Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [322]
The night market, on Th Pha Kong, provides a few decent food stall offerings.
Shopping
Nan is a great place to pick up some souvenirs, and good buys include local textiles, especially the Thai Lü weaving styles. Typical Thai Lü fabrics feature red and black designs on white cotton in floral, geometric and animal designs. A favourite is the lai nám li (flowing-water design) that shows stepped patterns representing streams, rivers and waterfalls. Local Hmong appliqué and Mien embroidery are of excellent quality. Htin grass-and-bamboo baskets and mats are worth a look, too. Good shops for textiles are Amnouy Porn and Jangtrakoon, next to each other on Th Sumonthewarat; there are several other similar shops along the same stretch of road. Pongparn (0 5475 7334; www.pongparn.com; 10/4 Th Suriyaphong; 8am-7pm), a short walk from Wat Phumin, offers a variety of local textiles and handicrafts in one location. And just up the road, Peera (0 5475 7007; 26 Th Suriyaphong; 8am-7pm) offers high-quality local textiles, mostly women’s skirts and blouses. There’s also a silver shop attached to Nan Fah Hotel (opposite).
Getting There & Away
AIR
Nok Air (nationwide call centre 1318; www.nokair.co.th) and PB Air (0 5477 1729; www.pbair.com; Nan Airport) operate a code-share flight between Nan and Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi (3440B, 1⅓ hours, once daily).
BUS
From Nan all buses, including privately run buses, leave from the bus terminal at the southwestern edge of town. A motorcycle taxi from the station to the centre of town costs 25B.
To get to the border crossing at Ban Huay Kon, you’ll need to take a bus to Ngob (85B, 2½ hours); buses leave once every hour during the day. For details on getting to the border, Click here.
If you’re connecting to the train station at Den Chai in Phrae, there are buses on a nearly hourly basis during the day (ordinary/2nd class air-con 71/99B, three hours).
The most convenient route to Chiang Mai is via Phrae and Lampang (2nd class air-con/1st class/VIP 221/284/442B, five hours), with departures leaving on a regular basis during the day. To Chiang Rai, there are two daily departures (2nd class air-con 176B, five hours, 9am and 9.30am).
There are numerous buses to Bangkok (2nd class air-con/1st class/VIP 414/523/829B, 10 to 11 hours, from 8am to 9am and 6.45pm to 7.30pm). The private Sombat Tour (0 5471 1078) buses to Bangkok can be found on the road leading to the bus terminal.
SRNG·TĂA·OU
Pick-ups to districts in the northern part of the province (Tha Wang Pha, Pua, Phah Tup) leave from the bus terminal. Southbound srng·ta·ou (for Mae Charim, Wiang Sa, Na Noi) depart from the car park opposite Ratchaphatsadu Market on Th Jettabut.
TRAIN
The northern railway makes a stop in Den Chai, a three-hour bus ride from Nan. Click here for more Den Chai train details.
Getting Around
Shm·lór around town cost 20B to 30B.
Oversea Shop (0 5471 0258; 488 Th Sumonthewarat; bicycles per day 50-80B, motorcycles per day 180-200B; 8.30am-5.30pm) rents out better bicycles and motorcycles than other places in town. It can also handle repairs.
AROUND NAN
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Tham Phah Tup Forest Reserve
This limestone cave complex is about 10km north of Nan and is part of a relatively new wildlife reserve. Some 17 caves have been counted, of which nine are easily located by means of established (but unmarked) trails.
From Nan you can catch a srng·ta·ou bound for Pua or Thung Chang; it will stop at the turn-off to the caves for 30B. The vehicles leave from the bus station.
Nan Riverside Gallery
Twenty kilometres north of Nan on Rte 1080, this private art gallery (0 5479 8046; www.nanartgallery.com; Km20, Rte 1080; admission 20B; 9am-5pm Wed-Sun) exhibits contemporary Nan-influenced art in a peaceful setting. Established in 2004 by Nan artist Winai Prabipoo, the two-storey building holds the more interesting temporary exhibitions downstairs – sculpture, ceramics and