My husband and another couple (late 20's-30's) will be in Thailand (BKK, Phuket, Krabi, Phi Phi) end of March-beginning of April. We are trying to research the best excursions/activites in these specific places. We love adventure.

What have you loved doing while you are there? If you have specific company names we would really appreciate the info.

Thanks!!

I enjoy hiring a long tail boat from one of the piers at the river hotels (EG at the Shangri La Hotel) and have the driver take you around the klongs (canals) for about an hour or two. Costs about $15 an hour give or take a bit.

I also found the war cemetaries and the Jeath War museum near the bridge on the River Kwai quite moving

Definitely a klong trip
Floating market is fun but only if you go early and not with a tour. Hire a private driver and go before the crowds. Rent a boat and have fun.Leave before the tour buses arrive.

I have heard about the floating markets...sounds fun! About what time would be the "right time" to arrive and leave? How much time is required for this trip? How far out of BKK?

Any good tips on private drivers?

In Bkk I thoroughly enjoyed the Amazing Bangkok Cyclists cycling tour - if you search or click on my name the post should come up.

if you go to the floating market, leave about 6:30am, its a little over an hour to get there. We used Julie Taxi. www.julietaxi.com and had Udohm take us. it was one of the highlights of the trip, Udohm was great and a lot of help! It was so nice to be leaving and then see all the tour buses pulling in, no way i would want to deal with that!

travelduo...i have booked the barali for 4 nites...thanks again for your help...

it is good to leave bkk at 6:30 or 7 at the latest to beat the crowds...i used ratt this last time...she charges 225b/hr plus 1B per kilometer....it is possibble to do it in one half day if you don't do other stops.. you can easily be back to bkk by noon...ratt is listed here, just do a search...it might be rat....

klongs are fabulous.. i think the price is about 400B per hour....you can rent them next to the shangri-la or at taskim pier or any river hotel will get one for you and they will pick you up at the hotel and return you there..

the bicycles for your age group look like a really exciting offer...

In Bangkok (sort of adventurous):

1. An overnight cruise on a converted rice barge. The Bangkok Marriott Resort & spa has a lovely rice barge called the Manhora Song does overnight trips. They also have a very nice dinner cruise. Take a look at marriott.com , or phone or fax the hotel at tel 66-2-476-0022 Fax: 66-2-476-1120. You can also contact them by e-mail by going through the Marriott.com website. I believe there are other companies running trips, run a search

2. An evening of Thai boxing (as an observer, not a participant, although. . . Fight Club)

3. A Thai cooking class, day or full week, run a search here this is a popular activity

4. Traditional Thai massage

I am not really a fan of the floating market, too touristy at this point IMO, but definitely rent a long tail with driver and spend a few hours exploring the back klongs

Avoid the day trip to elephant camp, Rose Garden. In general avoid most organized tours, although the bus/boat day trip to Ayyuthia, the summer palace of the King, and then back to Bangkok by the river, is a very pleasant 3-4 hour journey. The trip is run by the Shangri-La hotel, take a look at www.shangri-la.com, or call, fax or e-mail the hotel at Tel: 66-2- 236 7777, Fax: 66-2- 236 8579 , Email: [email protected]. The ship is called the Horizon Cruise II. Others on this site may have more other suggestions for day cruises operated by other companies.

In Phuket (more adventurous):

1. Chartering a boat and captain/crew to explore the deserted islands around Phuket/Krabi; I can recco a charter company if a few day trip is in your budget; otherwise there are day trips from Phuket

2. Scuba diving in the /Phi Phi area (get certified before you leave). Watch for sharp coral and bits of flotsam from the tsunami. Bring diving gloves.

3. Snorkelling in same; there are day trips. Watch for sharp coral and bits of flotsam from the tsunami. Bring diving gloves.

4. Kayaking in same; John Gray Sea Canoes has been reccod on this site, take a look at http://johngray-seacanoe.com/

I believe there are caves for spelunking, the John Gray site may have info

I feel so lucky to have all these Asia "officianos" helping me with this trip.

I relaize the more I reserach (which is taking over my life currently... the more I don't know and the more I want to stay for at least 10 extra days. I thought 15 would be enough...sadly mistaken. I guess that is why so many people keep coming back!

Cicerone- a few questions for you:

1.we actually were talking about doing a boats curise around the deserted islands for snorkeling last night. What is reccomedation you have for a captin/crew?
2. Are there good non-private boats that do tours of the islands? We would love to hit places like Ko Rok in south as well as the islands off Phi Phi and in Phnag Nang Bay.
3. If we did day trips, would you reccomned doing them from Phuket, Krabi or Ko Lanta?
4. Any good contact info about Thai boxing? My husband really wants to see that.

My husband was resaerching until really late last night and came across Koh Yao/Yai islands near Phuket. He found this resort on Koh Yao called Koyao Island Resort. He loved the idea of a beautiful island, close to James Bond island, and totally tropical/exotic accomodations and off the beaten path.
Does anyone have any infomation on this resort of island destination? I searched tripadvisor, sawadee etc. and didn't find much.

