TRAVEL WITH ME: THAILAND

Follow me on my journey of exploring Thailand and pick up helpful tips and tricks along the way!

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Phuket: Day 3 & 4

Day 3 -  Today we decided to have a more relaxing day following the day-tour of Phang Nga Bay. We visited Karon Beach for the afternoon, which was only a 4 minute drive or 17 minute walk from our hotel. Our hotel also offered a shuttle bus that operated to and from the beach which was very convenient! The Karon beach water is much more blue and clear compared to the beach in Patong and a lot less crowded with tourists. Karon beach is the third longest beach in Phuket and allows visitors to spread out so it does not become overcrowded. Therefore, I would recommend this beach for families and couples as it is a beautiful location to relax and enjoy the sun and water. If you want to sit at the seats at Karon beach, it costs 100 baht ($4 AUD) each to rent for the time that you are there. So if you get approached by a lifeguard whilst at a seat, they are probably asking you to pay! Be mindful when in the water, as the waves can be very strong and dangerous to play in (this is during late July, when we visited Phuket).

At night, we decided to explore the Jungceylon Shopping Centre in which we booked a taxi from our hotel to the location. Keep in mind, if you want to visit areas like Patong from Karon, it is about a 15 minute drive. Taxi fares in Phuket are much more expensive compared to Bangkok and the 15 minute drive cost 500 baht ($20 AUD). I would highly recommend visiting Jungceylon Shopping Centre as it has a great vibe with multiple levels of shops including international and local brands as well as a large range of restaurants to choose from. The centre has special discounts and promotions for tourists, so don’t forget to grab their tourist privilege card before you start shopping! In the foyer of the centre, there are various street performances taking place, which adds to the exciting vibe!

Right across the road from Jungceylon Shopping Centre is the Baan Son Night Market that consists of all different types of food carts (probably my most favourite market in Thailand!). They sell savoury food including a huge range of fresh seafood and meat. A large range of desserts are also available, such as ice-cream rolls, crepes and traditional Thai desserts. 

After an amazing meal, we decided to explore the famous Bangla Road to see what it was all about. It was only about an 8 minute walk from the market, so we were there in no time! We discovered that it was a street of clubs and bars, crowded of people. The street was filled with tourists and workers who were advertising Ping Pong Shows. It is very much a party street, so if you’re looking to loosen up and have some fun, this is the street to visit at night. But, you will not go without one minute without being haggled by workers trying to sell their shows to tourists, when walking through the street.

I also wanted to make sure to mention that we witnessed an altercation between a tourist and a tuk-tuk driver. Where the tourist accused the driver of being paid for their tuk-tuk ride, where the driver denied that he was paid. So, be careful of these situations as we have heard quite a few stories of drivers ganging up on tourists.

Day 4 -  For our last day in Phuket, we moved hotels to stay at Anantara Villas in Mai Khao. Anantara is a luxury resort on Mai Khao Beach in which visitors have access to the private area of the beach. The luxury and private villas are surrounded by restaurants, bars and facilities such as a pool, gym, kids playroom and outdoor activities. The room that we chose had a private pool and was located right near the pool and beach! The service of this luxury villa is amazing, and I highly recommend anyone who has the money to spend, to definitely stay at this villa. Although, if you’re looking to explore the Mai Khao area, there is not much near the hotel, you will need to travel quite a bit. There is a little shopping centre called the Turtle Village right near the resort, however everything is very over priced! So if you want to do some shopping, definitely get it all done when you’re in Patong (or even better, Bangkok!). 

Tips to take-away!

The seats at Karon beach cost 100 baht ($4 AUD) each to rent for the time that you are there, so if you get approached by a lifeguard they are probably asking you to pay! 

Take caution with being in the water as the waves are very strong and can be dangerous!

Keep in mind, the taxi fares in Phuket are much more expensive than Bangkok. 

Don’t forget to pick up a tourist privilege card at Jungceylon Shopping Centre to get access to special discounts!

Be careful with tuk-tuk drivers, they may gang up on tourists to scam them of their money. 

If you want to go shopping, it is much cheaper to do so in Patong (even cheaper in Bangkok!).

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Phuket: Day 1 & 2

Day 1 -  On our fifth day in Thailand, we travelled to Phuket from Bangkok. We landed midday at the small airport and was faced with a vast amount of stalls and signs advertising island tours and shuttle buses. There was a large crowd of travellers outside of the airport and it was very different from the Bangkok airport. We assumed we would be able to catch a taxi to our hotel, but that was not the case. We had to purchase tickets to a shared mini-bus with other tourists, that cost 200 baht ($7.50 AUD) to get to our hotel in Karon.

Once we arrived at our hotel, we decided to relax a little before we started exploring. We stayed at Hotel IKON in Phuket which is located in Karon. We made the decision to stay in Karon as it was not as busy as other main areas such as Patong. The hotel was quite confusing and tedious as there are three different buildings and you have to navigate between them to get to places such as the pool, lobby and your rooms. Having said that, the rooms are beautifully modern and extremely cheap in price (I paid $65 AUD per night), with a great view.

