emtravel

Hello,
we will be in Thailand for a week, 2 nights/almost 2 days in Chiang Mai, then 2 nights in Bangkok/3 days, then 2 nights cruise to Ayathuaya, then last night in Bangkok.
In CM we stay at Regent, and in Bangkok at Royal Orchid Sheraton.

I want to have every day or at least every other day thai massage. My question, especially to Gpanda - you stayed at Royal Orchid Sheraton - did you reserve your massages in advance? I do not want to structure my time too much, beacuse we have limited sightseeing time. If we will reserve massages in advance, we would be tied up with schedule.

Also, what are recommendations for massages - Wat Pho - I read here on the board that better to ask them to come to hotel? I know that Sheraton's spa is expensive, but is it worth to splurge once?
I also seen on this board re: Divana spa. Any suggestions how to utilize time?
My itienrary is :
Day 1 - arrive from Hong Kong to Chiang Mai, noon. Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai, evening bazaar. Overnight Regent.

Day 2. Chiang Mai, Elephant ride Chiang Dao, Baan Sabai Spa - Massage. Overnight Regent.
Day 3. Shopping in the morning, noon flight to Bangkok. Jim Thonmpson factory in pm. Overnight Sheraton R.O.
Day 4. Grand Palace, What Pho, etc.. whatever else possible. Overnight Sheraton R.O.
Day 5. 10:30am cruise starts. Manohra Cruise to Autahyaa. Overnight Manohra.
Day 6. cruise . Overnight Manohra.
Day 7. cruise. arrival Bangkok 6:30pm, overnight Sheraton
Day 8. 8am flight back to Hong Kong.

As you can see, not enough time!!! I also would like to shop.

Any suggestions how to incorporate shopping and massages without being too structured? Is it possible to book massage when I fill it ??
thanks!

rhkkmk

others can comment better on massage than me...i had only two and both were on koh samui---300B each---so very cheap for 60 minutes beside the hotel pool...

you say above jim thompson factory...i do not know of one....maybe you mean the jim thompson store...the main one on surawong is very nice (expensive and full price)---they have a great cafe on the second floor by the way...

JT also has two outlets...we went to both twice this month...one is about 2/3rds of the way down surawong on the same side of the street and has fabric only---very good buys...the other is on sukhumvit rd, soi 93....quite a ride but well worth it...take skytrain to on nut (end of the line) and take a taxi to soi 93--very short distance...the store is on your right about 2 blocks down soi 93---there is a brown sign out front of each outlet...
in the soi 93 store there is fabric and bits and pieces of other merchandise on floor 3--well worth the trip...at least 50% reduction off prices...don't go there looking for that brown shirt---you will not find it or the pink slippers...just go and find what they have...

we revisited the jim thompson house this trip...it is greatly improved and has a much more museum feeling to it than before...i put it right up with the grand palace as a must see in bkk now....

Kathie

I've had massages (and facials, pedicures, body scrubs, etc) at the Mandara spa at the Royal Orchid. The spa is really lovely. It's not expensive if you compare it to the US, for instance. Yes, you do generally need to book ahead, but if they have an opening when you call they will take you then. You can make massage reservations for evening time if that works best for you. It's a very different kind of experience from having someone from Wat Po come to your room.

emtravel

Rhkkmk, Yes, sorry, Jim Thompson museum. We will definetely visit this one.
Kathie,
thank you, what do you mean by different experience - Mandara spa is more pampering? Since we do not have much time, it will be more relaxing to do it at hotel.

Or, does anybody knows good spa near Sheraton ?

thank you

Kathie

No question, the Mandara spa is more pampering. But the style of massage is also different. True Thai massage involves the masseusse stretching you and walking on you. Some people like that, some people feel "beaten up" afterwards. At the Mandara spa, you can choose traditional Thai massage or other types. You will be in a lovely atmopshere with Thai music, scented oils, etc. It's just a very different kind of experience.

Gpanda

The Mandara Spa at the ROS costs 2100 Baht for slightly under 2 hours. Calling the Wat Pho School of massage and having someone come to your hotel room costs 700 Baht for 1 1/2 hours. While the massage at the Mandara Spa was slightly better, it was definitely not 3 times better. I suggest you try both. Viewing your schedule, you could arrange a massage at the Mandara Spa on the day of your arrival before you arrived in Thailand. Depending on how you liked it, you could go back or call the Wat Pho massage school the next day and have someone come to your room that afternoon. They seemed to be very flexible about schedules. I will say that it was sort of pleasant to have contemporaneous massages for my wife and me in our room.

