[Travel] First time trip to Thailand - Advice please

[dazzer6666]

After Bangkok (as well as the usual palace, boat trips etc do a guided street food tour, brilliant fun), we did a tour that included Ban Amphawa, Kanchanaburi for the Death Railway and Bridge on the River Kwai etc (fabulous hotel called X2 with luxury cabins floating on the river) and an amazing stay in what was basically a shack in a farmyard inside the Kui Buri National Park (it’s called ‘Bills’ if you can track it down). Bill the farmer is also an elephant expert and a leading guide in the National Park. For the beach bit we went to Ko Samet - absolutely stunning.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

^ we did an almost identical itinerary, can't remember who we did the elephants with but regretted it because they had open bloody sores on their heads (which we were told was fine) by being hit with a cane, several chained up and constantly swaying back and forth, a sign of stress.

 

[peterward]

We (2 couples) are planning on a holiday to Thailand early next year - late January/early February - first time visitors - looking at around 14/15 nights including travel time.

I've already done some research, and spoken to friends who've been there - but I'm sure there's those on NSC who can help with advice...

At the moment we're planning 3 nights in Bangkok / 4 in Chiang Mai and the balance a beach resort - undecided on which one... Phuket - other suggestions welcome.

Thank you.

Fortunate to have been there 7 times, my favourite country on earth, the perfect balance of culture, beaches, warm people, food, shopping etc.
I wouldnt personally recommend Phuket for the beach part, there are some ok parts, but its very touristy not really very Thai, and around Patong beach, its the Thai equivalent of Benidorm or Blackpool, uber tacky.

Most of the brits and Germans left years ago and now its rammed with Russians.

I really liked Koh samui, just about the right size, not overly tourist except Chaweng beach, we stayed in a place called the "Mantra Samui resort" overlooking "Fishermans Village", which is a lovely and pretty sedate place except for Friday nights when they have the nigt market which is pretty electic, loads of street food vendors, live bands, cocktail stands, sellers of everything form art/craft to knock off Gucci handbags etc, its buzzing.

Only downside is there a monopoly on the flights from bangkok, which only used to be via Bangkok airays for direct as thats is owned by someone high up in Thailand, and relatively flights were a bit more expensive due the monopoly - all others had to fly to mainland (Surat Thani) then bus to port and boat - not sure if that is still the deal?

For just about any beach resort you fancy, Air Asia will fly there much cheaper from out of th old Bangkok airport in north of city (Don Muang), they also do the "all ins" of return flights, bus, boats to get to islands - we went this way to Koh Samui as it was about 25% of cost of bangkok airways. The last time we went in 2018 we went to the Island of Koh Lipe in south near to Malaysian Island of Langkawi and it was only about £80 for flights, bus and boat (though boat driver coming back seemed to think he was Lewis Hamilton and the Mrs was bricking it a bit!).

When in Bangkok, the one thing I would strongly recommend depending on Budget (as you're couples) is to do one of the evening dinner cruises along the river, the temples, monuments and grand palace etc at night are stunning.... theres loads of boats that do it, viator.com is often cheaper to book, though some of the cheaper ones are massive and a bit low grade..... Theres a couple of really good ones, run by 5* hotel chains, where you'll get the full on romantic moment, private waiter, great food and only small amount of people, We've been on 2, both old wooden junk boats. the First was "Apsara" run by the banyon tree hotel chain, this was also pretty cool as after amaing evening they take you back to their moon bar on top of hotel roof "Vertigo" which is also amazing (uk prices for drinks), theres a restaurant there too, but we only got drinks and enjoyed the views.



Apsara I believe is in refurb and available again to book from next Feb 2023, Banyan tree have a more modern looking one too with a big bar called "Saffron cruise" a bit less expensive https://www.viator.com/en-GB/tours/Bangkok/Saffron-Luxury-Dinner-Cruise-on-the-River-of-Kings/d343-90546P285, the other old wooden Junk type boat that we went on that was also great (but without the moonbar experience after) was the one run by Anantara 5* hotel chain called "Manohra".

PM if you want to ask anything more. Enjoy, once and you'll go back!

