Advice Needed: Travelling to Thailand

SmashingPilot

So myself and some friends have decided, a bit late, to head off to Thailand for about 5 weeks next month.

We're planning on doing most we can in Thailand but would also like to visit Cambodia/Vietnam. Would this be possible in 5 weeks or would it be a rush?

What's the story with visas for entering Thailand and possibly reentering if we visit Vietnam? Do we have to apply for anything special?

Is roughly four weeks before travel enough time to allow for vaccines?

Also, any other useful information would be much appreciated.

Stinicker

SmashingPilot wrote: »

So myself and some friends have decided, a bit late, to head off to Thailand for about 5 weeks next month.

We're planning on doing most we can in Thailand but would also like to visit Cambodia/Vietnam. Would this be possible in 5 weeks or would it be a rush?

What's the story with visas for entering Thailand and possibly reentering if we visit Vietnam? Do we have to apply for anything special?

Is roughly four weeks before travel enough time to allow for vaccines?

Also, any other useful information would be much appreciated.

I would suggest you get moving straight away on vaccines. Irish passport holders entering Thailand get 30 days visa free entry when entering by air and 15 days if entering by land or sea. It should be possible to do the 5 weeks trip without a Thai visa depending on how you structure it and how long you wish to spend in Cambodia & Vietnam.

SmashingPilot

So my flights are all booked, flying out July 16th and home August 21st.
Just home from getting my vaccines now, four and half weeks we were told was plenty of time.

Does anyone have any advice on the best way of doing a round trip, starting in Bangkok, working our way through Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and finishing down in the islands? Think this is the best way to go about things.

carbon nanotube

SmashingPilot wrote: »

So my flights are all booked, flying out July 16th and home August 21st.
Just home from getting my vaccines now, four and half weeks we were told was plenty of time.

Does anyone have any advice on the best way of doing a round trip, starting in Bangkok, working our way through Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and finishing down in the islands? Think this is the best way to go about things.

You won't do all that in five week's not a hope. Unless you do nothing but travel.
You need malaria vaccines if you are going to Cambodia.

Just do bangkok, get a bus to Cambodia. I can give you details of the guys I did my Angkor wat trio with. It's 3/4 days.

Then when you get to bkk again you could go to chaing mai for maybe 5 days, head back to bkk and go south. It's a lit of going I don't think you understand all the travels.

Vietnam and Laos is going to make it too much.

First things first get hep shots and malarone tablets. Mossie bands useful too, you simply can't skimp when it comes to this stuff.

I did all Cambodia and krabi ko samui. Brilliant. I drove as my gf is Thai.

SmashingPilot

Have all my vaccines done, got them done this morning and have prescription for malarone tablets.

From what I've read, its quite a lot of travelling alright but I would very much like to try fit in some time to get to Vietnam. We're at the stage where we're trying to work out the most feasible route we could take, trying to balance travel with sights.

Also, do we have to arrange visas for cambodia/vietnam etc.. before travelling. I've read mixed reviews online that says we can get them over there?

carbon nanotube

you cab get a visa for bodia in bkk, my gf got it tho...

all this needs planning.

in five weeks your asking way too much..

have you a budget for this, it wont be cheap.

wallpaper12

Id say do Thailand/Cambodia OR Cambodia/Vietnam no point rushing things and everywhere takes ages to get to.
Cambodia visa available on border, get vietnam visa in Phnom penh or Bkk

tommyombomb

can you please advise what age bracket and what you are going for, couple, lads holiday etc.

i went on a lads holiday last year there and would advise the islands are unreal. you should look into Laos and do tubing which is madness. Koh Phangnon, Koh Tow, Koh Samui, PhiPhi, Phuket etc(sp) are some of the islands i went to. great crack and the weather is great.

carbon nanotube

vietnam is over rated anyway.. nothing to do pretty much, unless you like a tailored suite.

cambodia is great. ankor wat is brilliant.

the south of thailand is fantastic.

chaing mai in the north is great too.

and in between you can visit places like ko sok national park.

lots to do.

for bangkok itself, 3 days maximum.. 4 at the very most.

