Thailand : Christmas 2020

eeloe

Hey Guys

Looking for a little bit of advice here from anyone who has done something similar.

My wife and I are looking at heading to Thailand for a 2 week trip this Christmas. Does anyone think Thailand is a good destination for this time of year?

What would be the best way to book it all? flights and hotel separately or try and get a package altogether from a dedicated travel agent?

We normally travel to the states, and use ebookers.

JohnCleary

Dec / Jan is peak season in Thailand. Driest / Coolest time of year (which is still 30 degrees) hence busiest.

2 weeks is not nearly enough time in Thailand, but people do it, so I won't judge!

For 2 weeks, you need to decide between (not both):
North: More Cultural / Green
South: Islands / Beaches

You mention a travel agent so i'm guessing you probably just want to plonk yourself at a resort for 2 weeks? If so, that's the worst thing I could imagine doing in Thailand (just head to the Canaries, or something)

We've been going to Thailand annually since 2010 (December). Always booked flights and accom separately.
1) Book flights (Normally Bangkok, but many now fly into Phuket if you're staying down South (Avoid Phuket, sh1thole IMO)
2) Come up with a general plan of your itinerary / locations etc.
3) Get onto Tripadvisor / Hotels.com / Booking / Agoda

When in Thailand, we've used Hotels.com / Booking / Agoda - never had an issue.

For long haul like this, I would ALWAYS book direct with the airline and not through an agent. Long-haul with connecting flights = more chance for things to go wrong / delays. At least if you book with the airline, the contract is with you.

PS. For long haul like this, strongly recommend Business Class, if budget allows. We just returned with Turkish Business Class. It was 'cheap' as Business Class goes. Slightly older A330's but still decent business class at a fair price. Way cheaper than Qatar (although I loved their new 787's) and Emirates / Etihad (Their 777's I love and don't get me started on the A380... quite an experience)

theguzman

Go to the Philippines and for that extra hour or two more in the air you will get English ubiquitously spoken, people who are not plainly racist and out to scam you, the path less travelled, as before Phuket is to Aussies as Malaga is to Brits, its thrashy and as expensive as Spanish costa norms. Full of Scandinavian, British and German sex tourists.

Thailand is around 30 - 40% more expensive now than just 10 years ago, the people are not trustworthy and as soon as you walk off the plane you are a walking ATM. The Thailand of "The Beach" is very different nowadays.

Research Coron and El Nido, also Bantayan Island and Camiguin in the Philippines, avoid Manila unless you like megacities, diesel pollution and gawling inequality and side by side poverty. For someone who is used to the USA then both Thailand or the Philippines would be a culture shock and eyeopener although Thailand is far more developed and richer than the Phils.

Kevski

eeloe wrote: »

Hey Guys

Looking for a little bit of advice here from anyone who has done something similar.

My wife and I are looking at heading to Thailand for a 2 week trip this Christmas. Does anyone think Thailand is a good destination for this time of year?

What would be the best way to book it all? flights and hotel separately or try and get a package altogether from a dedicated travel agent?

We normally travel to the states, and use ebookers.

My personal preference would be to book flights and hotel separately.

I would recommend booking directly with the airline as this offers you much more control (and savings!) if you decide to modify your booking in anyway. You’d also be able to deal with the airline directly if there were any issues.

There’s lots of options to fly from Dublin to Thailand, via London, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha etc so have a look on Skyscanner/Google flights to compare times and prices before booking with the airlines!

I’ve booked hotels in Thailand through hotels.com and booking.com in the past and had no issues at all. I try to stick to those to if not booking directly with the hotel so can’t speak for other sites!

JohnCleary

theguzman wrote: »

Go to the Philippines and for that extra hour or two more in the air you will get English ubiquitously spoken, people who are not plainly racist and out to scam you, the path less travelled, as before Phuket is to Aussies as Malaga is to Brits, its thrashy and as expensive as Spanish costa norms. Full of Scandinavian, British and German sex tourists.

Thailand is around 30 - 40% more expensive now than just 10 years ago, the people are not trustworthy and as soon as you walk off the plane you are a walking ATM. The Thailand of "The Beach" is very different nowadays.

Research Coron and El Nido, also Bantayan Island and Camiguin in the Philippines, avoid Manila unless you like megacities, diesel pollution and gawling inequality and side by side poverty. For someone who is used to the USA then both Thailand or the Philippines would be a culture shock and eyeopener although Thailand is far more developed and richer than the Phils.

Yeah, go to the Philippines during typhoon season, great advice :pac: Twice we wanted to visit Philippines (December) and we decided not to risk it. Guess what... Facebook backpacker groups full of posts regarding cancelled ferries / flights / stuck in places / lashing rain.

No way i'd go to the Philippines in December (and trust me, it's a place we really want to visit)

Your describing of Thailand is a little.... wrong. Yes, I won't disagree about pricing, it's gotten damn expensive in the past 2 years because of THB rate skyrocketing. I've been to Thailand many times over the past 9 years and while I wouldn't disagree with you in general, a first timer is not going to notice the cracks in the wall. Scams etc. are opportunistic in Thailand and easily avoided. TBH once you get out of BKK / Phuket, the scams are rare.

I will agree with you 100% on Phuket - I get upset when I hear people wanting to go there. The only benefit i'd give to Phuket is that you can fly there, which is great if you just want to get to Phuket town and get a boat out of there towards Krabi / PhiPhi / Lanta etc.

Regarding your comment 'The Beach' (Maya Bay), it's closed indefinitely. I was back there 3 weeks ago and the boats now moor a couple hundred meters off the beach. It's actually quite nice again, looking in at the deserted beaches. PhiPhi has also cracked down heavily on 'booze cruise' boats, so when you get to Maya Bay, there's no loud music pumping from boats.... just different groups swimming around / having a few drinks etc. This was helped by the fact that tourism is WAY down. It's the quietest December we've seen Thailand (in general) since we first started going there in 2010.

In summary: If you've never been to Thailand before, GO GO GO! It's still a beautiful place despite it's issues.

eeloe

Thanks for the tips.

Maybe i should give a little more back ground as i see booze cruises and stuff being mentioned.

Neither me or my wife drink, and we are literally looking to relax and chill out for the two weeks, and maybe do some site seeing.

We have decided to look up flights and hotels separate and book it ourselves instead of using a travel agent.

stratowide

You could give a look at Pai in northern Thailand..Definitely the most relaxed and chilled place I've been in Thailand.

I hired a scooter and toured around the area.Was only meant to stay 2 days but ended up there for a week.Loved it.

You could take in Chiang mai on the way there too if you liked.

Pai would top my list of places to see in Thailand.

beggars_bush

eeloe wrote: »

Thanks for the tips.

Maybe i should give a little more back ground as i see booze cruises and stuff being mentioned.

Neither me or my wife drink, and we are literally looking to relax and chill out for the two weeks, and maybe do some site seeing.

We have decided to look up flights and hotels separate and book it ourselves instead of using a travel agent.

The booze cruises are usually speed boats full of tourists coming out from the mainland

A week in phuket, and either 3/4 days in Phi phi or Koh samui followed by a few nights in Bangkok on the way home or a week in koh samui then home would be my preference for a Thailand sun holiday
That's the way we've broken it up before. We've been there 4 times?
The likes of trailfinders can get you free nights and discounts in hotels depending on how long you stay

Two weeks in one location is too long for us