Don’t overlook this northern highlands gem when considering your next Thai golf escape

By Kent Gray
Thailand has been a holiday favourite for golfers from the UAE for years with Phuket, Pattaya and Hua Hin in the south home to a concentration of highly regarded courses. The Kingdom’s north warrants equal consideration with Chiangmai Highlands Golf and Spa Resort one of the most attractive lures in the country’s tropical highlands. Set in the foot-hills east of Chiang Mai, the resort offers 27 holes of Schmidt-Curley designed golf – the Valley and Highlands nines opened in 2005 and the Mountain nine added in 2015. Here magnificent mountain views meet the strategic challenge and pristine playing surfaces. With 19 private villas, a spa, swimming pool overlooking the course and that famed Thai food and hospitality, it is little wonder Chiangmai Highlands is among Thailand’s most awarded golf resorts, including being named one of the top three resorts in Asia at the 2015 Asian Golf Awards.