Thailand for 3 weeks

randombar

Hi Lads,
So in October my girlfriend and I are flying into singapore and out of bangkok three weeks later. Just wondering if anyone has any advice for us on what's best to see and where's best to go? I have this idea from talking to people?

train through malasia to kuala lumpour??

fly KL to Ko Samui?? beach beach and more beach??

fly Ko Samui to ChiangMai?? Elephant Trek, Babmoo canoes and the likes?

fly/train ChiangMai to Bangkok?? buy dodgy stuff etc

Then on to Melbourne.

I'd appreciate any advice anyone could give me.
Thanks
Gary

FlutterinBantam

I could give you some advice, but really you seem to know it all already:cool:

randombar

Any advice would be appreciated, hostels, tours, best places to go etc, all very new to me!

bringitdown

Singapore 2/3 nights
Melaka 1 night
KL 2 nights
Langkawi or Perhentian islands (resorts or isolated paradise)
cross into Thailand ... do Krabi and nearby islands
Skip Koh Samui / Koh Pha Ngan unless you manage to schedule (are are into) full moon.

Head to Bangkok. If you have enought time head to Chiang Mai or to Kanchanaburi.

Have fun. You should have little problems with accom.

Recommend Sleepy Sams or The Inn Crowd in Singapore, Pondok Lodge in KL, after that plenty of choice and budgets.

Bus from Singapore to KL, its faster than the train.

randombar

Thanks very much for all de advice!

So you'd recommend the bus rather than the train from Singapore to KL (Stopping off in Melaka??) I heard the trains were pretty nice booking a carriage or something but you seem to know a bit about this!

Would we fly to Krabi from KL or how long do the buses/trains take, security??

Fly then to Chiang Mai (Heard great things about some elephant related hike and canoes) then back to bangkok, again should those trips be flights??

Thanks for any help you can give me, I'll repayit if you ever need info about Stockholm

Larianne

Check out this thread and in particular the sites I mentioned

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=56214742#post56214742

bringitdown

Well I do live in KL (albeit home at the moment!)

Nah the trains in Malaysia are crapola. A 4/5 hour bus journey is about 8/9 hours on a train. I only take the train if I have to go in the evening - then I take a sleeper so accom + transport in one. An early morning bus is a preferrable option. There is no stop near Melaka so if you take the train you will go straight to KL.

Singapore to KL is a heavily contested Bus route - Aeroline (swanky), Transnasional (various classes), Konsortium Bas Ekspres, Transtar. Most depart from Lavender Street Station in Singapore and most stop in or near to Malacca. Any hostel in Singapore will give you the latest and greatest details on these.

Malacca is a nice little town, check out Jonker Street. Try Iced Kajang/Cendol (my fav is mango ice with corn, ask to leave the red beans out - an acquired taste), Chicken Rice balls, Great Laksa, couple of nice bars there too. http://wikitravel.org/en/Malacca

In KL check out China Town, the Old Market, and obviously the sky scrapers. Jalan Alor has an amazing array of cheap eats (don't be put off I eat there all the time - seafood included!). Beer is cheaper here too. Around the corner is Changat Bukit Bintang which has some more 'classier' eats, good bars and nightlife. Green Man, Little Havana, Twenty One are good options. Stay away from the LP recommended Beach Club - its a den in eniquity if you get me. There are plenty of shopping options: Upmarket: Pavilions KL, Suria KLCC, Berjaya World Trade. Bargains: Sungai Wang (like a maze, great foot massage on the 3rd Floor). All the shopping centers have cheap clean excellent food courts and more expensive restaurants too.

As mentioned Pondok Lodge is a good budget option, the places around Chinatown are not great from what I recall. If you want you can splash E45/50 on a five-star. Traders Hotel which is excellent had a great deal recently ... try http://www.wotif.com (good for deals in Bangkok too).

Okay thereafter if you are intent on saving time you can Air-Asia to Krabi. Its a near 1.5 day bus journey otherwise. If you wanted to train to Krabi there is one from KL to Hat Yai leaves at approx 3pm and arrives in Hat Yai at 7am. Then you'd have to transit to a bus connection to Krabi. But as I said there is the little Perhentian Islands on the other side of Malaysia that I would recommend. Krabi and surrounds - Koh Phi Phi, Ao Nang and so on are great spots.

