I discovered Chiang Mai’s quieter side: Coffee farms, village stays and forest bathing

From forest bathing and mountain coffee farms to meals beneath towering trees, CNA Lifestyle’s Joyee Koo explores Chiang Mai’s lesser-known villages and community-based stays.

Joyee Koo 07 Nov 2026 08:14AM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST Chiang Mai is a popular destination for Singapore travellers, with part of its appeal lying in its combination of city life and nature. You can spend your days exploring temples, stopping at cafes and browsing night markets, then head into the surrounding mountains for a change of scenery.

On this trip, though, the countryside was more than a scenic escape. A nature-focused itinerary, which Singapore-based travel agency Aveson Travel and the Tourism Authority of Thailand invited us to try, introduced us to communities whose lives and livelihoods are closely tied to the land. There was coffee with the farmer who grew the beans, meals made with freshly harvested produce and a stay overlooking rice paddies.

There was also my first attempt at forest bathing. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but figured I’d be hugging at least one tree.