Thailand could quite possibly one of the reasons this whole trip was put together in the first place. The beaches in the South and mountains in the North are such a departure from anything I am used to which makes the country high on my list. Previously, I took part in the Ultimate Thailand Explorers contest to win a blogging trip to Thailand and won a consolation prize for a week at a resort in the city of Hua Hin. Unfortunately the prize has limited dates of usage and is completely blacked out when I will be in Thailand - expect a blog related giveaway of that package here in the near future! Regardless, Thailand is still high on my list of places to see, and it is especially exciting as my wonderful girlfriend will be coming to visit for 2-2.5 weeks over her Christmas break from school to travel around Bangkok, Phuket, Koh Phi Phi, and Krabi and celebrate the coming of 2011! This makes one travel deadline clear - Bangkok by Christmas - and my itinerary will be reflective of that.
Ranging from elephant sanctuaries and liveaboard scuba trips, to cooking classes and amazing beaches, Thailand has it all. That is why I am dedicating 6 weeks of my itinerary to explore the country, making it my longest destination of the whole trip.
City Highlights:
Chiang Rai: The city of Chiang Rai in the Golden Triangle region of Thailand is known for the mountain trekking to visit the hill-tribes. Additionally, this region is known for many beautiful Wats, with Wat Phra Kaeo and the Emerald Buddha sounding most interesting to visit. Depending on my deadline to make it to Bangkok, I may have to skip Chiang Rai and pack more site seeing in at neighboring Chiang Mai.
Chiang Mai: Like Chiang Rai, the city of Chiang Mai is known for its hill-tribe trekking. Between these two cities I will be getting a lot of hikes in. The famous Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep is built 1000m in elevation with a view of the city and is a great visiting spot. My priority, however, is visiting the Elephant Nature Park and potentially spend a few days taking care of the elephants and learning more about the giant creatures. If time permits, I will attempt my first of two cooking classes in Thailand as well!
Bangkok: Bangkok by Christmas is my goal, and my girlfriend will likely arrive on December 27th to begin our journey around Southern Thailand. There are the normal tourist sites, like backpacker Khao San Road, Wat Pho home of the reclining Buddha, and Thai Boxing that are a must to take in, as well as the popular night food markets. My guess is a lot of my experiences in Bangkok will be helping my girlfriend get used to the culture shock.
Phuket: From Bangkok we will head down to Phuket for some much needed beach time. As a certified scuba diver, I am especially looking forward to these islands. However, my girlfriend is not certified, and I am hoping to get her on an introductory dive here to show her what its like. Most of Phuket is used for its dozens of beaches and easy access to day trips to the nearby islands. Our few days here will be primarily used jumping around beach to beach exploring the beautiful island and relaxing. Later in the trip I will return to Phuket on my own to take a 5-7 day liveaboard dive package to the Similan Islands.
Koh Phi Phi Don: Like Phuket, Koh Phi Phi provides easy access to many islands in the area, such as Ko Phi Phi Leh, Ko Phai, and Ko Yung of which we will likely take a few day trips to visit each. A must for me is a hike up to the tallest part of the island to witness the island in all its glory in one view. After looking at the pictures, it is hard to see why people would pass up such a chance to visit these islands.
Krabi: Probably my number one place to visit in Thailand, the city of Krabi, more specifically Rai Leh Beach, is a tourist hot spot and known for its exquisite scenery. A few sites for us will include Phra Nang Cave, rock climbing, and taking in a cooking class to learn more Thail cuisine! In addition to Rai Leh Beach we will likely also head over to Ao Nang for more beach adventures. Unfortunately after these few weeks my girlfriend will have to head home for school, but I will continue on exploring Thailand after departing from Bangkok, heading down to the islands in the East and liveaboard departing from Phuket.
Ko Tao: The first of the eastern islands that I will visit is Ko Tao. Like the previous islands, the primary goal is to enjoy some relaxation on the beach with snorkeling at Shark Bay as a must. Aside from hiking and snorkeling, this 21 sq km island provides little other than relaxation from a long few months of backpacking.
