Thailand help
 

Hey everyone I'm kind of in a small dilemma... Hopefully I make sense...
My fiancé and I are planning to go to Thailand for our honeymoon. Everything about it just screams perfection to us! Unfortunately we don't know what to do. We found a website where we can pay $2,000 (US) each person for the honeymoon package. We have to figure out money wise the way there and back, which I guess isn't the biggest problem. The thing is that some things on the itinerary are somethings that we would love to do and other things are just things we just agree we don't want to do. Although there are some things that we love and hate from the itinerary my fiancé thinks that we should stick to that plan. I on the other hand rather go without the honeymoon package. I have done some research; but obviously not enough, I want to do more things on our own without being in a group I want this to be just us. Our own romantic experience. You know go to town and try scorpion lol. The issue is I don't know how much money exactly we will need for hotels, meals, tours, shopping, temples, transportation (plus the best choice of transportation) and ect. I keep looking online and most places say for example that to get into a temple its $13 (US) and other places say it's $35 (US) I don't know what to believe. I was hoping about $5000 (US) would be enough for Thailand, but now I'm scared it won't be.
What should I do!? I really want to be able to do the things on the honeymoon package itinerary but there are also things I wish I could do that aren't available in the package. I don't even know if the honeymoon package people are strict or not. Like does anyone know if we can swperate from the group and do something we want to do if there is something we don't like? The main places I want to go are Chaing Mai, Bangkok, and maybe even Phucket. (Are there other places, better places to go?) I was even thinking of surprising my fiancé and after our Thailand experience to head down to Japan for a week and then head down to Washington DC! Do you guys think that $5,000 to $10,000 (US) would be enough for all that? Please help me figure it out thank you!

>We found a website where we can pay $2,000 (US) each person for the honeymoon package

STOP RIGHT THERE.

Firstly, like any where on this planet, you can spend as little or as much as you like on your honeymoon for. However, in Thailand, you can do most things by organising it yourself online or when yuo arrive in country. But if you are the sort of person wants some one to organise everything for you, then there will be a cost.

Secondly, I suggest you make a list of what you want to do - take some of that from the honeymoon package if you like and research each of those activities using the internet, this and other travel forums. Ask intelligent questions about these activities and you will get good answers.

Thailand can be a 6 star experience or a 1 star experience or a mix of these. It's all up to you and your budget. A typical backpacker would probably spend about USD$30 a day on cheap accom and meals. A Flashpacker may spend USd$80 a day (better hotel, meals and in country travel). Mid range travellers spend USD$250 a day for a 4/5 star hotel, meals, travel and entertainment. You need to SET A DAILY BUDGET and work off that.

Now, to the temples. Popular tourist attractions and temples do cost money to get in. For example, the entrance fee for foreigners to the Royal Palace is about USD$15 (This includes entry to Vimanmek Mansion, The Ananda Samakhom Throne Hall, The Royal Thai Decoration & Coin Pavilion and Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles). There will be official guides at the gate - you can pay for this service if you want (agree on a price before you use use them). The USD$35 that has been quoted to you would be via a pre-arrange tour group / company.

>The main places I want to go are Chaing Mai, Bangkok, and maybe even Phucket.
Note: PHUKET (you say it like poo-get)
Internal flights in Thailand are cheap and easy. check out Nok Air, Air Asia and the like. With limited time you are better off flying rather than train or bus. BKK to Chiang Mai or Phuket can be as cheap as USD $50 - $75 one way per person. Book on line or if you want, any travel agent / tour desk at your hotel can do it for you. Of course there are heaps of nice (and nicer) places to visit in Thailand but with limited time, and as it is your first time, stick to these 3 cities.

Anyhow I hope I have given you some food for thought. Come back after doing some more specific research.

Hello there,

I went to Thailand last month :)
It was super nice. We visit Bangkok and Phuket only.
ALWAYS TAKE FREE CITY MAP FROM AIRPORT because it might be really useful. Phone sim card can be bought in airport for traveler (7days, 15days, 30days with unlimited internet)
Temple in Thailand only cost 150Bath (US$4)/person for common temple, except Grand Palace cost 500Bath (US$15)/person.

Hotel
Almost every hotel ask for deposit ranging from 500B-1500B.
For hotel, it depends in which area you want to stay?
Khaosan road located near Grand Palace, temple, historical landmarks in Thailand and surrounded by cheap hotel/hostels for budget traveler or backpacker start from US$20/room/night.

If you stay in Sukhumvit area it will be more expensive because mainly expat will choose this place, and located near high-end department store such Terminal21, etc.

If you stay in Pratunam area it suitable for shoppers, they have MBK, Central World, Platinum Department store which sell retail price but you can get it cheaper if buy more than 2/3 items. PS: night market outside this mall are cheaper than inside store.


Transportation
For transportation you can use Subway, Taxi, Tuk-Tuk, or Waterway.
If you want to use taxi, PLEASE ASK FOR METER, because if you not asking they wouldn't start the meter and you will likely be rip-off double / twice the original price. Tuk-Tuk might be another option but they offer higher price too, personally i choose taxi with meter on it. Taxi in Thailand are cheap, from Suvarnabhumi airport to central downtown will cost est. 400-500Bath (US$14) all in and take 1hour ride. Waterway are easy to find too, just look the map on google and mark it :)


Food
Food in Thailand are cheap, don't worry. Normal price wold be USS$2 / meal/person. You can find every kind of food in here too!


I spent 4D3N in Bangkok & 3D2N in Phuket
From Bangkok to Phuket I bought AirAsia flight ticket it cost US$76/person ROUNDWAY.

Phuket
I choose hotel in Patong Beach area because it's major tourist attraction and you can find anything easily without worry. Second day I choose to go to Phi-Phi Island, if you already in Phuket why not try James Bond or Phi Phi Island!! Really worth the price.

