By Ike Morris, Caitlin Maloney and Sarah Goff-Tunks
There is a buzz about the city of Chiang Mai, with its proliferation of live music venues and night markets, that other major cities around the world are waking up to.
Thailand’s second largest city after Bangkok has a booming night time economy and is increasingly being seen as an example of successful city events planning.
And unlike many large global cities, such as Sydney, which has long documented problems fostering a healthy night economy, Chiang Mai’s success is proving a major boost to the country’s tourism sector as well.
Situated in the country’s north, Chiang Mai has become a hit with overseas visitors, with 64 per cent of foreign tourists heading to the northern Thai provinces opting to visit the city in 2024, according to the Bank of Thailand.
The city is fit for everyone, and also the city is not too big and you [are] very close with the culture and nature.
Imhathai Kunjina, the Chiang Mai director of the Creative Economy Agency (CEA), said people were flocking to Chiang Mai for a variety of reasons.
“The city is fit for everyone, and also the city is not too big and you [are] very close with the culture and nature,” she said. “So all the environments support you in terms of the city that you can work [in], and to have creativity.”
The CEA, a Thai government organisation overseeing the development and promotion of the country’s creative industries, was set up in 2018 with a remit to create an ecosystem of creative workers and a balanced and sustainable economy.
According to the United Nations, Chiang Mai’s tourism and services sector – much of which consists of arts and cultural programs – makes up over 76 per cent of its gross provincial product; a measure of all of the income generated within the province.
CEA Chiang Mai director Imathai Kunjina. Image: Caitlin Maloney.
Kunjina said events like the Chiang Mai Street Jazz Festival contribute greatly to revenue generated for the local economy. Held over eight days every December, the 2024 festival was the sixth of its kind and featured over 30 ensemble acts performing at jazz bars across the city. Over time, according to Kunjina, the festival has seen major growth as new venues open and organisers include more of the province’s local culture in the program.
“It’s not just [limited] to jazz. Now [the festival tries] to combine with the local music, with Lanna instruments and Lanna (Northern Thai folk) music, as well,” she adds.
“I think [the] impact of [the jazz festival] to the city is [it] can support the tourism economy as well, not just … the creative economy.”
The CEA ensures Thailand’s creative sector is boosted through its Creative Economy Promotion Plan. The plan, which was revised last year, sets out long-term strategies including a target of organising several large-scale creative festivals in the Northern provinces over five years, which could generate 410 million Thai baht ($19.5 million).
Beyond the economic benefits, Kunjina believes the success of the CEA’s plan will come through greater awareness of the creative industries amongst locals and tourists, as well as a better understanding of the industry processes professionals must follow.
“People get to understand [the CEA’s role] better,” she said.
“[Professionals] also know how to propose [and] to work together with the private sector and government, or the creative sector or between universities, so that is a good thing.”
A strong creative scene in Chiang Mai is one of the aims of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, as part of a broader aim to promote sustainable economic growth. Chiang Mai was declared a UNESCO Creative City in 2017, which recognised the sector’s efforts to raise more awareness of its crafts and folk arts scene, and to connect artists and entrepreneurs with international stakeholders.
Kunjina added the annual Chiang Mai Design Week is also helping this mission. The festival sees entrepreneurs and other creative professionals come together and present original design solutions to lifestyle and environmental challenges, such as climate change. Kunjina said the lessons learnt are being applied within other sectors of the city, such as agriculture and business.
Live music nightly is a feature of venues across Chiang Mai. Photo: Martin Newman.
A band at the North Gate Jazz Co-Op in Chiang Mai. Photo: Martin Newman.
“[The Chiang Mai Design Week] is one kind of resource that [we can] mix and match between the [creative industries] and local wisdom, and to also apply [new] technologies and think about sustainability,” she said.
“We made the program to [make them] aware that if you don’t want to start today, in the future, it will be more expensive, or you will [be] left behind – you cannot [be] competitive with others. So if you want to start today, we will help you to provide the tools.
“All of the sectors [in the city] … are aware already because the northern [provinces] are facing climate change, and also we know that we’re gonna be a [major] tourism destination.”
She said events like the Design Week also allowed professionals to feel more confident in developing and budgeting strategies that would boost the sector’s economic impact.
Kunjina sees a bright future on the horizon for Chiang Mai’s creative sector – as long as the right priorities are set and every stakeholder works together in a sustainable way to achieve those goals.
“Every project that we initiate is [a] challenge to make people understand what we are doing… because some projects we cannot just create and get the result in, like, a month, so it changes little by little.”
Main image of Chiang Mai Design Week Pop Market by Ike Morris.
