Thailand

[HarryB]

I'm after some advice regarding Thailand and was hoping the good folk here at AFF would be kind enough to provide me with some.

My wife, 14yo son and I are making our first visit to Thailand next month and we sort of need some guidance as to where the best places were to visit that suit what we like. We scored flights to SIN with the QF sale so have plenty of options for cheap flights to various parts of Thailand. We will spend a few days in BKK at some point but other than that we're undecided. Chang Mai looks a good option, coughet or Koh Samui not so much (fear of being amongst piss heads is the main reason) but as we've never been there we may be drawing the wrong conclusions. Therefore, any help would be appreciated.

Here are the things we like to do on holidays;

1. Eating. We are big fans of eating what locals eat (street food etc)
2. Culture and history
3. Shopping (ok, that's Mrs HarryB's department, but we all get drawn into it)

Dislikes;
1. Feeling like we've walked into a pub in Australia. If we go to a bar or restaurant we don't like being surrounded by drunk bogans, we can do that here.

That's pretty much it. We are easily pleased really and love Asia and the people. We don't want to spend a fortune but aren't tight either and we will happily pay extra to go somewhere that suits us.

Thanks in advance.

 

[yeahbut]

Hi Harry,

Upfront I must say I haven't been to the land of smile for quite some time, but the parts I really liked were chiang mai, koh phi phi, and phang na.

Nice folks the Thai, and they love kids as well. Try to speak a bit of Thai (which is very difficult) and they can't do enough for you.

Enjoy the trip..

Yeahbut

 

[drron]

Even with the fall in the AUD Thailand is great value.I am just going to show you things that are different to the usual sites.I did a TR on a day we had-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....hotos/day-bangkok-long-mini-report-42416.html

The last museum is easy to get to being just around the corner from the Terminal 21 mall at Asoke BTS station.
Lots of shopping.We generally go a little upmarket for better quality and bigger sizes.
Always go to the Jim Thompson outlet further down Sukhumvit.
And virtually all the malls have good food courts.We love the Oyster omelettes at terminal 21-30 baht-$1.

You can get very good hotels for a little price.

 

[Katie]

We went to Thailand for the first time just after Christmas, with our 6yo. Chiang Mai, Ko Samui, and Bangkok, in that order. In Ko Samuo, we did not stay at Chaweng, which I think helped make us feel like we weren't in an Aussie pub. The small amount of time we spent in Chaweng felt touristy and busy. We stayed at a resort some family members have frequently stayed in. Aout 3-3.5 stars, but nice enough. Mr Katie stuck to his "only Thai food" rule until we went to a restaurant family recommended on Ko Samui that served mediterranean food.
A friend of mine is a Chiamg Mai destination expert on the TripAdvisor forums. She's published a list of ~20 things to do in Chiang Mai. It's definitely a great spot for history and food.
We didn't do mich in Samui; mostly hanging around the beach. A tad harder to get street food as it's quite touristy, but Mr Katie did have a nice charcoaled snake head fish one day for lunch along the street.

Bangkok - 2 days wasn't enough; which we knew and we didn't try to do everything. If you go to the Grand Palace, watch for the touts. If you have "inappropriate" clothing on, trust the people inside the gates, and you can hire a skirt/shirt/long trousers for next to nothing, with your deposit returned when you bring the ever so fetching grey trousers back.
good shopping and a great variety okf food to be stumbled upon, as well as awesomeness at Nahm.

 

[Aussie_flyer]

I like Krabi, lots of cheap hotels in Ao Nang and long tail boats to some beautiful beaches. it's much quieter than Patong. You can fly direct to Krabi from Singapore.

 

[Grooba]

You'll want to steer clear of coughet.
Bangkok itself is an awesome place with so much going on. Cheap food, good shopping, great atmosphere, I do have a soft spot for BKK.

Paging JohnK...

 

[stewiejp]

Have a good trip Harry. Chang Mai is lovely, I took my mum and grandmother there and they had a ball, that was 10 years ago though. They also enjoyed BKK and coughet (Karon). Took the good lady this year and we just did BKK and a resort in coughet (Kata) and to be honest only saw "drunken bogans" once. They are pretty hard to avoid and pop up in all sorts of places.

