"Where all the expats in Thailand want to... " a Chiang Mai Travel Page by riproy

Chiangmai is comfortable, manageable, and has everything you might have a craving for.
The pace here is slower than Bkk, the prices cheaper, and the restaurants more plentiful (if you can believe that), the temperatures a little cooler (at least at night). It can still hit the 40s in the daytime in the hot season, but the the evenings cool down considerably more than Bkk or the south.
Chiangmai is truly a culinary experience. There is such good Thai food at such good prices. Some of the restaurants along the river (Ping) are excellent, but you pay a little more for the ambience. But don't limit yourself to those - there are excellent restaurants all over this city. And not just Thai food. Because of the international residents and tourists that come from all over, there is halal food, middle eastern fair, good sandwich shops, Italian, German, English, and lots of vegetarian and vegan type places too. It is ALL available.
Besides food, the city has history. It celebrated its 750th anniversary recently. The city is walled and has a moat.
Shopping is a big attraction in CM. There are tours of umbrella painting, gem cutting, gold and silver working, paper making facilities that you can join. Plus the famous Night Bazaar and all the little markets too.
Flowers are a big deal and plentiful in CM. There is a flower market close to the Ping River that is amazing, plus the city hosts a flower festival in February.
There are so many wats (temples) in this city, you will run into them everywhere. Some are very old and worth a look.
Songkhran, the Thai new year festival in April, is most famous in Chiangmai. It runs for many days and it is pretty raucous.
Loi Krathong, usually in early November, is beautiful but it can also be get pretty noisy when the explosives emerge.
Also, from Chiangmai there is easy access to the countryside around it. And the countryside is quite spectacular. Lots of trekking companies base themselves here - they are easy to find in the tourist areas.
There is lots to do in this city - you could spend weeks here and still explore new ground. Definitely worth the visit.