Krabi to Bangkok - plenty of options, go via the Koh Samui/Pha Ngan/Tao, go via Phuket or go straight?

I'm tired typing .... have to get back to work. Let someone else take over!

randombar

Absolute legend!!!!!

Let me know if you need any Tea bags / Crisps / Cadbury's brought over!!!

Thanks again for your time! Might be annoying ya again at some stage

Larianne

Oh if you're staying in KL check out Number 8 guesthouse. Really nice and cheap and quiet and staff were really friendly. Make sure to book ahead. Walking distance to the shopping malls and chinatown and street markets.

randombar

Nice one think this is what we've come up with so far:

1 - 7 Dubai

---

Flight

---

8 - 10 Singapore

---

Bus

---

11 - 13 KL

---

Bus

---

(Maybe? 7 to 8 hour bus journey from KL)

14 - .... Perhentian islands (Maybe?)

......... Ko samui?? Ko Phagnan???

.... - 27 Chang Mai

27 - 31 Bangkok

31 - .... Melbourne

Any suggestions welcome!

6ix

This thread is relevant to my interests so I'll jump in. I'm going to Thailand for three weeks in September/October. I've taken some advice and I'm just going to book a night or two in Bangkok, and take it as I go thereafter.

The basic plan after arriving is to go to Chiang Mai/Chiang Rai, then down to the south, and then back for a few days to Bangkok before heading home.

My main question is regarding the south. Which islands to go to? Friends all say Phi Phi, where I will go, but I'll probably like to move around a bit because I'll have about 10 days to spend down in southern Thailand. Another factor is the weather - I'm not sure whether the East/West will be better in terms of rainfall.

If anyone has any experience/advice they'd like to share I'd appreciate it.

randombar

So from talking to others the new improved trip looks like this:

1 - 7 Dubai

---

Flight

---

8 - 10 Singapore

---

Bus

---

10 - 11 Melaka

---

Bus

---

11 - 13 KL

---

Bus

---

.........Where to next toward perhentian?????????

---

Bus

---

(Maybe? 7 to 8 hour bus journey from KL)

14 - .... Perhentian islands (Maybe?)

---

Bus/Flight

---

.........Where to next?????????

---

Bus/Flight

---

.... - 29 Chang Mai

---

Flight

---

29 - 31 Bangkok

---

Flight

---

31 - .... Melbourne

Any ideas for in between KL and perhentian, where to go after perhentian and before Chang Mai?

niborm

I'll try with some tips as I have found travel forums to be so useful and I thought I'd give something back!

I think it depends what type of beach lifestyle you like. I found Koh Chang (the one near the Cambodian border), particularly Lonely Beach to be exceptional, and it only takes 7 hours to get there from the centre of Bangkok using bus and ferry. This island is also better value than others as it still has a market for Thai tourists. As with most of Thailand, accommodation ranges from the very basic to luxury. If you're budgeting but want something nice, check out Little Eden(not on the beach but up the hill a bit, which is no harm on beach part nights), if you are not budgeting try http://www.siambeachresort.in.th/

Phi Phi is more spectacular though, hence the incredible popularity. If you like loud bars and getting trashed, stay in the main town. If you'd prefer a slightly quieter time, try staying on Long Beach which is only 5 minutes from the main town on a long boat. It's quieter here, has incredible views (Hilltop resort has the best breakfast view) and great snorkelling right off the beach.

Samui is infested with the darker side of Thailand, which may or may not interest you. The beaches aren't great, the sex trade is huge, and there are fat euro-pervs everywhere.

The northern beaches on Koh Pha Ngan are beautiful although it's a long time since I was on that island, and if you're looking to party I wouldn't recommend them.

If you make it to northern Thailand for trekking, check out Pai as it's a lovely little town and has options for trekking.

