Thailand Guide
The north
The Tribal Museum
Address: 1km north of the Superhighway off Thanon Chotana
Opening time: Mon– Fri 9am–4pm
Price: Free, but various charges for audiovisuals
The Tribal Museum enjoys a superb location behind the artfully landscaped Ratchamangkla Park. Overlooking a tree-lined lake, the very pretty and peaceful setting makes a visit worthwhile, as does the opportunity to learn something about the various hill tribes before heading off on a trek.
Set out on three floors, the museum has its main exhibition area on the ground floor, where displays about each of the main hill tribes are accompanied by concise information printed in both Thai and English. A useful wall chart shows the calendar of traditional village life, giving a month-by-month picture of the agricultural activities, ceremonies and festivals of the tribes featured; there are also photos and models of village dwellings, giving a good idea of the different styles of architecture, and a display of hill-tribe instruments accompanied by taped music. If you are especially interested, ask to see the slide show and video. Despite the saccharine American narrator, the video is interesting, describing the six main tribes and showing a festival for each; by the end of it you should be able to distinguish between the modes of dress of the various tribes. Reconstructions of hill-tribe houses have been erected erected along the south side of the lake.
On the first Saturday of each month, there's an all-day tribal market, selling clothes, handicrafts and organic agricultural products, with the highlight on a different tribe each month.