Thailand ~ YVETTHEWORLD

Intro

Thailand was our first trip to Asia, and I can recommend it to anyone. From its smiley people, delicious food, lively cities and stunning nature – Thailand has it all. We visited in April 2017 and had it planned neatly around their New Year’s celebration called Songkran, and a Full Moon party. We travelled around the country using local transport.

Map

Places to see

18 Day itinerary

Before you go

Please make sure to respect the local culture in Thailand by dressing appropriate – especially when visiting temples. This means to cover your shoulders and knees, and to take off your shoes before entering the temple. Never point your feet towards anyone, and especially not to a Buddha statue. Oh and never insult the royal family, as this can actually get you in prison. Be careful with handling cash – the king is portrayed on the notes so dropping these (even accidentally) can be seen as an insult.

Day 1 – Flight from London to Bangkok

We flew from London to Bangkok with a stopover in Doha. Unfortunately, the stop was not long enough to leave the airport and discover Qatar. By the time we arrived in Bangkok it was already night. As we were staying in a hotel in Khao San Road, we decided to join the party. It was a fantastic start of our trip, with buckets of alcohol and people dancing on the street.

Day 2 – Tuk-tuk drivers, Buddhas and temples in Bangkok

Maybe it was the combination of a jetlag and a hangover, but on our first day in Bangkok, we already fell for what turned out to be a typical tuk-tuk driver scam. We also visited the big standing Buddha in Wat Intharawihan, and the reclining Buddha in Wat Pho. We ended our day by watching the sunset from Wat Arun (which is actually called the temple of dawn).

Day 3 – Grand Palace in Bangkok & sleeper train to Koh Samui

Now that we realised our tuk-tuk driver lied when he said the Grand Palace was closed, nothing could stop us from visiting. After having enjoyed the beautiful architecture of the Grand Palace, it was our time to leave Bangkok by sleeper train to Koh Samui.

Day 4 – Chaweng Beach in Koh Samui

Our sleeper train arrived at Surat Thani station in the early morning, from where we got a shuttle bus to the Don Sak Pier. We arrived in Koh Samui after a 45-minute ferry, where a shuttle bus was waiting to bring everyone to their hotels.

From our hotel, we took a taxi to Chaweng beach, where we had lunch and paddle boarded for the first time. After some relax time at the beach, we went to Fisherman’s village to have dinner. We watched a fantastic sunset over the sea from our table.

Day 5 – Temples and Full Moon Party from Koh Samui

During the day we visited the Wat Plai Laem and the Wat Phra Yai temples. Both had beautiful statues and architecture, and were not too crowded. We then went back to Chaweng beach to watch the sun set in the sea. After sunset, it was time for the Full Moon Party in Koh Phangan. After the party, we got back to our hotel in Koh Samui.

Day 6 – Travelling from Koh Samui to Phuket

As we were expecting to be tired after the Full Moon Party, we choose to travel to Phuket in comfort with Lomprayah. From the 10.30 am pick up at our hotel, to the ferry ride and a bus ride with reclining chairs, Lomprayah made sure everything went smoothly. We booked our combination ticket in advance at 12Go Asia.

By the time we arrived at Patong, it was already late in the evening. Even though Songkran officially started the next day, people had already started playing with their super soakers. It was impossible to have dinner without getting soaked.

Day 7 – Songkran festival in Bangla Road, Phuket

Forget about doing your hair and makeup during Songkran. You won’t be able to spend one minute outside without getting soaked by water guns or even buckets. It is the Thai way of celebrating the New Year to wash away your sins and bad luck from last year. To top up your luck for the New Year, people will also bless you by smearing powder on your face. Running through the streets with my water gun really made me feel like a child again, and it was great fun. Definitely an experience you will only get in Thailand.

Day 8 – Phuket to Koh Phi Phi

Visiting Koh Phi Phi was not something we had planned, but we thought it would be a good escape from the Songkran water fights. We took the ferry from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi. Upon arrival, we booked a boat tour at one of the many agencies in the pier. We chose a half-day sunset tour including Monkey Beach, Pileh Bay, Maya Bay and swimming with glowing plankton.

Day 9 – From Koh Phi Phi back to Phuket

In the morning, we hiked up to Koh Phi Phi’s viewpoint 3 to admire the wonderful views. Be prepared for a steep climb in the heat, so it is a good idea to bring some drinking water. The views are totally worth the effort. We took a ferry back to Phuket in the afternoon.

Day 10 – James Bond island tour from Phuket

The James Bond island tour was another thing we had not planned. We booked this tour at one of the many agencies around Bangla Road in Patong after haggling down the price a bit. Not only did we get to see the fantastic landscape that starred in James Bond, but we also got to see Koh Panyee’s fisher’s village and more.

Day 11 – Phuket to Chiang Mai

We took a plane to go from Phuket to Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand, which was about a 2-hour flight. When we arrived at our hotel Yaang Come Village, its friendly staff booked us a traditional dinner show in the Old Chiang Mai cultural centre for the same night.

Day 12 – Chiang Rai’s White Temple and crossing the border to Laos

From Chiang Mai, we took a tour to Chiang Rai’s White Temple. As part of the tour, we also got to see a market in Laos, the golden triangle and a hill tribe village. If I could do this day over again, I would have tried to find a way to reach the White Temple before the crowds. No matter how gorgeous this temple is, being pushed continuously by tourists that are skipping the queue takes the fun out of it.

Day 13 – Chiang Mai’s Old City and the Elephant Sanctuary

In the morning we strolled around Chiang Mai’s Old City, which is surrounded by a city wall. The architecture of the Old City was stunning and a lot more traditional than in other parts of Thailand. We visited Patara’s elephant sanctuary in the afternoon. It was a wonderful experience to feed and bathe the elephants, who are all rescue animals. Patara treats its animals very well and cares a lot about the conservation of the elephant.

Day 14 – White Elephant temple, Art in Paradise and sleeper train to Bangkok

Just before heading back to Bangkok, we visited the White Elephant temple, which is part of a legend in Thailand. We then had some fun taking a lot of 3D effect pictures in the Art in Paradise Museum. A 13-hour overnight train took us back to Bangkok for the final part of our holiday.

Day 15 – Maek Long train market & Amphawa floating market from Bangkok

Thanks to the overnight train we had the full day to enjoy still ahead of us. So we planned a day trip to the Maek Long train market and Amphawa floating market. Feeling adventurous, we took a local bus from Bangkok to Maek Long. Our trip from Amphawa back to Bangkok was even more adventurous, so I would recommend you plan your trip back carefully.

Day 16 – Ayutthaya from Bangkok

This day we felt a bit less adventurous, so we took an Uber to see the wonderful ruins in Ayutthaya. Once the second capital of the Siamese Kingdom, the site is still enormous. We hired a tuk-tuk driver showing us around to get the most out of our time here.

Day 17 – Tower Club in Lebua Hotel Bangkok

After all we’ve seen and done in Thailand in just 16 days, we spent this day making the most of Lebua hotel’s Tower Club. The Tower club comes with many perks, such as sushi for breakfast and free cocktails in the afternoon. The Lebua hotel itself is famous from the Hangover 2 movie. We ended our day in style by watching the sunset with a Hangovertini in the Skybar.

Day 18 – Siam Paragon shopping centre in Bangkok

Just before flying back to London, we visited the Siam Paragon shopping centre in Bangkok. I was mostly fascinated with its incredible decorations. We had our last Thai massage and Pad Thai and then we felt ready for the flight back. Well, as ready as we could, because we absolutely didn’t want this holiday to end.