Lampang

Talat Kao, Wat Phra That Lampang Luang and Chae Son over three days

Three days fits Lampang well. Day one is a horse carriage ride, Talat Kao's old market street, Ban Sao Nak and the Dhanabadee Ceramic Museum. Day two goes to Wat Phra That Lampang Luang and the Thai Elephant Conservation Center, and day three to the hot spring in Chae Son National Park.

If you fly up from Bangkok, Lampang Airport is only about 2 km from the centre, so even an afternoon arrival leaves the evening free. Begin early with a horse carriage along the Wang River while the air is still cool, then get down at Talat Kao and walk the old market street. Its merchant houses mix Burmese, Chinese and European styles, built with money from the teak trade. Step into Ban Sao Nak, the Lanna house raised on 116 teak pillars,.

In the afternoon, visit the Dhanabadee Ceramic Museum to see how the rooster bowls are shaped and painted, and buy a pair to take home. On a Saturday or Sunday evening, return to Talat Kao for the Kad Kong Ta walking market.

On day two, hire a driver or scooter and leave early for Wat Phra That Lampang Luang, south-west of town, where the morning sun slants through the open teak prayer hall. Continue toward Chiang Mai to the Thai Elephant Conservation Center and its elephant hospital. Keep Chae Son National Park for a third morning: it lies north of the city, and the 73-degree spring is at its most atmospheric while the mist is still rising.

Khao soi, khao taen crackers and hot-spring eggs at Chae Son

Lampang eats northern Thai food. Khao soi, nam phrik ong, sai ua and kaeng hang le are the dishes to know, and the local snack is khao taen, rice crackers drizzled with cane sugar syrup. Chae Son's hot spring cooks eggs in about 15 minutes, and weekend evenings mean the Kad Kong Ta market.

Khao soi, egg noodles in a coconut curry broth under a nest of crisp fried noodles, is the lunchtime standby. Nam phrik ong, a mild chilli dip of minced pork and tomato, comes with boiled vegetables and pork crackling, and sai ua, a herb-packed spicy sausage, goes with sticky rice. Kaeng hang le, the slow-cooked pork curry with Burmese roots, suits a town whose temples were paid for by Burmese teak traders.

The local snack is khao taen, crisp rice crackers drizzled with cane sugar syrup. At Chae Son, the hot spring cooks eggs in about 15 minutes, and stalls there turn them into a spicy egg salad.

For dinner, the night market about a kilometre from the clock tower circle has rows of cheap stalls with tables. At weekends the Kad Kong Ta market on Talat Kao is the best evening graze, with grilled sausages, noodles and sweets laid out along the riverside street.

Lampang's cool months, smoky April and the elephant fair

November to February is the best time to visit Lampang, with December and January lows near 16C and little rain. March and April reach 37C to 38C, often under crop-burning smoke, and August and September each bring more than 200 mm. The Khantok Chang elephant fair and Luang Wiang Lakhon fair change dates yearly.

December and January lows drop to about 16C, enough for a jacket on an early carriage ride, while afternoons stay near 31C to 32C and rain is rare. Smoke from crop burning often hangs over the basin from February into April, dulling the views and the air.

The rains begin in May; at their August and September peak Chae Son's waterfalls run fullest, though afternoons are often wet and the forest roads muddy.

Once a year, the Khantok Chang fair at the Thai Elephant Conservation Center lays out fruit and vegetables for the elephants on khantok, the low Lanna food trays, with an elephant show alongside. The Luang Wiang Lakhon fair, at Wat Phra Kaeo Don Tao and Wat Phra That Lampang Luang, recalls the city's history and customs with processions; confirm its dates with the provincial tourism office.