Once we were settled in, we decided to explore what was next to our hotel. Now, Phuket is very different from Bangkok as it is an island and Bangkok is Thailand’s main city. In Phuket, we realised that everything is a lot more spread out than Bangkok. There were not many places to explore next to our hotel in Karon, and I can only speak for the area we stayed in. Although driving past the Patong area, there seems to be more going on but also very busy with tourists.

We decided to enjoy the beach for the rest of the afternoon, it was a beautiful beach. The water was blue and the beach was not too busy, which was a major bonus for me! When we were driving past Patong beach, the water was definitely brown and packed full of tourists. So if you’re looking to relax and enjoy the beach, I would recommend staying in Karon!

Day 2 -  When planning for my trip, I booked a tour of Phang Nga Bay by big boat through Phuket Sail Tours which you can see here. We did this because we read through reviews online and they were a company with high reviews. We have heard stories about some of the tours being unsafe so we didn’t want to really risk our safety. The price of this tour was much more expensive than what was being sold in Phuket as it cost 4,100 baht ($155 AUD) per adult. But what we have also heard, is that if you do buy the tours locally, they mark up the price tremendously. So make sure you bargain, even down to half of the price they are offering! 

I opted for the big boat option of the tour as I didn’t want to be cramped up in a little boat. With Phuket Sail Tours, they do not allow a lot of people on the same boat even if it is large. This makes the tour feel more exclusive and private so I do recommend this company due to that factor. During the tour, we passed other tours who were on the same sized big boat with over 40 people, it was packed. The tour we went on, there were only another 10 people on the boat and therefore 12 people all together. As it was a full day tour, they supply food, drinks and snacks for us, which was also great!

The whole tour consisted of a big boat ride (very smooth and relaxing!) to the mangroves where we got onto our own canoes with an instructor and explored the area! 

Then, we went to canoe through the caves and lagoons of Phang Nga Bay. This is what I was looking forward to the most! If there is a high tide, make sure to be careful of the caves! Sometimes you will need to lay down completely so you don’t hurt yourself on the rocks. This was my favourite part of the tour as the views were breathtaking. The caves were also being visited by other tour groups, therefore it was quite busy when exploring through the caves.

We went back onto the big boat and sailed to James Bond Island. We had a really good view of James Bond Island, but did not visit the dock as it was packed full of tourists. 

We were then taken to a private beach to have a little swim around and canoe if we wanted, before we headed back to land! Overall, I would highly recommend touring Phang Nga Bay when in Phuket. It is such a unique and hands-on experience. We also wanted to visit Phi Phi Island the day after, but was unable due to the weather forecasted for the day as it can be unsafe.

Tips to take-away!

Take a shuttle bus from the airport in Phuket, it may take a little bit longer but it saves you more money.

Karon is a good location for families and a better destination to relax as it is about a 20 minute drive from all the action in Patong. If that’s what you’re looking for, Karon is ideal.

When buying tours of different islands in Phuket, don’t be scared to bargain!

Make sure insurance is included when you purchase these tours or you have insurance yourself, it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

Be mindful of the weather when planning to tour islands such as Phi Phi, as it can be dangerous to do so under certain weather conditions. 

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Bangkok: Day 3 & 4

Day 3 - Today we decided to head to China Town as we have heard a lot of people it is a great place to shop and eat at market stalls! Once we got there, we struggled to find the actual market. We found a strip of stores after walking for about 10 minutes, which consisted of actual shops that were selling items such as stationary, costume jewellery, hair extensions, and others of that sort. There were not many food options at all, except small stalls that sold some snacks. We were a little disappointed about our afternoon in China Town, so we headed back to our hotel to relax before we started more adventures!

Later in the evening, we decided to go to Patpong as we have heard many crazy stories and we wanted to see what it was all about! This time, instead of taking a taxi, we decided to take the train. Taking the train was extremely easy (even easier if you have Internet on your phone!) and cheap, we would highly recommend at least experiencing it once! The trains are very clean and quite prompt, there isn’t much of a wait for the service.

We went to the Patpong Market, which we also struggled to find but we came across a little street of market stalls. Most of them were selling counterfeit designer products such as handbags, wallets, watches, jewellery, etc. They also had a few tattoo shops there! One thing to note when going to Patpong at night, you will get haggled by locals trying to lure you into the ‘Ping Pong Shows’. If you haven’t heard of these Ping Pong Shows, they are a form of stage entertainment that takes place in a strip club. Now, I was reluctant to go to any of these shows as I have heard they are a major scam, so you have to be firm when turning them down as some of them can be quite aggressive. I wouldn’t suggest this area to go to at night with children, as the contents displayed would not be appropriate. But if you’re looking for a wild-party night out, I can see how this place may be of choice to some people. There are many strip clubs and bars open in Patpong, with workers trying to lure people in.

