Discussion
I'm going to Thailand over Christmas and New years and I'm hoping people have a some recommendations about excursions and tours etc.
The rough plan at the moment is to go to Bangkok, stay there for a few days over Christmas then go somewhere else, then fly down to Phuket on the 30th for NYE.
I was looking at Pattaya for a nearby beach location to fill the few days between 26th and 30th; but from what I've been reading it's a bit seedy... well seedier than Bangkok and Phuket!
Any suggestions? Any thing I must experience there?
The rough plan at the moment is to go to Bangkok, stay there for a few days over Christmas then go somewhere else, then fly down to Phuket on the 30th for NYE.
I was looking at Pattaya for a nearby beach location to fill the few days between 26th and 30th; but from what I've been reading it's a bit seedy... well seedier than Bangkok and Phuket!
Any suggestions? Any thing I must experience there?
Catch an internal flight to Chiang Mai in the north. It's fantastic. Much nicer than Bangkok. Internal flights are very cheap.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/chiang-mai-p...
We did 2 days in Bangkok, it was enough. We saw temples, the palace, did a good river boat trip, ate loads of street food, and went to chatachak market all in 2 days. Easily achievable. If I had to go back to a Thai City, I'd choose Chiang Mai any day though.
Edited to add: When in Bangkok, it's well worth doing this tour. Yes, it's meant for tourists, but we loved it. The tour guides are great, and you see parts of Bangkok you just wouldn't see, and street food eateries you'd never find. Also included a great tour of Wat Pho at night, which was serene and beautiful with no tourists, and a trip round the flower market. All transport via Tuk Tuk and included. Food was great, lots of it too. All for around £40. for 4 hours or so. Brilliant.
https://www.bangkokfoodtours.com/bangkok-best-eats...
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/chiang-mai-p...
We did 2 days in Bangkok, it was enough. We saw temples, the palace, did a good river boat trip, ate loads of street food, and went to chatachak market all in 2 days. Easily achievable. If I had to go back to a Thai City, I'd choose Chiang Mai any day though.
Edited to add: When in Bangkok, it's well worth doing this tour. Yes, it's meant for tourists, but we loved it. The tour guides are great, and you see parts of Bangkok you just wouldn't see, and street food eateries you'd never find. Also included a great tour of Wat Pho at night, which was serene and beautiful with no tourists, and a trip round the flower market. All transport via Tuk Tuk and included. Food was great, lots of it too. All for around £40. for 4 hours or so. Brilliant.
https://www.bangkokfoodtours.com/bangkok-best-eats...
Edited by cbmotorsport on Monday 24th July 12:38
Although i never made it to Chiang Mai i have only heard positive things about it and it is supposed to be very good for NYE, bear in mind the evenings will be cold though
26th - 30th well i spent 4 days in Siem Reap, Cambodia using Air Asia as the flights were very cheap so something like that is an option, another option is a one of the small islands near Phuket like Phi Phi etc as ferry's are cheap and frequent when your going. Or another part of Phuket such as Karon
Well done on avoiding jet ski's on Patong beach, that beach is best avoided anyway as it will be completely packed at that time of year. Patong is good fun though with lots to do, Karon beach was dead in comparison
26th - 30th well i spent 4 days in Siem Reap, Cambodia using Air Asia as the flights were very cheap so something like that is an option, another option is a one of the small islands near Phuket like Phi Phi etc as ferry's are cheap and frequent when your going. Or another part of Phuket such as Karon
Well done on avoiding jet ski's on Patong beach, that beach is best avoided anyway as it will be completely packed at that time of year. Patong is good fun though with lots to do, Karon beach was dead in comparison
Chiang Mai has been invaded by the Chinese,still good though.
Everybody has their favourite hotels in Bangkok,mine are the Anantara near Chong Nonsi,the Sivatel on Wireless Rd and the curve ball,The Old Bangkok inn near Victory monument.In Chiang Mai it is the Rimping Village hotel.
Air Asia is stupidly cheap so why not also take in Phnom Pehn.
Everybody has their favourite hotels in Bangkok,mine are the Anantara near Chong Nonsi,the Sivatel on Wireless Rd and the curve ball,The Old Bangkok inn near Victory monument.In Chiang Mai it is the Rimping Village hotel.
Air Asia is stupidly cheap so why not also take in Phnom Pehn.
Bangkok is a bit of a s
thole to be honest (to be fair, I'm yet to find a part of Thailand that isn't!)
However, if you're looking for a good place to eat there for next to nothing, you could do a lot worse than Jack's Bar next to the Shangri-La and right on the river. The Marriott Marquis on Soi 21 has a superb international buffet if you fancy a change.
Patpong, Soi Cowboy and Nanas are worth a visit just for the fun factor. Avoid KSR like the plague. The big Buddha's impressive for about 10 minutes. If you want to go to the temple, you'll need to wear long trousers.
Throw 100BHT notes at a Tuk Tuk driver to get him to do wheelies between the traffic lights!
For me, 2 days in Bangers is always more than enough. I was working in Cha-am and Hua Hin last week and they are not much better, but are a lot less hectic than Bangkok
As has been said, Air Asia is crazy cheap (I'm flying KL to Jakarta next week for £22!), so hop on one and go see much nicer places in SE Asia
thole to be honest (to be fair, I'm yet to find a part of Thailand that isn't!)However, if you're looking for a good place to eat there for next to nothing, you could do a lot worse than Jack's Bar next to the Shangri-La and right on the river. The Marriott Marquis on Soi 21 has a superb international buffet if you fancy a change.
Patpong, Soi Cowboy and Nanas are worth a visit just for the fun factor. Avoid KSR like the plague. The big Buddha's impressive for about 10 minutes. If you want to go to the temple, you'll need to wear long trousers.
Throw 100BHT notes at a Tuk Tuk driver to get him to do wheelies between the traffic lights!
For me, 2 days in Bangers is always more than enough. I was working in Cha-am and Hua Hin last week and they are not much better, but are a lot less hectic than Bangkok
As has been said, Air Asia is crazy cheap (I'm flying KL to Jakarta next week for £22!), so hop on one and go see much nicer places in SE Asia
Consider a day trip from Bangkok to Ayutthaya. Old capital of Thailand, lots of old temples and monuments, definitely worth a look imo. Hire a bike near the station, easiest way to get around.
Chang Mai as mentioned is also of interest. IIRC, quite a long train journey from Bangkok though. I did a trek from there into the hills where the group stayed overnight with the locals. Was one of the highlights of the trip.
Beach wise, I stayed in Phi Phi island. From there you can do a day trip to the beach from 'The Beach'. I visited not that long after the tsunami so there was a lot of building work/regeneration going on. It was actually not too overrun with tourists, but I've heard things have changed.
Chang Mai as mentioned is also of interest. IIRC, quite a long train journey from Bangkok though. I did a trek from there into the hills where the group stayed overnight with the locals. Was one of the highlights of the trip.
Beach wise, I stayed in Phi Phi island. From there you can do a day trip to the beach from 'The Beach'. I visited not that long after the tsunami so there was a lot of building work/regeneration going on. It was actually not too overrun with tourists, but I've heard things have changed.
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