Thailand

evening everyone! hope great weekends are being had by all
Who has been to Thailand? The OH and I are considering a trip for the autumn holiday '15 - a few days in Bangkok then onto some idyllic beach for a week or so. The question is, which coastal area or island is the place to be? We'll be after relaxation, a touch of luxury and decent food.
Any v-flyers able to advise on good areas to stay or avoid?

Thanks in advance!

NKPx

Hey,

I went to Phuket around this time last year. For Autumn, I'd suggest trying for around mid-late October. You'll be catching the end of the rainy season and it's early enough before the Thai summer to avoid getting hit with price hikes. So you'll get a nice mix of nice hot weather (humid though), and flash storms, which are pretty good to watch.

Phuket is a pretty touristy location, it's not exactly off the beaten track in any sense, but still has plenty to occupy you for a week or so.

As far as areas to avoid, I can't really advise too much I'm afraid.

What I will say though is that we flew with Thai Air who were very good. Excellent IFE and food!

We went to Thailand over Easter this year, and was an island hopping beach break as we have both done Bangkok before and didn't really feel the need to explore any further.

We flew down to Koh Samui on Bangkok Airways (thoroughly recommended) and spent a night there before catching the ferry to Koh Phagnan. We stayed at The Coast Resort which I would thoroughly recommend. Very modern with superb facilities in a great location. Koh Tao is a short hop from here and although has had some very bad press recently it is definitely worth a visit. We felt perfectly safe there and the diving and snorkelling was superb.

After catching the ferry back to KS, another short hop with Bangkok Airways took us to Krabi and then on to Phi Phi. This island had grown tremendously commercially since I last visited about ten years ago.

We booked at Tohko Beach Resort for two nights and I must say that this was the absolute gem of our trip. You can only access this resort by longtail boat and is extremely secluded. If you want a choice of restaurants and nightlife then it's not for you, but we loved the isolation and beauty of it. A beachfront bamboo bungalow on stilts, waking up with the waves lapping underneath us and sun rising on the horizon was just amazing. The guys there took us to Maya Bay, a short boat ride away where The Beach was filmed. This gets extremely busy but they took us there early before the crowds. You mentioned that you're after a bit of luxury.... This place isn't a 5* resort and doesn't pretend to be, but as far as the beauty of locations go, it is among the best I have seen in Thailand and is definitely worth a visit, even if only for a night or two.

We ended in Phuket and bear in mind that EK fly there direct. We found them to offer the cheapest flights by far and flying home from there via DXB saved quite a bit of time rather than flying back via BKK.

Enjoy!

Thanks SimplyJones and mattyp for your input, much appreciated. We certainly want to experience something genuine and not overly touristy so thank you for the suggestions.

Hmm. Well, I can't really help too much right now but I'm off to Thailand with Thai Airways this Wednesday so I'll let you know once I'm back. We are flying to Bangkok but connection straight to Chiang Mai. We are there for four nights before flying to Krabi to enjoy some relaxation. After this, we are heading to Bangkok for one night before flying back home n(

I will let you know how it all goes once I am back...I am excited, although I wish VS flew there! Gutted to be losing out on the miles.....

I have been to Thailand and studied there for short time also (in Bangkok). If you have never been before I would recommend spending a few days in Bangkok- there is lots to see and do there and I love the city, though it is not to everyone's liking. I also like the North (Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai) and spent some time in Central Thailand around Sukothai which, culturally, is an amazing area.

As for the islands and beach areas- avoid Pattaya at all costs. I have never been but it sounds dreadful. Ko Samui has become very tourist-orientated but will have some decent resorts. The East and West coastal areas have different climates and the best time to visit is seasonal dependent and varies depending on the coastline, so best to check.

There has been some trouble in recent times politically in Bangkok and with the occasional terrorist fracas in the far south of Thailand. This would not stop me visiting. The Thai people are very welcoming of foreigners (Farangs) and wherever you go I am sure you will have fantastic time.

Don't go to Koh Chang.....I understand there are truly wonderful islands to go to, we had to go there to meet someone and it was a shame...do do do stay at the Shangri la hotel bangkok, the pool is a haven within a bustling city and if you can get a kunthrup wind suite..happy hour is fun.

I've done the Bangkok / Ko Samui trip which was fantastic and last Christmas / new year we did Hong Kong then direct onto Phuket. Thailand is a wonderful country with lovely warm people and you'll really enjoy it.

Love love love Thailand!
In Bangkok I adore the banyan tree. The moon bar is a must even if you don't stay there! Lots to do in Bangkok, we had a blast!
After the fun in Bangkok we stayed on phi phi, I'd avoid the main part of the island. It's full of backpackers and it's generally filthy. But there's a quiet part of the island only accessible by long tail. We stayed at the holiday inn...it's a holiday inn but the setting is just to die for, so quiet and relaxing...I want to be there now!!!
Eating in jasmines on the beach under the stars.
Only downside to phi phi is getting there!
Darren

I see you want some luxury, EK fly Hong Kong-Bangkok if your willing to fly to Hong Kong first. It's an a380 and there first/ business prices are pretty good for what you get but it's only a 2 hour flight

Late in on this one, but I can highly recommend all of Thailand. We've been there many times, not least because we have a timeshare villa on Koh Samui (gorgeous location looking straight out to sea and sharing an infinity pool with just two other villas).

A really nice place to stay in Bangkok at a reasonable price is the Chatrium Hotel Riverside. There's a lot to see in Bangkok, but three days at a time is more than enough before you have to move on to recover!

Koh Samui is worth it for the airport alone - it has to be one of the prettiest airports in the world. Relaxation, a touch of luxury and decent food on the beach are all there on the North coast.