I understand that Tong is the tour guide of choice and that she is very busy. If I cannot book her for the tour I am looking for, does anyone have any experience with www.thailandtourscenter.com? It may be lovely, it may be a ripoff but any information you have would be welcome.

Tong has several guides that work for her. many on this forum have used Tom and Nui and been very pleased. I have met both and they seemed pleasant and spoke English well. Try contacting Tong to see if one of these or another is available, if she is not.

dbarks,
Like you, I would also like to know if anyone else has good tour guide recommendations for BKK. So far my communication with Tong has been very slow and she may not even have available dates.
Did you also see this? http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...r-Bangkok.html

If Tong and her clones are still not responding you can still get tours in Bangkok and other cities if you want.

Many tourists in Bangkok just find the nearest travel agency and select a group tour from their menu list. Tour company picks you up at your hotel and returns you there at the end of the trip. Some hotels have tour desks. Many tourists get tours this way.

You will be part of a group of tourists in a mini van. They stop at many of the popular tourist attractions. Millions of tourists get their tours this way. For Chiang Mai, Phuket, Pattaya you can do the same thing - just find the nearest travel agency and look over their tour lists. You are free to compare prices and then choose. Some travel agencies (there are lots of them) can arrange individual tours for you if you want, you pay more of course!

Good luck.

Do you want a guide or a driver? Rat is a well-recommended driver for Bangkok and the surrounding area. While millions of tourists do get their tours via group tours, I wouldn't recommend them to anyone I know.

I'd also suggest you consider whether you want a guide at all in Bangkok. I've never used a guide in Bangkok and I don't recommend a guide to my friends going there. It's very easy to navigate Bangkok on your own using public transport and taxis. And you'll certainly pay less for your days in Bangkok on your own than you would even with a cheap group tour.

Thanks... I personally don't want to be part of a large group. Kathie, what would you suggest for doing the floating market? Is it worthwhile to take a full day out to visit? If so, should we book a guide? driver? Would love some advice!

The reason I asked, was because on the Tiger Temple some tours offer breakfast with Tigers and the monks, showering the tigers, etc. Other s just offer getting your picture taken with them. Just asking about the difference, if Tong or her access is unavailable.

First, decide whether you want to go to the floating market... it's the kind of place people either love or hate. I'm not a fan, so perhaps someone else can give you a different perspective. As far as I'm concerned, it's a tourist trap. My definition of tourist trap is that it exists soley or almost soley for the purpose of entertaining tourists. It certainly isn't worth a whole day, IMO.

You can hire a driver to take you to the Floating market. Once you are there, you'll get into a boat with a boatman who will take you around. Some people here have gone to the Floating Market with Tong who recommends what food to buy and they have enjoyed that.

We've been to the floating market twice. Once with a usual guide and it was a waste of time. We went a second time with Tong and it was lots of fun. She really added to the experience. We saw Tom there with another couple, who also appeared to be enjoying themselves. It combines well with a trip to the secret place or the Tiger Temple.