Ayutthaya, Sukhothai, or both?
May 17th, 2006, 03:43 PM
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Ayutthaya, Sukhothai, or both?
I will be in thailand for 3 weeks. The typical BKK, Chaing Mai, beach route. If i wanted to fit in Ayutthaya and or Sukhotai. Is one enough? Sukhotai seems like a little more work and money to get to, but is it a shame to miss it? What's the best way to get there?
I thought about either Ayutthaya as a daytrip from Bangkok, or on the way, then take a sleepertrain to Chaing Mai.
Please help. Thanks
I thought about either Ayutthaya as a daytrip from Bangkok, or on the way, then take a sleepertrain to Chaing Mai.
Please help. Thanks
May 17th, 2006, 04:49 PM
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if you're flying Bangkok Airways to Chaing Mai, they make a stop in Sukhothai.
The two destinations are both very attractive to history/ruins buffs, and i'm hard pressed to choose. But Sukhothai was nicer in that there were fewer people, and we could rent bikes and ride around the historical ruins in comparative solitude.
there's also a center-town market stall that has the best fried chicken in the world.
The two destinations are both very attractive to history/ruins buffs, and i'm hard pressed to choose. But Sukhothai was nicer in that there were fewer people, and we could rent bikes and ride around the historical ruins in comparative solitude.
there's also a center-town market stall that has the best fried chicken in the world.
May 19th, 2006, 07:02 AM
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Both if you can and if you're going to Chiang-Mai it's on the way (instead of making it a day trip from Bangkok which is backtracking) - 1 day for each and you can take overnight trains to both destinations but if you can only go to one then my recommendation would definitely be Sukhotai hands down.
May 19th, 2006, 08:45 AM
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We have only been to Ayuthaya, the former Thai capital. We set off early and went on a day trip from Bangkok's Hua Lamphong Station.
You can also do a separate trip to Kanchanaburi, famous for the Bridge over the River Kwai, from here.We bought a ticket in advance and went one Sunday, with the locals.
When we arrived were met by all sorts of people offering us tours in those small vehicles, tuk tuks. We had seen some other temples on our map that we wanted to visit, so we turned right out of the station-- wrong !
Eventually we struck up a deal with a lone tuk tuk driver to take us to the temples that we wanted and then to the river and the huge moat that encircles the city.
Instead of following the crowds we had a fantastic trip looking at and exploring the ruins and temples from the water rather than by road.
Afterwards, on foot, we visited the museum, watched the elephant rides, went to the market and enjoyed a meal by the river before catching the train back to Bangkok.
It is a different way to see Ayuthaya--well worth a try.
You can also do a separate trip to Kanchanaburi, famous for the Bridge over the River Kwai, from here.We bought a ticket in advance and went one Sunday, with the locals.
When we arrived were met by all sorts of people offering us tours in those small vehicles, tuk tuks. We had seen some other temples on our map that we wanted to visit, so we turned right out of the station-- wrong !
Eventually we struck up a deal with a lone tuk tuk driver to take us to the temples that we wanted and then to the river and the huge moat that encircles the city.
Instead of following the crowds we had a fantastic trip looking at and exploring the ruins and temples from the water rather than by road.
Afterwards, on foot, we visited the museum, watched the elephant rides, went to the market and enjoyed a meal by the river before catching the train back to Bangkok.
It is a different way to see Ayuthaya--well worth a try.
May 19th, 2006, 01:31 PM
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If you can get to both, do it. If you can only do one, Sukhothai is definitely the more important and impressive site. Ayutthaya is almost a suburb of Bangkok, you can get there easily and quickly but just isn't on a par with Sukhothai. Both of them are former capitals of Thailand.
May 20th, 2006, 10:38 PM
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I visited Ayutthaya about 15 years ago and Sukothai last year. In view of the time lage between the two visits, it may be my memory playing tricks, but I felt that Ayutthaya was the more impressive. Sukothai was very "manicured" and was more like "ruins in a garden" altthough as we were in a rental car we were able to also see some of the outlying sites which were nice. The town itself is a bit bland with nothing much else to see or do.
Ayutthaya is a pleasant 20 mins or so by train, or, as an alternative you could take a boat upriver to Ay and then get the sleeper train to Chiang Mai (excellent experience).
A third alternative, which is what we did, is to visit Ayutthaya and then get the train on to Sukothai (I think around 2.5 - 3 hours) stay overnight visit the ruins and pick up th onward train to Chiang Mai.
i am sure you will have a great time whichever you use
Ayutthaya is a pleasant 20 mins or so by train, or, as an alternative you could take a boat upriver to Ay and then get the sleeper train to Chiang Mai (excellent experience).
A third alternative, which is what we did, is to visit Ayutthaya and then get the train on to Sukothai (I think around 2.5 - 3 hours) stay overnight visit the ruins and pick up th onward train to Chiang Mai.
i am sure you will have a great time whichever you use
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