CFW

Hi, I know you are staying at the RMYC in Phuket in November & was wondering how you are getting from the airport to the hotel. We're going to be there in January & were looking at their 3-day spa package which includes transport from airport, but now we're thinking that we may get a better deal booking thru the internet & arranging our own transport. Can you give any recommendations & an idea of cost?

Also, on a totally different subject. Do you have an address for the Gallery Cafe in BKK which you and others have recommended?
Thanks!

Gpanda

We've arranged a transfer from the Phuket airport to RMPYC through an agent here in the states. I know we paid a premium to do so, but I took the easy, but expensive way out. You could try E-mailing the hotel and having them provide transport. Tell me more about the Spa package, sounds great.

The Gallery Cafe is on a soi running between the New Road and the Royal Orchid Shearton. I have the address at my office, but won't be back there until Tuesday. If you take a cab to the ROS, it's a one block walk. Facing out from the lobby of the ROS, you take a right on Captain Bush Lane (Who was Captain Bush?). This street ends at what I've learned is the Portugese Embassy. You turn left on the soi and walk several hundred feet. The Gallery Cafe is on your right as you walk towards New Road.

When are you going to BKK? Phuket? We'll be in BKK in late November and Phuket around the first of December.

CFW

GPanda, We're going to be in Thailand the last two weeks in January and first week of February, so we're very much looking forward to your trip report and impressions of the RMYC and other places & restaurants. From your various post sounds like you have similar tastes. This is our first trip to Thailand & we're going to BKK, CM, Phuket & then Pimilai on Koh Lanta for total R&R, and back to BKK before returning to the US. The RMYC has several room & spa packages that you can book directly through them. The one we selected is for 3 nights (including breakfast) & includes two two-hour spa treatments per person and transportation back and forth from the airport to the hotel. You can also switch two of the spa treatments for 3 course lunch or dinner. The price is $100 more per night than the rate on precisionreservations.com, so I'm wondering if it is worthwhile since we will not be returning to the airport but instead will need a car & driver to take us to Krabi for pick-up by the Pimilai shuttle. But like you I think it may just be convenient & remove the hassle of getting from the Phuket airport to the hotel at the other end of the island. Does anyone know about transportation (e.g. taxi) from Phuket airport to resorts at the other end of the island & approximate prices?

CFW

P.S. Also anxious to hear about your travels in CM area with Sargeant Kai as we have also been e-mailing him about a possible itinerary in that area. We're interested in the Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang and other sites for natural beauty.

Gpanda

Thanks for the information. I think I'll stay with our basic room and breakfast at the RMPYC and get a spa massage separately. Massages are my favorite activity (recieving) everywhere, not just Thailand. I've found a large number of resort hotels have masseuses/masseurs that do a competent, but not wonderful job. I'm always looking for that "altered state" that a super massage provides. I've been spoiled by Vladimir, the guy I use at home.

I definitely want to hear about Koh Lanta. It sounds great.

Gpanda

The Gallerey Cafe is at 86-100 New Road 30, Bangkok, Thailand. The telephone number is (02) 639 5580.

I'm envious that you will have three weeks in T-land. I have to pry two weeks away from my office with threats of stress.

We always have difficulty deciding between doing things as cheaply as possible and having the certainty of pre-arranged logistics.

I don't know what is available in Koh Lanta, but either from there or Phuketyou should make sure you see the Karsts, limestone formations that are amazing. We took a tour from Phuket (we were staying at the Chedi) with Seacanoe.com that took us to Phang Nga Bay.

CFW

Thanks for the address for the Gallery restaurant. It's tough to get away from the office(I'm a lawyer, too) and we've never taken this much vacation all at once, but my husband has travelled to Japan and Taiwan on business & because of the distance, jet lag, etc. he really insisted on three weeks. We're at that stage where we're feeling we work too hard and need to stop and smell the roses more! Wish we had even more time. There seems to be so much to see and do. Yes, we are planning to visit Phang Nga bay and are booking on the June Bahtra (a Chinese junk). They also have a long tail boat that they use to explore the caves from the main larger boat. Someone else on this site did the trip with them and recommended it. Do you have any Phuket restaurant recommendations? Also, read your recommendation for Thai massages in the basement of a hotel in Chiang Mai that we'll try. Any other Chiange Mai tips? Thanks again for your posts.

Gpanda

I can't be much help on CM. We thought it was the least interesting place in T-land on our first trip, but are giving it another try with Sergeant Kai. I'll let you know in mid-December what we thought.

I'm sure you have plans for BKK, but I strongly suggest that you stroll through the flower market in the morning and then walk across Memorial Bridge to Wat Prayoon and feed the turtles. This will only take 2-3 hours and it's a great way to get out of the usual tourist cycle.

Where are you staying in BKK?

CFW

The Marriott Riverside based on recommendations of Bob & others (we also have Marriott points so we'll have two free nights), and then when we return from Koh Lanta we're staying at the Shangri-la because it will be closer to town for last minute shopping & also they have an option for 6 p.m. check-out which we wanted because our flight back to US doesn't leave until 1:00 a.m. From your posts I understand you stay at the ROS which I think is also convenient.

We were definately planning to visit the flower market -- Never miss them wherever we travel. But had not heard about Wat Prayoon or turtles in BKK, so will certainly look for that. We usually love to walk when we travel. It's a great way to connect with a place and see things, but with the heat in BKK that may not be too comfortable.

