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[title]If you visited Doi Tung, one of Chiang Rai’s northernmost peaks, some 30 years ago and never had a chance to return, you’d barely recognized it today. The once desert-like mountains suffered from mobile plantation and—worse—opium planting; now, it’s one of the lushest areas in the north.
Everything changed when Princess Srinagarindra, the grandmother of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, set up the Doi Tung Development Project in 1988 with an aim to improve the quality of both the people’s lives and the area they lived in. She even had a house built in the vicinity so she could watch her project grow at close range.
Learning from the consequences and successes of previous projects initiated by her son King Bhumibol, the Princess Mother opted to start out “small,” taking a slow contemplative pace—like with everything in her life. She didn’t want to merely give money to those in need; she wanted to help the people stand on their own feet, which is why she carefully created an environment and cultivated micro-industries that the community could benefit from.
Thirty years have passed and, though Princess Srinagarindra didn’t get the chance to see Doi Tung in full bloom, her wish did come true. The once scraggly mountainside is now a lush plantation that produces gorgeous textile, paper and pottery—all trice handmade—and, most importantly, some of the world’s best macadamia nuts and coffee beans. Opium was replaced by harvests more beneficial to the community, both morally and financially. Household income increased 20-fold. The people no longer needed to relocate for work. Life improved in ways no one thought possible. No wonder villagers nicknamed the princess Mae Fah Luang (Princess from the Sky), because she really was a gift from the heavens.
The In Doi Festival is an annual festival that’s celebrated during the cooler months to commemorate how it all began years ago. Doi Tung is more colorful than usual, welcoming visitors to the Doi Tung Royal Villa, gorgeous gardens and the many structures that supplement the royal project. Decorated in a Swiss chateau-style, it’s a sprawling estate that features unexpected details and clever surprises at each turn—don’t miss the map of the zodiac on the ceiling.
You can also meander through the grounds of the Doi Tung Development Project to learn how coffee beans and macadamia nuts—two of the area’s signature products—are grown and harvested. You’ll also get a glimpse of how the other village exports are crafted. At Doi Tung, the use of machines is a rarity; the weaving of textiles, making of paper and molding of pottery are all done by hand. (You won’t dare ask for a discount on artisanal goods after seeing the painstaking care and processes that go into making them.)
Health-conscious gastrophiles can try tasty, veg-heavy tribal food, while selfie-addicted travelers can have unlimited photos with the colorful flowers that seem to bloom everywhere in Doi Tung, and the villagers wearing traditional costumes. The festival also offers hands-on workshops and activities that will bring out the Martha Stewart in you and allow you to take home souvenirs you’ve made yourself.
Many of us in Bangkok grew up learning about Doi Tung and thought it was just all boring propaganda. In Doi Festival proves us wrong, showing instead that something can be bigger than what you’ve read in textbooks, that there are some things worth the wait, and that, sometimes, fairy tales do come true.