by Scott Coates

Back in late 2003 while redesigning the fabulously fun Chiang Rai Northern Exposure adventure, I passed through the Golden Triangle, located at the town of Sop Ruak, which forms the physical point where Laos, Myanmar and Thailand all converge on the Mekong River. A big white building caught my

The sign out front

attention – The Hall of Opium at Golden Triangle Park. An impressively large building set amongst a large expanse of manicured land, I had heard about an upcoming museum that would explore the history of opium but knew little about it. Time to dive in!

Part of the Mae Fah Luang Foundation, started in 1988 by Her Royal Highness Princess Srinagarindra, the late Princess Mother of His Majesty the King of Thailand, as a means to better the lives of hilltribe communities in Thailand’s northernmost province Chiang Rai, the Foundation has its roots at nearby Doi Tung. Originally a home for the Princess Mother and botanical gardens was built, coffee and macadamia nuts introduced as alternative crops to opium and there’s been no stopping the Foundation since.

Fast forward to 2003 and the they opened Golden Triangle Park, combining the Hall of Opium with lodging on its expansive grounds. The Hall itself is truly a state-of-the-art facility and huge at 5,600 sqm. The intent is to explore the entire history of opium, which played a large role in the region up until the mid-90s, at which time it was mostly irradiated in Thailand.

Smiling Albino isn’t the kind of company that general takes guests to museums, too often underdeveloped, unimaginative and boring in this part

One of the Hall's very inventive rooms

of the world, so it was with some doubt I entered its doors. A bit over two hours later I walked out the Exit totally wowed. I immediately called my business partner Daniel and shared my findings with him. “This must be part of our northern Thailand programs”, I exclaimed. Never did I think we would make a museum a part of our adventures but I was a changed man. The Hall is so much more than just a museum.

It begins with the long entrance tunnel, a spooky cave passage of sorts with sculptures of tortured souls built into the walls, representing those who get lost in drug use. You then enter into a theater where a well prepared video gives a quick overview of the Mae Fah Luang Foundation and opium’s role in the immediate area. From here you move through a series of information boards, sets and semi-interactive displays that explain the first 5,000 years of the drug’s use. Next there’s an extensive and very informative section on the Opium Wars between the Chinese and British, something you’ve likely heard of but don’t know much about – very interesting stuff. Next it’s on to opium’s role in Thailand (then Siam), its use in modern medicine, efforts to control international drug trafficking and finally a sober exit through the Hall of Reflection which showcases famous persons’ battles with drugs.

A typical visit takes about two hours, but can easily be stretched to three. What makes the Hall so interesting/entertaining is its makeup. Great thought and effort has been put into making sure the visitor is constantly engaged in a different manner. There’re traditional information boards, built sets, but it’s entire rooms that take the visitor into a different world and make you forget you’re in a museum. One room sees you walk over a full-size prison cell built into the floor, there’s an expansive section with interactive exhibits that see you try to figure out who in an airport is smuggling drugs and how. Wonderful videos examine international governments’ roles in fighting drugs in foreign countries (no names here) and you wrap things up in the very bright, but enlightening Hall of Reflection which wakes you up and brings you back into reality.

Most of our northern Thailand trips pass through the Golden Triangle and we

Entrance hall

make every effort to work in a visit to the Hall of Opium. Days prior to arriving here immerse guests in the larger Golden Triangle, through areas that no so long ago would have once been rife with opium. You get to hike trails through coffee/rice/corn/nut farms which once were opium fields, meet hilltribe groups previously entrenched in the opium trade who are now earning livelihoods through other farming methods and careers. The quaint town of Doi Mae Salong is now the country’s prime site of Oolong tea production, a crop that replaced opium in the mid-eighties and factors highly into most trips.

Drug cultivation, use and abuse are very complicated issues and something that few societies recover from, let alone in roughly 15 years. The Hall of Opium does a fantastic job of tying together the region’s many towns, people, and livelihoods that have gone under dramatic transformation for the better. While passing through the Golden Triangle, which at first glance seems nothing more than a tourist bus trap, be sure to turn off the road and spend a couple hours at this captivating Hall that Thailand should truly be proud of.

The Hall of Opium is located at the Golden Triangle opposite the Anantara Resort.
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Opening Hours: 08:30-17:00 (last admission at 16:00), Tue-Sun
Admission: 200THB (Thais), 300THB (foreigners)
Phone: +66-53-652-151
Email: [email protected]