10 Best Family Things to Do in Chiang Mai

Grand Canyon Water Park is a theme park with inflatable slides and obstacles, offering plenty of adventure for your little ones. It's set up in a canyon that's filled with water and features inflatable obstacle courses, slides and other fun activities.

Given that the entire course is inflatable, everything is soft and safe, even for younger kids. Additionally, lifeguards are on watch during all open hours, so you can allow your children to enjoy themselves with peace of mind. You'll find it just about 10 miles southwest of the city centre.

Nong Buak Haad Public Park is a lovely park in the heart of the city that's the only park in the municipality with relaxing and tranquil surroundings. The formal name of this park is still on the books, but most locals and travellers know it as Suan Buak Haad, so keep an eye out for that when visiting.

The park has much to offer with comfortable shade under Nanapan trees along with ponds and waterfalls. Fish are prominent in the pond as well, and it's shallow enough for you to see quite a few of them. You'll find it in the southwestern corner of the city centre near the river's edge.

The Chiang Mai Zoo is a fun zoo and aquarium in town where you'll see more than 400 different species of animals among 80 hectares of space. Technically, there are 2 large aquariums in the zoo area mostly full of marine life such as carnivorous fish and invertebrates.

Among the animals here, you can see the Humboldt penguin, a hippopotamus, gaur, doucs, orangutans and even the Indochinese tiger. Don't forget to check out the giant pandas as well, a rare sight outside of China. You can see it all for yourself northwest of the city centre by the reservoir.

Huay Tung Tao Reservoir is a fun body of water with plenty of things to do along with stunning views your family won't want to miss. When you visit, you can enjoy a bit of fishing from the shore, venture out in a boat for a different angle and take a dip in various swimming areas.

You'll also find some adrenaline-stoking outdoor activities, including ATV riding, parachute jumping and paintball. You won't have to go far to get something to eat, either, as there's an abundance of restaurants around the reservoir. It's located a few miles north of the city centre.

Namtok Bua Tong (Sticky Waterfalls) allows you and your family to enjoy a unique experience where you can safely climb up the rocks among the water. Waterfalls typically make surfaces quite slick, but that's not the case here, which is where the name comes from.

The minerals in the water and rocks here have created a surface that's easy to grip, almost like a hardened sponge. Their rough surface can be tough on bare feet if you're not used to walking outdoors without shoes, but proper footwear is enough to make the waterfall traversable by just about anyone. Check it out a few miles north of town.

Doi Inthanon National Park is a picturesque, protected nature area where you'll find wildlife, trails and some truly stunning viewpoints. The park covers 482 square kilometres in total, and it's part of the grander Himalayan mountain range. The highest peak here stretches 2,565 metres up.

When you and your family visit, you'll find a wide variety of trails to enjoy including some with easy difficulty levels that are perfect for the little ones. Several viewpoints in the park also face east or west, so sunrises and sunsets are positively stunning. It's located about 58 miles southwest of the city centre.

Art in Paradise Chiang Mai is a 3D-art museum that's perfect for kids and adults alike, with a wide variety of interactive exhibits to explore. At this museum, you'll find works on the walls and the floors covered in 3D effects for a more immersive experience.

Don't forget to check out the flying carpet exhibit, which allows you and your family to take photos on a simulated flying carpet in a variety of different environments such as ancient Egypt and the canals of Venice. See it for yourself on the east side of town past Wat Ket.

The Bai Orchid-Butterfly Farm offers exotic plants and butterflies in a stunning enclosure, creating a truly immersive experience. Thousands of orchids sporting a plethora of different colours can be found here in addition to some other plants that aren't native to Thailand.

The butterflies are among the most alluring aspects of this attraction. Hundreds of them can be found here fluttering about, and when they're all out at once, it's truly a magical experience. Plus, vibrant greenery and a small waterfall make the scenery positively picturesque. It's located a few miles north of the city centre.

X-Centre Chiang Mai is an extreme outdoor sports complex that you and your family will want to visit if you're looking for adrenaline-fuelled thrills. At this complex, you'll find a variety of different activities including bungee jumping, off-roading, paintball and karting.

A lot of the activities are appropriate for minors, but there are height and age limits for most activities. The bungee jump is the most popular activity, letting participants jump from a platform 50 metres high. Meanwhile, the off-roading allows you to ride buggies, ATVs and motorbikes. You can try it out about an hour north of the city centre.

Central Festival Chiangmai is the primary shopping complex in the city with enough variety for kids and adults alike to find something they'll like. The centre sports a futuristic architectural design combined with tried-and-true modernist features you've probably seen before.

Within, you'll find several categories of items to enjoy, though it tends to focus on fashion and apparel. Restaurants are available inside, along with a massive theatre complex complete with IMAX and 4D films. It's located near San Sai Park Ville on the east side of town.