.
For colonic irrigation detox in Chiangmai, I recommend Janrawee House spa.
I was there for my first time this week.
Here's a review.

First, why might colonic detox be important while we are in Thailand?
Since moving to Thailand five years ago, I've been diligent about getting detox.
The reason is that food in Thailand is usually delicious, but often not clean.
So it's useful to regularly wash out the exit route.

I won't describe or promote colonic detox -- there's enough of that elsewhere on the web.

The comparison for my recommendation of Janrawee is the detox clinic at Yanhee Hospital in Bangkok.
Yanhee is very well-equipped, clean, and efficient.
I've been there seven times, and have no complaints at all -- I recommend Yanhee, too.
The key difference is Yanhee is a hospital, and Janrawee is a private spa.

Janrawee in Chiangmai uses the same, advanced, equipment as at Yanhee.
The facilities here are spotless and very pleasant, as you would expect from a slightly pricey spa.
Service is caring and careful.
That would make it ideal for a first-timer with no previous experience of colonic detox.

English language at Janrawee is limited, but sufficient.
If you don't speak any Thai, just go slowly, smile, and ask all the questions you wish.

Janrawee offers free transportation -- which I used both ways.
I arranged for pickup when I called for the appointment.
The driver came early, which impressed me.

For my first time, I was given their standard detox solution of dissolved mineral salt.
They also offer coffee solution, which I will order next time.

Cost of detox is 1,500 baht for a single session.
Package of three sessions is 3,000, which works out to 1,000 each -- three sessions for the price of two.
I bought that package.
There are other discount packages available, but I'm leery of giving Thais money in advance, and that was the smallest package to get a big discount.

For comparison, Yanhee Hospital is just over 800 baht per session.
No packages.
Plus, going to Yanhee you must include the cost of taxi two ways, because no subway or skytrain anywhere near .
So the overall cost is about the same.

Janrawee is a middle-level spa, of which there are dozens just like it in and around Chiangmai.
The colonic detox seems to be their main attraction, and that's what attracted me.
Other than that, offers the same as every other spa in town.

However, while there I also had an herbal steam and an herbal scrub.
Cost for both together: 950 baht.
Very nice, but nothing special, and I wouldn't go out of the way just for that.
But as long as I had my clothes off anyway, I ordered those, also.

I tipped 200 baht for the herbal scrub -- that girl worked hard for an hour -- but I didn't tip for the detox; not appropriate.


Gentlemen:

Spas like this are marketed to tourist females with lots of time and little to do.
Men customers are rare.
But I was treated with total courtesy.
What helped is that I had a Thai woman friend call ahead to make my appointment.
That way there was no question that the services I expected were services they provide.

And I dressed totally opposite tourist style.
I wore a fresh, ironed, buttoned shirt, with long trousers and proper shoes.
All of the above ensured that the staff took care of me in a very polite way.

Also, I went mid-day on a weekday, so less likely to have any tourist females around.
I can't object to foreign elephants visiting Thailand, but if I can avoid them, I will.

One negative -- but not bad really -- is the up-sell for packages.
You can expect up-sell at any tourist venue.
I handled that by being "all-business" when I walked in the door.
There was a hint that the staff was going into their programmed, up-sell pitch, but I quietly said, "Just detox today. Where do I go to get ready for that."
Immediate understanding; the up-sell book was closed, and I was guided into the detox room.

However, at the conclusion, the up-sell started again when I went to the front desk to pay.
Because they knew I am a Chiangmai resident, they had two ladies, working together, with big smiles, trying to point me toward the most expensive membership plans.
I simply paged through their rate book until I found the package which offered detox, 3-for-the-price-of-2, which I bought.
That is the best "deal" on offer there.
How do I know it is the best deal?
When I selected that particular package, two up-sell ladies -- in unison -- stopped smiling.

Here in Chiangmai, there is at least one other spa which offers colonic detox, but I have no experience.
There may be more; I don't know.

I'm pleased to find a clean and well-organized detox service here in Chiangmai.

-- Oneman

This post has been edited by Oneman: 2009-05-31 15:42:27

It is obvious that the OP is either the owner or has shares in the place.

This is a sneaky way of advertising.

Colonic Irrigation Detox sounds like a load of crap to me.

I was thinking the same until I read the part about "foreign elephants visiting Thailand" !!! If he was promoting the place I don't think he would want to alienate the core customer, lady farang. Colonic irrigation has been pretty well debunked, eat your fruits and veggies and you should be ok.

Nothing about the detox to say, but the OP style of writing is very clear and easy to follow and definitely not lacking details.

In case anyone has never heard of this and is curious what it is, have a read here http://www.earthoria.com/colonic-irrigation-chiang-mai.html

You could not pay me enough to shoot 6 liters of water up my ...

They don't even tell if they are using a REAL colonic machine that uses electric supplied pressure or the "colema" boards that use gravity to clean the colon, but not as effectively.
Tao Gardens reputedly has the best machines and the staff are best at using it, but they are always expensive. There is a cheaper Ayuvedic clinic in the old city that also uses a real colonic machine, but the staff are not supposed to be as expert with it.
Other places mostly use the less effective gravity method.