 

[dazzer6666]

^ we did an almost identical itinerary, can't remember who we did the elephants with but regretted it because they had open bloody sores on their heads (which we were told was fine) by being hit with a cane, several chained up and constantly swaying back and forth, a sign of stress.

Didn’t see anything like that at all - the only elephants we saw in Kui Buri were completely wild - at the end of the day we saw two of them come out of the forest from across the valley. There were about 8-10 jeeps of people there watching as they’d all radioed each other, so the animals got spooked very quickly and went back into the trees. It was close to closing time at the park but Bill whispered ‘just wait a minute’ as all the other jeeps drove off. Pretty much exactly as the last jeep apart from ours disappeared out of sight an elephant reappeared….then another, and another and so on until there were more than 20 of all ages right in front of us and we sat for another half an hour watching them - it was magical. After that, we had dinner (just us and our guide and driver) with another farmer and his wife (very rustic, outside their shack that they used to have to stay in to protect their crops from the elephants).

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Only other place we saw elephants was when we spent a whole day at a sanctuary……they weren’t chained up or hit there either (the elephants were those that had been rescued from such circumstances). I did give one a scrub in the river though. Another incredible experience.

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[Swiss perfection]

Ao Nang in the Krabi Provence has beautiful beaches and less commercial than Hau Hin, 1 hr 40 flight from Bangkok, lots of local flights serve Krabi. Relaxed beach bar vibe and not the mac rustlers of Pattaya. Big opportunity for boat trips to other islands and areas, phi phi Don and maya beach (from the film) James bond island etc. Good snorkelling and diving. Book with the boat owners direct
Bangkok hot and noisy sensory overload .use monorail to get about air conditioner and good view if the city. Never had an issue with street food all part of the experience. Head for the river for a cooler area ,mandarin oriental has a great river terrace for lunch ,bit ££ but you can use the hotel boat from the monorail to the hotel and back again for a vip style entrance. Agree moon bar at the Banyan tree is worth it. Always get a pool with your accommodation as you will need to cool down. Visit pat pong at night but be warry very seedy with all the shows you would expect. If you get a tuk tuk make sure they take you direct ,lots take you via tailors, temples and jewellers so a 10 minute ride can take you 1hr 30 . Some hotels won't let tuk's pull up at reception so don't be surprised if they dump you out in the edge of the road. Enjoy ,yes not as cheap as Vietnam and Cambodia but a Good introduction to SE Asia to wet your appetite .enjoy

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

As you are heading to Chiang Mai, an overnight stay at Elephant Nature Park is well worth it. It's an ethical place where elephants have been rescued from logging, elephant trekking companies etc. It is forbidden to ride elephants (even for mahouts) and they don't do tricks etc. They organize pick-ups and drop-offs from/to Chiang Mai. 2-3 nights in Khao Sok national park is another possibility.

This, well worth it.

 

[herecomesaregular]

Loved my visit to Thailand in the late 90s, walking along the rails tracks at Kanchanaburi, chilling in a hammock on Ko Pha-gan, small boat trips around Krabi and Phi Phi islands, watching movies in the "video cafes" in Bangkok, generally chilling after long weeks trekking in Nepal. Often thought about going back but haven't because modernisation and more tourism who have probably changed it for the worse and ruin my great memories.

 

[Bodian]

If you are asked to buy a lady a drink, check for an adam's apple

If a lady offers to buy you a drink - make sure it's a bottle that is completely unopened. And even then be wary!

 

[kentgully]

We (2 couples) are planning on a holiday to Thailand early next year - late January/early February - first time visitors - looking at around 14/15 nights including travel time.

I've already done some research, and spoken to friends who've been there - but I'm sure there's those on NSC who can help with advice...

At the moment we're planning 3 nights in Bangkok / 4 in Chiang Mai and the balance a beach resort - undecided on which one... Phuket - other suggestions welcome.

Thank you.

We did similar, not sure about 3 nights in Bangkok 2 at most, fantastic street food. You must visit Ran Tong elephant Sanctuary in Chaing Mai which is a life time experience you will never forget, Chaing Mai is beautiful with beautiful people, we took a first class over night train from Bangkok..... Koh Toa is a nice island with plenty to do, a really great experience, we would have visited again but discovered India. enjoy.

