What type of visa do I need to explore and potentially retire in Chiang Mai, Thailand?

You can join the page Canadians in Thailand. Some expats live in Chiang Mai

I would recommend checking out the YouTube channel retired working for you. Lots of great information including health insurance cost, and the many Visa retirement options all have multiple steps and you need quite a bit of patience

go online and get the Thai visitor visa. If you decide to retire in Thailand then get the appropriate visa.

Chaing Mai is wonderful. Weekend mkt for the wife(huge), golf, but price has gone up. Large expat community. But the burning season will make you flee. But lots of places to go.

60 day vise free then go to imagration for an extension 30 days 1900 bht now your 90 days in and you can do a border run and re enter for another 60 days

I would do this before you decide on retirement visa assuming you are 50 + i would definitely spend some time in Vietnam as well way better standard at a lower price

Also north and northeast thailand has horrible are quality in the burning season head for rayong province much more to offer in my opinion im also a Canadian fleeing a crumbling country 😀

Vietnam is fantastic I spend time in both

Go to the Canadian Thai embassy website for good solid information

Expect poor air qaulity late feb to april

If you are coming to check out Chiang Mai, you can enter Thailand for up to 60 days without applying for a visa beforehand. It’s a longer answer if you decide you want to live and retire here as more variables come into play.

If you’ve never been to Thailand before I’d recommend you keep an open mind. It might not be for you. But good luck.