kapstreak

My wife and I recently returned from a 6 week stay exploring Thailand. We arrived in Bangkok on February 6, 2009. We stayed there for 5 days at the Centre Point Silom which was near the river. We thought the hotel was very clean and had a very friendly staff with a very good location. We would like to thank all of you who recommended this hotel as we were more than satisfied. We visited all the Wats in Bangkok (the ones that are mentioned the most in the tour books), the Grand Palace (the Emerald Budda), the reclining Budda, the Temple of Dawn, and we rode up and down the Chao Phraya river on the tourist boat. We also visited the Golden Budda but did not get to see the Budda, only a picture as the new temple was not open yet and the Budda had been placed in the new temple. That was a disappointment! We took a day trip to Kanchanaburi to the Bridge on the River Kwai. While there we visited the war cemetery, the JEATH war museum, rode the train to Hellfire pass and on the way back visited the Tiger Temple - had mixed feeling about this but decided to go so we could pet the tigers. It was an experience but felt bad for the tigers having to be chained up. Before leaving Bangkok, we visited the Jim Thompson house which was very interesting. His story is quite amazing.

We then proceeded to take the train to Chiang Mai. That is an experience we would not repeat - once was more than enough! We bought first class tickets thinking it would be like AmTrack - it wasn't! It was quite dirty and the compartment was rather hot! The train did a lot of bump, bump going down the track - definitely not smooth! The only thing we found good about it was the beds. They were bigger than AmTrack but we didn't sleep as well - did sleep in our clothes! We stayed at the Chiangmai Plaza hotel while in Chiang Mai. That was a nice hotel. We visited the zoo and saw the giant pandas, went to the elephant camp and rode the elephants (his name was Pontep and he was 14 years old and had a mind of his own!). Also saw a show the elephants put on where they played soccer, did tricks and painted pictures. That was really amazing to see how they paint. Also on our agenda was visiting the temple Wot Phrathat Doi Suthep which is in a very pretty setting. The view from there was beautiful. The night market there was also very interesting. It was here that we finally had the nerve to ride a Tuk Tuk. We were not keen on it while in Bangkok. That was an experience! We also got a Thai massage here. Didn't tell them to go easy on us and I could hardly walk the next day! It felt good but the next time I told them to massage me medium!

Our next phase of the trip was to Udon Thani to see some friends of ours. We stayed there 3 days and made a trip to the Meekong River. That is also a very big river.

From Udon Thani we flew to Phuket and stayed at the Baan Karonburi Resort on Karon beach. We were there for 7 days. Rented a motorbike while there and traveled all over Phuket. We went up the mountain to see the Big Budda - it was big!! Also went to Phuket town and visited the Sri Bhurapa Orchard to see how the cashews grown. That was very interesting. Of course we had to buy some cashews seasoned by different spices. Planned to take them home but of course they didn't make it! Took the scooter to Patong. What an interesting place - very busy!

Our next visit was Phi Phi Island. We only stayed there for 3 days at Phi Phi Banyan Villa. It was a beautiful place, the snorkeling was fun (we snorkeled in Pi Leh Bay and Loh Samah Bay) Saw lots of pretty coral and also a turtle. The beach at Maya Bay on Phi Phi Ley was extremely pretty! Monkey beach was also very interesting - the monkeys were very aggressive and did not seem to be afraid of the tourists. It was very hot there and after seeing the island and Phi Phi Ley (Viking Cave the bird nest soup place) we decided to move on to Krabi.

We stayed at Ao Nang Buri. It was a very nice hotel and the staff was extremely nice and helpful. We went to Railay Beach on a long boat and absolutely loved it there! The caves and coves were very pretty. We landed on the town side and walked the trail to the other side which took us through the mangroves and by the cliffs and caves. We liked it so well that we went there twice! We took a VIP bus to Phang Nga and a longtail boat to Koh Phing Kan, James Bond Island. On the way we saw Koh Panyi, a muslin fishing village built on stilts,Kao Kien, overhanging cliffs with primitive paintings and
tham Lot, a cave that the longtail boat passed thru. That was a very interesting day and the scenery was very pretty. While in Krabi we also rented a motor scooter and rode all over the area. Visited Khao Phanom Bencha national park and saw Huai Sa Phe waterfalls which falls in layers. It also was very pretty. We really liked that area. The water, cliffs and whole area was very pretty. Visited a lot of vendors and sampled the food which turned out to be excellent. We especially liked the pha thai noodles and the yellow curry chicken. Not hot, of course.

