Craig

I anticipate redeeming miles for our Hartford to Bangkok flight at the end of this month so it is not too early to plan the basic outline for our next trip to SE Asia. Here's my thinking:

Day 1 Depart BDL 09:10
Day 2 Arrive BKK 23:25
Day 3 BKK
Day 4 BKK
Day 5 BKK
Day 6 BKK
Day 7 BKK
Day 8 BKK - REP 11:30 - 12:30
Day 9 REP
Day 10 REP
Day 11 REP - BKK 08:50 - 09:50
BKK - LPQ 11:00 - 12:50
Day 12 LPQ
Day 13 LPQ
Day 14 LPQ - BKK 13:20 - 15:10
Day 15 BKK - BDL 07:00 - 19:39

I am hoping that the connection at BKK on day 11 will not be too tight. All of the flights between BKK, REP and LPQ would be on Bangkok Airways - looks like the Discovery Airpass is the most economical way to go.

This will be our second stay in Bangkok. Last time we stayed at the Oriental. This time we'll try the Penn. Hope to do lots of shopping, including weekend market if it fits our schedule. Also Grand Palace (again), Damnoen Saduak floating market/Kanchana Buri(River Kwai), Suan Packard Palace, Marble Temple, Vimarnmek Palace - Plenty to do in 5 days.

At Siem Reap we'll have 2-1/2 days to see the major temples of Angkor and visit Tonle Sap. I've seen various opinions on the timing on this forum - our capacity for absorbing tons of architecture is somewhat limited - my thinking is that in 2-1/2 days, we could do 2 early morning and 2 late afternoon temple tours and have 1 afternoon to visit Tonle Sap. We intend to stay at the Sofitel unless someone comes up with a better recommendation.

At Luang Prabang, we will also have 2-1/2 days - hopefully enough time to spend exploring the town and its wats, take a boat trip to the caves and perhaps hire a driver to see waterfalls, Hmong villages and the silk weaving village. The La Residence Phou Vao (formerly the Pansea) looks like the best bet for us.

When we return to Bangkok, we'll stay at the Amari Airport (Executive Floor) for our last night - I think that will be the 5th time we have stayed there. I am assuming of course that the new airport will not be open by February of next year.

Thanks in advance for your help. Most of my research for this trip has been done on this forum but I am looking for any additional input you may have.

rhkkmk

craig ---i think it looks very good, but i too am dubious about the switch from one plane to the other on day 11...why not come back to bkk on the last flight the nite before and stay at the airport in bkk (or in town), just to make sure....you would pick up some time and avoid a potential problem...the last flight is about 7:30PM---that gives you the whole day in SR....it would make me feel more comfortable....look at sofitel in SR as a good fit for you guys....

rhkkmk

lets see if we can come up with a date to meet??? before may 17....a sunday works best for us...

Craig

Thanks, Bob for the suggestion on the connecting flights - will try and figure a way to make it work - don't want to allow too little time in Luang Prabang. I am looking at the Thai Airways direct flight from New York - we have the miles for Business Class and it would buy us some time at each end.

Sundays are good for us too - will speak with Jeane to see what works, probably some time in April.

Kathie

Craig, this looks pretty good to me. The Bangkok Air flight switch would work if everything is on time. While every time I've flown Bangkok Air they have been exactly on time, recent reports from a couple of people on the board indicate that Bangkok Air has been having more problems with being on time. Can you get an earlier flight out of Siem Reap?

glorialf

Craig-- If you take the new Thai flight you will get into Bangkok at 4:30PM so will be in the hotel in time for dinner which should significantly help your jetlag the next day.

Have you considered splitting your time in Bangkok. Staying 3 days at the beginning and another two days after Cambodia? That way you could store your luggage and travel light and also not have to worry about the connecting flight.

I'd say the amount of time in Siem Reap is fine unless you are real temple lovers. You could add a day but only if you don't take it away from something else.

Again, if you take the Thai flight your return will be at 12:40 AM so you could leave the same day you return from Laos or you could basically have one more full day in Bangkok without having to pay for a hotel. If you do that I'd go back into town to stay rather than at the airport hotel.

