Chiang Mai Street Food Tours: Which Evening Tour Is Worth the Money
6 min read
Short answer. For most people the Evening Local Street Food Market Tour is the one to book: €35.83, 4.8 stars from 738 reviews, 2 hours 30 minutes, at least eight dishes at two night markets, hotel pickup and drop-off included, and a group of ten at most. The cheapest serious option is the Michelin Guide street food tour at €26.37, which sells three full portions of Bib Gourmand dishes. The most food for the money is the songthaew food tour: €54.98, four hours, more than 15 tastings.
Side by side
| Option | Duration | From | Rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evening Local Street Food Market Tour | 2 h 30 min | €35.83 | 4.8 (738) | A first night, with pickup |
| Michelin Guide & Street Food Tour | 2 hours | €26.37 | 4.9 (198) | Fewer, famous dishes; lowest price |
| Food Tour by Songtheaw Truck | 4 hours | €54.98 | 4.9 (175) | Big appetites, small group of eight |
| Temples and Street Food Night Tour by Tuk Tuk | 2 hours | €31.96 per group of up to 2 | 4.4 (136) | A couple who want the sights, not a meal |
Prices are per person except the tuk-tuk, which is a private ride priced for up to two.
The one most people book
The evening market tour visits at least two night markets and promises a minimum of eight dishes, among them kanom jeen (rice noodles), Northern Thai specialities, stewed pork leg and coconut dumplings. The group is capped at ten. The price includes all dishes, water, a guide, a leaflet that lists what you tried with Thai phrases for ordering next time, and a round-trip transfer from your hotel in central Chiang Mai. Other drinks and tips are not included. The page adds that the dishes change from night to night.
The restrictions are the thing to read first: the booking page says the tour is not suitable for vegetarians or pescatarians and for children under 8. If anyone in your party does not eat meat, this is a tour to skip rather than negotiate.
The Michelin one: a different idea
The Michelin Guide tour is not trying to be a grazing menu. It sells three full portions of dishes from the Michelin Guide’s Bib Gourmand list, with a guide, over two hours, in a lunch version and a dinner version. The lunch route covers Hakka pink noodle, fried dough and steamed rice-skin dumplings around Warorot Market; the dinner route lists khao soi, Northern Thai sausage and rice dumplings in coconut milk.
You meet the guide in front of the Museum of Broken Relationships on Tha Pae Road; hotel pickup is not included, and the page says the final starting point depends on the option you pick. It offers private or small-group formats, and the only exclusion listed is for children under 2. At €26.37 and 4.9 from 198 reviews it is the best value of the group if you want to eat well rather than a lot. One traveller wrote that the guide adjusted the menu when they had already tried some of the dishes, which tells you the route is not set in stone.
The songthaew one: when you are genuinely hungry
The Chef’s Tour hops between stops in a private songthaew, the red shared-taxi truck, for about four hours and more than 15 tastings: claypot pork belly, sai oua sausage, Shan dishes, larb. The group is at most eight. At €54.98 it is the most expensive of the three guided tours, and reviewers say the portions are regular, so you will eat a lot and may take food home.
Read the restrictions before booking. The page says it is not suitable for vegetarians, vegans, pescatarians, people with food allergies or nut allergies, or anyone who cannot eat soy sauce. It runs come rain or shine. The meeting point is Wat Lok Moli, and hotel pickup and drop-off are not included.
The tuk-tuk night: pretty, but not a meal
The tuk-tuk tour is a private ride for up to two, with hotel pickup. It stops at Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Phra Singh, the Three Kings Monument and one of two markets, Mueang Mai or Warorot, for around 20 minutes each. The page lists food and drinks and the 90 baht entrance fees as not included, so despite the name you pay for the street food yourself, at the stalls.
That makes €31.54 a fair price for two people who want the temples lit up after dark and a quick look at a market, and a poor one for anyone hoping to eat. A cheaper night tuk-tuk tour with only 27 reviews also exists; with that few reviews we would not rely on its 4.6.
Who should not book a food tour
If you eat no meat, skip the first and the third: each page says it cannot cater for it. The Michelin pages do not say either way, so ask the operator before booking. And if you simply want a bowl of khao soi and a cold drink, you do not need a tour: you can walk the markets for nothing, and the money goes to a guide and, on some of them, the pickup.
Putting a night together
Food tours leave your day free. A morning cooking class is the natural counterpart if you want to learn to make what you ate. Or turn the evening into a double: the Muay Thai ticket guide covers the fights, which start at 9 pm. More walking tours are on the food tours page.
Check availability and prices for the Evening Local Street Food Market Tour
Check availability and prices for the Michelin Guide street food tour
Our recommendation
Book the Evening Local Street Food Market Tour for a first night: it has by far the most reviews, hotel pickup is included, and eight dishes is a genuine dinner. Choose the Michelin Guide tour if you would rather have three famous dishes at €26.02. Choose the songthaew tour if you want the long, wide tasting and can meet at Wat Lok Moli. Whichever it is, tell the operator about dietary needs before you book, not at the market.