Koh Samui: More beaches! Chaweng Beach, Big Buddha Beach, and many many more offer many water activities for those wanting to get wet. As the island is one of the biggest in Thailand, Koh Samui also offers many other activities including the Secret Buddha Garden and Monkey Shows that might also get my attention as well.
Koh Pha Ngan: One of my last stops in Thailand is Koh Pha Ngan before heading to do a liveaboard off Phuket if my dive addiction can be held off while in Koh Samui. The island is home to the famous full moon and half moon parties that attract tens of thousands of visitors each month. While this sounds interesting, I prefer the quieter nights most of the time and will likely be arriving in between these monthly celebrations. I hope to head to head to Ang Thong National Park for a day trip as well as exploring many of the local beaches.
Eating Habits: Pad Thai, Tom Yam Kung (Prawns in spicy soup), Thai Curries, Mango Sticky Rice, Seafood, sweet glorious Seafood.
Modes of Transportation: Train, Ferry, Taxi, Tuk Tuk, Bus, Elephant, Foot, Songthaew
Predicted Daily Cost: $55/day This cost is likely higher than necessary as I will be participating in a lot of day trips and scuba dives (some offset by my larger purchases budget). I do not intend to miss anything Thailand has to offer, so my cost might be higher than normal as a result. Luckily some slow beach days will offset the expense of all those dives that I know will get thrown in last minute.
Leaving Thailand: I will be exiting Thailand overland by bus heading to Penang, Malaysia to continue the beach escapade!
As always, I appreciate any advice. If there is something specific you think I should see while in Thailand, please let me know!
7 comments:
Having just finished 4 months in Thailand we have a ton of advice on where to go and what to see.... and we still didn't see all that we wanted!
So here are some of my thoughts about your planned route:
Northern Thailand... FInd the time to go to Chiang Pai! Spend less time in Chiang Mai or skip Rai or something. Pai is an amazing little sleepy town. We just spent 2.5 weeks there. It was hard to leave for us. VERY RELAXING! Stay at Darling View Point with Peter and Darling and they will treat you right with a beautiful bungalow with a great view of the town, complete with hammock and good FREE wifi! Rent a motorbike for 100 - 140 baht a day and just live some days there. LOTS of hilltribes in the area and Darling helps with many of them so she can set up a more personal experience to see them if you wish rather then going with a big group. If you rent a motorbike spend 2 days and take a ride to Soppong and back. Great ride!! Stay at Cave Lodge for night or 2 for a great experience. They have such good homemade bread and a great spot right on the river.
Chiang Mai Sunday Walking Market is a must. It's the best market we have been too. Much more personal and hand craft items. Barely any made in china junk.
Bangkok at Christmas will be the perfect place! We were there just before Xmas and they were putting up some amazing displays! So I'm sure if you can find the Christmas spirit there and probably a turkey dinner too!
We DID NOT like Phuket and left it pretty quick. Patong beach is way too hussled by the Thai sex industry and crappy knick knacks and the beach is shoulder to shoulder European men in speedos. There is FAR better in Thailand. Plus things are 3 times more expensive than anywhere else (ie tuk tuk is 150 baht per person for 2 KM (should be 40-60. Accommodation is triple everywhere else as well.
DO TRY to go to Koh Phayam. It's one of our fav island experiences and a place that is still somewhat off the beaten path. You can get to it easily from Phuket as it's in the Andaman sea by the Similian islands. Head to Ranong and catch a ferry from there. The island has no cars, just roads the side of sidewalks for motorbikes. No electricity, everything is solar or generated. Stay at Bamboo Bungalows. Beautiful place and we have met over a handful of people since we have been there that claim they go back there every year for at least a week!
Don't listen to all the bad hype about Koh Phi Phi. It's just as beautiful as the pictures. Best sand we have stepped on and the water is breathtaking. There is a reason this place is so popular with all walks of life. The town itself is great fun to walk around since that is the only way you can get around. Bit hard to find accommodation though for a decent price. Anything cheap is shithole. The snorkelling is amazing so I'm sure the dives are surreal. Do rent a longtail privately to go to Koh Phi Phi Ley. Much better then going with a group for the small amount saved. We didn't step foot on "The Beach". As it costs 200 baht per person to do so. So we just snorkelled in the bay for as long as we wanted, and saw the rest of the sights around the island with more snorkelling.
