The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 brought two TripAdvisor distinctions in a single year: a Travelers’ Choice award and a third consecutive Certificate of Excellence. Together they confirmed the school’s standing as the #1 cooking school in Thailand, with second-place rankings in Asia and among Thai experiences. The school was founded by Niti Muelaeku, a direct descendant of the Akha hill tribe of Northern Thailand, and both honours were earned the same way – through the genuine reviews of the guests who cooked here.
From this year onward, the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 are best understood as a pair of recognitions rather than one. The sections below present them separately: first the Travelers’ Choice distinction, then a brief note on the Certificate of Excellence. To experience what earned them, reserve the Morning Class with its Local Market Tour, or review the complete record on the Awards Page.
Thai Akha Kitchen Wins 2018 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Award for Cooking Experiences
Thai Akha Kitchen’s Great Traveler Reviews Land it a Place Among Travelers’ Favorites
Chiang Mai, Thailand – June 2018 – Thai Akha Kitchen today announced it has been recognized by TripAdvisor as a 2018 Travelers’ Choice award winner for Cooking Experiences, ranking Top 10% globally – the headline of the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018. The award celebrates businesses that have received great traveler reviews from travelers around the globe on TripAdvisor over the last 12 months.
The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 include a third consecutive year of Certificate of Excellence recognition.
As the world’s largest travel guidance platform, TripAdvisor has unparalleled authority with travelers. This award is based on genuine feedback from anyone in the community who has visited and left an authentic, first-hand review on TripAdvisor over a 12-month period.
“This recognition belongs to every guest who has sat at our table and to our team, who shows up every morning with heart. When we started Thai Akha Kitchen, our goal was simple: to share the real flavours of our Akha heritage – not a tourist version, but the honest one. Three consecutive years of TripAdvisor recognition tell us we are on the right path. We are grateful, and we are not stopping here.” – Niti Muelaeku, Founder & Owner, Thai Akha Kitchen
“Congratulations to the winners of this year’s Travelers’ Choice Awards. This recognition reflects the genuine enthusiasm of travelers around the globe and is a testament to the exceptional experiences your business delivers every day. We are proud to celebrate your achievement.” – TripAdvisor
To see traveler reviews and popular activities of Thai Akha Kitchen, visit Https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293917-d3189120-Reviews-Thai_Akha_Kitchen.html.
About Thai Akha Kitchen
Thai Akha Kitchen is a multi-award-winning cooking school based in Chiang Mai, Thailand, founded by members of the Akha hill tribe. The school offers immersive cooking classes that celebrate Akha culture, tradition, and gastronomy. With consistently top-ranked reviews on TripAdvisor, Thai Akha Kitchen has been recognized among the world’s best cooking experiences for eleven consecutive years (2016-2026).
About TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is the world’s largest travel platform, helping hundreds of millions of travelers each month make every trip their best trip. Travelers across the globe use the TripAdvisor site and app to browse more than 600 million reviews and opinions of accommodations, restaurants, experiences, airlines and cruises.
Two TripAdvisor Distinctions in a Single Year: 2018
By 2018, Thai Akha Kitchen held two TripAdvisor distinctions at once: a Travelers’ Choice award and its third consecutive Certificate of Excellence. The progress behind them was rapid – #52 among Chiang Mai cooking schools in 2016, #1 in the city in 2017, and #1 in Thailand in 2018. The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 marked the year a small bamboo kitchen became a nationally ranked school.
Neither of the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 was the result of advertising. Both rested entirely on first-hand reviews from travellers who had cooked at the school. Every guest worked at an individual wok station, learned to pound curry paste by hand, and prepared a full menu of eleven dishes, with five spice levels and adaptations for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and allergy needs. That standard, held consistently, is what carried the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 from a city ranking to a national one.
The format that earned the recognition remains in place today. Each morning begins with a visit to a local market, where guests select lemongrass, galangal and Thai basil before returning to the kitchen, ten minutes from the Old City. The morning class runs for approximately six hours, including the market tour; the evening class runs about five. Hotel pick-up and drop-off from central Chiang Mai is included, and every guest leaves with a printed recipe book. It is an unhurried, hands-on routine, and it remains the substance behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018.
The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 also marked a threshold. It was the final year before the school’s world-level recognition began: from 2019, the headline honour became the TripAdvisor Best of the Best. Counted from the first certificate in 2016, the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 sit within eleven consecutive years of awards (2016-2026). The journey continues in the years on either side of 2018.
Continue the journey: Awards 2017 · Awards 2019 · Write a Review · All Awards
The Thai Akha Kitchen in 2018
The rankings rose in 2018, but the kitchen remained unchanged: an open-air bamboo room about ten minutes from Chiang Mai’s Old City, with individual wok stations, wooden prep counters, and the stone mortars where every curry paste begins. Classes stayed small and personal – about 12 guests per kitchen, in two dedicated groups – cooking alongside Akha instructors rather than watching a demonstration, with every dish prepared from scratch using market-fresh ingredients. This consistency, repeated class after class, is precisely what the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 recognised. You can read more about the people and the place on our About Page.
