Thailand

Thailand, The Land Of Smiles is a really big country, different kind of trips can be organized depending on how much time you have and what are your interests. We always wanted to visit Thailand. We decided to go in February, It was our first time ever in Asia.. so we didn't really know what to expect. From our experience that was the perfect m0nth.. the weather was ideal not one single day of rain and that helped to make our holiday even more amazing! On this trip we wanted to combine culture and relax.. so we divided our 14 days into two parts, the city and temples first and then the islands. So that's how we organized our stay in Thailand:

• 4 Days Chiang Mai

• 1 Day Bangkok

• 6 Days Koh Lanta

• 2 Days Koh Kradan

About the weather...

Thailand is pretty big, and you may find a difference in terms of temperature and weather from North to South. But in general, from December until March is dry season, with high temperatures and almost no rain at all, consider that this is the high season too, where most of the tourist tend to be around, but as well the time where most of the events are running through Thailand. We visited this beautiful nation in February, and it was warmth with beautiful weather every day, and to be honest, apart from Bangkok on the Chinese New Year, we didn't find Thailand so crowded as expected in High Season.

Chiang Mai

We stayed in the old town, at LoveCNX Guesthouse a little guesthouse that offers nice rooms at a very competitive price, close to most of the attractions in the centre of Chiang Mai, our room was relatively quiet, clean and very affordable.

Depending on the month you choose to visit Thailand, have a look online and check for local festivals... we're sure you'll find something special! In our case, we arrived the same day as the "Flower Festival" in Chiang Mai and it was amazing. Crowded streets, music and a big parade!

Everything was made from flowers, it was an explosion of colours!

It felt like the perfect way to start our trip.

If you are planning your trip in February, check the dates for the Flowers Festival, It's really worth it!

It's such a colourful country where people are friendly and always smiling and nature also plays a major part in making all of this even more unique.

A special country, like no other one on the earth, we can easily say that Thailand was our first love as Asian country.

Weekends in Chiang Mai mean only one thing.. Chiang Mai typical night market! Street Markets are very typical in Thailand, and they are all special in their own way. If you are looking for a traditional and proper Thai food market you are in the right place.

Head straight to the Tha Pae Market and the famous Saturday Night Market.

Food, clothes... anything you could think of! I literally went crazy and start shopping all night! So definitely go and have fun in a huge night market! We are sure you won't be disappointed! We tried so many things, one thing we loved the most was Mango sticky rice, once we tasted it we couldn't stop eating it! It's just perfect!

Sadly, in Thailand as in many more countries in Asia, elephants are used for what we call "dark tourism". Riding them may be fun for visitors but it's not healthy for them, being used all day long, over and over, can't in any way, be good for an animal.

Luckily now we have the option of choosing what's right... in Thailand, there are farms in which they take care of elephants, they are completely free to run around the forest and they are not forced on doing anything that will hurt them.

The farm is actually open to visitors but the program for the day is based on LOVE and CARE.

In fact, once we got there we had the chance to feed them... .they love bananas!

We also bathed with them in a small river and it was so beautiful seeing them playing with the water.. we also learned how to prepare a special and natural medicine that it's good for their stomach!

The owners of the farm gave us lunch and we ate delicious homemade Pad Thai surrounded by elephants, happy and playing among them!

I mean.. spending a day on this farm and seeing some happy and loved elephants was a special gift! so please... think, and DO THE RIGHT THING because we can change things!

Doi Inthanon

Doi Inthanon is actually the highest mountain in Thailand and it's in Chiang Mai province. From Chiang Mai centre is more or less two hours drive.

There are different ways to actually get there, for example, we rented a motorcycle but you can also go with an organized trip if you prefer.

On the way, we found really nice typical restaurants, literally in the middle of nothing! We stopped there and we had lunch enjoying the warm sun and eating tasty Thai food...

Once you get on top of the mountain, you will be amazed by the beauty of this place.

Perfects gardens, majestic temples and a beautiful view... We loved it, I really think this is a place you must visit once in your life.

Don't be scared to look around on your way back to Chiang Mai centre...

While driving, we ended up drinking and eating in a restaurant, built on a river!

We were in the middle of the jungle, the only sound that you could hear was the running water, it was amazing and I personally loved it!

Doi Suthep

Doi Suthep-Pui National Park is named after two mountains within the park and it is situated in Chiang Mai Province. The main attraction is the Doi Suthep Temple and you can also find many waterfalls to visit, The Doi Suthep is a Theravada Buddhist temple with holy shrines, pagodas, statues and murals around.

