Mae Sot Tourist Attractions
The majority of travellers just make a quick beeline through Mae Sot to the border with Myanmar but even if it is your case you can still spend a couple of hours to visit the border market and admire a bizarre Burmese style temple nearby.
Rim Moei Market
Located close to the border on the bank of the river Moei, this market is worth a visit even if you’re not planning to cross the bridge to Myanmar. Every night plenty of vendors will set up well organized shops and stalls where you can find mainly local Burmese products. Gems and jewellery are the big attraction here (be careful of scums though), but you’ll also find traditional clothes, military uniform, handicrafts and Buddha statues. Cigarettes and alcohol are cheaper than everywhere else in Thailand (but more expensive than in Myanmar, so if you’re crossing the border you better buy them there). Bargaining is a must; don’t feel ashamed to offer a lot lower price than what the seller initially asks. You can easily spend a few hours browsing around different shops and if you’re hungry seafood is surprisingly fresh, delicious and cheap.
To get there, take a motorbike taxi in town for THB100 or hop onto the blue songthaew for THB20. The market is open every day from 7.30am until 6.30pm.
Wat Chumphon Khiri
This temple is located in the city centre close to the market area. Built more than 200 years ago in Burmese style, it went through several renovations and nowadays features a 20 meter high central golden chedi which is the exact replica (but smaller in size) of the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. Twenty smaller satellite pagodas surround the central one which also contain sacred Buddha images. It’s a nice place to visit since you can easily understand the architectural difference from other temples that you’ll probably visit during your trip in Thailand. Opening hours are from 6.00am to 5.00pm and admission is free of charge.
Wat Thai Wattanaram
Built in 1639 by King Prasat Tong to commemorate his mother, this temple is a unique mix of Thai and Burmese styles. During the centuries, the Burmese Yai ethnic group made a lot of additions to the original structures following the traditional Mahayana style. The temple features a giant reclining Buddha, and a number of stupas, chedis and buildings which look the way too colourful to be a religious site; quite bizarre but definitely interesting and unique.
Wat Thai Wattanaram is located midway between the airport and the border. Combine it with your visit to Rim Moei Market to save some baht for the taxi. Visitors are welcomed every day from 8.00am to 5.00pm.
Mae Tao clinic
Mae Tao clinic has been found by Dr Cynthia Maung in 1989 to provide medical healthcare to Burmese refugees. Dr Cynthia is of Karen ethnicity as well and for almost 30 years she has been running the clinic with a team of roughly a hundred of paramedics, volunteers and teachers; they offer help, basic medical care and even more complex treatment to thousands of people that otherwise would have no access to healthcare whatsoever.
Patients are mostly local residents of Mae Sot but there are also people who have traveled for days from Myanmar (sometimes crossing the border illegally) to get to the only help they can. The clinic organizes regular trips to the other side of the border to give help to people unable to travel. It’s estimated that every year the clinic gives some sort of medical care to more than 60,000 people. Tourists are welcome to visit the clinic and to get an idea about the incredible work they’ve been doing and keep doing. Please consider donating a little to help them going on. The clinic has recently moved from the central location to a new bigger building just north of town. A motorbike taxi will take you there for THB50.
