Burning Season in Chiang Mai
By March, Chiang Mai often lands on the “worst air quality” lists worldwide. You’ll smell it, see it, and maybe feel it in your lungs. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t visit.
Visit in Burning Season and you’re
in the club. 😉
🔥
🔥
Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) during burning season. Photo taken the first week of March.
☀️ When It Happens & Why
Each dry season, farmers across northern Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar burn leftover crop stubble to prep their fields before the rains. It’s technically illegal, but still widespread—and the PM 2.5 readings go off the charts. The locals treat it like the seventh year cicada infestation—an unavoidable annoyance. It feels almost like an inside joke amongst residents that it’s illegal. 😂
Farmers say it “fertilizes” the soil. It does clear residue and releases nutrients quickly back into the soil, but in reality it’s a quick fix that depletes the soil over time. Locals know this and tease the farmers (maybe not to their faces) who just can’t help but burn, baby burn. 🔥
NASA Fire Map 🗺️
This screenshot was from one of our days there—no wonder the mountains vanished behind a gray wall.
🛰️ NASA Fire Map
Check what’s burning right now on NASA’s FIRMS Fire Map. It’s a real-time hotspot tracker that updates every few hours and shows hundreds of glowing red clusters across northern Thailand during peak season.
My friends Matt & Audrey Pound have lived in Chiang Mai since 2015 and keep an eye on the fire map to watch out for their family’s safety. They shared the site with me over dinner at Lemongrass. Anytime a local suggests a restaurant, you say: YES, PLEASE! 🙋🏻♀️ It was very tasty and only a short walk from a local night market.
Lemongrass is open until midnight? Awesome.
Pro tip: order a bunch of things to share with the whole table.
✈️ Should You Visit Anyway?
If you want crisp mountain air, come November to January instead. But if your travel dates are fixed for the spring or you enjoy off-season experiences like me and are sensitive to air quality…
Stay somewhere with an air purifier.
Plan more indoor or evening adventures.
Maybe bring face masks (KN95 or any style you’re actually willing to wear).
My low-key lifesavers were a couple of travel-size sprays — one for my eyes, one for my nose (these drops + that spray). Our hotel already had purification, but I’d pack a portable purifier (this one) if I were budget traveling or just wanted to be extra cautious.
We brought masks but didn’t really enjoy wearing them. When the air got heavy, I’d step outside a café, blink twice, spritz once, and suddenly the world looked tolerable again. Overall I don’t think the smoke hindered the experience.
Doi Suthep in March.
Not such a great view from the high temple during Burning Season—just a pale blank space where the peaks should be.
I used to get bronchitis every year as a teenager (long story), so I’m not completely free from breathing issues. Even so, it wasn’t that bad — nowhere near as rough as being short of breath at high altitude. My first day in Latacunga, Ecuador 🇪🇨 (not to mention the first night in Cusco, Peru 🇵🇪) I remember real difficulty breathing. I didn’t experience anything close to that in Chiang Mai, Thailand. 🇹🇭👍🏼
Bring face masks.
You will see Thai people wear them too… a local staple well before the pandemic.
I asked our food tour guide if everyone still wore masks for COVID, smoke, or smog? She laughed: “For COVID, for smoke—for everything!”
That’s Chiang Mai in a nutshell—humor and resilience. Air purifiers hum in cafés, scooters weave through the haze, and temple gold still glows against the muted sky.
We had some face masks along but barely used them. It was our personal preference and the smoke didn’t get to us enough for it to be an issue, despite spending most of our time outside.
The Silver Lining
The haze made for unreal sunrises and sunsets. The sky turned coral and gold; the sun a diffused lamp.
If you love photography, you’ll get cinematic light.
📍 Quick Tips
Best months to avoid smoke: November – January
Peak burning: mid-March to early April
Check air quality: aqicn.org/city/chiang-mai
Live fire map: NASA FIRMS
Escape the haze: Koh Samui, Krabi, or the Gulf Islands (air is cleaner, same warmth)
We loved Chiang Mai despite the smoke.
But I wish we could’ve seen the mountains. This elephant sanctuary was photographed in March.
🇹🇭 Final Thoughts
We still loved our time in Chiang Mai. The people were kind, the food was unforgettable, and every evening felt painted in slow-motion color. If you fly in or out: pick a window seat. You can literally watch the layer of haze in real time and once you pop up over the smoke it’s clear skies as far as the eye can see. It’s mind-blowing. ✈️🌏
Travel rarely looks perfect—and that’s exactly why it’s worth seeing.
If you’re planning a trip to Thailand click here to see my other Thai posts. 😊
💛 Faithful Heart
If you appreciate Matt and Audrey’s local tips, consider supporting their
It’s not a big organization — just two kids who moved to Thailand, are raising their own kids there, and building a home for others who have none.
That’s it. They quietly support around 40+ families and 90+ children each month, run children’s homes, and help 50+ college students through scholarships. Every donation goes directly to local Thai families.
Matt, Audrey, Ezra & Sienna Pound
To learn more about the Pounds, visit their blog. They write with such candor — check out the post where Audrey opens up about her anxiety around stateside visits: “Do our friends remember us?” You’ll get a peek into local Thai life from a non-travel perspective. It’s honest, vulnerable, and exactly the kind of real life work that does good in this world. 🌏