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Ulysses,

I am afraid to know : but : uhhhhhh ... what could go wrong if the person running the colonic machine is not expert at it ? Is it like it could miss Uranus and end up at Pluto ?

thanks, ~o:37;

Ain't nothin' going up there unless a legitimate doctor tells me it's necessary.

Need to clean out the lower regions? Eat a couple of large dragon eye and wait a few hours, that's never failed me.

The point of cleaning out the colon is to remove all of the waste matter until the colon is as clean as when you were a baby. Supposedly, real experts will help along the cleaning process with special belly massages that will help the toxins, poisons and waste matter out of the body much quicker than depending only on water.

There is almost no danger from having a colonic, but most people want to clean the colon as quickly as possible, because it is not cheap. Expert colonic therapists can supposedly remove blockages of foreign matter by massaging the walls of the colon and hurry the process along.

Here is a review of another source for colon detox in Chiangmai: The Chiang Mai Ayervedic Center.
Location is inside the moat, Singharat Road, near "chang-peuak" gate and close to "wat-dap-pai".

My goal here is to help anyone interested in colon detox to find out what's available in Chiangmai.
I am not trying to promote, or even to explain the process of colonic irrigation.
In addition, I know nothing about "Ayervedic", so I won't comment about that; only about the detox service offered.

The end result is similar to that from Janwaree House Spa -- described in my OP -- but the process and experience is quite different, so I will compare and contrast the two.

There are two main differences between Janwaree House and the Ayervedic Center.
One difference is in the equipment and how it is used.
I'll explain more about that below, but, in my experience, the results are the same: a good cleaning.
The other difference is that Janwaree House is a spa -- with typical spa service and amenities -- while Ayervedic Center is a clinic, with a more clinical approach to the customer.

Prices are about the same at both places, so price is not a distinguishing factor.

First, the equipment:

Janwaree uses a simple water tank, and the water enters the colon by gravity, then is released into a simple drain.
The process is simple and relaxed.
It is also private.
Unless requested, no staff remains in the room during the 45 minute process, although an attendant will come in mid-way through to check if everything is okay.

On the other hand, Ayervedic Center uses a rather complex arrangement of filters, valves, and gauges for water feed and drain.
One staff is there the entire time to operate the equipment.
In addition, a second staff is there to massage the patient's abdomen.
There seems to be a special technique for this massage, and the two staff consult with each other about where and how to massage in order to get optimum results.
These two are in the room, and actively engaged, during the entire process.
There is no privacy.
For someone who is extremely shy, that could pose a problem, but it does not for me.

At Ayervedic Center the two technicians for my sessions were very attractive, and very charming, young Thai women.
They kept up a constant stream of chatter for the entire 45 minutes -- both reassuring the client (me), and consulting with each other about what they see and what needs to be done.
At first I found that very disconcerting -- to have two, young, Thai women messing around in my nether regions -- but it didn't take long for the nervousness to go away.

After treatment is finished at Janwaree House, you get a refreshing shower, in an immaculate bathroom.
But at Ayervedic Center, no shower is offered.
I don't like that, and the lack of a shower is my main complaint there.
There is a toilet room right next to the treatment room, and it is fully tiled with a drain in the floor.
So easy to put in a hot water heater and a simple, hose shower, but no.
So I asked about a shower at Ayervedic Center.
The response was, yes, it is available, but in another building elsewhere in the compound.
That would mean getting up from a colonic treatment, wrapping yourself in a sarong, walking through the lobby of the clinic, out the front door, down a driveway, to another building nearby.
No thank you!
I cleaned up pretty well with the conventional toilet sprayer, went home, and immediately into the shower.

Why no shower?
I can't say for sure, but I have a hunch.
There is an un-spoken consensus among colonic providers that the process is "clean", so you don't need a shower afterward.
Well, the process is clean, but, still, I want a shower before I get dressed and go out.
Janwaree House provides that.
Ayervedic Center does not, not in a private and convenient way.


At Ayervedic Center the staff is certainly friendly, but there isn't careful preparation for the client's convenience.
Just one example: after a colonic treatment, one tends to use a lot of toilet tissue.
I noticed the toilet paper roll was close to finished, and looked around for a spare roll.
There wasn't a spare.
Lucky for me, just enough on the roll, but could be embarrassing if the tissue roll ran out before the cleanup was finished.
The second time, I simply asked for a spare roll of tissue before I went into the bathroom -- provided, with a smile.

At the finish of the treatment, Ayervedic Center provides a special beverage with "beneficial bacteria" to repopulate the intestines.
I have no idea what's in it, but seems like a sensible thing to do.
Janwaree House offers merely a cup of sweet tea.

At Ayervedic Center, there's some helpful counseling.
For example, instructed me to avoid spicy foods and carbonated drinks for one day after the colonic treatment.
Janwaree House offers no advice, but a few days later, when I glanced at Janwaree's receipt, there was similar information, printed in English.