6ix, I like your idea of flying to Bangkok and taking it from there, esp at that time of year as it can rain alot down around the islands then.

randombar

niborm wrote: »

Which may or may not interest you

Haha did I mention I was going with the missus

Definitely looking for the more "things to do" side of Thailand and Malaysia rather than the drinking myself blind part! (Do enough of that at home!)

bringitdown

To get to Perhentian Islands:

http://wikitravel.org/en/Perhentian_Islands

Get an overnight bus from Hentian Putra in KL to Kuala Besut.
Usually you arrive very early and there will be some wait until the first ferry.

The ferry is a speed boat which will bring you to the Islands. Then pick which one - Big or Small. Small was more partyish the last time I was there. Big was a bit more relaxed. You can snorkel from both and diving is also available.

A quick trip to Hentian Putra will give you the bus times. Its not a nice journey but worth it.

To get to the Thai border we just negotiated a taxi, it was about 25/30EUR which is fine if you split. If you aint forking for a taxi you would have to get to Khota Bahru and travel to the border from there.

We took an early early ferry off Perhentian and grabbed a taxi to the border and from there got a bus to Hat Yai which is a well connected city for your journey thereafter. So factor in a day/night for 'border transit to somewhere useful'. Train connection from Sungai Kolok to Hat Yai and onward to Bangkok is available also. Hat Yai has an airport and connections via air to Bangkok and Phuket. Plenty of bus options from Hat Yai also.

randombar

Ya the girlfriend has decided to go with your second option now, langkawi, it kinda makes sense for us since we're going to other things up that side. so our route now looks like:

1 - 7 Dubai

---

Flight

---

8 - 10 Singapore

---

Bus

---

10 - 11 Melaka

---

Bus

---

11 - 13 KL

---

Bus/Flight

---

13 - 17 Langkawi

---

Bus/Flight

---

17 - 21 Phi Phi

---

Flight

---

22 - 29 Chang Mai

---

Flight

---

29 - 31 Bangkok

---

Flight

---

31 - .... Melbourne

If anyone has any tips for these places it would be great.

Gary

niborm

GaryCocs wrote: »

If anyone has any tips for these places it would be great.

Gary

How long are you going for Gary? Budget, luxury or somewhere in the middle?

randombar

The dates are in there (Rough guide) Malaysia/Thailand for 3 weeks.

I think Budget, girlfriend thinks luxury so I'm guessing it's half and half

niborm

GaryCocs wrote: »

The dates are in there (Rough guide) Malaysia/Thailand for 3 weeks.

I think Budget, girlfriend thinks luxury so I'm guessing it's half and half

Sorry, I meant how long in Melbourne? Are you going to live out there?

randombar

Oh ya living there for at least 6 months, think I can get a job with Ericsson out there but might want a job in Power Engineering.

niborm

Singapore

For accom you could try http://www.sleepysams.com/ which was very nice and in a good location, not the most private rooms in the world, but v friendly staff and the cleanest hostel I've ever stayed in. Plus v cheap beer across the road in 7-11.

The Botanic Gardens are beautiful, esp the Orchid Garden. Boat cruise at night is pleasant. There are plenty of good restaurants and bars around, although boozing is pretty pricy here. I liked the pump room on clarke quay. If you want the world's most touristy drink, have a Singapore Sling in Raffles Hotel Long Bar.

If you(other half ) want to shop, Orchard Road has all the designer(rip-off) shops. For electronics, try Sim Lim Square.

Phi Phi
I'd defnitely recommend staying at Long Beach in the Hilltop Resort (very grand word for basic enough accom) The walk up and down the steps is tiring but worth it for the view. If you like snorkelling, you can snorkle out to a little island, more a bunch of rocks, and there you'll find reef sharks, sea snakes, barracuda, turtles if you're v lucky. It's pretty cool.

Have you tried diving? There are decent enough introductory dive packages available here. Don't bother haggling over the price of this as it's a cosy cartel where they don't compete on price, the same as the long boats to and from the main town.

Chiang Mai
It's so long since I was here I can't help you there, other than to recommend a trip to the tranquil Pai. Trek companies are ten a penny and I found the best way to select one to provide a good experience, is to talk to people who have just been on a trek. They'll be only too happy to yak about it anyway

Bangkok

Accom
You should treat yourself to a bit of luxury here as Bangkok has the cheapest 5 star accom in the world. I'd recommend the Shangri-La as it has an amazing buffet. If you need to go downmarket, there are plenty of other places in this area.