(includes return trips)

TomBeckett

Hi there.. Have you tought about the weather....? July/Aug is the wet season down south gets quite a bit of rain phuket and samui get a lot and it aint no fun been stuck in a hotel room for days!! i would advise going to the islands first at least that way in mid july may be better than leaving them till last in august... here in Pattaya we have it good even in the wet season its normaly only a storm in the late afternoon so most of the day is good... what way are you planning to travel once you get here? Flying internally or by bus?

Sonnenblumen

Vacines not essential but bring an umbrella. Expect plenty of rain in July.

Tiger balm and anti hystemines are also useful. Getting bitten by flying insects is guaranteed and for some people can become very sore/irritating.

carbon nanotube

Sonnenblumen wrote: »

Vacines not essential but bring an umbrella. Expect plenty of rain in July.

Tiger balm and anti hystemines are also useful. Getting bitten by flying insects is guaranteed and for some people can become very sore/irritating.

you need hep vaccines, malarone is better safe than sorry.

chainsawman

Stinicker wrote: »

I would suggest you get moving straight away on vaccines. Irish passport holders entering Thailand get 30 days visa free entry when entering by air and 15 days if entering by land or sea. It should be possible to do the 5 weeks trip without a Thai visa depending on how you structure it and how long you wish to spend in Cambodia & Vietnam.

17 days by land, 30 days if by air.. Sorry Stinicker, I misread it, you are right, 15 days... Ignore my previous comments..

How Strange

Subscribe to the drugs payment scheme and you'll get all your prescription meds including malarone for €120 or whatever the monthly amount is. It should save you some money. You can usually sign up in the pharmacy but check with them first and if one pharmacy doesn't allow you go to another one that will.

SmashingPilot

Apologies for the lack of response.

With regards age bracket, its myself and my girlfriend heading off, we're 21/22.
Our main goal is to try and to get see as much as we can, within roughly a 4 week period, leaving the last week to chill out before heading home. I know, this gives us even less time.

I agree that I've underestimated the large distances but we would be willing to fly internally to certain areas to ensure we at least get to see them. For example, could we fly to one area and work our way back over land? Would that save much time?

We've both got our vaccines sorted and have been prescribed Malarone for when entering danger zones. Is there any particular mosquito spray which people have found works best?

With regards visas, Cambodia visa is available at boarder as mentioned above? Other ones can be picked up in cities before travel?

wallpaper12

Do you want to be sitting in an airport for half your holiday?
4 weeks is a ridiculous amount of time to do those three countries, take the advice of people who have been there and cut out one of them.
Id suggest Vietnam, it would be expensive to try and leave Vietnam unless you are leaving from either of the two major cities Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh and given your time frame you might maybe make it halfway between them and then what happens? Sit on a bus for 24 hours to get to one of the cities or pay an extortionate amount of money for a flight

chainsawman

SmashingPilot wrote: »

Apologies for the lack of response.

With regards age bracket, its myself and my girlfriend heading off, we're 21/22.
Our main goal is to try and to get see as much as we can, within roughly a 4 week period, leaving the last week to chill out before heading home. I know, this gives us even less time.

I agree that I've underestimated the large distances but we would be willing to fly internally to certain areas to ensure we at least get to see them. For example, could we fly to one area and work our way back over land? Would that save much time?

We've both got our vaccines sorted and have been prescribed Malarone for when entering danger zones. Is there any particular mosquito spray which people have found works best?

With regards visas, Cambodia visa is available at boarder as mentioned above? Other ones can be picked up in cities before travel?

When in Bangkok, Look for 7-11 shop and ask for Moquisto spray, Cost only 70 baht... Very good. Or at Pharmacy Shop.