Also.. once inside, there was a monk praying, I set in front of him as a sign of respect and he gave me his benediction... everyone can do it! I thought it was a really nice experience!

Bangkok

We decided to spend just one day and one day in Bangkok, and to be honest.. we don't regret it.

We live in London, so when we go on holiday we usually try to avoid big and crowded cities, spending most of our days in small towns or islands.

Bangkok is for sure a suggestive place to visit... it's unique, fun and chaotic!

That's why we decided to book a hotel close to Khao San Road, Villa Cha-Cha we advise this place only if you don't mind the noise during the night because being close to Khao San Road is not for all,

Our plan was to party, so for us it wasn't a big deal, and after all the hotel was well placed, and our room clean and tidy, definitely a good deal.

Grand Palace & What Po

Just a tip... whenever you have to visit sacred places make sure your legs and shoulders are fully covered!

The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings in the center of Bangkok. It was the residence of the Kings of Siam. Here you can find a large amount of attractions and sacred places.

The colors are amazing and everything is well maintained.

We highly recommend it.

Once you leave the Grand Palace, right outside you will find the What Pho.

The What Pho is a complex of temples, I found it hard not be shocked by the beauty and size of it, it's unreal!

Also, it is one of Bangkok's oldest temples!

The Temple complex is formed by

• Phra Ubosot

• Phra Maha Chedi Si Rajakarn

• Viharn Phranorn

• Phra Mondop and others structures

One of its most known monuments, it's the The Reclining Buddha

The figure is 15 m high and 46 m long, and it is one of the largest Buddha statues in Thailand!

The Wat Po is really big, so many things to see and I have to admit that everything is extremely clean and organized.

If you want to enjoy an amazing skyline of Bangkok by night, then head straight to the Sky Bar, more information in the food paragraph.

Bangkok is definitely the right place if you are looking for fun. The good thing is that you don't really need to put too much effort to find where to party.

We loved Khaosan Road, a very crowded street, pretty busy during the evening, we wrote more about that in the food paragraph below.

Koh Lanta

From Bangkok we took a flight for Krabi, once arrived we took a bus for Koh Lanta.

Don't worry about transportations, as once you will be in Asia you will notice how easy is to find a good deal compared to what you could book online.

We spent all our days in Koh Lanta at Tum Mai Kaew Resort right in the middle of the island, only 5 minutes far from the beaches, we found a really beautiful place and very affordable too.

Surrounded by the forest with a cosy swimming pool, this really nice resort rented us a motorbike too, we couldn't ask more.

Koh Lanta is such a beautiful island, once you arrived to rent a motorbike, that you can probably find it in your resort or hotel, so it will be easier to move around.

We stayed in the south of the island as we think there are more interesting places to see and the beaches are nicer.

On the road, you will find so many restaurants with a beautiful view.

Very nice spots where to have lunch and take a rest from the hot sun!

Some beaches also have their own bar and restaurant, in our experience, that's where we ate the best Pad Thai ever, so just go out and try everything.

If you want to have a fancy dinner in a beautiful location, We highly recommend you to go and check out this place Rak Talay Restaurant

We had an amazing time there celebrating the birthday of Irene, the food was good, cocktails

amazing and the staff was really friendly and professional.

Usually from 7 pm, restaurants and resorts on the beach start to pull out tables and prepare for dinner. You'll find tables literally in the sand just a few steps from the sea. It's a lovely location where to have dinner. After 9 pm you will usually find "fire shows" organized by the same resort or restaurant. It's really nice and fun! Koh Lanta in our opinion is the perfect combination of fun and relax. We didn't choose to go to Phuket for example, that's because we thought it would have been too much chaos and not the kind of "savage" island we were looking for. In fact, Koh Lanta is not a completely wild and untouched island but still, you get the feeling of being very close to nature and Thai culture, we loved it!

Koh Kradan

From Koh Lanta there is the possibility to organize boat trips in some of the near islands, that's exactly how we got to Koh Kradan. It's probably not the most common way to do it, but why not? We took our baggage with us and instead of coming back to Koh Lanta, we stopped in Koh Kradan, which was part of the tour. This is a nice way to visit other island and move at the same time, we only find out one person who accepted to do that, his name is Kun and it is in Ko Lanta Old Town if you are interested in his number to drop us a message :)

At the first stop, they brought us to a nice place where to snorkelling, it was beautiful!

The second stop was a tiny small island with no one living there with crystal water and white sand, simply stunning.

