Music and Arts
At Gaia Beats
Gaia Beats is a music and arts festival at Sense Hot Spring in Mae On, about an hour out of Chiang Mai. Three days, 22 to 24 January 2027.
Say "festival" and most people picture a field with a big stage at one end. This isn't really that. There are three music stages, and they're the backbone of the weekend. But most of the site isn't a dancefloor, and that's on purpose.
Ask four people what Gaia Beats was and you'll get four different answers. One will tell you about a set at sunset. One spent the whole weekend in workshops and barely saw a stage. One brought the kids. Most drifted between all of it and changed their plans on Saturday afternoon.
Where the Music Happens
Synergy
Synergy is the heart of it. It follows the day: downtempo and world music while the sun's up, building into deeper electronic sounds once it's dark.
Horizon
Horizon is for live bands, timed so the sets land around sunset. Folk, indie and world-influenced, the kind you stop and sit down for.
The Bunker
Then there's The Bunker, which you'll have to go looking for. It's hidden in the forest inside a dried-up waterfall, and it runs late. Bass-heavy, with a strong UK sound system influence, and it's where a lot of local DJs play.
Beyond the Dancefloor
Kindred Caravan is the hybrid, and it changes through the day. Depending on when you walk past, you might catch a live set, theatre, stand-up, spoken word or an open mic.
The Junkyard belongs to the families. Kids make things, run around and join workshops, in a play space built from repurposed materials.
Gaia Futures is for talks and conversations about the world outside the festival, and what people might do differently once they're home.
The Courtyard is the easy-going one. Drop into a session on movement or connection, then wander off again. The Shala is its quieter sibling, for longer sessions when you want to properly go into something.
The Site Is
Part of the Art
We build the stages and structures out of reclaimed and upcycled materials.
In 2026 the theme was "Nothing New", and we meant it. It's a big part of why the place feels the way it does.
Everything
in between
The whole site is built around a natural hot spring, with hot tubs and bathing areas open through the weekend. It's the slower, quieter corner of the site, so bring swimwear and a towel. Beyond the stages there's a forest to get lost in, fire areas for when the music winds down, and a market where local food vendors and makers set up.
Walking from one end of the main site to the other takes ten to twenty minutes. That's about right: far enough to feel like separate places, close enough to change your mind.
Who’s Playing
- Desert Dwellers
- Marques Wyatt
- Anna Morgan
- Wildealer
- Khun Narin's Electric Phin Band
- Anima Terra
- Arkana
- Austin Hughes
- Beatnaut
- BlipBlop
- Bonita Everitt
- Brent Burns
- Brutel
- By the Light
- Conrad Olende
- Dangdut Banget
- Doghouse Band
- Enable
- Endo Nao
- Felix Numines
- Geography of the Moon
- George Downham
- Global Harmonies
- Helicopter Secondhand
- Huntersson
- Hxxk
- I Lost My Keys
- Jeff the Human
- Justin Frets
- Khamvisedth
- Lanta Sound Ensemble
- Layeena
- Liem
- Magic Theatre
- Mak Mak
- Malou
- Mantravine
- Martin Everitt
- Meg Norquoy
- Mes Levres
- Miss Lightbeam
- Mitsune
- Mo
- Moondive
- Oombol Lauw
- QuestQuest
- RomRom
- Rui Tang
- Sanlana Soul
- Sarkis Mikael
- Shantiago
- SonicBloom
- Sons of Giya
- Stylish Nonsense
- Sukhmanee
- Tam Bryce
- The Elders
- The Matter Era
- Theo Mizu & Banda
- Treavor Moontribe
- Twelve Flowers
- Well Fed
Coming for the First Time?
The First Timer's Guide covers getting here, where to stay and what to pack. If you're wondering how we run all this without wrecking the place, that's over on What makes a festival conscious?