Craig

Kathie and Glorialf,

Thanks for the additional input - I am trying not to get too frustrated over this. I checked the Bangkok Air web site again - flight times have changed slightly since I last visited. There is no earlier flight out of Siem Reap though. Here's my proposed revised itinerary:

Day 1 Depart JFK 12:00 Noon
Day 2 Arrive BKK 16:10
Day 3 BKK
Day 4 BKK
Day 5 BKK
Day 6 BKK - REP 11:10 - 12:20
Day 7 REP
Day 8 REP
Day 9 REP - BKK 09:10 - 10:10
Day 10 BKK - LPQ 11:30 - 01:20
Day 11 LPQ
Day 12 LPQ
Day 13 LPQ - BKK 13:50 - 15:40
Day 14 BKK
Day 15 BKK - JFK 00:40 - 06:35

As you can see, we will have almost a full day in Bangkok between Siem Reap and Luang Prabang - not sure how much we can accomplish in that time. I suppose we could spend more time in Siem Reap and leave there in the afternoon instead. Then I would consider spending an extra day in Bangkok at the end (day 15) and depart on day 16. The shorter JFK - BKK/BKK - JFK flights buy us some time to do this.

With this itinerary and its variants, I think we would not need to stay at the Amari airport at all.

I like the idea of traveling light when going to Siem Reap (and Luang Prabang, for that matter). Would you suggest storing luggage at the Penn? Or would it be better to store at the airport and try out different Bangkok hotels?

Thanks for your help.

glorialf

I've always stored my luggage at the Oriental. I know I would feel safer with it in a good hotel than at the airport. But I'm also not someone who feels compelled to try out lots of different hotels.

Gpanda

Craig-the last two times we were in Thailand, we did exactly as onyour second itineraryi.e., came back to BKK two days before leaving. It worked great for us. You trip sounds great. I really enjoyed your India trip report.

Craig

Thanks for the positive feedback, Andy. Bob/Karen and I/Jeane are talking about getting together halfway between Boston and Hartford on a Sunday for lunch in April. Would you and Beth be interested in joining us?

hobbes

Hi, Craig, my comments.
Cambodia
-Siem Reap flights are limited and fill up fast so suggest you book those early. On our last trip we could only get the last flight SR-Bkk which was a waste as the temples all close at sun down.
-The Pansea in SR may also suit you if you want to take a look at it.
-Book dinner at Amansara while you are in SR - the food and ambience is great and if they are not sold out they will give you a guided tour including rooms.
Thailand
-The Weekend Market is open Fridays and IMO that is the best day to go - far less crowded.
- Do you plan to do a day trip to Kanchanaburi?

rhkkmk

craig we don't want andy, just beth....andy can stay out in the car...

Gpanda

Craig-We'd love to join you. Have you and the Needham Neanderthal picked a date yet? This spring, we're being inundated with family visits to the utopia that is Cambridge.

Craig

Gpanda - Jeane and I are working on a possible date or two. Will let you know soon.

Hobbes - Thanks for the advice on SR flights. I think we will be in Bangkok on a Friday and would do the weekend market then. Will check out Pansea to stay and Amansara for dinner. We would probably combine a day trip to Kanchanaburi with a trip to the floating market.

rhkkmk

craig---again can i suggest the nite flight from SR to bkk the nite before and thus giving you a full non cluttered day and 1/2 in bkk before LP or add that day to the end of the trip in either LP or bkk?????

Craig

Bob, I appreciate the efficiencies involved in taking the night flight from Siem Reap. At that time of day however, I prefer to be relaxing in a restaurant or in my hotel room sipping on a cold Singha or its Cambodian equivalent. The earliest evening flight is at 19:40 which means it would be quite late by the time we are checked into our Bangkok hotel. If we take the 9:10 or 9:30 flight to Bangkok the next morning, we will have the better part of the day there before departing again to Luang Prabang. We do intend to stay an extra day in Bangkok at the end.