Travel questions, answered
Clear answers on where to stay, how to plan your route, visiting temples, and finding food and markets.
Start readingFollow a region
Choose a base that fits the days you want.
Railay or Ao Nang. Decide how you want to arrive.
Short answer Choose Railay if you want to wake up among limestone cliffs, beaches and climbing crags, and can accept that every arrival and departure is by boat.
Phuket. Choose a base that is not a party beach.
Short answer Skip Patong, the island’s nightlife centre, and look at Kata or Kata Noi for a relaxed beach with a small town, or Karon for a family-friendly middle ground.
Khao Sok. A night on the lake, or a room by the jungle?
Short answer Yes, if you want misty mornings among limestone karsts and wildlife-watching from the water, and you can accept simple floating rooms reached only by longtail boat.
Koh Samui. Pick your coast before your hotel.
Short answer Stay on the east coast at Chaweng for the most restaurants and nightlife, or Lamai for a slightly lower-key version.
Kanchanaburi. Give the river and the history different hours.
Short answer A day can work for the bridge, the Thailand–Burma Railway Centre and the nearby war cemetery if you keep the visit focused.
Decide where to go and how long to give it.
Ayutthaya. A day away, or a night to stay?
Short answer Keep Bangkok as your base for a focused visit to two or three sites.
Koh Kood. Give the island a day of its own.
Short answer Choose Koh Kood for a stay built around the beach, forest and smaller island outings.
Two weeks: count nights before adding places.
Short answer Fourteen calendar days normally means thirteen nights.
North or south? Choose the day, then the place.
Short answer Choose Chiang Mai for temples, northern food and a hill outing.
Arrive prepared and visit with care.
What should I wear to a temple?
Short answer Choose a shoulder-covering top and loose long trousers or an appropriately long skirt.
Find a good first step into local flavours.
Which market belongs in your day?
Short answer Choose Warorot for everyday Chiang Mai shopping, Sampeng for materials and small goods in Bangkok, or Chiang Mai’s Sunday walking street for an evening browse.
What should I order first?
Short answer Pick one dish you recognise, then ask about the ingredients that matter to you.
Read along the way
Questions for stops on this route
Questions for stops on this route
Questions for stops on this route
