Thiland this May

deasyd

Hey,

I'm heading to Thiland this May for three weeks. It's short enough, but I want to see Koh Samui, Phi Phi and Phuket. Can anyone tell me the best and cheapest way to get from one to the other. Is there trains? They look close enough to each other on the map, but it could be different actually doing the journey.

I'd appreciate any help I can get.

Dave

Munurty

Travel in Thailand is quite cheap and easy to book.

My first tip would be to buy the Thailand lonely planet book. Its the backpackers bible. It will have all of the details you require and much much more.

last year I went from Phuket to Phi Phi to Koh Phangan(which is beside Koh Samui.) I don't remember the specifics but it should give you a rough idea, .

Phuket to Phi Phi is a boat trip of aprox an hour prob less than 500baht.

You could probably book one ticket for Phi Phi to Samui but it would be a long day of travel. Might be worth stopping at Krabi or Surthani
PhI Phi to Krabi - boat trip approx 2 hrs <500baht
Krabi to Surathani - bus approx 6 hours <1500baht
Surathani to Koh Samui - Boat approx 2 hours <500baht

I'd would think my prices would be higher than they actually are.

Tickets can be booked through hotels or at the ferry ports at a couple of hours notice. (FYI in my 3 months in south east asia last year i didn't book anything more than a day in advance)

The drivers often try and swindle the tourists but the max you'd be out of pocket for would be about 500baht i'd say. Can be frustrating but its small money.

You could fly from Phuket to Samui i'm sure but half the fun is the Journey in my opinion.

You'll see loads in three weeks, Have fun it's an amazing country.

deasyd

Thanks a mill for that. It's a great help. Sound

whatsyourquota

Id say the price will be about half what you were quoted above. Certainly dont go paying 2500 baht to go from phi phi to koh samui.
Also just my opinion but phuket is a complete dump and koh samui is like the new costa del sol, id saytit would be worth checking out koh phangnan and koh tao and definately krabi as the poster above suggested but I suppose it all depends what you are looking for in a holiday!

jus

hey,

Im just back from thailand ko samui to krabi town is 900bt ( includes hotel pick up boat + bus ticket )thats the fast boat its a catamaran nice and comfi and then a bus to krabi town from krabi town to ao nang was 150bt. i also got the ferry from krabi to phuket which was 650bt 2hrs and minivan to patong hotel included in price. krabi is worth a visit its alot cheaper to do tours of phi phi, and other islands in krabi. patong is good crack too i go back in june.:)

JayC5

Hey folks,

Apologies if this is already covered elsewhere, can't seem to find anything about it tho...


So, off to Thailand for 3 weeks in August (girlfriend in tow) and was wondering if I could throw a few questions out there:

Firstly, is 2000 euros an adequate budget (flight not included) for one person for 3 weeks? - we aim to stay in reasonably priced places in a double private room - the price of which will be shared between us, we won't be partying hard either and will be eating mostly on the cheap.

We're completely stumped about where to go tho, at this point all I know is that we're staying in Bangkok for the first 3 days, and booking accommodation for those 3 days in advance - after that we'll be finding it on the day we arrive wherever we decide to go.

Which brings me on to my second question, any suggestions on an itinerary? - I've bought one of the guidebooks but there's so much to do and so many places to go... we'd like to take in an island, maybe Koh Chang?, was thinking about Chiang Mai also - which is better - to go north or south of Bangkok?

Finally, we don't want to carry much with us, what are the prices like for buying clothes over there? - can we pick stuff up easily when we get there?


Cheers folks!

whatsyourquota

2000 euro is SO much money you will live very comfortably over there! Il be bringing about 1200 euro for 6 weeks and I will be fine on that and I certainly wont be holding back on the drinking!
You could head up to Chang mai after Bangkok for about a week loads to do up North to keep ya busy. Then fly down to phuket with a cheap air asia flight and take in phi phi and Krabi and if you have time head over to koh phangnan and koh tao!
Clothes are very cheap but remember to haggle

Stinicker

I'm coming to the end of my Thailand trip now and like yerselves came here for three weeks, this was/is my itinerary.