Certificate of Excellence 2018
Voted by travellers – the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 ranked #1 cooking school in Thailand.
🏆 Alongside the Travelers’ Choice award, 2018 marked the school’s third consecutive TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence – following the first in 2016 and the second in 2017. The Certificate of Excellence recognises sustained, consistently high guest reviews across the year: the steady foundation beneath every headline ranking. Together, these two distinctions make the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 the first year of the school’s double-certificate record.
Thai Akha Kitchen Awards 2018
Your Questions Answered
Thai Akha Kitchen has been welcoming guests from over 80 countries to its open-air bamboo kitchen in Chiang Mai since it first opened its doors in 2015. Voted the #1 Cooking School Worldwide on TripAdvisor in 2019, 2022 and 2023, and #1 Cooking School in Thailand in 2026, our philosophy is simple: Your Wok, Your Rules – every guest cooks at their own station.
Morning Class · Evening Class · Local Market Tour · Online Class
Is Thai Akha Kitchen suitable for families and children?
Yes. Families are welcome, and children cook at their own pace beside a parent. The stations are supervised, the spice levels adjust to anyone, and the Morning Class suits all ages.
What makes Thai Akha Kitchen different from other cooking schools in Chiang Mai?
It teaches authentic Akha hill-tribe recipes, not a tourist version. The founder, Niti Muelaeku, is Akha; the kitchen is open-air bamboo; and every curry paste is pounded by hand in a stone mortar. The full story is on our About Page.
How many students are in each cooking class?
Classes remain small and personal – two kitchens of about 12 guests each, up to 28 for larger groups, always in two dedicated groups – so everyone receives attention and their own wok station, never shared. Reserve a place in the Evening Class or the morning session.
What is included in the price of the cooking class?
The price covers eleven dishes, an individual wok station, a printed recipe book to take home, and free hotel pickup from central Chiang Mai. The Morning Class also includes a guided fresh-market tour.
Do I receive a recipe book to take home?
Yes. Every guest receives a printed, full-colour recipe book covering the dishes prepared in class, so the recipes can be recreated at home. You can preview the dishes on our Recipes Page.
Can I book a class on the same day or last minute?
Same-day booking is occasionally possible when seats remain, though classes fill quickly in high season. The most reliable approach is to reserve a day or two in advance through the Contact Page.
What awards did Thai Akha Kitchen receive in 2018?
In 2018 the school received two TripAdvisor distinctions: its first Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best and its third consecutive Certificate of Excellence, ranked #1 cooking school in Thailand, with #2 placements in Asia and among Thai experiences. The Best of the Best recognition would begin the following year, in 2019. The complete record is on our Awards Page.
What is the best cooking class in Chiang Mai for beginners?
For beginners, Thai Akha Kitchen is one of the most welcoming places to start in Chiang Mai. Guests cook at their own wok with step-by-step guidance, choose their spice level, and have each dish adapted to their pace. Most first-timers complete all eleven dishes with confidence. Reserve the Morning Class with its market tour, or the shorter Evening Class for a relaxed start.
🏆 Thai Akha Kitchen Awards Timeline:
Discover more about Thai Akha Kitchen:
Morning Class · Evening Class · Local Market Tour · Online Class · Recipes · Awards · Contact
Thai Akha Kitchen on the Web
Further Reading
Discover what the world’s most trusted travel platforms and encyclopaedias say about Thai Akha Kitchen – a journey from the 2015 opening through the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 and every year since.
🏆 TripAdvisor – Thai Akha Kitchen
Over 2,000 verified guest reviews from travellers in 80+ countries. Read what past students say about our cooking classes in Chiang Mai – the reviews behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018 and every year since.
🎖️ TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice
The global TripAdvisor award recognising the world’s top-ranked businesses as voted by real travellers – first earned among the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2018.
✈️ Lonely Planet – Chiang Mai
The world’s most trusted independent travel guide for exploring Chiang Mai, its morning markets, temples, and food scene.
🌏 Tourism Authority of Thailand
The official Thai government guide to culinary tourism, cooking classes, and authentic food experiences across Thailand.
📖 Wikipedia – Chiang Mai
The cultural capital of Northern Thailand – and the city where Thai Akha Kitchen has welcomed guests from around the world ever since it opened its doors in 2015.
🍜 Wikipedia – Thai Cuisine
History, techniques and traditions behind the dishes we teach – from hand-pounded curry pastes to the five fundamental flavours of Thai cooking.
Excited to participate in a Cooking Class?
From your Home or in our kitchen in Chiang Mai
