Unless you are both real beach junkies, I would take at least 2 nights off Koh Samui and add them to Bangkok.

What I would really do is shave a night or two off Hua Hin and Chaing Mai and another off Koh Samui and add 3 nights to Chiang Rai as well.

I like the fact that you aren't killing yourselves running from one destination to another. 4 locations in three weeks is perfect but I think you should spend a couple more nights in Bangkok. it is a magical city with so much to offer!

Good luck and let us know if you have more questions!

Cheers!

Tamara

Thanks. So should I maybe try to add another stop not to keen as the extra flight would bump the cost up. Will deffo add another night or 2 to Bkk which destination would you reduce

i assume that you are coming from the uk...if so you will be quite tired upon your arrival....i would then suggest that you move right along to samui as soon as possible....you will be very tired and the beach time will be a good adjustment period....i would shave at least 1 day from there....making it 6 days in samui...allowing one travel day and one bonus day for elsewhere...

then i would move to bkk for perhaps 4 days....from there i would move to chiang mai for a max of 4 days....i would move further north for a few days, maybe 3 heading north to the golden triangle---i would rent a car to do this...it is 3-4 hours drive north from CM....

from there i would fly to bkk and make my way to HH for 4 nites max and then back to bkk for a couple of nites to finish up....

picking your hotels is the prime thing to spend time on....we will be glad to help you with this...

let us know something about your price range and what you expect from a hotel and its location....there are plenty of people here with tons of experience and misexperiences....

my day numbers may not add up but i would work it in a similar vein...

if i were to cut something i think it would be HH....i would then add to bkk and the north if i liked outdoors stuff


this is a great hotel site:

www.huahin.20m.com

I would cut out Hua Hin and add 2 or 3 more nights in BKK and the rest in Chiang Rai. You can fly into Chiang Mai, take a bus or boat to Chiang Rai and then fly back to BKK from Chiang Rai. Hua Hin will not add much if you're spending a lot of time in Koh Samui.

Another suggestion would be to add a few nights in Siem Reap (Cambodia) to see Angkor Wat. We spent 2 nights there (wish we would have spent 3) and it was definately one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. Definately near the top of my list of experiences.

Hello - I would cut Hua Hin and add some time to Bangkok and maybe one of the islands near Ko Samui. We live in the UK and do not find the jet lag too bad so I would keep the stay in Bangkok at the beginning personally. If you can stay on the river, all the better. (jetlag tends to be worse coming back we find).

Coming from the UK (isn't the weather grim at the moment!), we are always keen to maximise the beach time. This is not always a popular choice on this board - see previous debates about this - but if that is what you want - stick to your guns!

However, I would cut Hua Hin and head to either Ko Pha Ngan or Ko Tao by boat from Ko Samui - KPG is about 30 mins away, Ko Tao about 1 hr 30 mins to 2 hours depending on which boat you take (tip - take catamaran from Bophut Pier rather than ferry from Nathon).

Either of these would be much better for your age and accommodation is more reasonably priced. Some amazing little beaches on both and good bars and nightlife if that is what you are looking for (although this tends to be beach specific - easy to avoid if you want to). Ko Tao has great diving, snorkelling and rock climbing too.

On Samui - lots of activities:

http://www.redbicycle.org/ - I thought I would do one of the gentle rides! We did something similar in Ubud in Bali and it was fab.

http://www.kiteboardingasia.com/kosamui-kiteboarding-kitesurfing-asia-school-main.php - kiteboarding

Rock Climbing - http://www.samuirockclimbing.com/

There is a cookery school called SITCA - http://www.sitca.net/

Mr Ung's Magical Safari - http://www.ungsafari.com/

Lots of other stuff too.

If you want to add some time to the north, consider going to Mae Hong Son or Pai and trekking from there. Presuming you do want to go on a trek as you are quite active - but do make sure to pick one that is suitable for your fitness level. The best ones are 2 night, 3 day as you go further into the country/jungle.

Add more nights to Bangkok or else you won't do the city justice. There's lots to do,absorb, and discover there and it takes time to sink into it. It's not a European type of city that you can rush through in three days and really get a true feel of the place. Happy Travels!

Have taken on board everything you have suggested and are set to book and have increase the nights in BKK and reduced HH. Did look into adding another destination but seemed to bump the cost up considerably. As it is our first visit to Thailand we are happy with it as we know it wont be perfect but we will learn for future trips. A couple of the hotels suggested

HH Hilton Hua Hin Resort and Spa
KS Sala Samui Resort and spa
BKK Rembrandt Bangkok
CM Novotel

Any comments on these