Early morning winter exclusive! It wasn't a lotus, lol. Went to Udon Thani to see water lilies
I've been traveling domestically almost every week this month.
Anyway, this time,
I made a quick 2-day, 1-night trip
to Udon Thani, 650km away.
If you go a little further north, you're in Laos 🇱🇦
About a 1-hour flight from Chiang Mai.
It takes about 15 minutes from the airport to the city.
*Flights from Bangkok run almost every hour, but from Chiang Mai, there is only one Nok Air flight per day (as of February 2026).
From Udon Thani Airport,
the destination of this trip,
Red Lotus Lake Kumphawapi, is another 40km away.
*Talay Bua Daeng (meaning Sea of Red Lotuses)
Official name: Nong Han Lake
You can only see the water lilies in full bloom
between December and February.
Moreover, they only bloom from early morning until noon. They have a nature like morning glories.
I booked the flight on impulse a few days ago.
I ended up coming here without even deciding on a place to stay 💦
As expected, all the accommodations around the lake were fully booked.
On the other hand, there are many places to stay around Udon Thani Station, and it seemed like there were vacancies everywhere.
Since it's an early morning activity, I actually wanted to stay near the lake, but in the end, staying in the city might have been the right choice.
There is really nothing around the lake.
I decided on a hotel at the airport and took a Bolt there.
From there, the search for a rental bike began.
Maybe because it's a busy weekend, I called 4 places and they were all out of bikes.
I had the hotel staff call for me, but it was the same result.
I walked around the city for 5 minutes looking.
I found 2 bike shops and managed to rent one easily.
This place is about 5 minutes from Central Plaza. It's a shop that didn't have a phone number listed on Google Maps.
Besides that, there are several places with 'Rent' signs on Sumpuntamit Road that aren't listed online.
The prices seem to be uniform at 300 baht.
Even so,
compared to Chiang Mai or Pattaya,
I notice more Westerners over 70 who look like they're in retirement.
Back to the story,
I finished dinner around the station and went to bed early.
Since the boat tickets open at 6:00 the next morning, I woke up at 4:30 and left at 5:00 🛵
I arrived at the site at 5:50.
There were already 5 or 6 groups in line, and I heard Japanese from two of them 👀
Those going by bike should be careful.
Even though there are streetlights, some parts of the road are very dark in the 5 o'clock hour and hard to drive on.
Since dump trucks also use the highway, I think those who aren't used to driving should allow plenty of travel time.
Google Maps says 45 minutes.
It took me about 48 minutes.
The return trip said 37 minutes, and it took about 38 minutes.
I've been riding 60-80km every day in Chiang Mai for over 2 years, so I'm used to driving a bike in Thailand. Even so, it was a 125cc instead of my usual 160cc, so the feel was a bit different.
If you want to go at a leisurely pace, it's wise to allow more than an hour or book a hotel near the lake the day before.
By the way, if you go to the lake by Grab or Bolt, you need to have them wait for 2 hours because it's hard to catch a ride back.
Price estimates:
Bolt one-way: about 300 baht
Grab one-way: about 400 baht
About 1000 baht including waiting time for a round trip.
The hotel staff also told me, 'If you don't have a rental bike, it's good to go by Grab for about 1000 baht.'
Rental bike:
125cc: about 300 baht
Large bike: 350-450 baht (24 hours)
As for gasoline, I usually run about 70km and it averages about 50 baht a day.
This time, it was a 'return with the same amount of fuel' type, so I filled up 50 baht at the start.
I drove a little under 100km and that was enough.
If it's just a round trip from the station to the lake, I think 50 baht is enough.
(Gasohol 91: about 31.5 baht/L)
A single mom in Chiang Mai who rides a bike this geekily is rare ✌️
The local clientele is mostly Thai families and couples.
There were also a few couples consisting of Thai women and older Western men.
There was also an Indian man who came alone 💡
I was spoken to by a Japanese family living in Bangkok (5 people including 2 daughters and a grandmother),
and it was likely a family trip with the grandmother visiting from Japan.
There were also two Japanese couples.
About 90% of the rest were Thai groups.
