Thailand in August
 

Hello all...been a while since I posted here. Bob, sent you an email but I think I have an old address.
Anyway question for everybody...we are seriously considering Thailand in August for 14 days with kids. I know it is not recommended (the time of year, I mean) but it is the only time we can get a 2 week stretch. Our friend in Bangkok says no problem, when it rains it is a quick shower and then it's over. But maybe that is just in Bangkok. We have a 15 year old son and twin 12 year old daughters. My preliminary itinerary is BKK - 4 days at the Marriott Mayfair apartments (the full service ones that Bob recommended - and a very nice place we can save some money so we can splurge at the other 2 hotels) - 4 days in Chiang Mai at the new Mandarin Oriental (nice rates for a suite until this October) and 4 days in Phuket at the Aman (also a nice rate special, the 50% off they are offering now).
Before I get into details of exactly what we're going to do in each place....how bad is the weather (really!) Up in Chiang Mai, is it horribly buggy, damp, etc.....will it rain all the time in Phuket.....would it be better to pick another country during that time? We'd really like to visit while our good friend is living in Bangkok and it may not be for much longer. But not if it will be miserable all the time.
And lastly! (sorry so many questions) has anyone taken the non stop JFK - BKK flight yet? How is the economy, does it compare to the non stop Singapore airlines flight from EWR to SIN in executive economy, which we took last summer? THANKS for everything, as always!

Search the forum for "rainy". We are planning the same although not with kids. Bangkok and Chiang Mai sound fine. Phuket though not. Consider the other" side of Thailand for a beach, Hua Hin, Koh Samui or Koh Chang are some that are suggested here for summer. We were looking at Hua Hin (Anantara) as you can take the train from Bangkok (3.5 hours) and there seemed to be other cultural and nature things to do not just beach. In the end we decided no beach and Cambodia (Angkor) instead. Enjoy planning your trip!

Thanks for the reply! Has anyone stayed at the new Anatara on Ko Samui? My husband really wants to give the business to Phuket, although not at the cost of 4 days in a monsoon. As far as the new Anatara, I didn't see good reviews somewhere, but I know it is new and might just be going through growing pains. I think the reviews were on asia-hotels.com. Not sure how reliable a source that is.

Ko Samui is certainly better than Phuket in August but you will still give a fair amount of rain all be in short heavy downpours. Hua Hin will have less rain in fact you may get none at all.

Phuket at that time of year you are right in the middle of the Monsoon season. Just how much rain you will get can vary a great deal, I have been in Patong when we have been flooded out, it varies, but it 'is' the peak rainy season and you have to considor that. The climate on the Gulf side is the other way round and August is fine at that time of year. Koh Sanui will be particularly busty in August as it is a favourite for Europeans who take most of August off. As said for dry area Hua Hin. You can also look at places like Koh Chang.

Me and my typos, in addition to Koh Samui being 'busty' it will be 'busy' too!

Thanks for all the great advice. I posted separately asking about Sala Samui b/c it looks great on the website but I can't find any reviews. Location etc?
I was thinking that with kids we might want Ko Samui over one of the quieter islands or Hua Hin because we need to keep them busy....even if it is a busy time of year? Once again, this board is the best.

Stockexchanger.
To be fair I have never been to Ko Samui but have been to Phuket. I would disagree that Hua Hin is not suitable for children 15 & 14. It is quite a lively resort especially if you stay in the town. Can I please recomment the Hilton which is slap bang in the middle and a great place for both adults and children. Ok the sea is not as good as Phuket or Ko Samui but there are lots of other things to do in the area such as elephant riding out into the wild.