The third stop was even more interesting and unique... the Emerald cave.

To get there you have to leave the boat and swim through the cave with a local guide, everything will get dark... and all of a sudden... The colours are just amazing, and the whole adventure is unique. The only negative point is that the place is very busy, it's a touristic destination so you will find a lot of people. Makes it a bit hard to enjoy the place itself and also to take the perfect pic, but still, it's worth a visit!

For us, the tour stopped after the cave. We arrived in Koh Kradan where we had lunch with the group and then we took a taxi boat to get us to our resort.

Koh Kradan is pure beauty!! We just loved it so much!

We decided to stay on the south-east side of the island because less "crowded" compared to the north, but anyway, this island is not crowded at all, so don't worry about that fact

Ao Nieng Beach Resort offer bungalows right on the beach, this is an unpretentious resort, do not expect any luxe here, but this is the interesting part of it, from one side you are surrounded by the forest, and on the other side a stunning beach, worthy of a postcard.

It's a very small island, without roads kinda small! There is only one path that can take you from a side to the other, you have to get through the jungle and it's like a 10 mins walk. Or, you can also walk on the beach, the only problem with that is the high tide, so keep in mind that. Our resort was on the other side of the island, we were surrounded by nature and the sea. Let's be clear, It wasn't a luxury resort but our bungalow was literally in front of the beach! WOW! The other side is more "touristic", there are three resorts and I'll say more modern structures... we usually walked by the beach with the low tide to get there and have dinner. Koh Kradan is peace. No parties and no crowded roads. Such a nice way to escape the reality of every day. I really recommend you to go, we absolutely loved it.

That was the view literally in front of our bungalow...

It was amazing waking up in the morning and having this beautiful view. Just unique !

Also the sunsets are magical, sitting by the sea and waiting for the sun to comes down... I'll never forget this island.

Thailand is the place I would love to visit again and again!

If you have never been to Asia, that's the right way to start. Thailand is probably the easiest Asian country to visit; people are very open minded, it's kind of modern too but at the same time, you can live and feel the Thai culture.

Did anyone say Food or Drinks?!

Here our favourite places

Thai Cuisine is an intrigued mix of flavours like most Asian country do, you can easily taste a great balance between sweet and salty, something very hard to find in Western Cuisine. You may find this type of marriage between sweet and salty unusual, we find it too, but once you try it for the first time, then you can't think of anything else, during and after your experience there, and that's exactly what happened to us, that still try to reproduce our favourite Thai dishes at home, sometimes with average results :) If you want to try the true Thai dish, lookout for a restaurant crowded with locals.

We have stated all the GF dishes that we liked the most in the list below, which means that most of the time, we have found those items to be gluten free, but still, on every occasion and in each restaurant we double checked with the person in charge on our table to avoid any unpleasant inconvenience.

We can only start this list with our favourite food in Thailand, the Pad Thai a tasty noodle dish, usually served with chicken or prawn, chilli, sugar (Yes sugar) and peanuts, a mix of savoury and sweet perfectly equilibrate together, you will find this plate almost everywhere you will go, and you can get it vegetarian too.

The Khao Soi is a typical soup from the north of Thailand, we just described in the next paragraph

Curries have a big role in their cuisine, red and green, this juicy and super flavourful plate is most of the time based either with fish or meat and coconut milk ( we love that) and don't worry, the curry in Thailand are usually mild and not very spicy, except the green one.

The Som Tam, best known as Papaya salad, is quite spicy and sweet, usually served with shrimps, sugar and vegetables, either you love it or hate it.

If you want to eat like a local, then you must try the Pak Boong best known as morning glory, this is a spinach like vegetables, usually served with a lot of garlic, chilly and soy sauce

And then we can only end this list with a lovely Mango Sticky Rice

Chiang Mai

We pretty much loved everything in this city, foods too, Khao Soi Sirichai is a very typical restaurant that serves the famous Khao Soi, a northern Thai soup, based on chicken, vegetables all together with boiled and fried egg noodles, true deliciousness. On the same level of quality and price Lert Ros serves traditional Thai food, this place is very straightforward, you will not find crystal glass or ceramic plates, but taste and quality are packed here.

If you are looking for restaurants and bar a bit more modern, then head straight to The FACES Gallery & Gastro Bar where the internal garden and the beautiful plates will surprise you, to be considered that prices too will raise.

Dash is a modern restaurant too, very loved by tourists, and we understood the reason considering the good price and the lovely dishes that have been served to us.

