This place started off normal enough — a hot springs that brings forth 105 degree Celsius from the earth. Plenty of flowers and green space… then this statue of eggs? Welcome to the Sankampaeng Hot Springs.
Until the mid-to-late 20th century, the area was nothing was a grassland with natural hot wells the villagers used for boiling bamboo shoots. That changed in 1972, when oil got expensive enough to make geothermal electricity viable. The powers that be did a survey, but postponed the plans to harness the energy. Instead, the place became a tourist attraction in December 1984, using plenty of water activities to make it worth your while.
Your first choice: swimming pool, mineral bath, or foot bath? If you planned ahead and brought your swimsuit, the outdoor covered pool (50 baht) has plenty of room to swim laps or just wade. The mineral bath options include with a basin (60–80 baht) and your own private bathing hut (200 baht). While it’s warm enough on a sunny day most anytime of the year, the first few months of the year weren’t quite warm enough for yours truly.
Since this is Thailand, a dual-pricing system is unfortunately in effect. While the prices are already pretty decent in English, it’s 80 baht for 1/2 hour and 140 baht for an hour in the Thai numerals.
This is perhaps the star of the show — the free public foot baths. The hot water is filtered and cooled down from above boiling to a warmish temperature your feet can enjoy. Roll-up your pant legs and take off your footwear and dunk your feet in. Get closer to the hot spring and it gets a bit warmer, but never particularly hot.
Along the foot baths you’re never too far from plenty of snacks and drinks. Don’t forget about the eggs, though — a helpful sign tells you how long to cook them. Buy a basket and some eggs, then head to the waist-high pools for food only.
If you have a sensitive sniffer, this is not the place you’ll want to hang out. Instead, you can feel the heat — and smell the sulphur — coming off of the aforementioned pools of water I’ll call the ‘egg cookers’. I could only stand it for a few minutes at a time. The foot baths do not have any sulphuric smells, though.
In any case, the 105 C. water boils eggs in mere minutes, and the snack can be rinsed off at another sink using fresh water. It (should) go without saying, but if the eggs have been cracked during cooking, they’re probably not safe to eat.
Approaching the hot spring itself is relatively easy, but for obvious reasons you can’t get too close to the spout itself. Walk around a bit more, soak your feet, or enjoy the flowers — unless you’re spending a lot of time in the pool, you’ll probably be ready to move on after an hour or two.
Name: Sankampaeng Hot Springs (also called Sankhampang Hot Springs Royal Project)
Address: 1 Moo 7 Tambon Ban Sahakron, Mae On, Chiang Mai, Thailand, 50130 (GPS: 18.814444,99.229576)
Directions: A yellow songthaew can take you here from Chiang Mai, and I imagine a tuk-tuk would be happy to as well for an inflated price. Assuming you have your own transportation, start from the superhighway in Chiang Mai (route 11). Head south and out of town like you’re going to Lampang or the 700 Year Park. Take a left onto route 1317 and cruise for about 28 kilometers. You’ll be getting close when you see a resort on your left — begin looking for a large yellow sign with unmistakable English. Bear right down the side road just before the sign, then look for parking in a few hundred meters.
Hours: Not marked on-site
Admission: Dual-pricing system in effect; tourists will pay 100 baht for admission (Thais and residents pay 40 baht). Facilities include a ‘traditional style mineral bath’ (60 baht), guest houses (300 baht / hour), and more.
Phone: 053–037101
Website: none