The Sala Samui I believe is very new. We often see particular places that have obviously been heavily ptomoted overseas ( sometimes before they even opened!!) so I am not sure you will find many reviews yet. I do know though that it is a pretty classy place with rates 2 to 4 times what I would ever want to pay! if you have young teens then they will probably enjoy Samui but unless you are going for all out luxury as opposed to a vacation/holiday place that is suitable for families I personaly would stick to one of the established Samui resorts. There are probably 100 and more suitable decent hotel/resorts on Samui, if you want to be in a busy area and with your family combination I would try for a Family Dulpex at the Amari, that could be for yourselves and daughters, then a single for your son. Great resort hotel and good standard, not cheap, but I think more family orientated. You could also look at Peace Resort at Bophut beach. There really is a huge choice, it really depends how much you want to spend.
Note that only Bangkok Airways flys from bangkok to Koh Samui and the fares are around the $ 180 adult return. IF you can get the Pass fares ( probably not in August ) you could use that to/from Chiang Mai and then from Bangkok to Samui ( note that Bangkok Airways doesn't have that many flights on the BKK-Chiang Mai sector ). In Chiang Mai there are many nice places to stay, depending on how much you want to spend. Novotel is good value for US$45 a night twin.
Although I am a devoted supporter of Hua Hin and think it's brilliant, if you have the kids with you and you are looking for tropical beaches with palm tress and lots of fun activities for the kids, I really think you would enjoy Koh Samui more. Try http://www.phuket-luxury-hotels.com/...ry_hotels.html ( they actually have the whole 120+ list of accommodations on Samui not just the luxury ones, even down to the budget places ), lots of pics.
If due to having 5 of you the air fares to Samui come as a 'shock' and you decided mainland then I would suggest the Hyatt Regency or Marriott in Hua Hin ( sorry, but I find the skyscraper design of the Hilton Hua Hin just so out of character for a Thai beach vacation, sorry....)

Stockexchanger - welcome back. My wife Jeane and I had lunch with Bob and Karen today - he mentioned that you seemed to have dropped off the face of the earth. He will be glad to hear that is not the case. We have tickets for the JFK - BKK flight for next February. The pitch (distance between seats) in economy is 36" which is fairly generous. Seating configuration is 2-4-2. The aircraft is a brand new Airbus A340-500. There is also premium economy which should cost only slightly more than economy. The pitch is 42" and the seating is 2-3-2. You might try calling Thai directly - when I called them they were able to provide good information on the business class seats (175 degree recline for instance). By the way there is no first class seating on these flights.

The last time we went to Koh Samui, it was mid-July which is pretty similar to August weatherwise - we had no rain whatsoever.

Here's a link to some pictures and review for the plane(A340-500) that Thai will be using for the JFK - BKK route:

http://www.airliners.net/discussions...ad.main/56644/

I've stayed at the new Mandarin Oriental in Chiang Mai(Dhara Dhevi) and I would highly recommended the winter months instead of August. It's beautiful but it was not design for the rain nor the heat. I was there in Jan and it was lovely but for August I picture it as being uncomfortable.

For Phuket in August, I have been there a few times during August. Very good hotel rates but that's because of the rain. The sea is also quite rough most of the time.

donna---as craig has said we just mentioned you at lunch today....so glad to hear that you are around still...drop me a line: [email protected] may not have had the msn before...

don't even think of the hilton at HH....nor the anantara....the hyatt is best, although out of town quite a ways...the marriott is still our favorite although the rooms are not fabulous, but everything else is....you can also walk to town...the beach is the widest section in HH...great pool....hyatt is newer and has great everything but the beach is narrow....the sofitel is nice....some like the anantara but we thought it only ok and far from town....

glad you are trying the mayfair....so i will get a first hand report...you will not be disappointed....karen only wanted to stay on the river this time so i could not fit it in...you can be my eyes....great rooftop pool....great location....
did you do the zoo last time, if not hubby will like as well as kids....

can i be your 4th kid for the aman stay?? we are doing the jw marriott there in june...

let me hear from you

bob

I've been to Hua Hin a couple of times. With kids, I'd recommend the Hyatt - gorgeous grounds! And if you want spa services, the Chiva Som is a 5 minute walk via the beach.

Personally, I don't see any reason to stay in town in Hua Hin - I just wasn't impressed with the town. (I know that others, like Bob, like to stay in town and eat at different restaurants, etc) I stayed at the Anantara a few years ago in the absolutely gorgeous Lagoon rooms. We had a fabulous time, loved the spa and the private pool for the Lagoon rooms, the great restaurants, etc., but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it with kids. The older part of the hotel looked to have family-sized rooms, but it wasn't as nice as the Lagoon section.