Actually we're looking forward to Chiang Mai and the surrounding area which sounds like it has interesting things to see and do. Hope we won't be disappointed. We're especially excited about seeing the elephants at the Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang. Did you do that? What about the orchid farms and botanical gardens? And Doi Suthep? Where are you staying in CM? We're going to be at the Sheraton. Couldn't afford the Four Seasons (or stand the thought of paying so much for a hotel) though it looks like heaven and the spa is supposed to be fabulous! We also decided to do an overnight stay and trip to Lanna Farm with a cooking class. Do a google search & check out the site It looks like fun and a little different than the usual thing.

Gpanda

In CM, we're staying at the Royal Princess. It's 1/2 block from the night market (a place to send the newbies who have bravely agreed to accompany us) and a short walk to both the center and the river. We're going to be there for Loy Krathong and thought the central location would make it simple to enjoy the festivities. We stayed there before and it's a decent, but not great hotel. As noted before, they do have the best massage in their basement. We chose this even though we could have stayed at the Sheraton for free using Starwood points (the reason we always stay at the ROS).

If you go to Wat Prayoon, it's to your right after crossing the Memorial Bridge. When you enter from the street, there is a booth tucked away in the corner of the property where you can purchase some food that you feed the turtles by putting it on the end of a pointed stick that is also provided for 20 Baht. The mounds surrounding the turtle pond look like wax that has dripped from a candle. When we were there, we did not see a single tourist.

We did not see the Elephant conservation camp. Last time, we rode elephants outside Chiang Rai. This time Sergeant Kai has arranged an elephant ride in Sanpatong. I know nothing about it, other than a travel agent thought that it was not overly touristy (nice word?).

In truth, the last time we were in CM, we had no time to wander. This time we've allowed for meandering and hope the city's charm comes through.

The Lanna Farm looks great.

CFW

Was there a reason that you chose not to stay at the Sheraton in CM? It seemed like such a good deal price-wise. Any warnings we should have -- e.g. bad location, dingy rooms, or something else?

Gpanda

The reason we are not staying at the Sheraton in CM is because it is slightly outside of town. While it's only a very short tuk tuk ride away, we like being able to walk from our hotel to a few desinations. The Royal Princess is an easy walk from several spots. I suspect the Sheraton is actually a better hotel, facility-wise, but we can take 3 nights of "roughing it". We tried to book deluxe rooms at the Tamarind Village, but could not get them for our dates, as noted above, it is during Loy Krathong. My E-mail is [email protected]. Feel free to inquire directly.

Oh, I just got an E-mail from the RMPYC saying that they charge $35 for a limo (max 3 persons) and $50 for a minivan from the airport. I contacted them through their website.

CFW

Thanks! The rate for the RMPYC limo sounds great. I'm going to cancel the spa package, book the hotel at a lower rate through the internet & book transportation & spa treatments separately.

We'll probably stick with the Sheraton in CM because we do have starwood points we can use, or we could not use them and earn starwood points for future trips. We were thinking about Tamarind Village (photos looked nice on the web & the location is great) but a number of people on fodors said they had problems with mosquitos in the rooms. So sounds like you made a good choice. We'll have to try the massage in the basement at the Royal Princess.

Gpanda

Great. At the RMPYC, we elected to have breakfast included in our room price, so that we could minimize lunch.

I've lost track, are you using your Starwood points to stay at the Royal Orchid Sheraton in BKK? If so, did you opt for the standard, deluxe or tower room? In the past we stayed in deluxe and found it pleasant. Reading Kathie's glowing reports of the Towers, we elected to stay in one of those this time, using Starwood points. I couldn't figure out how to do that online, so I called the Starwood reservation number. They were very helpful and I did not get put on hold for too long.

CFW

We're staying at the Marriott riverside for first part of trip and then when we return to BKK at the end of the trip, at the Shangri-La. If you liked the ROS last trip, I'm sure you'll really like the towers, based on Kathie's reviews. Have a great trip! Looking forward to your trip report when you return.

P.S. Do you have the name of the jewelry store in BKK where your wife bought the necklace that gets so many compliments. Looking for jewelry for myself and to bring back for our daughter. Thanks.

Gpanda

The jewelry store is Janna (Sp?). It's in the River City Mall. The necklaces really struck my wife and it was a task picking out her favorite. My brother and his wife are going in October, but they are younger and have decided to only book the first two nights at the Shangri-la and wing it from there. It's so different from the way we approach things. It will be amusing to see what happens. The petty part of me hopes for a slight hiccup, so that all our advance planning is validated. Just sad really.

CFW

Funny, my husband and I were just saying we used to go all over the place without much advance planning, but since the explosion of the internet, with all the info available on-line, it seems I've become an obsessive advanced planner. Maybe it's also a function of age (we're in our 50s) as well as the fact that this is our first trip to Asia (other than husband's business trips which were business-planned). Anyway, my thought is to get as much advance info as possible so we'll have suggestions for lots of alternatives when we get there. The truth is, though, that some of the best experiences on a trip are those that happen by serendipity. You know, that great restaurant you discover, or some special place that know one has written about, and people you meet ...

Gpanda

I completely agree about serendipitous occurences. We've fallen into a pattern of planning where, when and some of what, but always including much free time to allow the fates to intervene. Mostly good, but a trip to St. Barth's included some unplanned, unpleasnt layovers. On our first trip to Asia, most was pre-planned, much less now.

orgy7

somthing I've notices in general and on this forum is that there seems to be a lot of guru worship now a days.. IF the supposeed guru/expert says go here/there they do everything exactaly as told without doing further reaserch..

but I know how people feel when they say they are getting older and plan more. and the comment about the internet sparking more detailed planning is interesting. but I still believe that one should try hard too make a balance between being confortable and having an umplanned adventure.