Lost trying to plan a trip to Thailand.

[Wet Sandwich]

Yeah phuket is mostly a hole, you can go to Bali, Sydney or Melbourne or the Gold Coast if you want to hang with drunk bogan Aussies.

Chiang Mai has Tiger Kingdom (probably where that tiger photo is, you can also go in with full size ones which I did, awesome), plenty of jungle tours etc, and several cooking farms where you can go and do a day of cooking courses for like $30. Theres also treetop adventure type stuff in jungles

The one good thing about phuket though is the island boat tours. Look past the hordes of tourists and scammers etc and they are bautiful..

If you've got several weeks it's worth spending some time in Laos as well. 1 country away but a world of difference. Takes time or money to travel in or out of though due to the goat track roads or very few airlines that go there..

http://i.images.cdn.fotopedia.com/fl...g_Si_Falls.jpg

I'm going back just to go to this waterfall and swing the shit out of that rope again all day long.

[timsarg]

Originally Posted by german

tmsarg, where were those pics taken?

I'm planning to head over for christmas/new years so try to get as much info on places to go as I can.

http://www.tigerkingdom.com/Home.htm

and here

http://www.maesaelephantcamp.com/


both in chiang mai

and wet here are the bigger ones . IMO the 6 week old cubs were more fun as they climbed all over you

[stevenx]

Are the tigers sedated or au naturel?

[timsarg]

Originally Posted by stevenx

Are the tigers sedated or au naturel?

the bigger tigers didn't seem sedated to me , i have a video where my mate accidentally sat on a tigers tail and he snapped around pretty quick . enough to make my mate shit his pants hahaha . All the bigger tigers are 22 months or younger as when they reach 22 months they start to become agressive and are shipped off to zoo's etc . They are all hand reared from birth so i guess the constant human contact leaves them a little more "sedated"


the cubs no way. they were so active it was like playing with big domestic cats , was truly awesome experience as i am a cat lover

[Stegs]

Hey! I just came back from a 5 week adventure in Thailand!

My strong advice. Avoid Phuket or if flying there do not stay longer than 2 days! It is a sex/hustler area. If you are with your partner then it is not optimal.
Lot's of older perverted men running around after young thai girls. bad vibe and the Thais there are not what you would call "traditional Thais".

I would say from Phuket, head straight to PHI PHI Island (Kho Phi Phi) and stay there for 4-6 days. Lot's of activities to go to and places to see surrounding it. It is beautiful and most don't actually stay there so they do not see it for what it truly is. Great mix of party/scenery with great lookouts and also beach party's every night if you want to go down that way.

From there go island hopping (cheap) and head to Railay Island. And they have lot's of activities to do there, not to mention it is one of the rock climbing/free solo metas of the world.

Somewhere after the islands head to KHAO SOK as someone else mentioned.
STAY at Smileys bungalows! Nicest family EVER and they will look after you in terms of price and service.
Note, this is in the jungle so you will see elephants roaming the streets around this point.
Smileys have there own Lake house on the lake. it is a much nicer one than all of the others and you will wake up to a beautiful lake in between insane cliffs full of monkeys etc.

From there I would say head up to Chang Mai in my opinion.
That was basically my itinerary and it was the best time I have ever been there. (Third time).

Happy to talk more about other options in pm etc if you want more info.

[jerry7]

Just got back from 2 and a half weeks of Thailand in Railay and Phi Phi. Listen to this man above.

[touki]

Originally Posted by jerry7

Just got back from 2 and a half weeks of Thailand in Railay and Phi Phi. Listen to this man above.

agreed, two amazing destinations.

If you are up in Chang Mai, I would suggest going to Pai (2hr bus trip), amazing little town tucked away in the hills. Plenty of hot springs and waterfalls around. Somewhat bohemian lifestyle makes it very relaxing

I've been every year since my 3 months i did back in 2008, I love it. Avoid phuket and bangkok, they can be exhausting.

Koh Tao Island is another amazing place, especially the little island off it Koh Nang Yuan. Arguably/IMO one of the most beautiful places in the world.

[FlameHead]

I can't believe how much people are hating on Phuket here...

Anyway I've been living in Thailand for the last 3 months going from place to place in the south so far.

