Traveling around Thailand

strife

Hi Guys,
So i woke up yesterday morning and decided that me my girlfriend are going to Thailand so i went of trailfinders and got a really good price on flights and a few nights accommodation in bangkok.

We're going for 3 weeks and im just looking for some guidance from anyone who's been already basically i don’t want to end up bored lol

what iv kinda decided on is arrive in bangkok spend 2 nights and 3 days seeing the sites and so on, then from there we are going to Chiang Mai we'll stay here for 1 night and then the following day head off to do 4 days of trekking. once thats done i was thinking another day or two in Chiang Mai.

Now here is where i get kinda lost we are going to head south then to phuket and krabi and phi phi and maybe Ao nang but iv no idea what to do here, we are going to Koh Samui after a week in the islands to chill out before we come home, so we dont really want to be staying in resort style places in the islands we'd prefer a more kind of rough and ready, adventure style week.

So we are very open to suggestions, input,advise and any does and donts that ya might have!:D

Thanks for the help

Four of a kind

strife wrote: »

Hi Guys,
So i woke up yesterday morning and decided that me my girlfriend are going to Thailand so i went of trailfinders and got a really good price on flights and a few nights accommodation in bangkok.

We're going for 3 weeks and im just looking for some guidance from anyone who's been already basically i don’t want to end up bored lol

what iv kinda decided on is arrive in bangkok spend 2 nights and 3 days seeing the sites and so on, then from there we are going to Chiang Mai we'll stay here for 1 night and then the following day head off to do 4 days of trekking. once thats done i was thinking another day or two in Chiang Mai.

Now here is where i get kinda lost we are going to head south then to phuket and krabi and phi phi and maybe Ao nang but iv no idea what to do here, we are going to Koh Samui after a week in the islands to chill out before we come home, so we dont really want to be staying in resort style places in the islands we'd prefer a more kind of rough and ready, adventure style week.

So we are very open to suggestions, input,advise and any does and donts that ya might have!:D

Thanks for the help

How much did trailfinders get you your flights for, out of curiosity?

whatsyourquota

4 days trekking?? No way should you do that! 2 days is enough and spend the rest in chang mai, loads to do there!
I hated phuket its an awful seedy place. Most the things to do around the islands will be day trips to do things like visit the island where they filmed 'the beach' and visiting monkey island and stuff! Krabi is famous for rock climbing.
Koh Samui is just like Spain didnt like that place too much either! Why dont you do a diving course in Koh Tao and you have to make a trip to Koh Phangnan to what after moon party happens to be on at the time your around!

strife

@ Four of a Kind: trail finders were really good we got a special on air france 658€ return per person. and the agaent was really nice i would recommend them to anyone.

@ Whatsyourquota: Well the treking im going to book when i get to Chiang Mai so ill see how we go. I was also thinking about doing a day trip to vietnam to do a bit of rafting on the makong river but thats undecided. iv heard as much about phuket i was told a day and a night there then on down to krabi. i was just checking my dates we are going to miss the full moon party x 3 days

will be on koh samui for at least 4 days to chill before we come home so we'll make the trip koh phangnan so i can say i was there if nothing else lol

smithy1981

strife wrote: »

@ Four of a Kind: trail finders were really good we got a special on air france 658€ return per person. and the agaent was really nice i would recommend them to anyone.

Was that including the hotel?? planning on going myself and the cheapest return price i can get is 525 euro, but thats from london. Might get a cheap return ticket to there.

dearg lady

strife wrote: »

I was also thinking about doing a day trip to vietnam to do a bit of rafting on the makong river but thats undecided. iv heard as much about phuket i was told a day and a night there then on down to krabi. i was just checking my dates we are going to miss the full moon party x 3 days

will be on koh samui for at least 4 days to chill before we come home so we'll make the trip koh phangnan so i can say i was there if nothing else lol

It's really not worth your while goin to Viet Nam, unless you plan on staying for longer! Between travel time and paying for visa it's not worth a day trip.

Full moon party isn't that great tbh, but it's a nice island to visit anyway. I did my dive course on Phi Phi, but I've heard great things about Ko Tao or Ko Chang for diving. Krabi is well known for rock climbing.

If you're up as far as Chiang Mai, I'd recommend Pai for a few nights, it's about a 4 hour bus journey. Nice chilled out hippie place, I really enjoyed it.
About an hour south of Chiang Mai is a town called Lampang, we spend a few days there visiting an elephant sanctuary which was quite nice.

strife

smithy1981 wrote: »

Was that including the hotel?? planning on going myself and the cheapest return price i can get is 525 euro, but thats from london. Might get a cheap return ticket to there.

No thats 658€ for the flight alone Dublin to France, France to Thailand.
and same in reverse on the way back. got 2 nights in a 3* in bangkok for 2 ppl for 100€ which i though was good.

@ dearg lady: Thanks for the info, id imagine when we go down to the islands we'll do some diving, and i defo like the idea of the elephant sanctuary do u think id have enought time in 2 days and 1 night to see it ?

dearg lady

strife wrote: »

No thats 658€ for the flight alone Dublin to France, France to Thailand.
and same in reverse on the way back. got 2 nights in a 3* in bangkok for 2 ppl for 100€ which i though was good.

@ dearg lady: Thanks for the info, id imagine when we go down to the islands we'll do some diving, and i defo like the idea of the elephant sanctuary do u think id have enought time in 2 days and 1 night to see it ?

Yeah, I mean the thing is you can spend as much or as little time there as you want, we went one afternoon to see what the place was like and then went back the next day for the full day, you can sign up for these course, anything from a day to a month or probabaly more. They show you different ways to climb on or off an elephant, learn the commands (not that the elephants would listen to us!!) go into the water and wash them down, stuff like that. It was a really nice day I have to say.

I know most people slate Bangkok btw, but I loved it. It's quite a culture shock at first but I've been lots of times and I really enjoy it. My mind is gone blank on where I usually stay, it's right aroud the corner from Khao San road, but staying on Khao san itself sounds pretty mad!

magentas

if you're more into an adventure holiday I'd dedicate more time to the north, far more to do
the islands are stunning but not much to do there and I found it boring.

chiang mai is a brilliant city and a great base for activities, as dearg lady said, pai is beautiful too but one night would be enough there.

In chiang mai look into cookery classes, jeep treks, hiking treks, hill tribe treks, hire scooters/bikes and do your own touring, the golden triangle, sanctuaries, bungee jumping, white water rafting, wildlife, temples, ladyboy shows, muoythai boxing matches, great nightlife etc.etc.!

If you want to do a day trek to another country, I'd recommend flying/bussing to siem reip and seeing angkor wat in cambodia.
vietnam is amazing but it's too far for a day trip and worthy of more time!

koh tao is good for diving but the south isn't really an adventure mecca, people go there to chill on the beach and drink in english pubs!:rolleyes:

so here's how I think you should devide your time:
Days 1,2,3, Bangkok
Days 3-16 adventures up north!
I swear I went there for 5days and ended up staying for 3weeks and hated leaving!
days 16-20 islands, diving and relaxing
day 21 bangkok for flight home boohoo:D

when are ye heading?

irelandspurs

Go to the river kwai take the train when your there you won't regret it.