The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 widened the school’s lead at home: another TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best, ranked #1 cooking school in Thailand and, for the first time, #1 food tour in Thailand, with #2 cooking school in Asia and #2 experience in Thailand. Founded by Niti Muelaeku, whose vision drives the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025, a direct descendant of the Akha hill tribe of Northern Thailand, the school added a new air-conditioned kitchen the same year – without changing what it teaches or how.
The sections below set out the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 in detail: the official announcement, the new air-conditioned kitchen, the continuing Lonely Planet recommendation, and the headline ranking. To experience what earned them, reserve the morning class with its market tour, or review the full record on the awards page.
Thai Akha Kitchen Wins 2025 TripAdvisor Best of the Best – #1 Cooking School and #1 Food Tour in Thailand
Chiang Mai, Thailand – 2025 – Thai Akha Kitchen has been recognised in TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best 2025, ranking #1 cooking school in Thailand and #1 food tour in Thailand, with #2 cooking school in Asia and #2 experience in Thailand. The Best of the Best is the highest tier of TripAdvisor’s awards, reserved for the top 1% of listings worldwide.
As the world’s largest travel guidance platform, TripAdvisor carries unmatched authority with travellers, and the distinction rests entirely on genuine, first-hand reviews left over a rolling 12-month period. Taking #1 in two categories at once – cooking school and food tour – is a measure of how complete the experience has become. The same year as the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025, the school opened a new air-conditioned kitchen for added comfort, and Lonely Planet again recommended it among the best things to do in Chiang Mai. The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 reflect sustained excellence rather than any marketing campaign.
“To be number one in Thailand for both the cooking school and the food tour, and to open a more comfortable kitchen the same year, is a wonderful feeling,” said Niti Muelaeku, founder of Thai Akha Kitchen. “It belongs to our guests and to our Akha team, who keep raising the standard.”
“Congratulations to the 2025 Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best winners,” said TripAdvisor. “This recognition reflects the genuine enthusiasm of travellers around the world and celebrates the very best experiences on the platform.”
To see traveller 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 in Chiang Mai, founded by members of the Akha hill tribe. Its hands-on classes, part of the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 story, celebrate Akha culture, tradition and gastronomy, and have been recognised among the world’s best for eleven consecutive years (2016-2026).
About TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is the world’s largest travel guidance platform, helping hundreds of millions of travellers each month plan and book their trips, with hundreds of millions of reviews and opinions of accommodations, restaurants, experiences, airlines and cruises.
#1 Cooking School and #1 Food Tour in Thailand: 2025
The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 brought a double crown at home. TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice ranked the school #1 cooking school in Thailand and, for the first time, #1 food tour in Thailand, with #2 cooking school in Asia and #2 experience in Thailand. Winning two national categories at once, the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 show how the market tour and the class have come to work as one complete experience.
As ever, reviews drove the result. A steady flow of first-hand feedback from guests who had cooked and shopped the market with the school kept it at the top, with no advertising behind it – only people who pounded their own curry paste, cooked eleven dishes at their own wok, and wanted others to know. That consistency is the engine behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
2025 also brought a practical upgrade: a new air-conditioned kitchen, opened for greater comfort during the hotter months and busy sessions. Nothing about the teaching changed – the same Akha instructors, individual wok stations, hand-pounded pastes and small groups – but guests now have a cooler space when they want it. The original open-air bamboo kitchen, central to the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025, still anchors the experience, ten minutes from the Old City.
By 2025 the pattern was complete: a TripAdvisor Best of the Best across two categories and a continuing Lonely Planet recommendation, now with its own 2025 badge. The Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 sit within eleven consecutive years of awards (2016-2026), the seventh of the Best of the Best years. The journey continues in the years on either side of 2025.
Continue the journey: Awards 2024 · Awards 2026 · Write a review · All awards
A New Air-Conditioned Kitchen Opens: 2025
In 2025 the school opened a new air-conditioned kitchen, giving guests a cooler, more comfortable space during the hotter months and busier sessions. Everything that matters stayed the same: Akha instructors, individual wok stations, the stone mortars where every curry paste begins, and small groups of about 12 guests per kitchen, in two dedicated groups, cooking from scratch with market-fresh ingredients. The original open-air bamboo kitchen, ten minutes from the Old City, still anchors the experience. The upgrade simply added comfort to the formula behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025. You can read more about the people and the place on our about page.
Recommended by Lonely Planet (2025)
Listed among the best things to do in Chiang Mai by Lonely Planet – independent recognition that stands beside the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
Lonely Planet again recommended Thai Akha Kitchen among the best things to do in Chiang Mai in 2025 – part of an unbroken run since 2019, and recognised this year with its own Lonely Planet badge. Two of travel’s most trusted names, TripAdvisor and Lonely Planet, pointing independent travellers to the same Akha kitchen. It is the kind of steady, repeated endorsement that sits naturally beside the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
Built on the Certificate of Excellence Years
The foundation behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 – three TripAdvisor Certificates of Excellence (2016, 2017, 2018).
Today’s rankings rest on three consecutive TripAdvisor Certificates of Excellence across 2016, 2017 and 2018 – the years that turned a #52 newcomer into Thailand’s #1 cooking school. From 2019, TripAdvisor’s top recognition became the Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best, but the standard behind it never changed.
Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 – 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. It is the same approach behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
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, with a new air-conditioned space since 2025; and every curry paste is pounded by hand. 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.
Is the Thai Akha Kitchen cookbook free, and what languages is it in?
Yes, it is free. The cookbook won the Gourmand World Cookbook Award in 2020 and is available in eleven languages. Download it from the cookbook page and cook the recipes at home.
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 2025?
In 2025 the school took another TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best, ranked #1 cooking school in Thailand and #1 food tour in Thailand, with #2 cooking school in Asia and #2 experience in Thailand. Lonely Planet also recommended it, with a dedicated 2025 badge. The full 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.
Discover more: Morning Class · Evening Class · Market Tour · Online Class · Recipes · Awards · Contact
🏆 Thai Akha Kitchen Awards Timeline:
Thai Akha Kitchen on the Web – Further Reading
A selection of sources on the city, the cuisine, and the recognition behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025:
🏆 TripAdvisor – Thai Akha Kitchen
Over 2,500 verified guest reviews from travellers in 80+ countries – the reviews behind the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025 and every year since.
🎖️ TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice
TripAdvisor’s highest awards – the Best of the Best places winners in the top 1% worldwide, central to the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
✈️ Lonely Planet – Chiang Mai
The world’s most trusted independent travel guide – it has recommended Thai Akha Kitchen among the best things to do in Chiang Mai every year since 2019, part of the Thai Akha Kitchen awards 2025.
🌏 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 – home of Thai Akha Kitchen 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
