BootsnAll Travel Community

Hey guys, I'm a first time traveller and I'm going to be travelling from July until the end of September! I'm going to Thailand for 3weeks, Vietnam for 3weeks and then Australia for 3weeks! I'm sorted for Vietnam and Australia, but I'm struggling to decide where to go in Thailand!

I am considering the following itinary:

Bangkok - 5 days
Kanchanaburi - 3 days
Sukhothai - 1 day
Chang Mai - 4 days
Chang Rai - 2 days
Ko Pha-Ngan and surrounding Islands - 5 days

Any comments or advice would be very much appreciated! Do you think I'm doing too much in the three weeks or is it ok? Also would like to know if theres anywhere you wouldnt go or somewhere I should go that I havent included ! Thanks guys!

Jack

You are trying to do way too much! Remember u only have 3 weeks... Have you factored in travel time... and are you flying around or using ground based transport... It can be tricky to get to Sukhothai if you don't have that much time... maybe go to Ayuttaya instead if you want to see an old city and lots of temples... it is only about 1 hour by bus from BKK, and I would suggest an overnight trip for that. (Many places/tours do it in a day but there is lots to see and you don't want to feel rushed...)
Kanchanaburi is lovely and there is a surprising amount to see there, you could easily spend an extra day there... Your North time sounds about right, but again you could easily love it and want to spend extra time...
With your beach/island plan, it would be easier to pick an island and just stay there and really chill. Otherwise you will just be hopping on and off boats...

I wouldn't bother with Chiang Rai - it is similar to Chiang Mai - or at least it's close enough for you to miss it out on a short trip.

I would then just add in those saved days to help with spacing out your travel a bit so you don't end up to tired to enjoy yourself.

I don't think Bangkok needs 5 days either, some thing one is too long, others can go back time after time. We stayed a week, but 3 days would have been long enough.

If you are going to Chiang Mai then you must must go to Pai. I believe its about 4 hours from Chiang Mai and it is a beautiful little town where you can go explore some beautiful caves, hot pools and get in touch with some Thai bands who do covers of Bob Marley songs. It is fantastic and so laid back there. You don't have too much time but a couple days here would make your trip that much better.

yes yes yes go to pai!! by far my best place in thailand! such a cute little town and so beautiful. we hired motobikes and got a waterfall map for the day to travel around the area-amazing! you cant miss this one out!

quote:

Bangkok - 5 days
Kanchanaburi - 3 days
Sukhothai - 1 day
Chang Mai - 4 days
Chang Rai - 2 days
Ko Pha-Ngan and surrounding Islands - 5 days

I'd cut Kanchanaburi out as a 3 day stay and just do a day trip from Bangkok , it's very close by and can be visited on a tourbus or by yourself on the train or local bus. Chiang rai , as already mentioned is very same, same as Chiang Mai , so i'd skip that altogether. Ko Pha-Ngan is the best island around IMHO (exit Koh sumai as soon as you can , it's a complete trash hole), so i'd extend your beach stay and chill for a good while , Had Yao is a very nice quiet beach. You can easily visit all the other beach areas from here as the island is not that big , Tongsala (ferry port) is close by for shopping and supplies. Try Long bay resort or Bay view. You must visit Hot Moon resturant and bar just up the hill off the beach, great food and cocktails , service second to none and good prices. When in bangkok , check out Suan luma night market ( starts around 7.00 ish) , very pleasent for shopping and has a food court , it's near Lumphini park.

In Chiang mai , Pai is a nice getaway for a day or 2 or consider Soppong , a bit further along the same road , much quieter with a few good places to stay , more authentic than Pai with it's reggae bars. check out little eden bungalows , they ahve a house to rent also and pool with good food.

You also dont need 5 days in Bangkok. As a tourist, there isn't much to do and if you are short on time (which you are), you're better off staying there for 2-3 days.

Also cut out sukkothai. You don't have a lot of time.

thanks for the info guys