The Hidden Jungle Town of Pai (Thailand) – Backpacker’s Haven

After our incredible Elephant experience, we decided to travel four hours north to the small jungle town of Pai. This place is known for being a backpackers hub for travelers heading into Burma and towards Laos. The only way to access this town is by way of bus through a ridiculous winding road that snakes through the Thai Mountains. 

We arrived around 5pm and it was easily among my favorite places out of the entire Thailand trip. Within the first 3 hours of our arrival, we had already met 20 people from around the world who all had different stories. We combined our groups and all stayed north of the city in little thatched bungalow huts that overlooked the jungle. 

This place was absolutely amazing; it is a mixing pot of cultures from everywhere and we had a blast exploring with our new friends. 

During the day, the entire town is out and about riding mopeds, hiking, exploring, and going on jungle excursions. At night, everyone returns to the town and hangs out until the beautiful sunrise. 

We spent three days exploring Pai. We met the indigenous hill tribes, rode mopeds from waterfall to waterfall, and went on several adventures in the jungle. 

On the second day as we were coming down from one of the hill tribe villages, we saw a sign on the side of the road for a jungle party. I drove down the dirt road to a clearing where there were a few people setting up speakers alongside an electric generator in the middle of the jungle with bamboo bar structures on each side and a massive wooden stage. We found out that once a month, there is a secret rave where they play electro and trance music in the jungle and throw a massive party. It started at 9pm so we went back to town and came back with a huge crew around 11pm. This night was wild… Over 400 people showed up (essentially the entire town) and there were fire spinners, body painters, and tribal dancers. It was an experience we would never forget. 

The following morning, I thought it would be a good idea to take mopeds and head to the hot springs north of town to detox… We finished up our jungle journey and decided that it was time to head back to Bangkok for our final day before we had to fly out. Until next time Pai. I will definitely be returning to this jungle paradise in the future!