If you fancy something a bit more touristy, there are about 4 zillion guesthouses on the infamous Khao San Road. You can get better value on the side streets near here and make sure you check out your room before taking it (In fact do this everywhere in Asia, as the pics they show you often don't resemble the scaldy rooms they give you). Rambuttri Village Inn is about a one minute walk from Khao San and is passable if you manage not to stab one of the ever present suit sellers en route to the hotel.

There is plenty to do in Bangkok, temples(Grand Palace and Wat Pho are particularly impressive), river cruises, markets, ping pong shows and all that! Patpong can be fun at night time, as can most of Bangkok and the food generally is incredible. Tom Yum Goong is particularly delicious.

If you're getting a suit made, this is the place to go http://www.dress-for-success.com/ Quality.

Oh and as for getting taxis in Bangkok, just insist on putting the meter on as they are rip off b******s. It will rarely cost you more than 100 baht to go anywhere, but when you come out of the train station/airport/hotel they will accost you and tell you 400 baht is a good price. I wouldn't bother haggling with these guys as there are plenty of drivers who will take you on the meter.

And, guidebooks are great!

niborm

GaryCocs wrote: »

Oh ya living there for at least 6 months, think I can get a job with Ericsson out there but might want a job in Power Engineering.

Nice, very nice. Melbourne is a fantastic city with loads going on and even better that you'll be able to get a good job and really enjoy it. For places to live, I'd pick somewhere near Chapel St, like Toorak, Windsor or South Yarra. St Kilda is also pretty nice and there'll be lots of fellow Irish around there too.

For going out, all the places named above are good craic as are Brunswick and South Melbourne. The food is excellent with lots of quality Asian, Greek, Italian etc. Lygon St is wall to wall Italian restaurants, never a bad thing. There is also a tram restaurant in Melbourne which is good fun. It's about 100 bucks pp but that's all the booze you want with good food and it's a nice way to see the city.

If you like sport, it's a great place with the AFL on for a large chunk of the year, the Aussie Open (tennis), the Grand Prix, the Melbourne Cup and loads of golf courses about. Some other interesting/fun things in Melbourne are the old gaol, the casino, botanic gardens(if you live around Toorak, you can stroll through these en route to work in the city - v relaxing way to start the day ) and Albert Park.

Out of the city itself are some beautiful areas, with Wilsons Prom (http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/1park_display.cfm?park=217) my personal favourite for a few nights camping and hiking. There is Torquay for surfing and the Great Ocean Road which is a lovely drive. If you have the time, try and get up to the Grampian National Park too. And an absolute must is vineyards, assuming you like wine. There's loads of vineyard tours allowing you to have your tipple and not get arrested.

Enjoy!

randombar

Nice one for that.

Have all ready booked sleepy sams happy days!

Stuff to do now in Singapore too, JOB!

Thanks a lot!!

Larianne

Night Safari in Singapore was good.

Larianne

niborm wrote: »

Nice, very nice. Melbourne is a fantastic city with loads going on and even better that you'll be able to get a good job and really enjoy it. For places to live, I'd pick somewhere near Chapel St, like Toorak, Windsor or South Yarra. St Kilda is also pretty nice and there'll be lots of fellow Irish around there too.

For going out, all the places named above are good craic as are Brunswick and South Melbourne. The food is excellent with lots of quality Asian, Greek, Italian etc. Lygon St is wall to wall Italian restaurants, never a bad thing. There is also a tram restaurant in Melbourne which is good fun. It's about 100 bucks pp but that's all the booze you want with good food and it's a nice way to see the city.

If you like sport, it's a great place with the AFL on for a large chunk of the year, the Aussie Open (tennis), the Grand Prix, the Melbourne Cup and loads of golf courses about. Some other interesting/fun things in Melbourne are the old gaol, the casino, botanic gardens(if you live around Toorak, you can stroll through these en route to work in the city - v relaxing way to start the day ) and Albert Park.

