a quiet market village inhabited by Shan people (ethnic Tai) whose culture is influenced by Myanmar (formerly called Burma).

As Pai lies at the foot of the mountains, some tourists use it as a base for trekking and visiting hill tribes like Karen, Hmong, Lisu, and Lahu.

Another notable attraction is the town's Wednesday Market which brings large crowds of local villagers and tribal people from all around the Pai Valley.

During high season, tourist numbers swell to the point that Pai experiences traffic jams, as well as shortages of electricity, water, and petrol.

[7] About 2,000 years ago, the Lua (or Lawa) Tribe was the dominant ethnic group over all of the area of today's northern Thailand, and a few of their descendants still live in villages only about 20 km away from Pai.

The recorded history of the area starts about 800 years ago with the establishment of a settlement (today known as Ban Wiang Nuea) about 3 km north of modern-day Pai.

Due to the area's remoteness and seclusion, people in those times were mainly cut off from news of the outside world and therefore not much concerned with the politics of Lanna and the rest of Thailand.

In the second half of the 19th century, colonial powers France and England, who had already established their influence in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Burma, were viewing the area of modern-day Thailand with increasing interest.

In 1943, the Japanese began several projects to create efficient troop and equipment transport routes between Thailand and Myanmar in support of their planned attacks on Imphal and Kohima.

In addition to the well-known Death Railway through Kanchanaburi, one of these projects was the improvement of the existing road from Chiang Mai to Pai and the patchwork of trails on to Mae Hong Son.

The Japanese attempt to develop a road connection between Chiang Mai to Pai and on to Mae Hong Son was abandoned in early 1944 when it became evident that the improvements could not be completed in time for the scheduled attack on Imphal.

Pai suffered a huge mudslide and severe flooding in 2005, resulting in major structural damage to homes, resorts, storefronts, and bridges.

Some examples of this clear long-term trend in Pai include: "While the facts presented were true, they have been wrongly taken in a malicious way by many...What the journalist cannot convey sometimes is his opinion of whether the witnesses are telling the truth or show immediately what links these witnesses have to the police....I am very concerned at several aspects of this case:[dead link‍]"I have noticed another significant change over the last year, which is the reason for writing this letter.

I also agree that noise pollution should be carefully monitored and controlled, as should drug abuse and any other illegal acts or unpleasant kinds of behaviour, but we ought not to be scared to leave our homes or guesthouses!...One Saturday in particular remains in my memory, where several police officers decided to inspect a party at a bar in town.

I along with many other tourists was especially shocked to see that one officer was carrying a machine gun...This kind of behaviour is likely to scare tourists and leave very negative impressions on them with regards to Pai town as a holiday destination...The police are also actively confiscating other vehicles, testing individuals at random for drugs and alcohol abuse, detaining owners of restaurants and bars for remaining open past the agreed time, and generally making a lot of noise in a relatively quiet town that did not appear to have many problems beforehand....The increased police presence is clearly visible and does not, in my opinion, make Pai town look like a place one would like to visit.