THAILAND!
I have been wanting to do a blog post on Thailand since I visited. Because, Thailand. If you’re reading this, maybe you have a desire to go too. Or maybe you’re planning your trip right now! Either way, I hope you find these tips, tricks, and suggestions useful!
My husband and I visited Thailand in April. We didn’t plan it, but were there for Thailand’s Songkran. (Thai New Year). If you can, I would 100% recommend visiting for Songkran. To celebrate, they have a weekend long water fight. And they take it seriously. Businesses will set up garbage cans outside filled with water. Everyone has water guns. People literally stand on the side of the road and spray you, your scooter, or car with water. You can’t go anywhere without getting drenched. It was a unique experience and one we won’t forget. The picture below is not mine, but is from Chiang Mai at the time we were there.
Okay, so logistics. We flew from SLC to Bangkok. We didn’t have a direct flight and it was LONG. We didn’t stay in Bangkok. As Mike had been before, he told me we would rather get out of the big city. That being said, if you plan to follow a similar itinerary, you can take a free shuttle from the Bangkok airport to the DMK airport (this is the airport you fly out of to get to other areas in the country)
Directions:
1. Pass through Immigration, grab your bags and head for the exit. Once you exit immigration, you should be on Floor 2. Double check signage to make sure you’re on the second floor of BKK airport.
2. When you enter the arrivals hall (Floor 2), ignore all signs pointing you towards public transportation, buses, etc. Simply walk straight until you see Door 3 on your left hand side.
3. Exit the airport via Door 3 and turn right. You’ll see a little table with a few people standing around. Ask them for the free shuttle to Don Mueang Airport.
4. Before boarding the bus, the staff will ask you for your boarding pass and/or flight itinerary. Show your boarding pass, flight itinerary, or e-ticket and you’ll be all set.
5. Once the free shuttle bus arrives, you’ll be on your way to DMK airport in no time. The official time from BKK to DMK airport or vice versa is around 50 minutes but can be up to 2 hours depending on time of day and traffic conditions. Be sure to plan accordingly.
Note: Your flight itinerary must be for the same day or the following day in order to be eligible to transfer between Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Muang Airport for free.
FREE SHUTTLE FROM DMK TO BKK AIRPORT
For those of you who are arriving to Don Muang Airport and want to get a free shuttle transfer to BKK, the process works the same exact way, just in the opposite direction. The free shuttle from DMK airport to BKK airport can be found on terminal 1 outside of Door #6.
We started our trip by flying north to Chiang Mai. We were so jetlagged by the time we got to Chiang Mai. I really wish we would’ve given ourselves a day to enjoy the hotel before we went out. Instead, we only had two days and didn’t do everything I had wanted to do. We stayed at the Lana Dusita (http://www.lannadusita.com/) and LOVED it! It was so beautiful and serene. The staff went above and beyond to make us feel comfortable, including helping us with transportation. The breakfast was amazing and being on the river was beautiful. I cannot say enough good things about this hotel. Oh, and did I mention it’s 4 stars and under $50 USD/night?
While we were in Chiang Mai, we went to the Tiger Kingdom (https://www.tigerkingdom.com/chiangmai) I read mixed reviews about it, but ultimately decided I would probably regret not going. We went, cuddled with the big tigers and thought it was a fun experience. Now that we have done it, I wouldn’t go back, but I’m glad we went. The tigers seemed to be treated well and the staff appeared to enjoy playing with them.
We also visited Ran Tong Elephant Sanctuary (http://rantongelephant.com/)
This was the highlight of Chiang Mai for me. I wanted to ride an elephant, but knew I wanted to go somewhere with good reviews. Somewhere that rescued elephants and didn’t allow riders to ride with a saddle. Ran Tong picked us up from our hotel, transported us to their sanctuary in the jungle, allowed us a short ride, we were able to feed and bathe the elephants, they provided lunch, and took us back to our hotel. It was an unforgettable experience. For as much as I wanted to ride an elephant, the best part was truly getting into the water with them and giving them a bath.
Our final night in Chiang Mai, we visited aSunday night market. We went to the Old City Square and saw some Wats (temples) and enjoyed some street food. I wish we would have had more time to do this type of stuff while we were in Chiang Mai.
My biggest disappointment is we didn’t have a chance to go to the Monk’s Trail. However, after watching this season of the Bachelorette, I found out Becca took a date there, the literal exact same time we were there, so maybe it would’ve been closed anyway.
