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Family trip to Thailand for Christmas and possibly New year

Family trip to Thailand for Christmas and possibly New year

Old Nov 10th, 2017, 05:52 PM
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Family trip to Thailand for Christmas and possibly New year

We are planing to go to Thailand on December 19th or 20th and stay till the 30th or 31st, although ideally we would love to stay for New Year celebrations and stay till the 3rd. However, the hotel prices jump very high for the New Year’s therefore we might not be able to afford it. We are thinking about stay have of the vacation in Bangkok and the rest in Phuket. We have never been in Asia, it’s our first trip there and we are traveling with our college aged daughter and teen son. We would love to get ideas of itinerary, what are a must see places, where to stay and where to eat. Any suggestions are welcome and greatly appreciated!
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Old Nov 10th, 2017, 07:32 PM
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What level of hotel and sort of price would you like to pay? Essential info if you seek recommendations. Not everywhere will be hugely expensive over the new year period.
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Old Nov 10th, 2017, 10:55 PM
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Crellstone, thank you for your reply. We have a budget of $12,000 to pay for everything flights, hotels, meals, excursions and little souvenirs.
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Old Nov 11th, 2017, 09:53 AM
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The most expensive hotels during the Christmas to New Year's times are at beaches. Plan your trip so you are in Bangkok when the prices of the beach hotels is too high.
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Old Nov 11th, 2017, 08:39 PM
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Even - clearly I have no idea as to what flights may cost you or even where to are flying from. I was referring to how much you want up spend hotels. E.g. $100 per night?? More, less? I also asked what level of hotel you are looking for. Help us to help you!

Have a look on booking.com etc. I could see Novotel Siam square showing 3 nights for $555 over new year. You can pay a lot more or a lot less. Plenty around at that sort of price

You would be wise to move quickly though. Time is short
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Old Nov 13th, 2017, 03:53 AM
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Yeah, how much you want to spend on a hotel room each night is the important figure. (Coming from a nearby country vs N. America or Europe and mode of travel affects travel costs that only you know.) You may be able to stay longer using a cheaper hotel and staying out of expensive restaurants.

YOU must decide on how many days because if you leave the departure date open that affects visa requirements. With a definite return date home you can use round trip flights and better determine your day to day expenses. For me, flying from the US, round trip flights are cheaper than 2 one way flights.

Phuket is more expensive than Bangkok. In Bangkok meter taxis are not that expensive if you use the meter and not pay a flat rate. Also in Bangkok you have cheap city buses and cheap city rail service. (Phuket local transportation is not cheap!)

You will be in Thailand at the most expensive time of the year with many good hotel rooms booked months ago! So make some decisions now!

* What to do, what to see is easy. With four people one of you should have access to a laptop or desktop computer. So pull up Google and enter "what to see in Bangkok" or "what to do in Phuket" and read what comes up in the search. Even an old fashioned printed travel guide will come in handy too - old tech that works well!

Everyone needs a hotel. You should know how to use local transportation, you should know how to get from airport to hotel. Read up on scams to avoid. Most Western currencies get a better rate changing in Thailand. For first night spending you will need Thai baht for taxi and meals, etc. You can change a little money at the airport but you might get a little more in return in the city. For my dollars not a big difference between best rate and average rate. Rates are not fixed.
https://daytodaydata.net/

If using a debit card do not rely only a single card. Have back up sources of spending money. (If you lose or damage a single card you don't want to end up without any money. Credit cards come in handy for emergencies, get hit by a taxi, fall off a balcony, eat bad food, kids get in a motorbike accident. (Too many tourists die or get hurt in motorcycle accidents. Have medical insurance good overseas. Quite a few tourists fall off balconies and roofs for some reason, perhaps a lover or angry spouse pushes them off!)

This forum has information for Thailand too.
https://www.fodors.com/world/asia/thailand

Get hot with hotel bookings! Bangkok to Phuket you might have to fly if your time is short. If flying from N. America or Europe stay at least 2 weeks. Thailand is not a weekend jaunt.

Up to you!
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Old Nov 18th, 2017, 04:52 AM
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serviced apartments like the centre point group and the ascott group might work for you . I like the chatrium riverside.

I am paying about 3X the normal rate at the beach over Christmas as an example.
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Old Nov 18th, 2017, 03:30 PM
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AirBnB in Thailand? I think so. Give a shout.
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Old Nov 20th, 2017, 08:22 PM
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I returned just last night from an 18 night visit in Bangkok. I had the good fortune to stay with my friend the ambassador at the residence of the Turkish embassy, so all I can say at this time is that hotels are very expensive. In previous visits to Thailand/Bangkok, I have stayed at the Bangkok Christian Guest House just off Silom Road, a main artery and near a stop of the skytrain, the overhead transit system that is easy to use and gets you many places in the city. You might consider a hotel in the vicinity of its lines. Although the guest house is in a small oasis and in a perfect location, its rooms and amenities are so sparse that I doubt that you would want to stay there.

I want to recommend a local travel agency through which I arranged two day trips outside Bangkok. It has a wide range of offerings in the city and nearby. Its Web site is Bangkokbeyond.com, with manager Frank, who helped me with hastily made arrangements. I had a car and driver, with English speaking guides. To one of them, Mr. Oat, I give a strong endorsement as someone with excellent English, a wealth of knowledge about many subjects, and attention to my interests. Other guides would probably be good, too. This is a busy tourist time in Thailand, so, if you are interested in tours, whether with Bangkokbeyond or with another agency, you should start now with plans. The traffic in Bangkok and vicinity is so terrific that I advise that you put yourself into the hands of professionals. ZZ
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Old Nov 23rd, 2017, 11:31 PM
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There are definitely cheaper options in Bangkok that are safe and are very affordable. I think for Phuket it will just in general be much more expensive especially if you are traveling with your whole family.
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Old Nov 24th, 2017, 08:43 AM
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In my earlier post, I failed to make suggestions for locations to visit in Bangkok and, now, I have several. Probably the # 1 destination in the city is the Royal Crematorian Compound, the site of final ceremonies for the late Rama IX at the end of October, 2017. Its opulence has been commented on extensively in the world media. Check on its opening hours and dress code.

There are the usual recommendations: Royal Palace, Wat Arun (a favorite of mine), Wat Po, Jim Thompson House (I visited it for the first time this trip and was not particularly impressed; further, it may have just closed for renovation). Take a look at the Web site of the Thai Ministry of Tourism.

Shopping seems to be the raison d'etre of Thais, so there are enormous, lavish shopping centers throughout Bangkok, such as the Emporium, with adjacent buildings Helix and Glass (with a Harrod's café [London origin]), on a main street, Sukumvit Road. For a visitor's purpose, the large food halls on the upper floors can be very useful. A nice shopping center on the Chao Phrya River near the Sheraton Orchid Hotel that I enjoyed is River City that has two upper floors of antiques (Asian, especially Buddhas and porcelain) and lower floors of other goods and restaurants. It is a stop for many of the free tourist boats that hotels and businesses along the river now operate for visitors to use to get from one place to the next. Just sitting at a riverside restaurant with a beverage and watching river traffic can be an enjoyable experience. ZZ
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