Thailand, Koh Chang and Chiang Mai ?

Dave_6

Heading to Thailand for 2 weeks in November.
Have read plenty of threads on here about Thailand but I’m feeling needy so I’m afraid here’s another one.

At the moment all we have sorted is the flights, booked with BA

I am now slowly starting to plan the actual trip, will be just me and the otherhalf going. Ages 26 & 29.



Has anyone been to Koh Chang and Chiang Mai ?

Plan at the moment is 2 nights in Bangkok in the Sukhumvit area before heading to either Chiang Mai or Koh Chang (probably flying there and back when going to Chiang Mai, possibly using a bus 1 way for the Koh Chang trip, flight the other)
That’s the current plan, to visit those places. Not sure what order we’ll maybe do them in though, there is supposedly a festival near the end of our trip dates in Chiang Mai (not sure if it would be better to be there for the festival or not)


We’ll probably book the 1st two nights accommodation in the area we head first and then decide whether to change or just extend the stay.


Chiang Mai seems to offer plenty to do, Elephants, petting Tigers, lots of activities like rafting
Koh Chang will be our beach time, visiting different islands and hopefully enjoying some sunshine and clear sea


Drawn towards Koh Chang as it’s apparently not quite as ‘ruined’ as Phuket or Koh Sumui.
Also I believe certain parts of Thailand still get plenty of rain in November

Doshwaster

Sounds like a good plan!

You do right not to linger in Bangkok. It's a fantastic city, one of the craziest places in the world, but 2-3 nights is about right otherwise the noise, pollution and crowds do start to wear you down. For a short blast however you cannot beat it.

I'd also fly up to Chiang Mai as the railway line has had a lot of problems lately. There is a lot of competition on the route so prices are always low. I'd say 4-5 nights is about right for CM. It's a fun and friendly place with lots to do during the day and a good night life without the extremes you get in Bangkok, Pattaya or Patong.

I cannot comment on Koh Chang as I've never been. I go to Thailand for 2 weeks every year (next trip in 3 weeks!) and I usually combine 2-3 nights in Bangkok and 4-5 night in Chiang Mai with 5 nights on the beach in either Krabi or Koh Samui depending on the season. Both have the "not too busy not too quiet" balance that I like.

In terms of weather, you'll always get some rain but as long as you are prepared for it and are flexible with your plans for each day then it shouldn't spoil your holiday. Being in the middle of a tropical downpour is part of the Thailand experience. They rarely last long and it's usually an excuse to dash to the nearest bar for a cold beer

Leanne1812

This year we went to Krabi as we'd never tried there and it was certainly cheaper and less commercial than Phuket & Samui. It's pretty chilled so if you're looking for a lot of nightlife it's possibly not for you.

From Krabi we went to Koh Lanta and it was really nice, beaches are great. We did go in low season and it was very, very quiet. One bar open locally with about 6 customers. I believe it's quite a bit busier when you will be going and has lots more entertainment like fire dancers on the beach and lots of little pop up restaurants and bars. Maybe check it out as its really easy to get to from Krabi.

danandjens_worldtravels

Railay Beach near Krabbi is really nice too, only accessible by boat and pretty laid back when your there.

There are two Koh Changs in Thailand, one is on the north east coast, near Trat, and the other is off the west coast. I've been to the one in the east and it was lovely, pretty relaxed and lots to do, waterfalls, beaches and even elephants! We got the bus there from the local bus station in Bangkok

Chaing Mai is good too, try the Flight of the Gibbon. We went up on the bus and back on the train, it took ages and if you're on a time limited trip, take a flight..

I wouldn't bother with the tigers though if you're doing the ones near Kanchanaburi, we thought it would be okay but it really wasn't.

Bangkok is fun, make sure you try all the different kinds of transport for getting around, we found this the best bits - canal, river, tuk tuk and local bus. All great fun!

alwaysskint96

Thats basically the trip I did lat year . Depending on what way round you want to go you can get a bus from Ekkamai to Laem Ngop which is the ferry pier for Koh Chang. Then buy a ferry ticket and the other side there will be white songthaews waiting to go down the side of the Island. I liked Lonely Beach and stayed in Little Eden bungalows but White Sands is more developed

As for Chiang Mai the Loy Krathong festival is on 16-18 Nobv so if you can be there for thast ( I am ) its fab. Although prob best to prebook accomodation. Both Airasia and Nok Air seem to be doing deals on flights at mo

Voyager2002

Good plan: actually I would advise giving Bangkok a miss or seeing it immediately before the end of your holiday. In any case, the Siam Square district is a good place to stay since you might find Sukkhumvit very noisy, crowded and polluted.

