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The perfect wellness weekend in Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai in northern Thailand is a city that offers a blend of rich history, cultural heritage, and modern living. With ancient temples, exciting night markets, and surrounded by sublime natural landscapes, it truly is a destination that offers so much to residents and visitors alike. Chiang Mai also boasts a thriving wellness culture, with yoga studios, spas, meditation retreats, eco friendly resorts and a seemingly never ending choice of plant based food. These all combine to make it the perfect option for either your next wellness weekend, or a for a longer retreat that allows you to fully embrace everything that Chiang Mai has to offer.

Stay at Away Chiang Mai Thapae – A vegan retreat

Away Chiang Mai is a perfectly plant based and 100% vegan retreat in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand that should most certainly be on your vegan travel radar. Located just a short walk from the vibrant old city, Away Chiang Mai combines boutique luxury, wellness programmes and plant based food to create the perfect oasis.

With a focus on wellness and mindful living, Away Chiang Mai provided a generous slice of relaxation, rejuvenation and mindfulness during our recent weekend in Chiang Mai. The gracious welcome, the beautifully appointed room and refreshing pool all played their part in the memorable stay, but it was the vegan food and private yoga classes that truly elevated our stay to the next level.

Enjoy a private yoga class

Whether you choose sound healing, health massage or the private yoga classes at Away Chiang Mai you are sure to enjoy a unique and personalised experience. With the full attention of your own dedicated yoga teacher, these private sessions offer the chance for guests to focus on specific goals and preferences. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned practitioner, the instructor will safely adapt the practice to suit your needs, ensuring that every pose and movement aligns with your current abilities. It really was one of the most enlightening and rewarding yoga classes we have ever taken and has inspired us to to elevate our own yoga journey based on our experience during the excellent private yoga class at Away Chiang Mai.

Join a group yoga class

If you would prefer to join a group yoga class, Wild Rose Studio is a dedicated yoga space located in the heart of the old town, housed in a beautifully restored traditional Thai wooden house, providing a serene environment that really enhanced our whole yoga experience. The studio offers a variety of yoga styles, allowing participants to choose according to their preference and skill level, whether they seek a more meditative practice or something physically challenging. The small, intimate setting is warm and welcoming, equipped with all the necessary facilities and equipment. After your class, it’s easy to explore the nearby cafés or temples, completing the perfect day of wellness and discovery in Chiang Mai.

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Vegan dining experience at Moreganic

The varied and creative menu at Moreganic, the vegan restaurant at Away Chiang Mai, really has something for everyone, with enough plant based options to ensure you can enjoy a wide array of delightful plant based food on each and every visit. We were suitably impressed with our Thai vegan lunch at Moreganic, with the soft tofu in red curry sauce being our favourite dish, and this paired perfectly with pineapple fried rice with cashews and vegan ham.

In keeping with the wellness theme of Away Chiang Mai they don’t serve alcohol at Moreganic, but please rest assured that you can choose from one of the exciting mocktails on the menu, or even an ice cold bottle of Heineken 0.0 alcohol free beer which is one of our favourites.

Vegan dining experience at Goodsouls Kitchen

Goodsouls Kitchen have been welcoming discerning diners since 2017 with their rich and varied selection of delicious plant based food. Whether you wish to enjoy vegan versions of Thai classics such as massaman curry, pad Thai and khao soi, or you are craving vegan pizzas or vegan burgers they’ve got you covered at Goodsouls Kitchen.

The welcoming space and buzzing atmosphere make this one of the premier vegan dining options in Chiang Mai and rightly so. Whatever you do, make sure to order a slice or two of their decadent vegan cakes, we guarantee that you won’t regret your decision.

Indulge yourself at Fah Lanna Spa

What better way to end your perfect wellness weekend in Chiang Mai than with a four hour spa journey at Fah Lanna Spa in the heart of the old town. Our package was called ‘Fah Lanna Mahabhirom’, which in addition to the unique massage included herbal steam, royal bath, exfoliating body scrub and a five step facial. The unique and simply blissful massage was a combination of traditional Thai massage, aromatherapy oil massage and Tok Sen massage which is an ancient northern Thai practice which uses a wooden hammer made from tamarind tree bark.

Our couples package at Fah Lanna Spa was a truly memorable and deeply relaxing experience, right up there as one of the best we have ever enjoyed.

Chiang Mai has become a ‘must visit’ destination for mindful travellers seeking wellness retreats, yoga and delicious plant based food. Choosing to stay at a vegan retreat like Away Chiang Mai Thapae makes everything very simple as they offer everything that you might desire. But rest assured that if you know where to look there are spas, vegan eateries and yoga studios on each and every corner allowing you to enjoy the perfect wellness weekend in Chiang Mai very easily indeed.

Paul Eyers

Paul Eyers is co-founder of Vegan Food Quest who write about luxury hotels and resorts in Southeast Asia with a focus on sustainable travel, eco travel and vegan travel. Currently based in Malaysia, Paul also writes about sporting events and some of the finest golf courses throughout the region.

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16 Comments

  1. A private yoga class would be much better for me, the instructors in group classes never seem to realise how much of a beginner I am.

    My physio said that I am the least flexible patient she’s seen in 4 decades so I definitely need a bespoke approach.

    1. my private yoga class at Away Chiang Mai opened my mind to a ‘new’ approach to my regular practice and has allowed me to find a new teacher in my hometown that is perfect for me on my yoga journey

  2. After reading this and especially after ogling all those pictures I can almost smell and taste those Asian dishes, Even more of a bonus that they’re all vegan.

  3. After the all the excesses of a festive season I would need longer than a weekend in Chiang Mai to get my wellness back on an even keel.

    1. Also, it will probably take more than a weekend to change your ways and develop wellness ways that will stick.

    2. haha indeed the festive period is often full of indulgence! but starting with a ‘wellness weekend’ is the best way to get back on an “even keel’ as you called it – good luck Janet!

  4. Nice review. It would have been good to have some of the usual ALTB features like the welcome and the cost.

    There doesn’t seem to be much doubt about the best bit. You seem most impressed by the vegan food options.

    1. thank you Deb, our welcome at Away Chiang Mai was both gracious and friendly, whilst you can find the best room rates on their website which is linked to in the article, we would say for the quality of room, service and (vegan) food it is great value for money! yes, we did enjoy the vegan food very much but the yoga was very impressive too….

    1. this was a long awaited return to Chiang Mai for us and we enjoyed every element of it, we certainly won’t be waiting so long for our next trip!

  5. That picture of all the small bowls is the sort of way that I like my food, presented so many different tastes. I never was a fan of the boring meat, 2 veg and potatoes that I grew up with, especially tough meat, fat and gristle.

  6. I never trust headlines that much, I like to challenge them. It’s hard to take on this one, “The perfect wellness weekend in Chiang Mai”. It is nearly perfect except I do like a good infinity pool, which may be difficult with the local terrain.

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