They put on brochure 3000Bath/person (US$87) for 1 day tour including food, pick-up from hotel, speed boat, lunch, and snorkeling activity. But you can bargain it half price for 1500Bath/person (US$44). Activities last from 7AM - 5PM. So really worth it.



In total I spent US$700 for 7D6N/person for shopping, transportation, food, temple, Phi-Phi Island etc.
For hotel I live in khaosan, then pratunam, and a honeymoon suite in Phuket in total US$600.

US$700 + US$600 = US$1300 / person

I guess US$5000 for both of you will be enough :)
Besides, if you take Tour yes they arrange your schedule, but what is the fun of it. Will be more precious if you do it together ;)
Google and plan itinerary start from now. If you have any questions you can always contact me and I will be glad to help you

PS : You can check this website http://aroimakmak.com/
He really passionate about Thailand ;p
my email : [email protected]


I hope my answers could be useful :)

Thank you two so much I really appreciate the help and sorry if I sounded so anxious I just want our honeymoon to be perfect and yet something we can both Afford and with your guys help it was 10x better!

Agree. Lots of sound info.

STOP RIGHT THERE. What a brilliant way to start a posting!

Do it yourself with our help.

I am in Thailand right now and have been here 19 times.

I tend to be an upper medium level traveler. We eat only in restaurants, not on the street. I search out bargains at good hotels. Staying in a decent place with a nice pool can make all the difference... For instance, chatrium riverside

What is your overall budget excluding airfare and for how many days?
Do you travel like Rick Steves or like Samantha Brown? stick with Thailand. Split it between Bangkok and a beach resort. Then tell us more about the things you guys like to do, shopping, markets, beach time, wtc.

MrsBillT I wanted to save up at leave $10,000 (US) to travel but I wanted to make sure that we would have enough. The reason for my anxious post was that I had a friend visit Thailand a few months back and she was constantly telling me that it was overly expensive and that I had to book a honeymoon package because going on our own was too much to bargain for! I was scared and decided to come on here and ask advice because everytime she mentioned Thailand I heard nothing but complaints :( ! So thanks to everyone on here I'm more confident that even $5,000 (US) will be enough for us to do what we like.
Things we like or would like to see is obviously the beautiful temples I have seen pictures every where and just in the pictures they are breathtaking. We also want to go to a place where you can bathe an elephant, feed them, and ect. We also would like to visit the tiger kingdom, go to the floating market or any market cause I heard they can make an authentic Thailand dress just for you. I also want to experience the street vendors and also try scorpions and such lol. Snorkiling would be amazing as well as kayaking and just exploring different islands and beaches. If that makes sense

>I was even thinking of surprising my fiancé and after our Thailand experience to head down to Japan for a week and then head down to Washington DC! Do you guys think that $5,000 to $10,000 (US) would be enough for all that?

That's 3 different countries. The most expensive part of the trip will be your flights. I suggest you leave Japan trip as it is worth doing a separate trip just for Japan alone.

For now, stick to your honeymoon plans in Thailand. So fly to Bangkok, find a nice 5* hotel and spend a few days here to see the temples (I suggest do the Royal Palace, Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Wat Pho all in the same day as they are within cooeee of each other). While in BKK, get your hotel tour desk to organise a full or half day tour of the floating temple - This should cost no more than USD $150 (~ 5000baht)for a private tour for the two of you; and a group / bus tour will be much less.

For elephants you should head north - elephant bathing is best in the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre in Lampang (google this) and stay a few days to see north Thai culture. A great 5* hotel is the Shangri-la in Chaing Mai.

Then head south to get your beach fix. This is where you will spend most of your budget for nice 5* accommodation.

Hope this helps with some ideas.

If you can spare a week or more for Japan, I would try to include it. It's my favorite country, and I like it much more than Thailand. The dollar is strong now, so the prices, while higher than SEA, are quite reasonable now. Also, the hotels there are extremely clean with good service, so you don't have to stay someplace fancy.

And a word about planning. Every independent group has a team captain, and that will probably be you. You will be the one to fret over the itinerary, and the one who gets more upset when something goes wrong. However, you will find the experience quite enriching, and you will be proud of yourself for doing such a great job.

"get your hotel tour desk to organise a full or half day tour of the floating temple" I can only assume this is a typo on PhiMeow's part - I assume she was referring to the floating market. I'm not a fan of the floating market - it was a tourist trap back in the mid-1980s.

I agree you will be much happier planning this trip on your own than buying a package. Packages always include stuff you don't really want, and lots of people feel compelled to go on the day trip included even though it's awful. Don't waste your time and money.

How much time do you have? The idea that "I was even thinking of surprising my fiancé and after our Thailand experience to head down to Japan for a week and then head down to Washington DC! " is frankly kind of crazy. First off, Japan is north of Thailand, not south, and it's about an 6 hour flight from Bangkok to Tokyo. A week isn't enough to do Japan justice. Save it for another trip when you have at least two weeks to spend in Japan. And adding Washington DC to this makes no sense either. If you want more than Thailand, choose another destination nearby.

If you want three destinations, in Thailand (a beach, Bangkok and Chiang Mai area) you'll need at least two weeks. If you have three weeks or more, you could take a side trip to visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia or to visit Luang Prabang in Laos. But don't make your honeymoon feel rushed or stressful because you retrying to do too much.

>Floating temple

LOL. Good pick up Kathie. If there was a way to edit the posts after posting.....can someone let me know?

I have at least a month to do all this which is why I probably wanted to do as much as I could! The thing is we never know if something will come up in the process. I'm excited because thanks to all of you I feel like this honeymoon trip will be perfect for us and it'll just be worth it and I don't feel so bad on deciding to not go through with a honeymoon package