Avoid Pattaya, Patong (coughet) and parts of Samui and you should be fine. Do a bit of googling to see what you may enjoy. Would be a shame to go there and not see an island or two. I enjoyed Koh Lanta - a bit more relaxed and cheaper but harder to get to and the beaches aren't so pristine.

 

[HarryB]

Thanks for the advice, some food for thought there for sure.

 

[amaroo]

We love Thailand and have enjoyed many family trips to Bangkok and a few other places like Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and coughet.

BKK is our favourite - coughet is the least liked.

It's been a few years......we really liked our time at Koh Samui stayed at Napasai Napasai by Orient-Express - Luxury Resort and Villas in Thailand it felt like 5 star quality at 3 star prices. We went to Chaweng once.....I think that might be the key to a successful stay.

For more detailed advice......what's the budget?

 

[Mrmaxwell]

With Thailand being so popular to Aussie tourists and such great value it's getting harder to avoid the idiots - but it can be done.

For your first trip you should do a highlights trip this way for your second trip (there will be a second - always is!) you can focus on the place(s) you liked.

Sukhumvit shopping in Bangkok - make sure you stay in a hotel close to the BTS which will make your stay in the crazy city fun and easy - even when it rains.

I would not rule out Kata Beach in coughet....very charming and some essential Thai experiences to be had. Chiangmai is also a given, and some wonderful resorts on Koh Samui are a treat. With Bkk, coughet, Chiang Mai and Koh Samui you get it all: Thai urban shopping and craziness, Thai beach holiday, Thai island holiday and traditional Thai northern town. Or at least you can pick any one of these destinations.

 

[HarryB]

For more detailed advice......what's the budget?

Don't really have a budget - it's our first holiday for 18 months so if we need to blow some coin we will!

Mrmaxwell, we are treating this as a tasting trip so happy to get around and see various areas. I'll look a little more at the island stuff as it seems Chang Mai and BKK are a given. The lad will certainly be keen on some beach time (he's 14 ... Beaches have many benefits for 14 year olds)!

 

[JohnK]

I love Thailand but go mostly for the golf.

I regularly stay in Pattaya and Bangkok and in recent times I have been to Hua Hin, Chiang Mai. I do not want to go anywhere near Koh Samui and coughet for obvious reasons.

Both Hua Hin and Chiang Mai are suited to families. Both have a night market where the streets are closed to traffic in the evening and you can find all the usual trinkets and someplace to eat. Chiang Mai also has Sunday night markets and the area covered is huge. Same sort of trinkets available here as well and to be honest once you have seen them once it is the same stuff over and over.

I can highly recommend the Holiday Inn Chiang Mai. I have been there twice and twice upgraded to this huge suite. Room rates are on the cheap side (~THB2,000/night) including breakfast for 2 people. Take note it is not in the centre of town but a tuk tuk at THB100 each way gets you there. They also have a free shuttle every 30 minutes until 9:00pm each night going to night market.

As for touristy things there is plenty to do. Doi Sutthep, elephant farm, waterfalls, monkey farm, snake farm etc.

In Hua Hin I can highly recommend the Hilton. Nice location next to beach and not far from night market.

 

[bass_ke]

Chiang mai is great, we love hanging about in the old city and exploring a different Soi every day.

We most recently travelled there with our 11 month old in March, we also made it to Pai on the same trip. Some nice places to stay and if you're fond of small aircraft rather than a 10 hr bus ride the trip in a C208 is quite fun.

Enjoy!

 

[HarryB]

Great info, thanks everyone. Doing some research this weekend so will look at plenty of what's been suggested.

John, where is your preferred golf destination in Chiangmai? Might as well belt a hot dot around for a few hours while the wife does some shopping!

 

[amaroo]

Don't really have a budget - it's our first holiday for 18 months so if we need to blow some coin we will!

Four Seasons, Chiang Mai is brilliant. For a special treat - try their residence option.

