Shopping in Chiang Mai: malls and department stores

One of the best things about Chiang Mai is that, despite being full of culture and history, as well as traditional arts, it is the second largest city in Thailand. While not as densely populated as Bangkok (a plus, not a minus!), it has attracted its share of modern shopping malls, superstores, and specialty markets. Although you’ll be here for a cultural immersion and a tour of temples, botanical gardens and tiger farms, sometimes you just want something with a little more sparkle and, above all, air conditioning.

  • Central Airport Plaza is currently the most prominent and brilliant shopping mall in Chiang Mai. It is located in a complex that includes a showroom and a large parking space, offering a variety of restaurants and well-known brands in its corridors, from Starbucks to Pizza Hut, although there is no shortage of Thai and independent restaurants, clothing stores and vendors. of technology. Notable is its unique feature, the Northern Village, which showcases handcrafted products from local cottage industries in an attractive, well-decorated area spanning several floors. It also has an entire floor dedicated to computers, gadgets, mobile phones, and hardware that will catch the eye of any tech-savvy traveler. On its highest floor is the largest cinema in the city, the Major Cineplex. The Central Airport Plaza sends shuttles to prominent hotels to pick up guests and they’ll send you back, too: their shuttle is a yellow-green songtaew with their logo on it and usually runs every hour. The mall itself is located on Mahidol Road, conveniently close to Chiang Mai International Airport, a golf course, and several restaurants.
  • Central Kad Suenkaew stands out for its brick facade, which distinguishes it from other department stores and buildings in Chiang Mai. Its overall design and setup is similar to Central Airport Plaza, but thanks to its last renovation more than ten years ago, it looks considerably grungier and less glitzy than its larger, more modernized cousin. The Kad Suankaew is located on Huay Kaew Road.
  • Lotus, also known as Tesco-Lotus, has been a success in Chiang Mai, opening two branches: Hangdong and Kamtiang, along with a number of smaller “Lotus Express” convenience stores located at gas stations in the province. While not overly glamorous, Lotus superstores offer a plethora of travel-size shampoos, facial foams, soaps and toothpaste that are essential for any trip. They function like shopping arcades, with each Tesco-Lotus including a bookstore, a Black Canyon (a Thai coffee franchise), and a Pizza Hut or Pizza Company.
  • An upscale specialty supermarket in Chiang Mai, Rimping Supermarket started out small and humble, but has since grown into a multi-branch corporation targeting the more upscale end of shoppers. It offers fresh homemade bakery that is surprisingly excellent, Royal Project products and many imported snacks, cooking ingredients, breakfast cereals and more. At the time of writing, there are three large branches of Rimping and one smaller one; the three largest can be found along the Ping River, next to Central Airport Plaza, and at Ruamchoak Market. The Central Airport Plaza and Ruamchoak branches have the advantage of being grouped together in a shopping arcade so you can dine and shop in one trip.
  • Central Festival Chiang Mai is one of the new projects that will be open for business in 2012. It is being built on a 46,500 square meter plot of land located on the Chiang Mai – Doi Saket superhighway, targeting the same market as the Central Airport Plaza, but more: bigger, more modern, more of everything.
  • Promenada Chiang Mai, like Central Festival, will be up and running in 2012. The difference is that it will include a tourist center and it is a Swiss project, hoping to attract truly exclusive buyers like the Siam Paragon in Bangkok, with the prices and selection of stores and matching merchandise. Being more advanced in development than the Central Festival, it is possible that Promenada will open in late 2011 instead of mid-2012.

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