Chiang Mai construction and transport report – 2025 edition

The big Night Bazaar redevelopment, turning the old women’s prison into a park, an unusual abandoned mall waiting for a developer, a modern apartment tower in a potential future hotspot, the light rail plan, the two airports plan, and waterway rehabilitation.

Chiang Mai is one of my home bases in Southeast Asia, so I have got to know the city well. Despite the amount of time I spend here, this is my first construction report. This is partly due to being lulled into the laid-back provincial lifestyle that makes the city famous.

There is also not a lot to report on compared to the coastal and island projects of Thailand. There are only a few flashy apartment towers to report on, and the apartment market is experiencing a downturn. I don’t think this is a bad thing, as it keeps the market affordable for locals. It’s just that there are not as many modern apartment towers for a city this size.

Here are some of the main projects that are underway, as well as a look at the future transport plans for the city.

Chiang Mai Projects

Lannatique – Night Bazaar development

Lannatique

The most notable new development in 2025 for Chiang Mai is Lannatique in the Kalare Night Bazaar area. Lannatique is described as a “world-class lifestyle landmark for art tourism”. It will have an art and craft shopping area, markets, and hotels.

The Night Bazaar area is run-down with unremarkable water-stained concrete boxes (like much of urban Thailand), so some new buildings in this area will be welcome.

One of the Lannatique building sites at the Night Bazaar

There are three separate sites on the main Night Bazaar road.

Lannatique project map

The project will include a trolley bus called the “Chiang Mai Tram”, so that is going to ruin my search results when I am looking for news about the proposed light rail (more on that below).

Lannatique Chiang Mai Tram

Chiang Mai Women’s Prison redevelopment

Plan for Women’s Prison redevelopment

One of the largest projects in terms of land size is the redevelopment of the former Chiang Mai Women’s Prison. The old prison is in the middle of the Old City area, so it can’t be turned into a major commercial site. Instead, the land will be turned into a much-needed public park (a rarity in the Old City).

Perhaps because it has no commercial value, the redevelopment has stalled. The land has been cleared, but the site is still boarded up.

One of the corner watchtowers is still intact, so that would be good to keep that as a historic link to the park’s past.

Kad Suan Kaew

Kad Suan Kaew

The Kad Suan Kaew shopping complex is located between the Old City and the trendy Nimman area. The mall opened in 1992, and it featured a Cineplex, an office building and a hotel. Kad Suan Kaew closed in 2022, and it was listed for sale in 2024.

I’m hopeful that the prospective buyer will renovate the building and not demolish it. It’s an unusual sight to see such a large brick-clad building, especially a mall. Most malls in Thailand are now big boxy concrete blocks.

Arise Charoen Mueang

Arise Charoen Muang

There are not many apartment towers in the city area, so this will be a welcome addition. The lack of apartments is due to no tall buildings being allowed in the Old City. Also, the popular Nimman area is in the airport flight path, where there are height restrictions.

Nimman flight path

Most of the new apartments are on the east side of the city. The only tall tower that is finishing this year is Arise Charoen Mueang. Workers were putting finishing touches to the building when I visited.

The apartment is near the Chiang Mai Superhighway, which is a great road for cars but terrible for pedestrians.

Arise Charoen Mueang as viewed from the Superhighway

I went out to have a look at what the neighbourhood is like. I was also curious to see the location because it is near the Blue Line of the proposed LRT. If the LRT were built, then this would connect the apartment to the old city and Nimman Road on the west side, passing Chiang Mai Railway Station on the way. The light rail line would then make this a desirable location where you wouldn’t need a car.

Transport

Chiang Mai Mass Transit

Map of the proposed Chiang Mai LRT

The Chiang Mai Mass Transit is a proposed 3-line light rail system (including the aforementioned Blue Line). Proposals for a transit system go back to the early 2000s, so no one is getting their hopes up about this being built anytime soon.

There are signs that a transit system is being planned, including literal signs at some of the station locations for the Red Line (the first line that is being planned). I walked the entire length of the proposed Red Line to get a feel for the station locations.

Read more about the proposed Chiang Mai Mass Transit.

Bangkok-Chiang Mai High-Speed Railway

Chiang Mai High Speed Railway Station– Concept design by Phichak Wirotchanaphirom.

The Bangkok-Chiang Mai High-Speed Railway was proposed in 2011, and it’s looking less likely to be built with each passing year. The State Railway of Thailand is doubling down on the double-tracking of the metre-gauge railway to Chiang Mai, so the HSR plan is on hold.

The double-tracking of the metre-gauge railway will improve train speeds, but not enough to move people away from flying. They should have converted the entire railway system to standard gauge, with some corridors using high-speed railway.

I keep a complete archive of news updates about the high-speed railway at the Bangkok-Chiang Mai High-Speed Railway page.

Chiang Mai airports

Airports of Thailand (AOT) plans to expand Chiang Mai International Airport to be able to handle 13 million international passengers and 7 million domestic passengers. The airport handled over 11 million passengers in 2019, which is a record that has not been surpassed.

There is also a plan for a Second Chiang Mai International Airport (Lanna International Airport), though there have not been any recent updates on this.

If the current airport is expanded, then it would be a waste of resources to build a second airport. Furthermore, Chiang Mai could drastically reduce the number of domestic flights if the Bangkok–Chiang Mai high-speed railway were built.

Here is what the domestic departure board looked like on my most recent flight out of Chiang Mai (I was on the only non-Bangkok flight).

If the high-speed railway were built, it would provide a competitive alternative to flying and create new interest in travel to Chiang Mai if a comfortable train alternative were available. The high-speed railway would also renew travel interest in the historic cities in Central and Northern Thailand.

The airlines should also welcome the high-speed railway, as it would free up aircraft to deploy on unserved routes to Chiang Mai.

Waterways

Ping River dredging

The Ping River is the main river that flows through Chiang Mai. After the big flood of 2024, the government has been dredging the river near the city centre.

Mae Kha Canal renovation

There are many canals and natural waterways that run between the mountain and the river, but most of these waterways are hidden by urban encroachment.

A hidden canal in Chiang Mai

One waterway that is being reclaimed is Khlong Mae Kha (Mae Kha Canal). This canal formed part of the outer wall, which was an additional wall to the moated area.

Map source.

There are only remnants of the outer wall, so it is not a historical site. The Mae Kha Canal is being renovated by clearing houses on the water and building walkways.

You can see renovations in progress at the end of the walkway. Unfortunately, there is still wastewater entering the canal, so it is not clean. My dream is for pure water to run from the mountain to the river. If a clean river can run through Tokyo, then why not Chiang Mai?