I usually go to Bangkok in December, but last year went in August and loved it...fewer people. I have just gotten a ticket for August of this year,too. It rained on and off last August, but came down hard for very short periods of time. I wasn't affected at all by it. Happy Travels!

The local transport in Hua Hin is a very big 'plus' as the tuk-tuks and taxis are way cheaper than most other places. All the way from Hua Hin market, past the Marriott, Hyatt, Chiva Som and onwards down to Khao Takiab beach is a local 'Songthaew' green pickup/bus type service that costs just 7 baht ( about 12 cents US ) and runs every few minutes ) and it passes all the resorts and hotels all the way down to Khao Takiab, so it is easy to stay at places 5-10 minutes from town but still get to and from restaurants, even late at night a tuk-tuk or taxi would cost not more than about $2.50 to any hotel along the coast, about $4 if you were staying at places like the Dusit or Regtn further up the coast around Cha Am. Beyond la Mer and Khao Takiab beach/Golden Buddha area the beach at Khao Takiab Bay though certainly not Samui or Phuket does have Palm trees, loungers, local restaurants, boat trips etc and is as close to a tropical beach so close to Bangkok. The Sasi Restaurant and Thai show is just outside the entrance to the Hyatt and there is a nice bar on the corner that has a live band.

So we are now booked on Exectutive Economy on the JFK - BKK flight...which was absolutely empty as of today (in August). Interesting. The seats for Executive Economy (vs. regular economy) for adults were $500 more than coach, but from the pictures you sent me Craig (thanks!) and from reviews, seem well worth it for the long haul. Also this is the last summer I will get the 25% off deal for 2 of my children (barely under 12) and so....
Anyway one more question about Hua Hin. I know the beaches are not as nice as Ko Samui or Phuket....but are they at all comparable? I would love a few days at a beautiful beach. Cost is not an issue to fly to Ko Samui, as Bangkok Air will be $25 for 2 of my children and $50 for each of the 3 others...which to me is worth it if it's worth it!!
Sounds like the Meridien would be best for my family...but again, if Hua Hin has a comparable beach, would stay there. Obviously just easier logistically and better assurance of weather.
Hey, when is the next lunch? Ever do one in NYC? We'd come join you but will we be considered Asia traitors if we went to San Miguel De Allende for spring break?? :)

How do you get $50 seats on Bangkok Air to Samui? Is it part of a travel pass?

donna---the meredien is very issolated on samui....not sure you would be real happy there....the hotel is very nice however...

the beach at the marriott in HH is very nice....and wide....at the hyatt the water was hitting the breakwater the day we were there so there was 0 beach...it must have been high tide...

also the jfk to bkk flt does not start until may i believe

Bob, you must have been to the Hyatt at high tide. There is a nice beach at the Hyatt. When I was in the middle of town, the beach at the Marriott and the Sofitel looked narrow, but I couldn't tell if it was just high tide...

the sofitel is medium wide....but the widest part of the beach was in front of the marriott....at least 50 feet, then a wading pool, then a sand bar then the open ocean....of course beaches change with storms so that may be all altered now....

the water was literally splashing up on the lawn at the hyatt the day we were there....it was windy as i remember so there may have been a storm around....

just a note on HH and samui....the towns are not all that interesting, either of them....the beach and the setting are what i liked....hua hin is larger or more dense than is samui...other than chaerwang beach (sp), samui was sort of rural...we loved it really....downtown HH was ok for restaurants but we found the shopping totally lacking...we concentrated on the beach, pool and hotel, plus a drive or two into the countryside...

the la mer restaurant (HH) above the hyatt on the hill is fantastic....the five islands restaurant, almost next to the meridien (samui) is also quite fabulous...as is the terrace restaurant on the other side of the island....

