Why should you go there and how do you do it right?

Dinner in Pai practically organizes itself. Two streets meet every evening at a T-junction near the main road and fill with vendors selling food, clothing, souvenirs, jewelry, handicrafts, and paintings. The food is the main reason to visit: Thai, Japanese, Korean, Western, Mexican, and halal dishes are inexpensive by Bangkok or Chiang Mai standards, and many visitors find the quality even better than at Chiang Mai's larger night markets. The prices are so low that you can easily sample your way through an entire street and still have room for something on your way back.

The must-visit food truck is "Kwanskie's," a salad cart famous for its Burmese spring rolls. It doesn't have a sign, so you'll either have to ask for directions or watch the queue. There's also a shop selling postcards and stamps, so you can do everything in one place. While much of the market caters to tourists, it's generally easy to navigate, except during festivals and the annual celebration when it gets really crowded.