Bangkok, we like The Peninsula. Great location, rooms, service & lovely boat trips to & from the sky train.

Restaurants.....after you've had your fill of the local cuisine......take a look at Gianni Gianns´s Restaurant ,Gianni restaurante,Gianni ristorante and Napa on 26 Napa on 26, Restaurant & Lounge Sukhumvit 26

Enjoy!

 

[JohnK]

John, where is your preferred golf destination in Chiangmai? Might as well belt a hot dot around for a few hours while the wife does some shopping!

I have played 4 golf courses in Chiang Mai. They are Alpine, Mae Jo, Royal Chiang Mai and Chiang Mai Highlands. I would have to say that Chiang Mai Highlands and Alpine are 2 of the better layouts. I am going to try another 2 golf courses in a couple of weeks

Most golf courses are outside of town and the cost including green free, caddy fee and transport is ~THB2,500-THB-3,900. Transport in Chiang Mai at most times is non-negotiable with a taxi to Chiang Mai Highlands at ~THB1,700. Use the meter taxi (even though there is no meter) as they are cheaper than hotel taxis or if booking golf online the transport options included look cheaper.

 

[HarryB]

I have played 4 golf courses in Chiang Mai. They are Alpine, Mae Jo, Royal Chiang Mai and Chiang Mai Highlands. I would have to say that Chiang Mai Highlands and Alpine are 2 of the better layouts. I am going to try another 2 golf courses in a couple of weeks

Most golf courses are outside of town and the cost including green free, caddy fee and transport is ~THB2,500-THB-3,900. Transport in Chiang Mai at most times is non-negotiable with a taxi to Chiang Mai Highlands at ~THB1,700. Use the meter taxi (even though there is no meter) as they are cheaper than hotel taxis or if booking golf online the transport options included look cheaper.

Cheers for that. I assume you are your clubs with you, which is a luxury I cannot afford whilst travelling with family so I need to consider club hire also, which is cheap anyway.

 

[JohnK]

I assume you are your clubs with you, which is a luxury I cannot afford whilst travelling with family so I need to consider club hire also, which is cheap anyway.

I do take my clubs with me. I find it takes too long to get used to another golf set.

From memory golf club hire is generally ~THB500 but could be as high as THB1,000 and to hire a cart is ~THB600-THB700. And include ~THB300 for a caddy tip and you pretty much have your whole day of golf.

 

[Major]

We have been to the Khao Lak region in Phang Nga (which is North of coughet) a few times and love this part of Thailand. There are heaps of resorts all along the Andaman Sea in this area and the Royal Thai Navy golf course is also located in Khao Lak.
We always select a beach resort where you can walk to local restaurants for good cheap meals.
This area is also popular with the Scandanavians

 

[Cynicor]

I'll add my 2c.

Firstly- most of the beaches are nothing compared to AU beaches. From PER I wouldn't get in the water rather than the pools unless you paid me. So u feel you should look at pools more.

Second- rainy season in the coughet area. Pools are ok still but this time of year Koh Samui and Koh Phangna/n are the main resort areas.

Khao Lak was just mentioned- this place is amazing, and brilliant , in drier times at least. Slightly cheaper than coughet proper, few/fewer drunken Aussies and touts and great access to diving and rainforests, further to street food and shopping thought.

I suggest from BKK that you look at Koh Samui (which is a but more busy, touristy and probably has a few of the tourists you don't want to see) or Koh Phangnan (much quieter generally).The beaches are ok, but the pools are amazing. Bangkok airways is a "boutique" airline which has decent reviews from the members here and flys direct to USM/Koh Samui several times a day both ways.

We really liked BKK too, which was quite unexpected. Even stayed in a non chain hotel, the centara (grand?) which was cheap and decent and centrally located, with an upgraded suite on level 40 or 50something and exec lounge access. Plenty of shopping and local food and direct access to malls etc.

I have reviewed our resort and the hotel on tripadvisor (and here maybe? Not sure...), look for username cynicor and you'll find my Thailand experiences.