Baan Tong Luang - Hill Tribe Cultural Preservation Village

After a visit to Baan Tong Luang, a Hill Tribe cultural preservation village near Chiang Mai, advertised as an Eco-Agriculture project, we had mixed feelings. Baan Tong Luang was opened in 2005 to “preserve the old traditional ways of Hill Tribe agriculture and to provide an income for the Hill Tribe people”. People from five different Hill Tribes, White Karen, Lahu, Palong, Hmong and Long Necked Karen, were imported into Baan Tong Luang to provide the visitors with an opportunity to see the culture and way of life of Hill Tribe people, and there is certainly no shortage of visitors at Baan Tong Luang where Euros, Dollars, Pounds and Yen are turning this Hill Tribe village into something resembling a human zoo. Not that the villagers themselves are complaining, they probably make a decent living from being stared at and endlessly photographed and the visitors for the most part get exactly what they want to see. Baan Tong Luang is a village manufactured to bring Hill Tribe culture to the people and judging by the number of visitors, it does this extremely well even though it may lack somewhat in authenticity.

Life for many of Thailand’s Hill Tribe peoples can be difficult. Their language, costume and culture makes them stand out from the crowd and frequent legal wranglings over Thai citizenship can make it hard for many of them to earn a living. Hill Tribe culture and traditions are under threat of extinction. At the top of the village of Baan Tong Luang a Christian Church stands incongruously as a monument to change, its very existence a sign that the traditional way of life for many of the Hill Tribe people in Thailand is rapidly changing.

A visit to Baan Tong Luang is certainly a colourful experience with all the Hill Tribe women dressed in their traditional costumes as they demonstrate their considerable skills in weaving and spinning as well as the old methods of rice production. There is barely a house without a stall selling Hill Tribe costumes, jewelry and other ‘authentic’ handicraft products. Old agricultural implements were also on show although, at least while we were there, there was no evidence of them being used. Baan Tong Luang puts on a very good show. Sadly, and in the not too distant future, it may only be at Baan Tong Luang and the other places like it where people will have any opportunity to discover the the cultural heritage of Thailand’s Hill tribe peoples.

Baan Tong Luang is located just off the Maerim-Samoeng Road and is open daily. Admission 500 baht.

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