The Kohyao resort is great for getting away from it all. Like anywhere, you can get a half day trip around James Bond Island for about $15 , a more classy day trip for $50, add more for say personal kayak trip, or pay $ 500 for your own luxury cruiser and crew. Phuket abound with tours and trips both adventure, nature and others, you will find yourself swamped with tour trip and package brochures when you arrive.

I would only book once you get there and remember to leave plenty of time for a 'good book' in the shade to actually relax and unwind too.

http://www.phuketdir.com/johngrayseacanoe/

http://www.siamsafari.com/tours/fromphuket.html

Also go to www.phuketgazette.net for lots of links showing tour options and ideas.

Your day trips from krabi are easy to Phi Phi as I think has already been mentioned. Also I think the prices at the time you will be going may still be heavily discounted so worth shopping around, in the evening after a meal just take a wander along the tour desks and counters that you will find everywhere and see what's on offer for the next day, so many local operators that you would never find on a web search!

JamesA- as always...thanks for your helpful advice!

Here is the info on the charter company we used in Phuket, including their website:

Thai Marine Leisure
c/o Phuket Boat Lagoon
20/7-8, Moo 2, Tambon Koh Kaew
Phuket 83200, Thailand
Tel: 66-76-239 111, or 66-76 273 320 or 66-76-273 321
Fax: (66-76) 238 974
e-mail: [email protected], or [email protected]
website: thaimarine.com

We chartered the Sea Wolf, which is a power boat, about 47 feet, which sleeps up to 6 people. It had a crew of 2. It had two bathrooms and a large cabin area all of which are air conditioned, an outdoor (but covered) seating area above the main cabin and an open sun tan area on the foredeck. We chartered it for 2 nights and 3 full days. It was pricey, but included all meals and drinks (other than alcohol, we brought our own). The best part was that you could make your own itineary, and the answer to every request was “Yes”, as in “can we stop and snorkel here while you prepare lunch which we will eat in the delicious coolness of the cabin? “Yes”. We spent an early morning diving and exploring the little island where the film The Beach was made before the hordes of tourist boats descended on it. We were very happy with the whole experience and would definitely do it again. The food was marvelous. They have snorkel equipment on board plus a small dinghy to take you to shore. They can arrange to bring along scuba gear at an extra coast. The company also charters sailboats, and does day trips, fishing trips, etc. Take a look at their website.

You can do daytrips from any of the places you mention, I think Phuket has more commercial operators offering the trips as it is larger, but I think you could do fine from Krabi as well. I can’t recco particular operators. Your hotel may also have a boat for hire (the Aman has a divine one), and if not could also arrange to help you find a boat.

Thai boxing takes place at several places (JamesA can probably give more precise info, I get the feeling he is an aficindao. ..)

I would strongly suggest you get certified for scuba diving before you go. The diving is so good there, and the water so warm and clear, that it would be a shame for you to miss it. It is a great sport and you can do it all your life and there are so many places to dive. (Even a middle aged woman like myself still loves it.)

For Thai boxing, there are two venues in Bangkok I am aware of. Matches generally take place at night. There are afternoon matches, but I have heard that those are geared for tourists, and are not the real thing, i.e. they are staged. Your hotel should be able to tell you match days and times. I don’t like the seats in the very front, too close to the action. Betting on the matches is a huge part of the event and fun, and sometimes it is more fun watching the betting than the actual fight.

Lumphini Stadium on Rama IV Road, not far from the Dusit Thani hotel, the stadium is reachable by the Sukomvit Line on the Skytrain, get off at the Sala Daeng stop, and then a walk or take the subway to Lumphini.

Ratchadamnoen Stadium on Ratchadamnoen Nok Road; have not been to this one, but it is located
near the Tourist Authority of Thailand main office, and I thin you could take the Silom Line Skytrain to it or near it. Your hotel could tell you.

I could not find websites for either stadium. You can also usually see matches on television on most nights. Click around on your hotel room TV. You may also be able to see matches in Phuket, ask your hotel.

While in Phuket, you must go on a sea canoe tour. We used Phuket Adventures which we booked when we were in Phuket. The trip we took went from Phuket to Krabi. We stopped at a very quiet island and then proceeded to the caves. If you like adventure, you must do the sea canoes. Although I have heard great things about John Gray company, it is a little more expensive (maybe not if there are four of you who want to go.) I really liked the company we used. The guides were great and the food on the boat was excellent. It was a great once in a lifetime experience, but be careful if any of your are claustrophobic.

In BKK, we loved the the floating market, and Kranchanaburi (probably spelled wrong). We went to the Tiger Temple and a great monkey school and took a cruise on a longtail boat on the River Kwai. We hired a guide for this.

In Phi Phi, you must try to get over to Phi Phi Lei (assuming the ocean is not too rough). We hired a long tail boat for a day to take us all around Phi Phi to snorkel and check out all the beaches. We loved it!

For an interesting experience to see the wild side of Thailand, spend a couple of hours at Patong Beach in Phuket. It is wild.