After reading a million trip reports and posts I think I am ready to finalize our flight/hotel bookings!! Here is the set-up we have made...how does it look? Am I forgetting any "must sees"? I honestly don't know what I would do without this board!!

Oct 1st: Leave California!!

Oct 2nd: Travel

Oct 3rd: Arrive in BKK at 1am!!
Head to hotel to sleep
Layout at pool & spa!

Oct 4th: Walk around city

Oct 5th: Leave BKK at 8:00am
Arrive Chiang Mai 9:15am
Walk around town
Sunday Walking Market

Oct 6th: Full day with Sgt. Kai
Bamboo Rafting
Doi Inthanon
(hiking/waterfalls)
Hmong/Karen Villages

Oct 7th: Half day with Sgt. Kai
Suthep Mountain
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep
Khantoke Dinner

Oct 8th: All day w/ A lot of Thai
(cooking class) Night Market

Oct 9th: Drive to Lampong
Check in at Elephant
Conservatory by 8:30am
Mahout Training

Oct 10th: Mahout Training

Oct 11th: Mahout Training over
Head back to Chiang Mai
Leave Chiang Mai 4:30pm
Arrive Siem Reap 7:00pm

Oct 12th: Angkor Wat
Killing Fields
Angkor Thom
Other temples

Oct 13th: Visit Koh Ker school with Ponheary
Temples
Anniversary Dinner
(?Hotel de la Paix?)

Oct 14th: More Temples
Visit Children’s hospital in Siem Reap

Oct 15th: Leave Siem Reap 9:50am
Arrive Phuket at 1:00pm
Head to Krabi Relax at Hotel

Oct 16th: Relax at Hotel

Oct 17th: Visit Koh Phi Phi

Oct 18th: Relax at Hotel

Oct 19th: Leave Krabi 2:30pm
Arrive BKK at 3:45pm
Explore

Oct 20th: Bangkok Tour with Tong
Grand Palace
Emerald Budda
Wat Pho
Canal Tour
Shopping Areas?

Oct 21st: Tour with Tong
Floating Market
Fishing Village
Tiger Temple

Oct 22nd: Explore Bangkok
China Town
Jim Thompson House
Wat Arun

Oct 23rd: Leave BKK for home

Overall, it looks good. If it were me (and it isn't) I'd cut a day from Chiang Mai and add it to Angkor. You really don't have enough time at Angkor to see even the main temples. You'll spend a good part of a day with Ponheary (wonderful!), but that leaves you perhaps 2 days at various temples. Also, you've listed the Killing Fields - that's in PP, not Siem Reap.

In Bangkok, you've listed three out of town places: Floating Market, Fishing Village and Tiger Temple. I don't know that it's logistically possible (or desirable) to do all three in one day. The Tiger Temple is a long way away.

I expect the beach experts will tell you not to bother with a day trip to PhiPhi, but I'll defer to them.

It looks very good. You can tinker with it as kathie suggests, but the outline is solid. When you have the free day in BKK, you could go to Chinatown, the flower market and Wat Prayoon in an easy morning adventure. They are all relatively close together. Otherwise, BKK is not conducive to walking.

I hope you've looked at projected weather for Phi Phi and Krabi in early October. It can be dicey.

Oct 4th: Walk around city


It would be a shame if you didn't get to see thing like the Grand Palace and the Reclining Buddha. If you have only one day to see Bangkok, I think it would really pay to get a guide.

travelhorizons, you must have missed the last part of the itinerary which includes more days in Bangkok, several with a guide, and includes the Grand Palace etc.

It looks good. If I were to reduce anything it would be your time at the beach but if you're beach people I'd leave it as is.

I too would add more time to Siem Reap. The Angkor Complex will stay in your memory for ever.

Having visited Phi Phi more times than I can remember, I would also advise against a day trip. You need at least three nights to see it at its best. When I read reports by people who have not enjoyed Phi Phi it's nearly always people who were day-trippers. So I would say, given your time restraints, one or the other....either Krabi or Phi Phi. Krabi will be easiest, unless you are prepared to pay extra for private transfer to Phi Phi.......which is what I would do, being a self-confessed, unashamed Phi Phi holic!!!!

