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A fraction of the size of Chiang Mai’s more famous night bazaar, the mini version in downtown Chiang Rai is still a pleasant and fun place for an evening stroll and an excellent option for snacks and a beer or dinner.

The offerings are similar, though much reduced in choice, to the vast Chiang Mai version: hill-tribe handicrafts, pirated DVDs, T-shirts, carved soap candles and so on — though how many Hmong shoulder bags can one possibly need? One welcome improvement on the big city’s version though is that the Chiang Rai one is entirely pedestrian only so you don’t risk being run over by a tuk-tuk crossing from one row of stalls to another.