I hardly saw any East Asian tourists, who are common in Chiang Mai.
I wonder if it's a sudden trend in Japan now 🪷🪷🪷
When I arrived after driving on the pitch-black road, the sky was still dark but gradually getting brighter.
The ticket window opened right at 6 o'clock.
[Small boat]
2-seater (1 boatman with engine and up to 2 passengers)
for 300 baht, they take you around the pond for 1 to 1.5 hours.
[Large boat]
Can hold up to 6 people, 500 baht.
To my surprise, they were sold out right in front of us 💦
It didn't look like there were even 5 groups in front of us (the lines for small and large are separate).
I was told to wait 15 minutes,
and after waiting 5 minutes, I had a bad feeling.
With most people not understanding English,
when I spoke using a translator,
it turned out the next one was at 7:30 💦
They said I could ride immediately if it was a large boat.
Tell me that from the beginning.
I waited because you said 15 minutes.
If it was 1.5 hours, I would have paid 500 baht immediately...
I paid an additional 200 baht
and immediately boarded the large boat 🚣.
The time I boarded was 6:10.
💡 Honestly, I'm glad it was a large boat.
My timid son
would have had a hard time for 1.5 hours in a boat that was barely more than a kayak where you couldn't move.
The large boat can hold 6 people,
so even though it was just the two of us,
we secured a comfortable space.
The boatman
drove the boat 🚣 at various angles.
A type of boatman that isn't annoying at all, lol.
It's a ticket system,
and the boatman was quiet.
There was no touting like the boats in Varanasi
or the egg boats in Hoi An,
and unlike the boatmen at the Blue Grotto in Naples,
there was no sexual harassment or singing Canzone to demand excessive tips!
He was even grateful for a tip of just 50 baht at the end.
I actually intended to give about 100 baht, but I didn't have much cash on me 💦
Around 6:30,
where the sunrise should have appeared...
The horizon was covered in clouds,
and it didn't show its face at all
as the night continued to break.
Just when I was about to give up,
the quiet boatman said,
'Sun coming!'
The sunrise appeared between the clouds.
The orange sunrise looked quite huge.
After that, I admired the water lilies.
In English,
Lotus is 'Lotus',
and water lily is 'water lily'.
Water lily leaves have notches,
while lotus leaves have a plump impression.
By the way, the origin of my name is the 'Hua' (flower) from the Lotus Sutra.
The lotus is a symbolic flower in Buddhism.
They look similar, but they are definitely different.
It's Red Lotus Lake, but
it's not a lotus ❗️
Is it different in Thai?
Thinking about things like that, I slowly gazed at the lake.
Then,
the boatman again
points to a single flower.
A 'chimera phenomenon' where only some petals have a different color.
For water lilies floating on water, individuals with mixed colors have long meant 'good omens'.
I was able to encounter a chimera water lily
because I waited 5 minutes and rode the large boat (this boatman).
A coincidental necessity.
The route is different for everyone depending on the boatman.
You don't know where you'll pass.
Chimeras are rare to begin with, and
out of this massive number of water lilies,
as far as I could see, this was the only one that day.
After that,
I got a bit full of flowers,
and turned my eyes to the lake surface.
Then,
I felt an illusion where the boundary between the sky and the lake surface disappears.
The ocean is nice, but
a calm lake with no waves
is also healing.
By the way, this Lake Nong Han
is said to be about the same size as Katsushika Ward in Tokyo.
The best time to see them is from December to February,
from early morning until before 11:00 AM.
It's said that late January to early February is especially good.
Since I was on a motorbike,
my outfit consisted of four layers:
a sleeveless dress, a sweatshirt, a Muji inner down jacket, and a Montbell windbreaker.
It was still a bit cold on the bike,
but on the boat, I wore three layers plus a life jacket,
and by the time I got off (7:30 AM), two layers—the dress and the sweatshirt—were enough.
During this time of year when temperatures rise rapidly once the sun is up,
I feel like Udon Thani is 2 or 3 degrees warmer than Chiang Mai.
Conversely, it's said that if you come from Bangkok, the early morning feels a bit cold.