For the $50 ticket on Bangkok air, yes, part of travel pass. You don't make reservations ahead of time you do it right before you leave, but there are so many flights...or so it seems...so I wasn't worried about not having fixed reservations.
Tough decision about Ko Samui vs. Hua Hin. I also didn't mention that my husband and son like to dive, and all of us are big on snorkeling...which I know is good in Ko Samui (assuming weather agrees) but don't know about Hua Hin. Bob, I'm going to try to write you today or im you if I see you. And yes, JFK - BKK flight doesn't start till the summer but Craig sent a link (one of the postings above) that had pictures (maybe from some sort of preview?) of the inside of the empty new plane. Coach seats for the trip were almost exactly 1000 - executive economy 1500 - I did not ask about the biz class as I know it will leap from there.

If the diving side is important I would head for Samui, you can take trips to Koh Tao which has probably the vest diving in the Gulf from May to October. If you go to Hua Hin you would have to go 2 a nd a half hours south to Bang Saphan where there is a small offshore island ( with just one resort on it ) called Koh Talum so it would be quite a hike there and back. Both have their good points but if the diving is important and with kids I would personaly go for Koh Samui. Note that both places are way busier than last year, HH 30% up on last year, it's due to various factors one being people getting more aware that during summer there 'is' good dry weather to be found in the Gulf area, so many under the impression that it is Monsoon when it simply 'isn't' in that area, which is still very dry. They have been having to send up rain making planes to get some water for crops to grow and fill the resevours.

The tide in Hua Hin does come right up especially in the evenings but also goes out a long way too so it does vary quite a bit during the day but high tide seems to be early evening.

The $50 tickets are one way as far as I know, also they have that fare for the very first flight and very last flight, I 'think' the first one is about 7 am and last one about 9.50 pm or thereabouts. Don't forget the B 400 ( $10 ) Koh Samui airport departure tax.

I forgot another point about getting busier is also more and more resorts opening up and boutique places etc, a new Sheraton opens next year in HH and also the Khao Takiab Bay area of Hua Hin ( just over the hill from La mer ) is getting more accommodation and lotsd of soft adventure activities.

If the $50 ticket is part of the Discovery Airpass you might want to make your reservations in advance. I have read on this board that they sometimes limit the number of seats available for that pass or that popular flights sell out.

I am traveling in September and I already have our paper tickets from Bangkok air. It was a great deal, we are going BKK>Seim Reap>BKK>Koh Samui>Hong Kong all for $330 per person. I just did not want to take any chances and this way I got every flight I wanted and I have paper tickets in hand.

August 'is' a busy time for Samui, it actually starts to get very busy from the last week of July and is very popular with visitors from France and Italy who take sebveral weeks vacation at that time, it is busy so I would go for booked seats at that time, Friday nights and Saturday mornings down are especially busy and Sat/Sun/Mon busy heading back to Bangkok.

Thanks for the suggestions about the tickets. They make it look so easy on the website, but you were all right...not quite as flexible as it looks. So I will get tickets ahead of time. Thanks again!

Stockexchanger, it wasn't me that posted the link to the A340-500 photos but thanks for drawing it to my attention. The plane and its features look awesome. I am sure you will be quite comfortable in executive economy.

Just happened to get this thread when I did a search on Hua Hin. In fact even I am planning to visit Hua Hin in August since the Sala Samui in Ko Samui is booked already!! I really wanted to go there since the resort looked good and I am very kicked about having a private pool. As an option I was then looking at Hua Hin. However don’t have much info on it? How different is it from Ko Samui. We (husband and myself for his birthday) are looking at going to a luxury beach resort for four days. I’m confused as to whether to go to

1. Ko samui – Considering it’s the peak season, the hotels which I like are either booked or are not in my budget
2. Phuket – Will be the rainy season, so thinking I might avoid.
3. Hua Hin – No idea how it is. I read reviews about it from Bob and James and Kathie and it has plenty of luxury resorts. Considering it is a 4 hour drive from Bangkok, the money which I save on the BKK_Phuket or Ko Samui flight can be used for the accommodation in the hotels.

We are not very fussy about the beach. We have only been to one beach resort (in Goa) and hence do not have very high standards.. What would you’ll suggest?

