Planning Thailand Trip Advice Please

mae

Hi we are planning a trip to Thailand and would love any tips or advice/opinions anyone has:

We have seen flights to Bangkok (BKK) for March next year at around £596 each...is this a fair price?

Thinking of 14 nights:
3 nights in Bangkok
2/3 nights in Chang Mai
And the rest in Phuket or Maybe Krabi?
Back to Bangkok for 1 night before we fly back.

Internal flights seem to be very cheap so thats not a problem and hotel wise only seen one so far for Bangkok that we like maybe the Rembrandt Hotel, it has excellent reviews.

Voyager2002

That is probably too much time for Bangkok: my advice is to get straight out to somewhere you want to be.

Chiang Mai is interesting, but like Bangkok is a sprawling polluted city. It is good as the base for trekking trips, but organise this in advance rather than wasting precious time once you are there.

Most people go to Thailand for the beaches and islands: the only one that I have experienced is Koh Samet, which is not supposed to be special but is easily accessible by bus and boat from Bangkok. I found it to be delightful, so the famous ones are probably outstanding.

Don't forget the opportunities for seeing wild-life: earlier this year I had some spectacular encounters with wild elephants in the Kao Yai national park.

Domestic flights are very affordable, but there is a lot to be said for overnight train rides: you get a comfortable bed and save the cost of a hotel.

bigadaj

Seems sensible, I think 3 nights in Bangkok would be fine.

It's certainly possible to get flights around £450 and maybe below £400, depending on timings. My preference would be with Middle East airlines like Qatar, Emirates or etihad.

Overnight train up to chaing mai would be an option, we took the train down south and got to trang a few years ago, then up to Phuket and flight back to Bangkok.

coffeehound

I'd suggest leaving the Bangkok days until the end. You will be jetlagged for the first few days and this is probably time better spent at the beach resort.

eDicky

It would be useful to mention your age range and interests etc, so that suitable recommendations can be more easily made. Thailand offers a huge variety. Is the flight you are looking at direct? - one with a transit point is likely to be cheaper...

Browntoa

The ladies are sometimes men

NiftyDigits

If you are referring to flights from London, £596 is not a good price.

Flights in March range currently from £300 indirect with Air China to £448 direct with EVA.

The preferred direct option would be with THAI, currently at £468.

Dates of March the 4th to the 19th were used for this illustration.

mae

Thanks looks like we might re think the length of time in Bangkok and maybe change it to the end of the trip then.. will have a think..

Has anyone been to Chang Mai is it worth the trip?

mae

We will be travelling with a 12 year old child. We do like a beach holiday with some culture mixed in. Nightlife isn't a big deal as we are travelling with our chid so more of a meal in the evenings with a walk or drink somewhere.

mae

NiftyDigits wrote: »

If you are referring to flights from London, £596 is not a good price.

Flights in March range currently from £300 indirect with Air China to £448 direct with EVA.

The preferred direct option would be with THAI, currently at £468.

Dates of March the 4th to the 19th were used for this illustration.

Flights are from Manchester at the end of March and they seem to go up quite a bit at that point in the month unfortunately

Doshwaster

Lots of Thailand threads on here so have a good search.

Three nights in Bangkok is fine for a first time visitor. The first night will probably be a lost cause anyway due to jet lag.

A 2 week combination of Bangkok + Chiang Mai (or Chiang Rai) + a beach is a great combination which I have done several times. Personally, I'm not too keen on Phuket (especially the main Patong resort) as it is too busy and expensive. There are several areas around Krabi which are more laid back and cheaper such as Ao Nang but which are still good bases for exploring the area. Phi Phi is worth a day trip but I wouldn't stop overnight.

I really like Chiang Mai at night but there's not so much to do in the city during the day, especially if (like me) you have a fairly low boredom threshold for temples. There are plenty of day trips you can do in the area though.

In terms of accommodation it depends on your budget but there is really no need to spend a lot of money even if the exchange rate at the moment isn'grear. In Bangkok you can get a good 4* for around £40-50 a night and elsewhere I wouldn't spend more than £20-30 - but it is possible to spend a lot more for luxury or a lot less if you don't mind roughing it a bit.