You can never go wrong with the night markets in Chiang Mai, our favourites are the Tha Pae Market only on Sunday, and the famous Saturday Night Market both of them are great for foods and souvenirs too. Then if you love mango sticky rice like Andrea, go straight away to Mango With Sticky Rice very affordable and tasty, but you will see that this type of dessert is served almost everywhere in the city and surrounding.

We had some really nice cocktails at The River Market Restaurant a bit more pricy than the usual but good quality in a good ambience.

Bangkok

The capital is a big metropolis very varied and very interesting for the foodies like us.

Unfortunately, we didn't spend to much time in Bangkok, but still, we have a few suggestions, like Raan Jay Fai a restaurant crowded with local, very cheap, and a really tasty Pad Thai.

If you are really eager for Pad Thai, then right to Raan Jay Fai, you can find Thipsamai well known as one of the best Pad Thai in the whole city.

We spend our evening celebrating the Chinese New Year in Chinatown, a really interesting place to be, especially under this famous event.

But if it's a drink that you want, and you are not afraid of heights, then follow the advice we gave you previously, and head straight to the Sky Bar

This place is stunning, and even if the cocktails are expensive, the price is well worth considering the view.

We've never been on a rooftop like that one before.

Usually, for security reasons, there's always a high glass or a certain distance you have to keep between you and the edge of the building... well, not here! In fact, the restaurant is completely open, it's breathtaking! Soft lights and jazz music with the most beautiful view of the city... and really good cocktails! Highly recommended! ah! almost forgot... Boys, make sure you wear long trousers and close shoes or they won't let you in.

We had a lot of fun at KaoShan Road is a very lively street, pretty crowded with tourist, but in the evening it turns out a nice place to be, roaming from bar to bar, we enjoyed that place very much. Here you'll find food, loud music, karaokes and open bars, KaoShan road never goes to sleep, chaotic in its own way, It's just incredible, believe us... you won't get bored!

Bangkok as a big metropolis as it is, it offers many things to do and to see, there are plenty of beautiful temples and streets to explore, if you have more time to spend there, then you may want to stay 2-3 days.

Koh Lanta

Koh Lanta is a lovely island, very easy to reach, where fresh fish is served every evening. As advised before, the south part is less touristy than the northern one, so that will reflect on the quality and the prices of the restaurants and bars too. There are several places along the beaches, and among them, we definitely recommend those: Shanti Beach House is a very easy restaurant, right on the beach as many others it offered us a tasty meal at a good price.

Why Not Bar is a lovely place to be, especially during the evening, like many other restaurants, they grill and serve fresh fish right on the beach, and on top of that on specific nights they perform fire shows, and nothing beats that.

Phad Thai Rock n Roll is perfect for the lovers of this beautiful dish, we didn't actually eat there, but we ordered a takeaway and eat at the beach, still a really good Pad Thai.

Same Same but Different Restaurant is a very cool and cosy restaurant, the prices are a bit higher than the surrounding, but foods and drinks are better too.

Following the street leading to the south, you will find Phu Pha View this restaurant is built on top of a cliff, it belongs to a quiet long series of other places, one close to the other, all of them are pretty touristic, but the basic food is nice, price not expensive, and the view is great, be aware that many of those places are pretty touristic, so just have a look at them before to get in.

On the other side of the island, you will not find the same style of beaches, and even the restaurants are different, but two of them came out of our mind straight away.

Khrua Lanta Yai is a very romantic place, both at lunch and dinner, with tables on a mezzanine floating on top of the sea.

The prices are fair and the food is great too.

Sang Ga Ou with its great view and cocktails, serves food in a more fancy way, the prices are justified by the quality.

If you are a Mojito lover, then head back on the west coast at Majestic Bar this place tend to be very overcrowded, and the quality of their cocktails, among them the mojito is one of the reason.

Koh Kradan

Koh Kradan is a very small island, with no cars or motorbike, the only way to move from one side to the other is only by walk or boat, that reflects as well on the choiche of restaurants. We ate most of our Lunches at our hotel, the Ao-Nieng Resort in the south, while we had some good dinner on the east side of the island. Reef Resort Kradan and Seven Seas Resort are two lovely hotels, like all the others one right on the beach, compared to the surrounding restaurants those two are a bit more pricey, but the quality it raises too.

You will fall in love with Thai food, we are sure of that, so many different and new flavours, ranging from savoury to sweet.

In our opinion, the dishes from the north of Thailand are more rich and particular, but even the fish with their tasty sauces in the island is on another level, so don't be shy and try everything you can.