{"id":4130,"date":"2017-09-10T04:28:13","date_gmt":"2017-09-10T04:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/?p=4130"},"modified":"2025-12-16T03:55:36","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T03:55:36","slug":"discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html","title":{"rendered":"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>From stories in DestinAsian to even Vogue, Thailand\u2019s little known northeastern Isan region is starting to step into the spotlight with several recent features.<\/p>\n<p>The rural area borders Laos and seems worlds away from the country\u2019s bustling capital of Bangkok or even charming Chiang Mai. It even has its own dialect and creative cuisine \u2013 some dishes of which have become popular around the country with Thais and travellers alike.<\/p>\n<p>Love the spicy zing of green papaya salad? You can thank Isan for that.<\/p>\n<p>Though the remote region is relatively untouched by travellers, it still offers an array of activities, accommodation and more for intrepid travellers to experience a true taste of Thailand.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/where-to-stay-in-isan-blog.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-4132 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/where-to-stay-in-isan-blog.png\" alt=\"where-to-stay-in-isan-blog\" width=\"800\" height=\"523\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/where-to-stay-in-isan-blog.png 800w, https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/where-to-stay-in-isan-blog-300x196.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<em>From <a href=\"http:\/\/www.destinasian.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">DestinAsian<\/a>, August\/September 2017<\/em><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Where to stay in Isan<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>When writer Paul Ehrlich and photographer Christopher Wise recently explored Isan in search of nature, culture and cuisine they were delighted by their discoveries. We think you will be too\u2026<\/p>\n<h3><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/tables\/supanniga-eating-room\">Supanniga Home<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/supanniga-home-sr-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-4138 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/supanniga-home-sr-blog.jpg\" alt=\"supanniga-home-sr-blog\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/supanniga-home-sr-blog.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/supanniga-home-sr-blog-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Named after trees and flowers that grow in its spacious gardens, this unique three-villa retreat offers stylish cottages that make the most of their natural surroundings as well as a unique cultural and gastronomic experience at the hotel\u2019s Krua Supanniga by Khun Yai restaurant featuring recipes passed down through the generations. (The same family owns the popular Supanniga Eating Room and Supanniga Cruise in Bangkok as well.)<\/p>\n<p>Plan your stay at Supanniga Home\u2026<\/p>\n<h3><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/hotels\/thailand\/isan\/mekong-villas\">Mekong Villas<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/mekong-villas-sr-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-4139 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/mekong-villas-sr-blog.jpg\" alt=\"mekong-villas-sr-blog\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/mekong-villas-sr-blog.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/mekong-villas-sr-blog-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As the sister property to the incredible <a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/hotels\/thailand\/bangkok\/chakrabongse-villas\">Chakrabongse Villas<\/a> in Bangkok, Mekong Villas is a magical retreat situated overlooking the famous Mekong River in Loei province. With balconies and tropical gardens offering panoramic views of the river and across to Laos, guests can experience rural Thai life as it was 20 or 30 years ago.<\/p>\n<p>Plan your stay at Mekong Villas\u2026<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Phunacome Resort<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/phunacome-resort-sr-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-4140 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/phunacome-resort-sr-blog.jpg\" alt=\"phunacome-resort-sr-blog\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/phunacome-resort-sr-blog.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/phunacome-resort-sr-blog-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Nestled in Dansai Valley surrounded by green mountains, Phunacome Resort allows guests to immerse themselves in local traditions and unbridled nature. Separated by a stream, one side of the property offers traditional Isan bungalows while the other side\u2019s contemporary structure has a touch of exotic Isan design. With its strong commitment to being an eco-friendly resort, the hotel has won a number of green accolades and offers a variety of nature-based activities for guests.<\/p>\n<p>Plan your stay at Phunacome Resort\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From stories in DestinAsian to even Vogue, Thailand\u2019s little known northeastern Isan region is starting to step into the spotlight with several recent features. The rural area borders Laos and seems worlds away from the country\u2019s bustling capital of Bangkok or even charming Chiang Mai. It even has its own dialect and creative cuisine \u2013 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[25,1,26],"tags":[149,148],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand Updated 2026<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Wondering where to stay in Isan? Discover rural Thailand through authentic stays, local culture, and slow travel experiences across the region.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Discovering Rural Thailand: Where to Stay in Isan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The rural area borders Laos and seems worlds away from the country\u2019s bustling capital of Bangkok or even charming Chiang Mai. It even has its own dialect and creative cuisine \u2013 some dishes of which have become popular around the country with Thais and travellers alike.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Secret Retreats Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-09-10T04:28:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-16T03:55:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html\",\"name\":\"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand Updated 2026\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2017-09-10T04:28:13+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-16T03:55:36+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/419b450d4cc90a4d6dd7a46ee4560cef\"},\"description\":\"Wondering where to stay in Isan? Discover rural Thailand through authentic stays, local culture, and slow travel experiences across the region.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Secret Retreats Blog\",\"description\":\"Unveiling the essence of Asia\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/419b450d4cc90a4d6dd7a46ee4560cef\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40f3a751c7e34e5bc24556a39df795b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40f3a751c7e34e5bc24556a39df795b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand Updated 2026","description":"Wondering where to stay in Isan? Discover rural Thailand through authentic stays, local culture, and slow travel experiences across the region.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Discovering Rural Thailand: Where to Stay in Isan","og_description":"The rural area borders Laos and seems worlds away from the country\u2019s bustling capital of Bangkok or even charming Chiang Mai. It even has its own dialect and creative cuisine \u2013 some dishes of which have become popular around the country with Thais and travellers alike.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html","og_site_name":"Secret Retreats Blog","article_published_time":"2017-09-10T04:28:13+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-16T03:55:36+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html","url":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html","name":"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand Updated 2026","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2017-09-10T04:28:13+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-16T03:55:36+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/419b450d4cc90a4d6dd7a46ee4560cef"},"description":"Wondering where to stay in Isan? Discover rural Thailand through authentic stays, local culture, and slow travel experiences across the region.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/general-info\/discovering-rural-thailand-where-to-stay-in-isan.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Where to Stay in Isan: Discovering Rural Thailand"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/","name":"Secret Retreats Blog","description":"Unveiling the essence of Asia","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/419b450d4cc90a4d6dd7a46ee4560cef","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40f3a751c7e34e5bc24556a39df795b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40f3a751c7e34e5bc24556a39df795b3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4130"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4130"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11937,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4130\/revisions\/11937"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secret-retreats.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}