Soi One Bedrooms ? Best Place To Stay In Pai

We were sitting in our hotel room in Pai (pronounced “Pie” and called?”Pai Town” by some), listening to the strong patter of rain and the thunder of the storm passing through the mountain town. We had made it back from sightseeing just in time, with only minimal soakage (luckily we had our ponchos with us) and we were pumped to spend some time in our air conditioned, clean, beautifully decorated boutique room we splurged a bit on for the night. We needed it though. As sad as it may sound, after almost 3 weeks of travelling, staying in hostels, hutongs, even a beautiful guesthouse, we had yet to have a really good?shower. We needed to feel clean, refreshed and relaxed. So when we met the owner of one of the cafes in Pai where we stopped in to do some work and grab a caffeine boost and he mentioned his four bedroom boutique hotel, we decided that if we could afford it, and they had an available room, we would book it for the next night. Luckily, Sunday nights are their slow nights and they had one room remaining for us to book. As we walked into our room we realized that we have probably stumbled upon the best place to stay in Pai.

The Room

So there we were, freshly showered, feeling clean and probably smelling better than we had in weeks, kicking back in what felt like complete luxury. We were in the Gold Room of Soi One Bedrooms. One of the aforementioned four rooms, the Gold room is the only one with two twin beds, rather than one large bed, and had a small patio out front with a seating area. ?The room was nicely decorated with various artistic touches throughout. From the handmade, colourful lamp shade hanging from the ceiling, to the beautifully crafted pillows on the wooden chairs, the decor fit wonderfully with the room and the feel and vibe of the hotel and of Pai. Perhaps it was the fact that we’d been travelling so long, but not only was it decorated well, it smelled amazing. We were impressed with the cleanliness of the beds, the room and the washroom and were almost brought to tears when we tried the shower and found it had hot water?and good pressure.

There was even a mini-fridge, kettle, coffee mugs and enough outlets to charge?all our gadgets. It took quite a bit to get out of the hotel room once we were there. We wanted to enjoy the comfort and feel of the room but knew we only had that last night in Pai to wander and explore. So we went out that night and relished the thought of being able to rest our head on a comfortable pillow, in a nice room, with a hot shower awaiting us in the morning. We did contemplate staying just one more night, but all the rooms were booked and judging by our experience, we expect they fill up fast!

The Property & Reception

The property itself felt like a little oasis with a small central area enclosing the staircase to the upstairs rooms and a small dining area for the attached restaurant. The two workers at reception were incredibly friendly and helpful and went above and beyond to accommodate and assist us with all of our needs. It’s our experience that in general?people in Thailand are genuinely willing to help, but these two exceeded our expectations. We checked out a little early to head back to Chiang Mai and the lady at reception offered not only to hold our bags, but to use her personal umbrella to get to a restaurant for breakfast in the rain! She then provided us with large black garbage bags to cover up our backpacks for the long ride through the mountain in the event the rain began again.

While we didn’t patronize the restaurant, or the spa/massage parlor affiliated with Soi One Bedrooms,?the areas looked inviting and clean. Had we planned to stay longer in Pai, we definitely would have made an effort to dine at the restaurant and maybe even venture to the spa for a Thai massage.

Overall, this was a hotel we were tremendously glad we were able to book and would definitely go back if we had the opportunity. It was located right on the Pai walking street and off of one of the major bar streets, which was great even if it was a little noisy until 11pm.?Since it was in the heart of the city, and walking street, there was a ton of things to do and see right off the front steps including?restaurants, bars, walking street vendors, souvenir shops, coffee shops and convenience stores. There were several scooter rentals nearby for those that took the bus in and wanted to explore outside the city to the many viewpoints, waterfalls and other attractions Pai has to offer. (Drivers beware: there are a lot of people driving scooters for the first time in Pai and we saw many a bandaged and wounded Pai tourist.) We were?pleased at the great value we received for our money. The only real downside was there were only 4 rooms so even though, like most places in Southeast Asia, you can get almost half price for a walk-in, it fills up fast and you aren’t guaranteed a room if you don’t book in advance, But if you’re lucky enough to get a room, you wont be disappointed because in our opinion it’s the best place to stay in pai.

Click here for Soi One’s latest prices and more info.

If you can’t get a room at Soi One during your stay in Pai, don’t worry, there are many hotels in Pai to choose from, just check out?How We Slice It ? A Guide to Pai. Part One: Where to Stay?for a couple great options, or find Pai hotels by visiting our friends from Hotels Combined and they will defiantly help you out for your search for some great accommodations.

We Also have other information that you might want to sink our teeth into… like “How To Get From Chiang Mai To Pai”?and “What To Do In Pai”?when you get there.

When In Pai… You Must Eat Cake

Pai Siam Bistro

A visit to Pai Siam Bistro was?what started the change in our plans and lead to our stay at Soi One Bedrooms. Walking down the street in Pai, we were looking for a place to escape the walking street for a moment, grab a coffee to refuel and get some work done. We happened across the entrance to Pai Siam, first enticed by the “gelati” stand out front but drawn in by the look and appeal of the narrow bistro. Sitting down at one of the tables we were immediately given?a menu offering a range of tasty sounding food and coffeehouse style drinks. Opting for a hot and a cold cappuccino, we signed on to their free Wi-Fi and settled in to do some work. ?Incredibly comfortable, with a great ambiance, this bistro was the perfect spot?for us. We took a moment to enjoy the handmade lampshades decorating the space and the soft bluesy sounding music playing in the background. ?The lampshades are made and sold in the partnering and attached shop next door and add some crafty elegance to the bistro.

Our drinks were great. The smiley face in the hot cappuccino was a cute touch that had us chuckling. At a second visit the next day, we tried out an iced latte as well which was just as delicious. It was a great place for us to get work done and then just relax. Unfortunately we did not get a chance to try any of the food on the menu but we heard a series of compliments regarding the food from customers sitting around us on both visits. A neat aspect of this restaurant was the handmade lampshades (such as those in the room at Soi One Bedrooms). Like we mentioned, these were made and sold at the shop next door but all the lamps on display at the bistro were also available for purchase! It’s a great theme that flows between all the properties. We liked it so much here that we included it in our?Top 5 Cafes In Northern Thailand?post… well deserved.

While sitting there, we started chatting with a very friendly man from Scotland whom we later found out owned the bistro (and Soi One Bedrooms) along with his wife. Engaging, warm and fun we enjoyed talking to him and learning a bit of his perspective on life as an expat for 15 years and his growing business in Pai. The bistro was fairly new, opening just a short time ago and complemented his boutique shop next door. We started eyeing their gelati stand again from our seat and were told by the owner that they had a selection of freshly made cakes and desserts in the display at the front. Taking a peek at the assortment, we were told the rainbow crepe cake was a must-try. So of course, we did! The many layers of rainbow coloured crepes were held together by some type of cream cheese frosting and topped with jam and a scoop of ice cream. The combination of the flavours were perfect and we devoured it pretty quickly. Definitely one of?the best desserts we’ve had in a long time.

We feel our visit to?Pai was enhanced by our stay at Soi One Bedrooms and the coffee and dessert was a topping on the Cake (see what we did there?) from the little bistro called Pai Siam. Sure, we would have had a blast whether we stayed there or not, and there is a lot to do and see in and around Pai, but our night in the nicest?hotel in pai, our smiley faced cappuccino and our delicious and unique crepe dessert made it extra special and extra memorable.

Click here for Soi One’s latest prices and more info.

Take a look at the map below to see how to get to Pai and where Soi One Bedrooms is located.