Next, we headed from Chiang Mai, down to Krabi. Krabi is pretty close to Phuket, but is not quite as touristy and dirty (from what I’ve heard) as Phuket.
Krabi is a real life dream. I could spend my whole life there. We stayed at the Pakasai Resort (http://www.pakasai.com/) The location was great. It was right in Ao Nang and across the street from the beach, but I wasn’t particularly impressed by the resort itself.
Our first day, we immediately rented a scooter for the week (there was a rental place across the street from us) Renting a scooter gave us the freedom to go wherever we wanted for a fraction of the cost of paying for taxis. After we rented our scooter, we rode up and down the major street we were staying on. Mike wanted to go to the Ao Nang Krabi Stadium so we went there, grabbed some lunch (Thai food is amazing by the way), and then that night, we went to a private Muay Thai class taught by Khru Doc (https://muaythaidoc.com/) Mike trained with Doc the last time he was in Thailand and I am so glad we were able to go train with him on this trip. Mike had plans to train every morning and unfortunately that was the only time he was able to train. I would definitely recommend doing a private session and going to a stadium fight if you’re there for one.
The next day, we visited the Wat Tham Suea. If you’re not familiar with it, go look it up! It is a grueling hike to the top of the mountain, but the views make it so worth it! Be careful of the monkeys, they will try to take your food or anything shiny! TIP: arrive first thing as it is HOT. The temple was about 30 minutes away from where we were staying. (****Mike bought a sim card when we arrived in Thailand***) As Mike had a sim card and was able to use his google maps app, we took our scooter and went on our own. We didn’t have problems finding it. If you’re relying on wifi, I would suggest taking pictures of the directions and maps.
After the Wat Tham Suea, we went back to the hotel, showered, and hit a massage parlor. They are everywhere and I’m disappointed and embarrassed we only went one time. For an hour long Thai massage, we paid $6 USD each. And it was an amazing massage, especially after our long hike. We grabbed smoothies on our way back, and relaxed at the hotel for a bit. For sunset, we visited Noppharathara Beach (5 minute ride from our hotel). This island is not accessible at high tide, but at low tide, you can actually walk to it.
On our third day, we rented a private long tail boat and had a 3 island tour. You can take this tour with others (which would save you money), but we ended up doing it just the two of us. It was perfect! We visited Poda, Tub, and Chicken Islands. I had wanted to do James Bond island, and if we ever go back, I will, but we didn’t have any complaints with what we did. It was fun to see all of the islands and rocks jutting up from the water. While touring, we also were able to snorkel at several locations. It ended up taking about the whole day, so after we walked around and got some dinner.
For our final full day in Krabi, we went to the Tab Kak Hang Nak Nature Trail. This place should be on everybody’s list. Although, maybe not, because it is such a hidden gem! Again, we took our scooter to get there, it was about a 45 minute ride. Prior to going, we grabbed some street food and snacks and water to have there. TIP: bring more water than you think you’ll need. The hike itself was a good work out. We didn’t see many people while we were out there, which made it even better. The scenery was stunning and the view from the top was picture perfect. I’ll let my pictures do all of the talking. Honestly, this was one of my favorite (if not my favorite) parts of Thailand.
On our last day, we had until about 6 pm. We took our scooter to the White Temple. It was cool, but I expected more out of it. It took about an hour to get there and ultimately, I’m not sure if it was worth it. We returned our scooter and checked out some stores to pick up a few souvenirs.
Thailand is an incredible country to visit. The people are so kind and humble. Everyone helped make it a wonderful experience for us. I loved both Chiang Mai and Krabi and would visit each place again. I sincerely hope we make it back to Thailand again. There are so many things to do and I don’t think you can go wrong with whatever you choose to do.
Things we did well: brought snacks and water bottles we could refill, light weight clothing-including multiple swimming suits. We brought a sturdy backpack (https://atlassupply.co/), bug spray (currently there is zikka there), sturdy hiking/water sandals, and buying the sim card. We were open to trying new foods and went to a variety of restaurants.
What I wish we did better: I wish I would’ve researched a bit more, especially for Chiang Mai. We were close to the Monk’s trail at one point, but didn’t realize it until we were back at the resort. I also wish we would’ve given ourselves 1 day to rest. I had wanted to take a cooking class while in Krabi, but we didn’t have a chance to.
Overall, we had a great trip. It was 10 days total, 7 in Thailand. 2 days in Chiang Mia and 5 in Krabi.
