Postpone Thailand Trip?
 

Just looking for a little advice - we are scheduled to depart for a trip to Thailand in ~ 3 weeks; we are planning on being there the first two weeks of November, and then popping over to Cambodia. Our itinerary focuses on Bangkok, and then heading north with stops in Aytutthaya, Sukhothai, Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai, before returning to Bangkok, with a side trip to Angor Wat tacked onto the end, which brings our total trip to ~ 18 days. However, given the flooding that has already occurred and the stories of railways and highways to the north being shut down, I'm wondering if we should try to reschedule. I'm also very concerned what the response of our travel agency (SmarTours) will be. Travel insurance, while offered, was declined since it did not address natural disaster, and seemed mostly health based. If anyone has any information on what the situation is like right now or dealing w natural disasters and SmarTours, please post!

The areas that are currently affected are from Ayudthaya to Pathumthani(just North of Bangkok), specifically those area along the river banks. Bangkok proper is not affected and most of the tourist areas, with exception for Ayudthaya, are not affected.

The water will start to recede after the middle of this month so by the time for your trip in November I don't foresee a problem.

By "river" I mean the Chao Praya river.

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Relax you will have a fantastic time...

Definitely don't postpone. The water recedes as fast as it comes, if not faster, and once it's gone you may not see any sign it was ever there. This is a bad year, to be sure, but the flooding is a more or less annual event.

i leave next tuesday for bkk and have no thoughts about any change of plans...the flooding is very frequent at this time of year and by november things should be just fine for you....nov is the best month of the year imo...

I'm leaving on Monday for BKK and I do not plan to change anything either!

Hanuman, will the barge processional be affected by this?

Carol, as of today there has been no news on any changes to the procession.

People on Tripadvisor are losing their sh*t over this LOL. Hopefully things don't get worse!

I wouldn't postpone.

Dry season has started to kick in up North and by the Middle of next month will be in full swing in the usual areas.........unless their is a really freakish change in weather patterns the start of the "cool dry" is pretty reliable.

Sadly some damage will inevitably remain but in general you shouldn't have any problems with transport then.

Just wondering if anyone has any updates based on the current situation; we are cautiously optimistic! Thanks in advance!

Leaving for BKK (Sukhumvit area) tomorrow morning. Will be posting a travel thread, as always, here on fodors. I'll report what I'm seeing regularly.

Don't postpone, if you don't plan to spend a lot of time in Ayutthaya (where there isn't much to see anyway). Up north things are quite dry and safe.

Please continue to update your experiences based on the flood gates that are being opened. I've now read that the Royal Thai Navy is predicting the water will peak on 10/29, and we are scheduled to leave on 11/1, which is a little close for comfort.. We are concerned about the impacts to Bangkok with the flood gates being opened. I'm not trying to whine or complain, but I just want to be sure that it's safe. Again, my thanks in advance.

It looks a bit more dicey now - it is being said that the water in Bkk may be around for 4 to 6 weeks!!!

The city center remains dry. There are sandbags scattered around, here and there. It is still one day at a time, but right now I'm fine, I have plenty of water in the fridge, and I am glad I am here.

A few items are in short supply, bottled water being the major one, but my apartment hotel is still handing out two per day, per room. And then there is always the water for purchase (ie minibar). Whipped cream for my hot fudge sundae was not available at Swenson's yesterday, and several flavors of ice cream were also not available.

Up here in Chiang Mai, where we aren't directly affected by the flooding at the present time, the supermarket shelves are getting emptier and emptier. There are signs all over my local Tops supermarket stating that the supplies can't get here. Luckily the 7-Eleven still has water.

I doubt this will affect the casual tourist too much but I'm noticing the impact.

FYI, thanks to Hanuman's recent posts in separate thread in the forum, we decided to cancel our trip.

Thank you all of the valuable information on the emerging situation; it was instrumental in helping us make our decision.

Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone experiencing this tragedy. Please stay safe.

Sad - but I can understand your decision.
If you intended to stay way from Bkk and Ayutthaya then you could still have been OK, I guess - but it looks like accommodation is going to be scarce.
I'm taking a week off and driving up North, Chiang mai and maybe into Lao - I haven't hear d of any serious problems there now.