Bangkok 5 days

Pattaya 3 days (A mistake unless your either Russian or a sex tourist)

Over night train to Chiang Mai

4 nights in Chiang Mai 2 days 1 night trekking in the Jungle, good fun! (worth checking out Chiang Rai also from other travellers reports I've met).

Flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, Overnight train from Bangkok to Surat Thani with transfers and ferry to Ko Samui. The overnight train experience once was fine, however this was an awfully long drawn out journey and I'd recommend you fly.

5 nights in Ko Samui

Flight to Bangkok (Expensive) and 2 nights there before flying home.

Clothes are cheap and can all be got in the markets, just haggle, bring light wash and wear clothes and you should only bring less than 50% of your baggage allowance as it will be full going home beleive me! Laundry is cheap too so only a few pairs of socks, undies etc is all that is needed.

Buy sunscreen in Ireland as it is expensive out here at over e10 (400 - 500bt) for a 350ml tube.

E2,000/ 82,000bt is plenty for three weeks and you will live comfortabley on it, if you can stomach the thai food then your food bill will be pittance, otherwise budget several hundred baht daily for normal western food.

Start to get those vaccinations now also and get:

Hep A, Hep B, Rabies, Typhoid, Diptheira and Tetnus, also get a travel insurance.

Have fun!

beagle001

Steer clear of the lonely planet,the rough guide is far better if you are considering a guide book.
Any self respecting backpacker would not be seen with a lonely planet.

whatsyourquota

beagle001 wrote: »

Steer clear of the lonely planet,the rough guide is far better if you are considering a guide book.
Any self respecting backpacker would not be seen with a lonely planet.

One of the most ridiculous statements iv heard, the vast majority of backpackers will use lonely planet.

I have had Lonely Planets 'Southeast Asia on a shoestring' and 'Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and the greater Mekong' and found them both very useful.

I also have Rough Guide to Thailand and found it much the same except it had more pictures which fall out anyway after a bit of use.

Either way id go for whichever is cheaper

Goldcupfav

This video is a decent enough route around Thailand if your only there for a few weeks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4XrldXJ0_Y

beagle001

whatsyourquota wrote: »

One of the most ridiculous statements iv heard, the vast majority of backpackers will use lonely planet.

I have had Lonely Planets 'Southeast Asia on a shoestring' and 'Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and the greater Mekong' and found them both very useful.

I also have Rough Guide to Thailand and found it much the same except it had more pictures which fall out anyway after a bit of use.

Either way id go for whichever is cheaper

Well I can assure you that the lonely planet writers rubbish many unique places in south east Asia and many a traveler has taken their misguided advice.
I also know one of the writers for the Africa edition and she told me she didn't even visit half the locations that they rely on backpackers contributions to write about hotels,towns.
I have traveled and lived in south east Asia for 13 years and know it very well.
Many places I visited in Laos or Thailand were often slated by lonely planet but turned out to be great little towns of the beaten track which is what traveling is all about.

beagle001

The lonely planet are also looking to snare the first time backpacker and relying on their old reputation as a valued backpacking guide that has lost it's credibility a long time ago.
Your better off getting info on here or on forums relating to the country you wish to travel,first hand info when you get out there is readily available and free.

JayC5

Thanks for all the info folks,

To the untrained eye the lonely planet guide looks a bit bland, I'm gonna go for the rough guide purely on aesthetics alone - it's nice to have some decent accompanying pics to get an idea of what the hell they are talking about!

(Tho I think I might get the lonely planet iphone apps for Bangkok/Chiang Mai just to have as quick reference guides when I'm out and about).

So far I've been sifting through the following which seem quite good:

wikitravel.org
travelblog.org
travelhappy.info
teakdoor.com
travelfish.org
talesofasia.com

If you know of any other good sites feel free to advise

Thanks again folks

JayC