Janwaree House does offer a wide range of other massages, albeit at "spa" prices.
I found it especially refreshing -- after my colonic detox at Janwaree -- to have a steam, then an herbal skin scrub, followed by another hot shower.

Ayervedic offers treatments and special massages, but they are not the usual Thai style.
I didn't sample any of those, so can't comment.

The staff at Janwaree is very polite, just a bit stiff, in the formal, Thai style.
Janwaree also laid on a little bit of "up-sell" to push their higher-priced packages.
On the other hand, staff at Ayervedic is relaxed, easy-going, and outright friendly.
Not even a hint of any up-selling, although they did have a sales book explaining other services.

So which would I recommend?
They are both very good, but neither appears a clear winner over the other.
The shortcomings of one are the advantages of the other.

For a beginner, I would suggest Janwaree House, because of the private facilities.
For anyone with a busy schedule -- say a short time tourist trying to do a lot of activities -- the shower at Janwaree is a big convenience.

On the other hand, Ayervedic Center offers more advanced, more sophisticated, and more intense treatment.
The technicians there are very experienced, and appear to be highly skilled at what they do.
But their technique would not be comfortable for someone easily embarrassed.

As for me, I'll alternate between the two.
Both offer very good service and very good facilities.
I'm pleased and impressed to find colonic detox of this caliber in Chiangmai.

-- Oneman
Chiangmai

This post has been edited by Oneman: 2009-06-28 00:07:33

Thank you One Man for starting this thread, I have been considering a Colonic for a while now as I have Ulcerative Colitis and a CI may be very beneficial to me.

Does anyone have any experiences to share re Tao Gardens?

I believe that they offer some kind of weekend package?

Has anyone been there?

In that case I suggest you give Songkran a miss next year. Those high pressure water guns can be a pain in the butt.



CB

Everything at Tao Gardens is VERY expensive. I have looked there, but ended up going elsewhere. However, they do have a good reputation for doing colonics with high quality equipment.
For Thailand, they are certainly not cheap.

Glad to hear they treated you with courtesy. I think the right attire does help to give a good impression also. A combination of respectable clothing and good manners most likely helped to give you an allure of being a gentleman, although sadly your post would deem that you are not.

Have a look at this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colon_hydrotherapy

Yes, it's a pity. I'd like to avail myself of some of their services. It's things like this that always leads me to wishing that residents in Chiang Mai could get some kind of card. We could then produce this card at participating places to get, say, a 20 or 30% discount. There are so many places in chiang mai that depend on tourism. But in economic downturns like now, and in all low seasons, residents who use their services could make a huge difference to their profitability. And surely the prices some of these places charge are just way above any decent profit level. Tao Gardens is a typical example, who gets all that money??!

This card could be used at spas, golf courses, hotels, restaurants, and so on. I guess i'm going off-topic here...

... so...

Oneman, since you've started a thread on this topic, could i ask you to briefly let us know the actual benefits you get from CI? I mean specifically how you actually feel within yourself and whether you have more energy for life, bounce around a bit more, feel lighter and fresher in daily life. What physical or mental benefits arise from CI?

If it's just a good clear out that's required, buy a bottle of 'Swiff' available from most drug stores. Drink a couple of litres of water before and after taking it. It tastes bloody awful, but will do the trick and INMO if it's good enough for gastroenterologist's to use prior to performing a colonoscopy, then I think it's sufficient.

Thank you for asking, but much information about colonic irrigation is easily available elsewhere on the web.
My focus in this thread is on what services are available in Chiangmai.

If you have read some of what is already available colonic irrigation, and you have specific questions about the two services I reviewed above, I invite you to send me a PM or email.

-- Oneman
Chiangmai

I'd like to offer one piece of advice on this subject, when doing colonic irrigations, it's very important to take mineral supplements, elecktrolites in particular since they get flushed out of your system during the CI. If you are doing multiple CI's, then it's a MUST.

Drinking coconut water will replace electrolytes and potassium and other minerals naturally without having to take a pill and it tastes good.

Great advice, just read that a 10 oz coconut water drink naturally has 650 mg of potassium (15x more than a banana), 25mg of magnesium, and 35 mg of sodium! It's like nature's gatorade!

As a physician I do not recommend a colonic nor does The American Medical Association or The British Medical Association. A colonic is unnecessary and can be dangerous even life threatening if done incorrectly. If it ain't broke don't fix it. There is no quick fix for human health if you want to 'detox' don't smoke or drink alcohol, wash fruit and veggies, eat fresh fish in place of meat stay out of the polluted city. It is that simple there is no quick fix, eat healthy clean food and you know what not to eat or drink, exercise doesn't hurt either.

This of course is the best advice!

But one of the things that did intrigue me about CI is that stuff inside you gets removed that's been in your body for ages. What i've read sounded like a good spring clean. But intuitively i'm not keen to try this CI out.

Your comment however if it ain't broke don't fix it is fine to a degree, but things you do today can help with tomorrow. And i've often wondered if CI was one of those things. It may not be broke today, but what about tomorrow?!