Thedrive from bangkok to Hua hin is more like 2 and a half hours if you use the limos, if you travel down from a bangkok hotel time your journey to start around 11 am and that is a good time to get a fast run through.
Saying you have been to Goa is a great guidline, as you know the beaches are not brilliant but it makes up in other ways, I think the same goes for Hua hin, if you are looking to spend all day or much of the day on the beach and want those swaying palms then Hua Hin not ideal but as you rightly say what you save on transport ( Limo about B 2,850 each way for all of you ) or taxi around B 1,800 , you can use the saving on accommodation.
Hanging around Hua hin 'town area' is like going to Phuket and hanging around Phuket town ( or going to Goa and just being around the main town ), you need to get out and about to find the best, anyway you have seen lots of posts already, the question is whether Hua hin or chance Phuket for the rain

Well, there are certainly some brilliant Phuket bargains at the moment including lots of places that are all jumping on this free night thing, seems word has got around and it seems to ne the 'theme of the moment', book 5 nights and get 2 nights free or book 8 nights and get 3 nights free, some add that you have to pay for breakfast on those free days some don't. So on Phuket you will certainly find good deals, I mentioned I had stayed at the Old Phuket which isn't old, at Karon beach, rooftop pool, short stroll to beach, that is around the USD 40 and upwards, quite nice, pay USD 60-70 there and get a real nice room. If you can handle the chance of rain then seriously worth thinking about, but although you can get real cheap air fares you need to balance it all out.
You have said the beach isn't "too much" of a priority but what other interests? if yuo are into national parks, caves, watefall, elephant rides, temples and such then maybe Hua Hin, but of course Phuket has lots more to do, but it's a toss of a coin gamble weatherwise.

Just an opportune reminder on the weather side, I have in many posts said 'there are great Phuket bargain at the moment for low season but do remember it is the rainy / monsoon season'
This morning there were storms in Phuket and some flights had to return to Bangkok, although the flights were back ok after 2 pm, so it's a good reminder, if you are relaxed and easy going and shrug your shoulders at some rain and settle down with a good book or head to the spa then it;s worth the gamble, but if some bad weather and rain is something you feel would 'wreck' your holiday then, well...as I always say, it's a balance.

As always, thanks James for the review… Actually I started off with Phuket. I shortlisted Katathani on your excellent feedback. But what we thought was that since this is a special occasion lets book ourselves in a more luxurious resort and since katathani was not very steep we can always stay later. Frankly, I searched very hard on Phuket to find a luxury resort which is also not very secluded (like the banyan tree and the JW Mariott). The only one I could only come up with was the Le Meredien which is not going to open till 15th August. So I dropped Phuket.

Then moved on to Ko Samui. I so fell in love with Sala Samui due to the private pool and being located on Choweng and price around $200. But alas, it is totally booked. So disappointingly I moved on to Hua Hin. There I found the Evason and the Aleenta (again attracted by the private pool and the affordable price) . But again read that they are absolutely secluded. So kind of stuck again.

What would you suggest?
1.Phuket – Cant think of any hotel which is luxurious as well as not secluded
2.Ko Samui – I know there are plenty of hotels other than Sala Samui but then thought rather than paying peak season rates as well as not staying in the first choice hotel, move on to Hua Hin
3.Hua Hin – Need your ideas on the hotel. Hadn’t thought about it till today morning. We have a budget of around $200/night.

I dint reply to your question about my interests… As I mentioned earlier, we have been only once to a beach resort and hence we are not fussy as to the “type of the beach” (like it does not matter whether it is good for snorkeling, diving etc).. sorry I dint mean we are not interested in the beach….. we are looking at having a luxury stay at a beach resort for four days and besides chilling in the hotel and on the beach would love to go to townside for food, shopping and see some town life. Not very interested in lot of sightseeing as it is more like a romantic holiday (we are married for a year, are in our late 20’s and this is the first time we will be spending on a luxury holiday…)

