BootsnAll Travel Community

I'm flying into BKK on June 5 to spend 5 weeks in the region as a first time SE Asia traveller. To complicate matters, I have 2 friends meeting me (for 2-3 weeks)in BKK about 10 days after I get there.

How do folks recommend I spend the 10 days leading up to their arrival, and the week after they leave?

I have a total budget of about $2,000.00 for the whole trip.

Will be there with my wife on 4th June, planning to spend a week there. $2k should be fine if you were to stick with the budget inns (around $10-$15), should be cheaper for long stay. There are lots of things to do in bangkok, there are a few places worth visiting (Wat Po, Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Trimitr){do a google search for more info), Grand Palace, Jim Thompson House, Chatuchak Weekend Market & Chinatown... just to get a feel of bangkok.

Try not to take taxis or tuk tuks, travel on boat is not only cheaper but also you'll experience bangkok more. Spend about 4 or 5 days in bangkok, then you can head down to pattaya for the 'beach' and party. There are lots of cheap place to stay and party, just be careful not to be scammed. Then you can either head south to phuket or krabi spend a few days there or head back north to changmai to relax.

Food is relatively cheap, $10 - $15 a day would get you a 3 decent meal. Basically whatever you can do back home you can do it in Thailand for 1/2 of the price.

Thanks for the advice. I was thinking about maybe spending that time getting to vietnam and/or cambodia and back, advisable?

Cambodia (by that I mean Angkor Wat) is def doable in 10 days. Keep the BKK sight seeing to when they come.

Head to Siem reap..spend couple of days and come back to BKK. Take some day trips and maybe do things your friends would not want to.

You can also head up to Chiang Mai overnite and stay there for couple of days on route you can see Ayuthaya and maybe even Kanchanaburi.

And of course you can head to the beaches for couple of days.

Can anyone suggest a good beach that isnt too touristy yet still accessible with plenty to do and see?

I like the idea of kicking it by myself in a bungalow on or near the beach for a week or so.

The ideal place would be far from crowded but definitely have some people/bars around.

the ko chang area in the east is slightly touristy but not as much as other places and there are a lot of islands in the area that are very basic and away from it all.

Ko Chang might be very wet in June. Probably your best bet weatherwise would be Ko Pha Ngan or Ko Tao. Both these islands have a lot of tourists (mainly backpackers) but there are quieter beaches on them too, though these tend to be in places where the access is difficult. (Bad roads or just a footpath or boat access only) There's fairly decent snorkelling off Ko Tao and a bit off the west coast of Ko Pha Nang too.

Another dryish option is Ko Samet which is only a 3.5 hour bus ride from Bangkok. It's a small island, only 6km long, and there are no big hotels there. However it can get quite busy, especially at weekends and there are beach bungalow resorts on every available inch of beach front. They sting you for a national park entry fee there too, which is totally unwarranted considering the over-development and the lack of effort to preserve the environment. Nevertheless it's the best beach option close to Bangkok. A week there would probably feel too long unless all you want to do is lie on the beach, eat and swim.

More info on the Thai islands here. Travelfish
That site also has a very useful interactive weather map.

I second Ko Tao.

I also really liked Ko Phayam which is on the andaman side right by Burma. You get there from Ranong by taking a boat into the Andaman Islands for about an hour to hour and a half. It is not very populated and the beaches are really nice. You might not see any tourists or there might be a few.

Good luck and safe travels.

hi Designfreaks
I was just reading your post of suggestions for Leighton on how to spend his vacation time, and I was wondering, have you been there before? and if so, do you know what the hostels are like? My son is planning a backpacking adventure & I'm on the prowl for information.
Thanks...luggage tags

Hi Lwilliams,

Sorry for responding late. I've been to Thailand a few times (Bangkok, Krabi, Pattaya, Chiang Mai & Haadyai). Not really an expert but I can share some of my thoughts with you.

Since you're planning for your son, the question you need to ask him is what he likes? There are lots of things to do in Bangkok for instance, you can spend 1 or 2 days just visiting temples. But is he interested in places like this?

If he's into water sports, there are places like Phuket, Krabi and Pattaya. Basically, you need to ask yourself what kind of experience you want. I sometimes hear complains from my friends saying that they didn't really enjoy their trip in Thailand. Well the main reason is they went to a place that offers things that they don't like. For instance, you can't be expecting clean beaches in Pattaya. Pattaya is a place for water sports and the night life.

You should worry less about place to stay as most hostels are quite decent. So start talking to your son and see what he wants.

Drop me an email at designfreaks[at]gmail.com if you want to discuss more on this.