Thailand Ideas

shazzzzza

hi

I am looking to going to Thailand in Feb 2012, maybe going to Bangkok first then travel down to Phuket. anyone got any ideas on where to stay in Bangkok and the best way to get to Phuket from there, thanks

globalds

We stopped here last year when we were in Bangkok.

http://www.sawadee.com/hotel/bangkok/arasialuecha/

booked through the web site agoda for a pretty good discount.

there were 4 of us so at £47 a night for 2 bedroom apartment was not bad.

We were 5 minutes walk from Sanam Pao skytrain station (N4)
http://www.guidetothailand.com/maps-thailand/bangkok-skytrain.php
So very easy for us to get around and about.

We also went to Koh samui which although it flooded recently is still better than Phuket IMHO

The best tip we used was that upon arrival at Bangkok airport go upstairs to departures and get a taxi from outside telling them to use the meter.... if they refuse then grab another (lots dropping people off) ..Works out cheap , you just need to pay the toll for the highway.

brian_723

http://www.airasia.com/gb/en/home.html

i would fly and try to get a super promo .i would not go to Phuket as it is a rip off island full of jet ski scammers and tuk tuk driver scammers .I prefer the north for climate food and friendlyness and chiangmai being on of my favourites .It is hard to offer to much advice as i do not know if you are going for a short holiday or longer to travel around .If you insist on beach and sun sihanoukville cambodia is dirt cheap ,you can fly to phomh prenh and get a bus for about 8 dollars from there .


Also for better advice you will get more detailed responses if you go on lonely planet thorn tree forum and trip advisor .

shazzzzza

we went to Phuket Feb this year, and did see quite a lot of the place, i am tempted by Koh samai i must admit. we will probably go again for a couple of weeks and not that bothered if it is a beach holiday as this year we found most of the beaches were too busy

whatyadoinsucka

phuket was one of the worst places i got to in thailand over a 7 week break 8 years ago, favouirte island was ko samet no cars/traffic.
kho pipi was nice as is changmai trecking, i also really liked the river kwai..

thailand has really commercialised in recent years so i post some messages on trip advisor to get upto date advice. even in 2003 phuket was like benidorm

shazzzzza

yer actually im now trying to convince my husband that maybe we should try vietnam or cambodia, they dont look to touristy yet but looking at it, it might be worth us going to bangkok then travel across. oh i reallly really wish i could make up my mind before going all round the houses before i decide where to go. at the moment im thinking vietnam is looking more tempting and feb looks a good time weather wise as well

richardw

There are rumors Vietnam Airlines will start a direct service from LON sometime soon.

PompeyPete

shazzzzza wrote: »

yer actually im now trying to convince my husband that maybe we should try vietnam or cambodia, they dont look to touristy yet but looking at it, it might be worth us going to bangkok then travel across.

I think you'll find that Vietnam and Cambodia have well trodden tourist paths. With the latter make sure you keep to the paths too, still loads of land mines knocking about!

If you're looking for a destination still relatively unscathered by tourism then give a couple of weeks in Myanmar a go. Have a couple of nights in BKK first, and then fly to Yangon (Rangoon). Only takes an hour.
We had 4 nights in Yangon (Summit Parkview hotel, booked on Agoda). Then we hired a taxi/diver/guide for 2 weeks. Paid for the drivers accommodation/food/petrol/tolls/guiding knowledge. Total cost for 2 weeks US$800, plus a well deserved US$50 tip.
Taxi was a beat up old Toyota saloon. No a/c, knackered suspension. Great fun.
We visited some beautiful parts of a wonderful country. Stayed in lovely guesthouses, and met some really friendly Burmese people.

We had a few days in Cambodia too, stayed in Phnom Penh and Kampot.
Value for money is good, but half decent accommodation can be relatively expensive (compared to Thailand) due to high gas /electricity costs, which have to be passed onto the customer.

Here's an excellent recent thread that might give you some ideas:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2953372

jamsandwiches

richardw wrote: »

There are rumors Vietnam Airlines will start a direct service from LON sometime soon.

Where have these rumours come from - how accurate are they?

We are going back to Vietnam and wondered why Vietnam Airlines only fly as far as Paris - use them for the second leg from Bangok to Vietnam and they were fine.
Was going to book with Etihad or Malaysia but have airmiles with VA.

The weather in February was not brilliant but we were told it was not usual - same as Thailand and all the rain they have this year.

richardw

jamsandwiches wrote: »

Where have these rumours come from - how accurate are they?

see http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/general_aviation/read.main/5123140/?threadid=5123140&searchid=5128871&s=vietnam#ID5128871

Doshwaster

shazzzzza wrote: »

hi

I am looking to going to Thailand in Feb 2012, maybe going to Bangkok first then travel down to Phuket. anyone got any ideas on where to stay in Bangkok and the best way to get to Phuket from there, thanks

For Bangkok there are countless hotels to suit every budget from £10 a night for a backpackers hangout to several hundred for ultra luxury. In the £50-100 range you can get some excellent deals which beat anything available at that price in Europe.

Two good websites are http://bangkok.sawadee.com/ and http://www.bangkok.com/

I would really recommend looking elsewhere to Phuket - it's the most expensive and overcrowded resort in Thailand but I suppose it's a place most people will go at least once. There are loads of cheap flights between Bangkok and Phuket so it's not really worth the time in going any other way.