I know your staying out of town in CM at the Regent, but the massage in the basement of the Royal Princess in town was the best I had in Thailand. If you did this, you would need to schedule in advance.

Concerning massages close to ROS in BKK, there is a massage place in the building right next to the ROS under the causeway to River City Shopping Center. These massage I thought was best there was a "foot" massage. It covers your entire leg region. Also, my wife and I had a couples massage upstairs at the Gallery Cafe, about 1/2 block from ROS. It was fine, but not superb. I do note that the food at the Gallery Cafe is very good. You could eat dinner there and decide on massage then.

It's actually pathetic how much time I spent getting massages in Thailand. Lats trip, I got 10 in 12 days. I was travelling the other days. I'm not an expert, I'm just a sybarite.

emtravel

Kathie and Gpanda,
thank you for your suggestions. I will probably try one in Mandara Spa at ROS one massage and also will try some other. In Chiang Mai, we were recommended by the agent who helped us plan stay in Thailand, Baan Sabai Spa.
I am also concerned - we are both prone to easy bruising, so deep tissue massage is out of question - I got bruises from shiatsu just a week ago - so hard the guy was massaging me. If I will not be aBLE to communicate with masseur , then we might get problems!
Foot massage will be surely helpful after day of walking!

Kathie - I noticed you had some reports on Hong Kong. We actually start our trip in Hong Kong - attending conference there. In HKG we will be jet lagged, do you know if massages there as good as in Thailand?
Thanks!

Kathie

I've never had a massage in Hong Kong. It's really not a spa destination. I'm sure that some hotels have spas, however.

Gpanda

My wife also does not like deep tissue and has been able to communicate this to the masseur at each location. On the other hand, I get massages at home from a Russian who takes out all of his problems on my spine. It's great.

Forgot to mention two things. On our first trip to Thailand, we arranged at Wat Pho.for two masseurs to come to our hotel room. This cost 800 Baht for two hours.

Also, after the massages in our hotel room, we asked the masseurs to return the next day. They seemed very happy to return and open to whatever our scheduling needs. Generally, we asked them to return at 5:00 or 6:00 in the afternoon.

A third thing is that I enjoyed the massages most when I took a shower immediately beforehand and dressed in loose clothing.

emtravel

Thank you Gpanda. Did these masseurs from Wat Pho speak English? The price is unreal... How do you know however whom you will get? Is it possible to call them to make an appt or you need to come in to Wat Pho?
thank you

Gpanda

They English and there were no communication problems. You don't have to go to Wat Pho to arrange for a massage. Before our second trip, I "googled" Wat Pho Massage School and found there website (sorry, the address is lost in the morass of paper. I E-mailed them and they responded by suggesting I call them upon arrival in BKK. The first day we were in BKK, I called them at about 9:45 a.m. and arranged for two masseurs (masseuses?) to come to our hotel room at 5:00 p.m. that afternoon. They arrived promptly. We did get a call from the desk before they came up to our room. After the massage, we asked them to return the next day at 6:00 p.m.. They did so. We repeated the third day. Thereafter, we used the Mandara Spa and the other massage places near the ROS.

The massages are a great way to quickly recover from the long flight to BKK from Boston. The soreness and kinks slip away.

Also, my wife told her masseur that she wanted a softish massage and she was very accomodating.

rhkkmk

you are going to love the manhora..we did the one way trip a couple of years ago...while expensive, it is an unforgettable trip....i saw it sitting at the marriott last week just waiting for you

emtravel

Gpanda,
thank you , I did find their Wat Pho website, but I guess I will call them on arrival.
Rhkkmk,
yes, we are looking forwardto Manohra, unlike the sister ship Manohra which only does dinner cruises, this Manohra is 2 nights/3 days! I think it is worth it, since they give every couple a private guide and driver for sightseeing! We loved barge cruises in Europe, so I am sure we will enjoy in Thailand. thanks!

Sameera_Anand

In case u decide to go To Wat Pho for your massage a couple of tips. They have an a/c room which is much nicer - cleaner, more private, less busy than the massage rm in the main Wat Pho. The clerks at the desk in the main massage room in the temple compound will try to dissuade u from going there saying it is far but persist. is worth the 5 min walk. Try the massage they do with small sacks of heated pebbles. Truly an experience. But ensure u wear old clothes as there is turmeric in the sack and traces remain on your skin despite the massage suit they give u.

SD3

If you do go to Wat Pho, it's incredibly cheap - 200 baht for an hour. The ambiance is lacking but the massage itself is great. I have to say, of all the Thai-style massages I had (including much more expensive places), Wat Pho was the best.

emtravel

sameera-annand and sd3, thank you for the tips. SophIA