The famous White Temple of Chiang Rai (Wat Rong Khun) is definitely a sight that you cannot miss if you are in Chiang Mai or the north of Thailand. This magnificent temple might be one of the most beautiful Buddhist temples in all of SE. Asia.
If you enjoy riding a motorcycle or scooter for that matter the best option is to rent a motorcycle in Chiang Mai and head on your own for the White Temple. Our advice will be to rent a bigger motorcycle if you can (150 – 500cc) instead of the smaller scooters, as you’ll be able to go a little faster.
Make sure you shop around in Chiang Mai, many motorcycle rental shops wanted upwards of $50 for a bike, we were able to haggle down the price in one of the shops inside of the town for around $28 USD for a very new 300cc sportbike.
Arrange to pick up the bike first thing in the morning once they open around 8am as the ride is a good 3 to 3 1/2 hours to the white temple. As you probably know riding in Thailand or anywhere in Asia for that matter has to be done with caution as drivers and motorcycle riders are not the most careful in the world 😉
On the way to the White Temple, you’ll see many smaller temples that are nice to watch along the way, a good rest stop is the natural hot water spring. Once you arrive you’ll feel the aroma of boiled eggs, which are boiled in the natural water and offered to tourists.
Have a cup of coffee or a cold drink and get in your way, as this is probably a little more than halfway to the temple.
Once you arrive to the White Temple, there are plenty of safe parking spaces for you to park your motorcycle. Spend your time taking plenty of pictures and trying to get that perfect shot of the white temple without the tourists if you are lucky. Make sure you check out the insane paintings inside the walls of the main temple, as they are very unique.
After checking out the temple, you can have lunch at one of the eateries besides the temples before you head back to Chiang Mai. Since the temple is very close to Chiang Rai we decided to go for a ride, but did not see anything interesting, unless you are interested in visiting the Black Temple or anything specific in Chiang Rai you can just give it a miss.
Head back to Chiang Mai, along the way you’ll find plenty of Coffee Shop stops that are actually strawberry fields, there are some very beautiful ones along the way. You can also stop at one of the Big Buddha Sculptures that you’ll find along the way to take a couple of pictures.
We ended up rushing back as the afternoon started to come, you’ll have a beautiful ride with the sun coming down behind the mountains, make sure you bring a light jacket or sweater as we missed one when we were getting close to Chiang Mai at night as it can get a little chilly on the bike. We got back around 7:30pm into town and headed straight to the hotel. Woke up early next morning and returned the motorbike.
All in all, checking out the White Temple was a beautiful experience, and even more so doing it by ourselves on the motorcycle as it was an Epic ride along the north Thailand mountains.
Best motorcycle rental Chiang Mai
Remember:
Shop Around for your Motorcycle
Try to rent a bigger bike (300-500cc) instead of scooter, no need for the huge 1,000cc unless you really want to.
Bring a Light Jacket or Sweeter
Try to head back a little earlier after seeing the white temple if you don’t want to ride at night into Chiang Mai.
Might be a good idea to get a pair of motorcycle goggles as the wind will make your eyes watery and a pair of sunglasses might not be enough.
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