Our final destination of the trip (except for the plane ride back to Bangkok to return home) was Koh Samui where we stayed again for a week. Such a pretty island! We stayed at the Golden Sand Beach Resort which was located at Lamai Beach. We rented a motor scooter and rode to Chaweng Beach which was far more busier than Lamai Beach and since we have no children (ours are all grown with their own families), it was fine that the water was not as shallow. We rented a motor scooter while on Koh Samui also and rode around the island. We visited NaMuang Waterfalls which was very pretty. While there we took a boat to Koh Tao and spent the day. That island is one of the prettiest we saw. The water was so clear and therefore, the snorkeling was excellent. We snorkeled at Mango Bay which has a beautiful beach. We didn't climb to the top of the mountain to see the view as it looked a long way!

All in all, we loved Thailand. The people are some of the friendlyist we have ever met. The food was also great - we loved the way things were cooked fresh and no preservatives were added! The only problem we had was the travel agent which we booked through The Travel Team in Bangkok. They were not very honest and not at all accommodating. When we go again we will book our own hotels through Agoda and not bother with a travel agency. It is very easy to book as you travel. The only hotel we would have in advance would be the first hotel in Bangkok as we got there early am (12:30) and it would be hard to find a hotel at that time in the am.

While in Thailand we traveled by plane, bus, train, Tuk Tuk, car, truck, longtail boat, ferry, motor scooter, and taxi. We almost felt like we were on "Amazing Race"! It was definitely an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life!!

We arrived back in Honolulu on March 28, stayed 4 days and then flew back to Michigan. We were gone a total of 3 months between the 5 weeks in Hawaii and the 6 weeks in Thailand. We were really glad to get back home and sleep in our own beds!!

It was really hot in Thailand. 95 and the humidity was also very high. Maybe we went at the wrong time of the year. Next time we will have to try to go in November - maybe that would be cooler.

We researched Thailand for at least 6 months before we went and have many of you to thank for all your tips on what to do, where to go and where to stay. Therefore we have to say Thank-You for making our trip a very memorable and enjoyable one.

THANKS to all of you!!
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Gpanda

Glad you had a nice trip to Thailand. you certainly got to see a lot of it. I'm jealous! Karon Beach was a good choice in Phuket. I notice you said recent trip, so no penalty applies. BTW, I'm in AA 5/8/09-5/10/09 to see my DIL graduate law school.

JamesA

Good that you saw plenty and enjoyed.

wintersp

Thanks for the trip report. Especially appreciated the 'would not do this again' parts. About reserving hotels ahead, I went without and did not always get what I wanted and thought I should reserve next time. But times change and seems like not as many tourists are making getting a hotel easier.

maryanne1

Thanks for your report. You certainly saw alot of Thailand while there. I have been 3 times and still have not visited as many different places as you have visited. I have mainly been in the country during Jan.,but some in Feb. when it did seem to get hotter. A friend who lives there told me she thinks May is the hottest so maybe you avoided the worst heat.
You have made very helpful suggestion.

simpsonc510

Great trip report, kapstreak. I'm jealous that you can be away for 3 months. Wish I could do the same...

lcuy

Thanks for a nice report. Glad you had a fun trip!

marya_

Thanks for writing and for sharing your point of view on independent travel. What a wonderfully long trip!

dendrology

Thanks for the thorough description of your trip - I wish I could say that I was going to be there as long. I will be in Thailand for the month of July - not the best time, but my brother and his Thai wife live there, so they are doing all the planning. Looking forward to having a much more authentic Thai holiday (especially staying in more local type hotels - I can do the resort thing in the Caribbean and Mexico anytime)than if I had planned it myself. One thing I found surprising, is that the hotel rates I was quoted on line are considerably cheaper if my sister in law books them directly from Thailand (150.00 versus 45.00) - I guess it pays to know someone who lives there! Have been taking Thai lessons for about a month now, and am looking forward to knowing a few phrases!
My question is this - I know it is rainy season, I know it's best to go to beaches on the gulf side - but are we looking at an hour or two of rain daily, or constant rain in July?
Thanks!

Mango7

Nice report, Kap. I forgot to mention in my report about the Big Buddha. It is very worthwhile to see!