Merchant Villa

We were sad to leave Merchant Villa, and only couldn’t extend again because it was fully booked. The staff are warm and friendly, and they give you room to relax in privacy. Our rooms were beautiful and very clean. Getting around Chiang Mai is easy with a scooter or the GRAB app. I was surprised to see comments about a lack of restaurants nearby, because we ate plenty of local food at so many places. There are lots of restaurants and two 7/11s close by. Coffee or me does good coffee and matcha, and Taste of Art coffee roaster, about 1km away, serves tasty eggs, bagels, and smoothie bowls. We’ve already missed the place and will definitely return.

The rooms are a good size, and having a bathtub was a nice bonus. The pool, though, is cold 🥶. It’s very quiet, but you’ll need transport since nothing is within walking distance. There’s no bar or food at the hotel; after the coffee shop closes at 5pm, with its limited cakes and paninis, you’d need to use Grab Food Delivery. The place feels more like a serviced apartment than a hotel, and rather deserted, with little atmosphere. On arrival I waited almost an hour to check in because nobody was at the desk. Reception staff seem to mainly be there for security.

The rooms are quite large, and the service was okay. It’s tucked into a village, so the area is very quiet. There isn’t all-day dining on site, but they give you a beverage coupon for coffee at the Coffee or me cafe on the property. The old town gate is about 7-8km away.

The staff were consistently cheerful and willing to help, and the location was very quiet apart from the ongoing air traffic. We had to change rooms because the air conditioner in ours made a loud clicking sound all night. In the next room, the AC evaporator smelled horrendous, probably because it hadn’t been cleaned.