I'd definitely allocate more time to Siem Reap. While the main tourist 'Killing Fields' are at Phnom Penh, I was offered a trip to, from memory, a cave along the same lines. I passed on the trip as I'd been to the one in PP and did not feel I needed more atrocities. Banteay Srei and Beng Melea are outer temples which are well worth a look but would take at least half a day.

Waterlily,
I just went to Thailand and Cambodia earlier this year and loved it.
Jim Thompson house is lovely - have lunch there, its beautiful. And if you have time try to fit in a massage at Wat Pho and a drink on the terrace of the Oriental Hotel!

One thing I noticed - youre going to Siem Reap. Unless there are other fields that I dont know about, the Killing Fields are actually just outside Phnom Penh, ie the capital city which is the other side of the country to Angkor Temples! If you were wanting to go to PP, and were short of time Id recommend visiting the Tual Sleng (S21 Museum) rather than the Killing Fields which are also interesting, but more of a memorial site. Tual Sleng is the school that was turned into a prison in the heart of the city. Very interesting and informative. But thats just my opinion - and from what I see you arent able to go to PP anyway. if you do have extra time you may want to see the floating villages on Tone Sap lake - depending on the water levels when youre there though.

Enjoy your time in Cambodia - and Hotel de La Paix is indeed lovely. I also went to an amazing cookery and hospitality school - I forget the name - but its just outside the main city of Siem Reap. Its run by a french chef and you can also donate money to help fund training schemes. The food was absolutely out of this world - well worth a trip!

Have a great time.
nadia

My mistake about the killing fields! I read someone's trip report and they mentioned about wondering around Siem Reap during lunchtime and finding out they were in part of the killing fields (can't remember who it was though!) Oh well maybe on our next trip!!

Thanks for all the help!

I would suggest three days at the temples in Siem Reap. There are some on the outskirts of Angkor that are worth going to. They have free guides in the country that are very informative.

Waterlily, there is a small killing field in Siem Reap; I was just there in December of 2007. It is a small area that has actually been covered over with tar...sort of giving it a 'parking lot' feeling instead of what I had envisioned as a 'killing field'. Still the sad, empathetic, gutteral feeling is most certainly accompished by the bulletin board of victims and torture methods... It is very touching. In the center is a glass pagoda that is filled to the top with human bones. You can sit on the steps to ponder, or offer up a prayer as my family did.


Don't forget to stop and feed the monkey's just outside of Ankor Wat. It is lots of fun! Wear comfortable shoes for lots of walking and ruins climbing. The Elephant trek around the Temple of Faces was fun and cheap, for only 20 minutes.

We also did the Tethered helium balloon ride at sunset (our guide had to book the time early in the morning) It gave us some fantastic photos of Ankor Wat. The helicoptor ride owned and flown by 2 Australian guys was fantastic as well (although they can only fly within one mile of the Wat airspace).

I have lived in Bangkok for over 11 years and I think your itenerary looks pretty good. On your first or second day when you arrive in Bangkok (Before leaving for Chiang Mai) consider a 'Heavenly Relax' Thai Massage at 'Let's Relax'. The address is:77 Sukhumvit soi 39 (Phromphong) North Klongton, Wattana. You can have consierge write it in Thai for you and give it to the taxi driver. This is my favorite place for a massage. It is very upscale and a fabulous experience. The 'Heavenly Relax' massage is 1000 baht ($33), but it is 2 hours and 45 minutes of total bliss! It starts with a footwash in flower petaled water, then 45 minutes of foot and leg massage in a white leather recliner, and soft warmed blanket. They use a buffalo horn at some points!And then you go upstairs to a private beautiful room for a 2 hour total body massage. Towards the end they use steamed Thai herbal packs on your back and bottom. When you are finished they bring in hot Thai tea with mango and stickey rice. It's spectacular! You must book them first. Their Local Number is 026626935. Just thought I would put in my 2 cents (or baht for that matter!) You are going to have a spectacular holiday! Enjoy, Reggs