Out of the city itself are some beautiful areas, with Wilsons Prom (http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/1park_display.cfm?park=217) my personal favourite for a few nights camping and hiking. There is Torquay for surfing and the Great Ocean Road which is a lovely drive. If you have the time, try and get up to the Grampian National Park too. And an absolute must is vineyards, assuming you like wine. There's loads of vineyard tours allowing you to have your tipple and not get arrested.

Enjoy!

I agree with everything you've said. I lived in St. Kilda for 4 weeks, did not like it and then Windsor, just off Chapel Street for 7 months. Loved it! Near the train - 10 minute ride into the city. Chapel street has everything that you want that you don't have to go into the city!

Such a brilliant city with something to do every week. There is always some kinda of sport going on. Make sure to get yourself to the MCG. It's an impressive stadium, well so the bf says. AFL games rock!!

If the weather is nice, head to Brighton beach. Nice to see the colourful beach huts and the million dollar beach houses and the kite surfers. We walked from Brighton beach to St. Kilda beach. Nice walk, you get to see the city from a different angle. Took us about 2 hours to walk!!

PM if you need anymore info on things.

sideshowdave

just been to singapore on way back from oz and thailand "chaing mai" we were there for four days didnt get to do the night safari but heard it fantastic the zoo is also very good and santosa island via the cable car which you get from the harbour front, 15th floor and right across to the island. little india we thought was excellent a must see i think just to even mingle about. chinatown also. for food either of these prob best places to go smashing altogether. sales are on now but mind you unless you "like" shopping with the misses stay away from orchard road you would possibly need a month to get around all the shops. this is probally the safest country you are going to come across "ever" saying that dont it for granted, but crime is very low due to severe penalties and long prison terms. amazingly clean country which has over 4 million people and has a coastline of 300km. for transport use the MRT "underground" as it goes everywhere and would be best to get the $15 pass as it will mostly save the hassle of queing each time you get one.

as for chaing mai a must do is the flight of the gibbon a tree top trek via zipline, great fun. quad treking, elephant camps, zoo aint up to much, weekend market in the old city and then the night bazaar each night for some cheap bits n pieces. if your looking for a hotel i would highly recomend rimping village, goergous place not to expensive and ten minute walk from night bazar. and not to far from airport prob ten minutes 120 BATH including airport charges. other than that cabs we never paid more than 60 bath for three of us for any distance around the city tuk tuks ha man it gets ridiculus.
there is loads to do in chaing mai we spent a week there and didnt get to see half of it.

was in perth and up the coast in oz so sorry cant help you out with anywhere other than there.
goodluck and enjoy

randombar

Thanks a lot lads for all the help and advice, think I've the route planned out now, accododation is almost there too.

Savage!

bringitdown

Have a good trip!

Should be back in KL when ya pass thru.

If ya fancy an amateur 'tour' just send a PM before you head.

randombar

Excellent I'll be onto ya, let me know if you want anything from home!!!

Elba101

Hi!

Im headin to Thailand myself in Sept for 3 wks so i've been checkin th place out all Summer. I was there 2 years ago and had an amazing time. If you can, try and gt in a full/half moon party on Ko Pha ngan. There brilliant! If your stayin in Ko Samui, the main tourist beach is Chaweng. It great but it's kinda like a strip in Spain...Lamai is quitier and only a short (and cheap) ride to the night life in Chaweng.

You don't have to bk your accom before you arrive. At Samui airport there's a desk with loads of books filled with hotels and you pick which one you want to stay inand they call them up and book it for you. If you do wnt to book in advance, you can do it on sawadee.com. It has reviews of all the hotels so you know what your getting in to. I've used it, it's safe.

Your going during the rainy season so if you do a trek in Chang Mai, expect it rain...a lot! And the treks are killer!! I thought it would be real easy but hard work!!But well worth it!!! Apparently Ko Phi phi and Phuket are just full of rain in Sept/Oct but still worth a look.

Anyway, have fun!!!

spinandscribble

can't recommend spicy thai backpackers enough in chiang mai. all the tuk tuks know it plus the staff arrange lots of cheap trips.
if you go to koh phangan go to the silver workshop to make jewellery. its run by a thai fella yuath and a irish woman paula, they're really nice and the jewellery you'll make is a great way to remember the trip back home.