We did not get to Raileh but heard great things. So I'm sure you will enjoy your time there. Check out the crystal lagoon there. Heard it's remarkable. We did end up at Koh Lanta. Lots of people love that island, but we did not.
Koh Tao is another great little place! Has a great little vibe and the dives are the best prices you will see anywhere in Thailand.
Samui has lots of amenities to offer as lots of westerners live on this island. Esp Germans! Its the coldest island as it gets the most rain due to where it sits. Our fav place was The Jungle Club. Highly recommended!! Located at the top of a mountain with amazing views, food, staff, and a infinity swimming pool off the cliff edge.
Pha Ngan is beautiful and is probably our most favourite place. There is a reason this island turned into what it is today as it really is the best place! Haad Salad is the best beach experience we had. Not one complaint! Haad Rin is a great fun little town, but its not needed to stay there unless you really want to be in all the action. Full Moon Party is something else.. but I doubt we ever go to one again.
If you find the time on your way down to the islands Kanchanburi is also a great little town and Khao Sok National Park is one amazing place. Any questions etc, just send us a message we be glad to help!
PS: Our next 2 months in blog writing will be all about these places above!
Thailand is amazing!
cheers,
Dee
Wow. This is quite possibly the longest and most awesome reply I've received thus far in this blog. I can easily say I will do pretty much anything you tell me to since you spent so much time there, haha.
I will seriously look at doing Pai over Chiang Rai because everything you said sounds amazing. The thing that worries me about the trekking routes to the hill tribes is that it is over crowded and defeats the purpose of doing them in the first place. Sleepy little towns = win in my book.
I was worried they didn't do much for Christmas in Bangkok but it'll be nice to see what they do. Our goal is to be in Phuket or Krabi for new years eve (not sure what direction we'll go first). I can imagine what you mean about Phuket, there are too many beaches nearby that I must go to, and I want to use it as a stopping point to go to the Similans on a dive trip. If we like Koh Phi Phi and Krabi enough I can totally see skipping Phuket with my girlfriend if need be.
I am really glad to hear that most of the places I have picked out have amazing beaches. I am so looking forward to 6 weeks in Thailand.. its going to be so amazing.
Keeping an eye on your blog for more updates!!
I should mention, my Northern Thailand / Laos visits are going to have to be balanced by making it to Bangkok on Christmas. If I am running behind and miss a lot of the North I will go back even if it costs more to do it proper. Not skimping on Thailand here!
We didn't get to Rai so we can't judge it but what we read there was not much there except some nice temples which we have seen our far share of already. But yes Pai is a sleepy town with easy access to hill tribes. Nighttime is a more alive with a night market on the street and hippies gathering together to play live music is the various bars. Most things close by midnight or even before that.
Check out Siam Paragon shopping complex during Christmas in Bangkok. Great displays!
Glad the comment was helpful! I guess I read your post at the perfect time and thus had time to write that al! lol
You and your girlfriend are going to love Thailand!
we just love koh tao, i think is the best place we have been in the whole thailand. make sure you see all the beaches around this little island either canoeing or trekking or if you prefer a relax approach by water-taxi.
maybe this could be of some help with your planning http://www.atravelaroundtheworld.com/search/label/Thailand
maybe you should have a look at the nearby
Angthon Marine National Park, we were advised is such a pristine and amazing national park but unfortunately we couldn't manage to visit it in this occasion but it's on our list of things to do for our next trip
The only problem with a trip to Thailand is that you may not want to come back. I have been there so many times and been to all the locations on your itinerary. I am planning on (hopefully early) retirement there now.
Please do tell us a bit about how the political situation is when you are there, in relation to people's daily life. I hope Thailand stay the land of smile until I come.
Post a Comment