I try not to see you 'must' stay such and such a place because as we all know from reviews people's views can be oh so different.
I reckon if you originaly had your heart set on Phuket then perhaps wise to stick with original plan, so often I think that once you divert from what excitied you about the trip you will always think 'I wonder if.....'.
Ok so we know August can be loussy weatherwise in Phuket ( more than once I was flooded out in Patong ), the upside is that you can grab a bargain, if you don't want to spend all day getting a tan Phuket does offer a huge range of things to do, it is totally geared to the tourist and nothing wrong with that, it provides what the 'customer wants'.
Now, if you don't mind being up a hill you might want to look at the Baan Yin Dee, you can't walk into Patong it's too steep, but you will find a lovely boutique style resort which is quite romantic, then head down into Patong for restaurants, street stalls, bars, shows and entertainment, if you want to have some fun and some memories it provides lots of options, you can go to Simon Cabaret Show one evening, have your photos taken with the lovely 'ladies'(....!) and laugh about then in 30 years time. Even if the rain comes, have a spa treatment, read a novel, do a cooking class, get wet....90%+ of anyone's enjoyment is their own doing really. Ok so if the Baan Yin Dee is too expensive, in fact if you ditch being right near the beach you open up a lot of opportunities, based on married a year, I think you would have fun near Patong, some have refered to it as Tijuana or whatever but a lot find that is the fun of the place. Lots of nice restaurants, cocktails after cocktails, street stalls, bars, so if you stay somewhere like Baan Yin Dee you are close to everything but secluded, and it's a very romantic place. I guess you have looked at phuket-luxury-hotels.com they certainly will have the Baan Yin Dee, another one to look at could be Mangosteen but that falls down somewhat on being too far away from things. Whilst there also look at Club Andaman and the Novotel Coralia, I'll try and think of a few others and post later.
Again, only my personal opinion but if you set out your sights on Phuket, can appreciate weather might be loussy, well, you might as well stick with the plan. Umbrellas are about USD 2.50 !

Here are some Baan Yin Dee reviews, you are looking at about $190 all in for Pool Suite, interesting that they take you to and from Patong free, that certainly is worth noting

http://www.r24.org/phuket-luxury-hot...indee/reviews/

Take a look also at these:
Aventika Boutique Resort - Opposite beach in Patong, doing a pay 3 nights stay 4 nights deal

Novotel Coralia - Short walk to beach at North patong, great views, USD 67 a night, bargain!

Club Andaman - opposite beach in Patong
( firm old favorite of mine from over 10 years back )

I think out of just the Baan Yin Dee, Aventika you may find what you want, do look at the Novotel, ok, standard rooms, but French managed and Novotels are well run with good food always, for the price it's a bargain, though the Baan Yin Dee may be what will suit you.

Happy browsing

I usually go to Bangkok in Dec/Jan, but in 2004 tried August and liked it. There were definitely fewer people and I found the hotel prices lower. As for the rain, I never got caught up in it. A couple of times there were big downpours, but very short ones and I was either on the skytrain when it happened or inside. So I did what everyone else did and just stayed put until it stopped. Happy Travels!

I usually go to Bangkok in Dec/Jan, but in 2004 tried August and liked it.I'm going to take a brief vacation there this August again. There were definitely fewer people and I found the hotel prices lower. As for the rain, I never got caught up in it. A couple of times there were big downpours, but very short ones and I was either on the skytrain when it happened or inside. So I did what everyone else did and just stayed put until it stopped. As for serviced apartments, you can go on moveandstay.com and look at a huge list of them with pictures and maps as to where they are located. That's how I have picked a serviced apartment building for my upcoming 3-week Dec/Jan trip. Happy Travels!

Thanks James… Looked at the Baan Yin Dee.. Looked fantastic… I’m feeling totally childish about this but I had promised my husband that our room will have a private pool. Actually this entire trip is a surprise to him with…So I did a search on “private pool” and I came up with Diamond Cliff Resort (besides Banyan tree and Sila Evason). Any idea how is that…?

Diamond Cliff is located behind the Novotel area in North patong, short walk down the hill to beach, they have a small 'beach club', it's about the most expensive place in Patong, their Villas with pools go into the 'mega' price range, over $600 I think, very very very expensive. Mangosteeen has Jacuzzi rooms, though that's not a pool. You are going to be hard pushed to find a room with private pool without going into the mega price range. Many of these 'pool' places the pool actually is often no bugger than a jacuzzi!!