More Authentic Thailand/Asis Travel Desired
 

We are a couple (50's) looking for an a combination trip of authentic photographic /culture experience in Thailand and to end the trip with a bit of remote beach and nice places to stay. From the travel forums this is what I have in mind. Would love your feedback:

Mae Hong Son: Fern Resort

Sukahothai: Tharaburi hotel

Island in Thailand? Koh Yao Noe: The Koyao Island Resort or Koh Phra Thong at the Golden Budda Resort

Laos: Lunang Prabang: Mekong River View Hotel

Cambodia: Siem Reap: pavillon d"Orient Boutique Hotel

We have not booked yet so we are certainly open to ideas and comments. We do not like tours but rather be on our own schedule of adventure.
Thank you for your feedback!

For Sukhothai the Tharaburi is situated just outside the historical park making it a good base to explore the area. However, it's over 10KM from the main Sukhothai city itself but being next to the park is nicer IMO. They have "themed" rooms, like Japanese, Mexican etc and all the rooms are nice. I hope you have plan to visit the nearby, one hour drive from Sukhothai, Sri Satchanalai park as well. Well worth it and offer more complete ruins.

Here are some of my photos from both Sukhothai and Sri Satchanalai: http://khun-pook.smugmug.com/Other/S.../6915625_wsTws

Luang Prabang - I have walked past the Mekong River View which is at the very end or near the junction of the Mekong and the Khan rivers. Quiet spot at the edge of town but it's not directly on the shore of the Mekong since there's a public road between the hotel and the river.

Thank you Hanuman for your reply. I enjoyed your photos very much. If you have other ideas on where to stay or go we are certainly open to them. I picked the hotels only because they seemed rated high on travel sites. As we all know...there are a lot of hidden gems. We do like quite areas.

utahlover,

What time of the year are you planning on visiting? Koh Yoa Noi is good during the non Monsoon season so I hope you're not planning to come then.

How much time do you have for your trip? You have listed 5 places, all of which take some time to get from one to another. It will take a full day to get from some of these locations to the next, so don't plan on being able to do anything but travel on your travel days. I wouldn't spend less than three nights any of these places, and you'll want four or more nights in Siem Reap and Luang Prabang. If you have less than say, 18 (preferably at least 20) days on the ground in Asia, you'll want/need to make some cuts. You may also want to add a few days at the beginning or the end in Bangkok.

The vast majority of posters on the Asia board are independent travelers, so none of us will suggest tours. One of the biggest problems with tours (even private tours) is that they try to cover way too much ground in too little time so you never get an experience of the place. Travel in this part of the world is best taken slowly.

It sounds like a wonderful trip!