VictoriaBlyth

We went out a couple of years ago, started in Bangkok and were amazed by how much we loved it. We then went to Chiang Mai. Very different and really beautiful temples and waterfalls as well as fab food!
We then took a sleeper train back to Bangkok for an overnight stay, the took a bus to the ferry, going on to Koh Chang. We stayed in a brilliant place, only a couple of hundred yards from a deserted beach. Best memory is sitting on the beach, eating food from a beach cafe by candlelight and listening to the sea. Brilliant snorkelling etc and aa really good elephant orphanage too.
Can I post a link? This is the guy we stayed with who is a font of wisdom on all things KC https://www.iamkohchang.com

Very jealous..........:cool:

Doshwaster

Voyager2002 wrote: »

Good plan: actually I would advise giving Bangkok a miss or seeing it immediately before the end of your holiday. In any case, the Siam Square district is a good place to stay since you might find Sukkhumvit very noisy, crowded and polluted.

Personally, I prefer to do Bangkok at the start of a trip rather than at the end - but everyone's different. I like to get a decent hotel in Sukhumvit or Silom to help get over the flight. When you can get excellent 4* hotels for £40-50/night it seems silly to rough it with the backpackers.

After a 2 or 3 days of treating myself I'm then happy to go for more basic accommodation in the rest of Thailand - but even so it's still amazing what you can get for so little money. One of the best places I have ever stopped was a bungalow in Chiang Mai with all mod cons for £14 a night including breakfast - although that was a few years ago when the exchange rates were much better. I remember getting over 70 BHT to the pound...

PompeyPete

I've stayed in several areas in Bangkok, but by far my favourite is by the Chao Phraya River in Bangalamphu. My favourite mid-range hotel, and the only one I'll ever consider in the future is the New Siam Riverside...

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g293916-d1763955-Reviews-New_Siam_Riverside_Guest_House-Bangkok.html

For the price we paid in March, and what you get for your money it's excellent value.

I've been to Chiang Mai three times, but I think it's a mini Bangkok. I much prefer Nong Khai, sat on the Meekong River on the border between Thailand and Laos. It's easy to reach by overnight sleeper from Bangkok (Hualamphong), and a great place to stay is The Mutmee...

http://www.mutmee.com/

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g303915-d550862-Reviews-Mut_Mee_Guest_House-Nong_Khai_Nong_Khai_Province.html

Other lovely locations close to Bangkok are the Kanchanaburi areas, west of Bangkok and beyond to the the Thailand/Burma (Myanmar) border at Sangkhlaburi. It's famous fro the Bridge over the River Kwai and lots of WWII history. Kanchanaburi is easy to reach by 3rd Class train @ 100 bahts (£2.10) a ticket...

http://www.seat61.com/Bridge-on-the-River-Kwai.htm#.UkfMoNKTjW8

The old capital of Siam, Ayutthaya, a couple of hours north by train from Bangkok is another place well worth a couple of nights. 15 bahts (30p) a ticket

You don't need to get the train to these places, but Thai railways are a really atmospheric way to get around Thailand, and you see heaps more beautiful countryside on a train than you'll see cramped up in a van or bus. There's always something going on, with vendors of drinks and food walking up and down the carriages. As there's are plenty of stops, particularly on the 3rd Class trains then the people sat around you are always changing, and some of them are real characters! The trains often run a bit late but so what? Just chill and don't rush around, you'll be well rewarded!

jimmyflynn

Trains are a great way to see Thailand, especially sleepers if you are only there for a short time as you're not wasting days hanging around airports.

Bkk - Chiang Mai rail line closed until 1 Nov (being Thailand it will be later) so I'd stick to the flights up there.

Dave_6

Quick update, go in a weeks time.

Decided on -
1 night in Bangkok (Park Plaza Hotel)
Fly up to Chiang Mai for 5 nights, (Went for the Amora Tapae hotel in the end due to its location, wanted The Castle hotel but it had been booked up, as had alot of places due to the festivals)
Fly back to Bangkok and go straight to Koh Chang, transfers booked via Ian from iamkohchang
5 nights on Koh Chang (3 nights at Top Resort, south end of White sand beach, then 2 nights at Rock Sand, very north end of the same beach)
Transfer back to Bangkok for 1 night at Mariya Boutique before flying home the next day.


Just looking into possible things to do once there.

Chiang Mai -
Day at an elephant camp
The Tigers
Doi Suthep temple and view over Chiang Mai
Thai boxing (watching it)
White water rafting (if the water levels are high enough)

Koh Chang
Island boat trips
Beach time & exploring the island
Possibly another elephant trip