Thailand
The meaning of Thailand is 'Land of the free' and this is very true as Thailand is probably the easiest place to travel in south east Asia. With an amazingly rich culture, paradise islands, world famous parties, fascinating hill tribes, ancient temples and activities galore it is no suprise that the Land of Smiles receives the most travellers in all of south east asia! When people always ask me if I think they'll like Thailand I always say - 'Well I've never met anyone whose been to Thailand that didn't love it!'
Thailand
The meaning of Thailand is 'Land of the free' and this is very true as Thailand is probably the easiest place to travel in south east Asia. With an amazingly rich culture, paradise islands, world famous parties, fascinating hill tribes, ancient temples and activities galore it is no suprise that the Land of Smiles receives the most travellers in all of south east asia! When people always ask me if I think they'll like Thailand I always say - 'Well I've never met anyone whose been to Thailand that didn't love it!'
Transport Locally
As stated above, Thailand is a very easy country to travel around. Thailand isn't as cheap as it used to be but it's still a bargain to get around.
Flights - Nowadays, cheap flights are often available for flights all over Thailand. There are plenty of routes on offer and plenty of good airlines aswell.
Below are airlines offering internal flights in Thailand -
Thai Airways - www.thaiair.com
Bangkok Airways - www.bangkokair.com
Airasia - www.airasia.com
Nok Air - www.nokair.com
12go Air - www.onetwo-go.com
Thai airways are the national carrier and usually the most expensive. Air Asia, Nok Air and 12go are the budget airlines and usually the cheapest. Bangkok Airways falls somewhere in between. Personally I recommend Air Asia, they usually have the cheapest fares with plenty of useful routes for travellers.
Tourist Minibuses - The tourist minibuses can either be great or frustrating. They can be booked at local travel agencies all over Thailand and can get you to places that some government buses don't go, they will also often pick you up from your hotel. The only downside is sometimes you can be left waiting at their tourist offices for hours at a time in the middle of nowhere, just to be dropped at government bus stations later on. We've had this happen to us many of times and it can be very frustrating.
Government Buses - The government buses arn't always the quickest option, but they are cheap, efficient and sometimes you'll be the only travellers on the bus so it's a great way to meet some locals. Each city has a main bus terminal which connects to other citys around Thailand.
Boats - Boating options range from local longtail boats to big car ferries. The more populated islands are usually reached by car ferries and smaller ferries or boats usually go to the less populated islands.
Train - Thailand has quite an extensive rail system, the most often used by tourists are the sleeper trains north from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, or south to Surat Thani.
A great resource for train travel anywhere is - www.seat61.com
Motorbike rental - useful for getting around islands and towns, usually 150-300 baht per day for rental, but gets cheaper for longer rentals. Always wear a helmet and spend some time getting used to the roads as accidents do happen.
Car hire - Can be a great way to travel around, especially if a few of you split the cost, however sometimes the price isn't much cheaper than hiring a taxi and driver for the day. Usually between 800-1600+ baht a day depending on car type.
Flights - Nowadays, cheap flights are often available for flights all over Thailand. There are plenty of routes on offer and plenty of good airlines aswell.
Below are airlines offering internal flights in Thailand -
Thai Airways - www.thaiair.com
Bangkok Airways - www.bangkokair.com
Airasia - www.airasia.com
Nok Air - www.nokair.com
12go Air - www.onetwo-go.com
Thai airways are the national carrier and usually the most expensive. Air Asia, Nok Air and 12go are the budget airlines and usually the cheapest. Bangkok Airways falls somewhere in between. Personally I recommend Air Asia, they usually have the cheapest fares with plenty of useful routes for travellers.
Tourist Minibuses - The tourist minibuses can either be great or frustrating. They can be booked at local travel agencies all over Thailand and can get you to places that some government buses don't go, they will also often pick you up from your hotel. The only downside is sometimes you can be left waiting at their tourist offices for hours at a time in the middle of nowhere, just to be dropped at government bus stations later on. We've had this happen to us many of times and it can be very frustrating.
Government Buses - The government buses arn't always the quickest option, but they are cheap, efficient and sometimes you'll be the only travellers on the bus so it's a great way to meet some locals. Each city has a main bus terminal which connects to other citys around Thailand.