Phuket is great to do some really touristy stuff, mainly Patong. Highlights;

• Lady Boys
• Go go Clubs for ping pong shows
• shooting
• go karts
• ellephants
• zoo
• higher end restaraunts and more western food

I also like Kata Beach. But apart from maybe 4-5 nights partying in Patong, the only other reason to be in Phuket is to be at a resort, of which, they are very very good.

But my favorite place in Thailand so far is Koh Phangan. Such a beautiful island. You can look it up, but of the few islands I've gone to;
Koh Lanta
Koh Phi Phi
Koh Samui

I really thought Koh Phangan was the most relaxing, most beautiful and the most fun.

What I can strongly advise, hire a scooter wherever you go. It's a lot of fun, much safer than Australia. You'll get around more and not have to worry about transport and where to go, just cruise and take in the life!

[Bullseye81]

I went for 3 weeks with no itinerary, and just made it up as I went. Flew into Bangkok, spent 3 nights. Caught a train to Chiang Mai & found some friendly locals to party with at night & do a few 1-on-1 tours in the day. Did a 4 night mountain trek & donated a few months worth of toothbrushes & toothpaste to a school with remote access. Then back in Chiang Mai I hired a larger motorbike (CB400), and explored the mountains some more for 2 weeks.

Much better & relaxed if you make it up as you go, and do one locale thoroughly compared to traveling all day just to spend 1 night at a place that serves a whole week. Chances are after a visit to Thailand you will come back later

[mungster621]

What about Bangkok people?
The island of Koh Samui?
and the wild west town of Pattaya?
Spend 4 days in Bangkok.Shop till you drop at the BKK centre,Emporium ect.
Go to the elephant and crock zoo past Bearing.Or the one at Siracha.All you people must see that.Eat at the thousands of retaurants and have a drink at the million bars.See the Grand Palace.Go for a trip up the river and see the temples.The possibilities are endless!
Try the Titanium nightclub on Sukumvit Soi 22.Has 2 bands and a freezer bar.
Learn some basic Thai.And if you dont want to be treated like a sardine fly
Emerates.Because they are the best!
Make sure you have your shots and your passport has more than 6 months on it.Walk around in casual clothes with shorts with zip pockets.ONLY carry what you can afford to lose.Dont take an expensive camera just one that fits in your pocket.Leave your smart phone,cash and credit card in the safe and buy a $30 phone one from the BKK mall.Use the BTS skytrain in BKK.Because the traffic is horrendous.
Most of all explore and enjoy.

[tylordurden]

I'm with everyone else that didn't like Phuket - worst place to visit in Thailand
advice: only spend one or two days there if have to...........

every other part of Thailand is a much better experience

[Kizz]

Remember, these are all just opinions. We have no knowledge of what the peoples preferences are, therefore I would not rule out the likes of Phuket or Bangkok, they certainly arn't 'exhausting'.

Phuket isn't all about Patong neither, plenty of other places to stay/visit.

Therefore, do your homework on the more touristy areas of Thailand as if your lost, you will find your far more likely to be catered for in these areas than some of the less visited (but fantastic places to visit) areas.

[german]

Will say, just because Emirates is a lush company to fly with doesn't mean they are the best.

I'm more than happy to fly with jetstar to get there and back.

Cheers for the suggestions as well

[Stevros]

Phuket isnt so bad if you want to head out partying, i was there with my mates for 3 nights recently at the end of a south east asia trip and we had lots of fun. It probably was our least favourite place on the trip but thats not to say we didnt have a great time there. Its just that its extremely touristy, the prices are that good and there are Australians everywhere. Make sure you throw in Laos as part of your trip if you have the time. We really regret missing out on most of it. We had a night in Vientiane and 2 nights in Vang Vieng. The countryside is really beautiful as are the people. If you like drinking, partying and going spastic Vang Vieng is amazing, wish we had a whole week there. Theres no place in the world like it, or if there is, id love to know about it.

[Dimtar]

Hi all.

So plans are coming along nicely, we have a week booked in Chiang Mai and a week in Khao Lak, we have 4 nights left to book.

We were originally going to Phi Phi island but we are wondering if there are alternatives for a couple that don't really want to party. We would ideally like a place that allows kayaking an snorkelling etc.