we all thought he lived at the elephant park! 😂

And after the amazing Pad Thai I'd had at The Good View Restaurant & Bar the night before, this one definitely wasn't for me.

Back at POR Arak

By the time I returned to the hotel, it was around 8 PM, and my next thought was: what am I going to eat?

I went to the front desk, and the same staff member who had checked me in was there. She was so helpful and helped me order room service. I ordered Thai fried rice with a fried egg and a side of onion rings. The food was AMAZING!

My sneakers were also muddy after the elephant excursion, so I arranged laundry service directly through POR Arak for my clothes and sneakers. When I got everything back the next day, my sneakers looked brand new. My clothes and sneakers were ready before I had to leave for the airport.

Between the food, cleanliness, helpful staff and overall experience, POR Arak ended up being a really good hotel choice for my short stay in Chiang Mai.

November 10, 2024 — Thai cooking class

For my last day in Chiang Mai, I booked a four-hour morning cooking class at Grandma's Home Cooking School — morning Thai cooking with grandma, including a market visit and farm tour.

My pickup was at 9 AM, and our first stop was a local food market.

We walked through the market learning about the colorful herbs, spices, sauces and seasonal vegetables used in Thai cooking. I also grabbed a strawberry smoothie while I was there.

After the market, we headed to the cooking school. Before we started cooking, we walked through the gardens where we could see and smell some of the herbs and vegetables that would be used in our dishes.

The cooking area was open-air, and everyone had their own cooking station in a small-group setting. We prepared traditional Thai dishes, and after cooking, we sat together at the table and ate what we had made.

Overall, the cooking experience was okay. At the beginning, it felt organized because everyone was preparing the same dishes at the same time. Toward the end, however, everyone started making different things, and that's when the experience began to feel rushed and disorganized.

I'm still glad I did a Thai cooking class while I was in Chiang Mai, but the ending could have been organized better.

My AirAsia Baggage Disaster ✈️

Later that day, it was time to head to my next destination: Phuket. I was flying AirAsia from Chiang Mai to Phuket, and this ended up being one of the most frustrating parts of my trip.

I checked my suitcase, watched it go through the process at the airport and boarded the plane thinking everything was fine.

I was sitting in my window seat with my headphones on, waiting for everyone else to board, when the guy sitting next to me tapped me on the arm to get my attention. A staff member was standing there.

They told me that my checked suitcase had not passed the security scanner because an alert had gone off. I was confused. Why wasn't this caught while I was still inside the airport?

They told me they needed to open my suitcase and investigate. The problem was that my suitcase was locked, so they needed my keys. I eventually learned that they weren't even sure what had triggered the scanner. It could have possibly been my camera or a door-alarm stopper that I had packed.

Then I was given a decision: I could get off the plane and stay behind with my suitcase, or I could continue on to Phuket without my checked bag. I decided to continue to Phuket.

At the time, I was thinking that I still had my personal item and carry-on with me, and Phuket was only about a two-hour flight away. I figured my suitcase could be inspected and placed on the next flight. Thinking back, I'm actually surprised I was so comfortable leaving my suitcase behind. If this had happened while I was flying home to the U.S., there is no way I would have felt comfortable leaving it.

Before we left, I gave the staff my suitcase keys so they could open the bag. They told me the keys would be placed back inside my suitcase.

I also wanted to know something pretty basic: what time is the next flight to Phuket that my suitcase can be placed on? They couldn't even give me a clear answer. That was frustrating, and the staff member I dealt with wasn't helpful in making me feel comfortable about leaving my belongings behind.

Phuket airport was the MVP of this story

When I finally landed in Phuket, I walked off the plane — and there were two Phuket airport staff members standing there with a sign with my name on it.

They greeted me and explained that there was a consent form I needed to sign before the staff in Chiang Mai could access my suitcase.

My immediate reaction was basically: WHAT?!

Why wasn't I given this form before the plane left Chiang Mai? Even the Phuket staff seemed confused about why this hadn't already been handled. This entire time, I had been sitting on the plane assuming Chiang Mai was already inspecting my suitcase and doing what needed to be done to get it onto another flight.

They weren't.

I signed the consent form, but at that point it was late, I was tired, and I still needed to check into my hotel. I picked up my carry-on and headed outside to get a Grab to my hotel.

So… where was my suitcase?

The next morning, I was finally able to reach Phuket airport by phone. That's when I found out that my suitcase had actually arrived at Phuket Airport at around 11 PM the night before.

No one had contacted me to tell me. So now I had to make another trip back to Phuket Airport to pick it up myself.

Thankfully, when I finally got my suitcase back, everything was there. Nothing was damaged or missing, and my keys had been returned inside the bag as promised. I never received an apology, explanation or compensation from AirAsia.

Would I fly AirAsia again? I'll try to avoid it or not fly multiple times. The way my baggage situation was handled in Chiang Mai — especially the lack of communication and the fact that the consent form wasn't handled before my flight departed — was extremely frustrating.

At least I got my suitcase back.

Solo With Jenn takeaway

Chiang Mai gave me exactly what I wanted from Thailand: incredible food, elephants, cats and a hotel that took care of me. Two nights wasn't enough, and the excursions taught me that the tour itself and the transportation getting you there are two very different things.

Next stop: Phuket 🇹🇭