Boats - Boating options range from local longtail boats to big car ferries. The more populated islands are usually reached by car ferries and smaller ferries or boats usually go to the less populated islands.
Train - Thailand has quite an extensive rail system, the most often used by tourists are the sleeper trains north from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, or south to Surat Thani.
A great resource for train travel anywhere is - www.seat61.com
Motorbike rental - useful for getting around islands and towns, usually 150-300 baht per day for rental, but gets cheaper for longer rentals. Always wear a helmet and spend some time getting used to the roads as accidents do happen.
Car hire - Can be a great way to travel around, especially if a few of you split the cost, however sometimes the price isn't much cheaper than hiring a taxi and driver for the day. Usually between 800-1600+ baht a day depending on car type.
Accomodation
All accomodation in Thailand is excellent value compared to most other countries around the world. All budgets are catered for (although in many beach destinations it's getting harder and harder to find lower priced rooms). The cheapest places to stay are usually small family owned guesthouses or small budget hotels. There are some hostels offering cheap dorm beds in the more touristed areas. Check www.hostelbookers.com and www.hostelworld.com for great rates on budget hotels, guesthouses and hostels. There are also plenty of more expensive hotels and all the usual international hotel chains are here. www.agoda.com is usually the best site for discounted hotel rooms.
Bear in mind that in cities and touristed beach resorts, equivalent accomodations can often cost double the price they would be in towns and villages.
Bear in mind that in cities and touristed beach resorts, equivalent accomodations can often cost double the price they would be in towns and villages.
Eating
Thailand is an amazing country to try all sorts of different foods and dishes. There's curries made with coconut milk to all sorts of rice, noodles and stir fry dishes. There's also plenty of exotic fruits and vegetables. I'd recommend trying as many dishes as possible and finding out your own favourites!
Full Moon Party, Koh Phangan
Nightlife
For partying and nightlife in Thailand there's hip clubs in Bangkok, full moon parties on the beach in Koh Phangan and plenty in between. Local alcohol is very cheap and imported alcohol isn't too expensive when compared to home. Prices can vary greatly though, depending on whether your at a small beer bar or a luxury club.
Onward transport
You can travel to Thailand by flying into numerous international airports or crossing the borders by bus or train. Flights within south east asia are cheap using the budget airlines and flights elsewhere are usually good value aswell because of competition. Websites like www.skyscanner.net and www.kayak.co.uk can help you compare the cheapest flights.
Sample Iitineraries
Here's some of my favourite routes around Thailand.
Andaman sea beaches - (2-3 weeks) - Beaches, swimming, kayaking, rock climbing and more beaches -
Bangkok -Phuket - Phi-Phi - Railay - Koh Lanta - Krabi
Gulf of Thailand beaches - (2 weeks) - Snorkelling/diving, partying and plenty of beaches -
Bangkok - Koh Tao - Koh Phangan - Koh Samui
Southeastern beaches - (2 weeks) - From party central to chilled out beaches with snorkelling, kayaking and plenty of relaxing on offer.
Bangkok - Pattaya - Koh Samet - Koh Chang - Ko Mak
Making your way north - (2-3 weeks) - From the modern city to the ancient city, then on up to jungle treks among hill tribes.
Bangkok - Ayuthaya - Sukhothai - Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai
It's easy to make up your own route as travel within Thailand is so easy and you can easily combine the itinaries above
Andaman sea beaches - (2-3 weeks) - Beaches, swimming, kayaking, rock climbing and more beaches -
Bangkok -Phuket - Phi-Phi - Railay - Koh Lanta - Krabi
Gulf of Thailand beaches - (2 weeks) - Snorkelling/diving, partying and plenty of beaches -
Bangkok - Koh Tao - Koh Phangan - Koh Samui
Southeastern beaches - (2 weeks) - From party central to chilled out beaches with snorkelling, kayaking and plenty of relaxing on offer.
Bangkok - Pattaya - Koh Samet - Koh Chang - Ko Mak
Making your way north - (2-3 weeks) - From the modern city to the ancient city, then on up to jungle treks among hill tribes.
Bangkok - Ayuthaya - Sukhothai - Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai
It's easy to make up your own route as travel within Thailand is so easy and you can easily combine the itinaries above
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