 

[Billy the Fish]

Interesting from [MENTION=15046]peterward[/MENTION] about phuket. It's been 10 years since I went and was mostly Brits, Germans and swedes. Stayed at kamala beach for a few days before island hopping. I wouldn't do 2 weeks there, but was perfectly nice. Agree Patong is a bit of a dive.

 

[The Lemming Stomper]

.

Remember seeing a 'balloon popping' show in a bar in Bangkok, followed by various live seafood popping out of different ladies, before heading to another bar around 2am pickled on the local Singha...

Said to my mate I thought I'd seen it all, then 2 dwarves came out in full boxing gear, got into a ring in the middle of the bar, and preceded to knock 10 bells out of each other...

Beats a Warners break at Hayling Island

 

[atfc village]

Swapping Thailand for Vietnam on the way to NZ in February hopefully.

 

[knocky1]

Loved it in 1981 as a bummer on undeveloped beaches in Phuket! and Koh Sammet. It still has a charm despite being overcrowded.
Avoid a nail and foot massage at the same time.

 

[Robinjakarta]

Check for an Adam’s apple.

Avoid Thailand, way too expensive now. Try Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam instead.

Yeah? I've been in Bangkok and Phuket the past two weeks and not found it expensive at all.

 

[Robinjakarta]

Don't go to Pattaya. The grimmest place I've ever been to, full of retired Brits, Aussies, north americans, Europeans and russians and their 14 year old 'girlfriends'.

Despite the deliciousness DO NOT eat the street food unless you have the constitution of an Ox. An Ox with a constitution that makes all the other Oxes jealous.

1. Yeah. Pattaya is the biggest shithole in Thailand by far.
2. Nah. I reckon you got unlucky as you say a few posts below. Bangkok in particular has arguably the best street food in the world:

 

[Robinjakarta]

The street food is amazing, I've eaten loads of it and never got the shits!

An impromptu Pad Thai off the back of a motorbike for 50p is one of the great pleasures of Thailand.

For the OP:
If you've only got two weeks then pick a beach resort without much travelling - I did 3 islands + Bangkok in two weeks and I found it was too much. Ko Lanta is brilliant but you burn two days getting there and back to Bangkok. All the tourist resorts are much of a muchness, if you just want to chillout on a beach Phuket is fine.

Other than that, don't drink the red bull shots in 7/11, Sangsom makes you go mental, Chang is like drinking beater

Lots of good advice there. There's a lot to see in Thailand even if going just for beach places, and it's easy to eat up a lot of your time travelling. Phuket and Krabi (beautiful beaches) are only just over an hour's flight from Bangkok. With fierce competition, these flights are cheap and frequent. I think you'll find there's a direct Chiang Mai to Phuket flight with Air Asia making it possible to fly Bangkok-Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai-Phuket and Phuket-Bangkok. All these flights can be booked on the Internet and likely to be cheaper the more in advance they're booked. There's also the train Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Overnight sleeper saves hotel cost. Daytime, you see a lot of rural Thai life.

I think Sangsom is great! A genuine rum distilled from sugar cane. There's also Hong Thong (a kind of whisky) in any 7/11, which are everywhere. Both go well with coke and work out much cheaper than beer.

 

[Robinjakarta]

If you are asked to buy a lady a drink, check for an adam's apple

Or a scar where it was surgically removed.

 

[pure_white]

Its called Bang c0ck for a reason. Enjoy. Oh and buy a return ticket.

 

[SeagullinExile]

Yeah? I've been in Bangkok and Phuket the past two weeks and not found it expensive at all.

Like I said, comparing to days gone by. Try Phnom Penh, Siam Reap or Koh Kong in Cambodia and you’ll get my point.

 

[SeagullinExile]

1. Yeah. Pattaya is the biggest shithole in Thailand by far.
2. Nah. I reckon you got unlucky as you say a few posts below. Bangkok in particular has arguably the best street food in the world:

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Good call. The best Papaya salad I’ve ever had was in BKK. May I also throw Saigon’s hat in the ring for that title? The Bahn Mi is absolutely incredible!