Please Help - Honeymoon In Thailand
 

Hello!

Thanks for reading! Your thoughts and feedback are greatly appreciated! I'm planning a honeymoon for Nov. 20th - Dec. 6th in Thailand (17 days including travel days).

My fiancé and I are in our upper 30s. Active (like hiking etc.) and enjoy having a drink but we're not big on the club and bar scene (we would maybe go out dancing one night). I could use help with the review or our itinerary and filling in the blanks etc. Especially once we get to Phuket / Krabi etc. Here's what we have so far:

Fri. Nov 20th - Depart TX for Bangkok

Sat. Nov. 21st - Arrive in Bangkok between 11pm -12am

Sun. Nov. 22nd - The Royal Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Pho & maybe Pak Klong
Talad and / or a canal tour (looking at using a private guide)

Mon. Nov. 23rd - Private tour guide - Damnern Saduak Market, Maeklong Railway Market

Tues. Nov. 24th - Private tour guide - Ayutthaya Tour

Wed. Nov. 25th - fly to Chiang Mai. Explore CM on our own in the afternoon

Thurs. Nov. 26th - Elephant Nature Park - day trip only

Fri. Nov. 27th - Doi Inthanon National Park - maybe hire a cab driver for the day?

Sat. Nov. 28th - Maybe Wat Phra Doi Suthep and that area. We found a tour company that actually leads a couple hr. hike in the area around Doi Suthep vs. driving to the different sites.

Sun. Nov. 29th - Fly to Phuket

Mon. Nov. 30th - open day

Tues. Dec. 1st - open day

Wed. Dec. 2nd - open day

Thurs. Dec. 3rd - open day

Fri. Dec. 4th - open day

Sat Dec. 5th - fly back to TX. Not sure about flying out of Bangkok or Phuket? it looks to be about $1,000 per person cheaper to fly out of Bangkok. If we go that route, we might have to get back to Bangkok on Fri. Dec. 4th.

We know we want to spend a couple of nights in Krabi. Any recommendations? It looks like Phra Nang Beach is nice. My fiancé would really like to take a boat tour around Ao Phang Nga as she really wants to see the jagged cliffs, boat through some sea caves etc.

What about visiting Koh Phi Phi Don? Could we stay in Krabi maybe Dec. 1st -4th do a boat tour to some of the other islands?

Probably wouldn't do any diving but looking to go snorkeling, enjoy the beach etc. I see that Kathie recommended John Grey Sea Tours in another thread.

In Bangkok & Phuket we have accommodations with Hyatt. The Hyatt in Phuket looks really nice so one could make a case for hanging at the hotel pools etc. one day but the beaches in the Krabi area look like a dream so I'm thinking we get there ASAP from Phuket.

What's the best way to get from Phuket to Krabi? boat? hire a private cab?

That's prob. enough for one thread. Sorry this is so long. Looking forward to your thoughts and very open to feedback if something on the itinerary doesn't look like it flows right.

Khop Khun!

You will have a wonderful trip!

In Bangkok, there is really no need for a private guide for the things you want to do, but a private driver makes sense for the out of town places. In Bangkok, you are better off using public transport - the Skytrain and the water taxis on the river. Get yourself a copy of the Nancy Chandler map - not to scale, but the best map to orient you to Bangkok. Do leave time for wandering markets and shopping in Bangkok. Note that the floating market and the railroad market are firmly ensconced on the tourist trail and mostly sell "tourist tat." They do provide nice photo ops.

If you can take a boat one way to Ayutthaya, that is a good experience.

In the Phuket/Krabi area, the only tour I recommend is John Grey Sea Canoes - either the daytime tours or the Hongs by Starlight. Otherwise, relax and enjoy your time at the beach. If you want to stay in Krabi, take a look at the Amari Vogue, a honeymoon-worthy hotel (according to friends, I haven't stayed there). A day trip to PhiPhi will discourage you from ever staying there as you will only see the crowded parts. In general, I recommend choosing one hotel and staying there so you don't use up your time transferring from one to hotel to another.

I would plan to fly out of Bangkok. Fly from Phuket to Bangkok the day before your international flight.

You've done a good job researching your Chiang Mai time, IMO.

wondering if day 1 in bkk might be too difficult: jet lague and heat and humidity adjustment?? I might switch day 2 and day 1.

Sheraton krabi is nice but amari vogue is amazing...

Thank you so much Kathie & rhkkmk!

Kathie - Can you share some additional info. on where to pick up the one way boat to Ayutthaya and then how would we get back? Skytrain? cab?

I will look into the Amari Vogue.

I think we're leaning towards flying direct from CM to Krabi and might cut-out Phuket all together.

In the Krabi area, it looks like Nong Thale Beach appears to be the area to stay for what we're looking for. What day trips would you recommend to beaches? We're thinking Koh Hong Island, Railay & Phra Nang as well as Ko Phi Phi Le (it seems like this would be a good place to snorkel). Maya Bay looks pretty in the pictures without people but I'm afraid it will be way too crowded.

I thought I read somewhere that you can walk to Railay from Phra Nang and it was about a 20 minute walk?

rhkkmk - Good thought on maybe switching day 1 & day 2. If we did the markets on Sunday would there be anything to see if we didn't get there until early afternoon? I thought I read that Damnoen is only open until noon and early morning hrs. i.e. 7-9am is the best time to visit?

What would you recommend as a good Sun. afternoon activity for Day #1?

Thanks again!

Oh, silly question…trying to navigate our itinerary, will we find it easy to communicate with some English? I'd imagine there are so many English speaking tourist that getting to the markets, the islands etc. shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Restaurant / Food recommendations?

You can hire a taxi to take you to/from Ayutthaya. The Shangri-La hotel used to have a boat to/from Ayutthaya. I'm not sure what boats are running now - ask your hotel. The skytrain does not do all the way out to Ayutthaya, it is only in the city.

You will find that most people you have contact with with speak English.

Is there are non-stop flight from Chiang Mai to Krabi? There are non-stops from Cm to Phuket, I thought the only flights to Krabi were from Bangkok, but do check.

A good Sunday afternoon activity might be a klong tour.

Zillions of good restaurants... If you are foodies, a truly unique meal would be at Gaggan (molecular cuisine). I love Lana Thai at Face, www.facebars.com, for a lovely venue and excellent food. There are lots of tiny places we like, find ones you like.

One suggestions: you don't need to schedule every hour. Have a list of things you want to do/see and choose based on weather, how you feel, etc. Some things you do need to schedule in advance, like ENP, but most things you can be more flexible.