In close by streets, there are little alleys that had a few stalls of food, but there was not many choices to choose from, which we were also quite disappointed about. We had a few locals try and direct us to food markets but there were none to be found.

We later found out from the hotel concierge that there are not many market stalls open on Monday’s as in Bangkok, they dedicate Monday’s to a cleaning day! So that explained the lack of activity in China Town and Patpong!

Day 4 - Sadly, this was our last day in Bangkok and when in the country that is the king of street markets means another day, another market to visit! Today we were to a recommended to go to a market outside the CentralWorld Shopping Centre. We walked from our hotel, which was approximately a 20 minute walk via the skywalk. 

This market had a beautiful display of markets and looked a lot more hygienic than those I have previously visited. It had a huge selection of delicious Thai food (do yourself a favour and get the grilled salt-crusted fish!), ranging from savoury to sweet. There is also a small selection of stalls that sold clothing and little accessories. This was by far my favourite market that I have explored in Bangkok, so I highly recommend anyone looking for a good feed to make a trip here! It is a great location for a market as if you start to overheat from the weather and the people, you can go inside CentralWorld for a cool break and shop around!

Once we finished up at the market, we made our way back to our hotel through the skywalk again. When walking back, we made sure to take our time to explore the vast amount of shopping centres along the way as everything is connected! Siam Paragon is the home to the high-end luxury brands, so if you’re looking to drop some cash then this is the place to go! They have an amazing food court that I would definitely recommend to check out if you’re near by. Siam Paragon also has an aquarium in the centre if that tickles your fancy!

Siam Centre is just right across the road from Siam Paragon which is a much more affordable shopping centre. They have over 200 Thai brand and international stores and gives off a much more relaxed and modern feel to it. With it’s architecture, it also has a quirky and interesting designs throughout the shopping centre. 

Siam Discovery is directly across Siam Centre and has a more department style feel to it. Lots of international and local brands are displayed in one large area in sections of clothing, shoes and accessories. There are also a few stand alone stores as well. The design of the centre is very chic and architectural, with each floor having it’s own theme to it. The centre also has an ice-skating rink for a little mid-shopping fun!

Tips to take-away!

If you’re looking for markets, don’t go out on a Monday! Monday’s are a dedicated day for cleaning the streets, so there aren’t any (or very less) market stalls open.

A lot of the market food is very spicy, so if you can’t handle the heat, stay away from those sauces!

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Bangkok: Day 1 & 2

Day 1 -  Our flight landed pretty late on our first day in Bangkok, but the first thing we did was buy a sim card. There are lots of kiosks at the airport selling sim cards who also install it for you, so it is immediately ready for use. We paid approximately 400 baht ($15 AUD) for an 8-day card with internet, which made it so easy to navigate and research about the country! 

We took a taxi to our hotel, which was easy as they have a whole bay of taxi’s waiting for passengers at the exit of the airport. But make sure you only get into a taxi that use their meter! A lot of drivers will try and negotiate a price before they drive you, but that is always more expensive! Save yourself some money and take only metered taxi’s!

By the time we got to our hotel it was 12am, so we were unable to explore. But, one place we did take advantage of was 7/11. I really recommend all travellers to explore the convenience store, they are everywhere! They sell a large range of cheap snacks, drinks and meals to your daily necessities and basic medical needs, if necessary.

We stayed at the Princess Pathumwan hotel for all of our stay in Bangkok. If you are looking to stay in the Siam area of Bangkok, I highly recommend you stay there! It is conveniently connected to the MBK Centre and located closely to the Siam Shopping Centres. There are also night markets that are located right down the road from the hotel!

Day 2 -  On our second day (Sunday) we decided to go to the biggest market, Chatuchak Weekend Market! We made sure to go there as it is only open on the weekend and it was our only opportunity. We took a taxi from our hotel to the market (92km) which cost only 80 baht ($3 AUD) but we did have to pay a toll fee on top of that which costs from 25 - 50 baht ($1 - $2 AUD). 

Once we got there, we realised this market is no joke. Is it so extensive in the amount of stalls that are open and will take you days to explore it all! There are stalls that sell things from clothing, candles, accessories to food, drinks and ice cream! A lot of the market stalls will be open to negotiating prices and sometimes even cut the price in half. If you’re not happy with the price, walk away and they may cut the price even more! I would recommend wearing cool and comfortable clothes and slather on the sunscreen when going to this market as it is extremely hot and can get very crowded. We spent a whole day at the Chatuchak Market and recommend it for people who can tolerate the heat and crowds! There are a huge range of things that you can buy and eat at dirt cheap prices, all you have to do is explore (and bargain)!

After the Chatuchak Weekend Market, we needed to relax and lay by the pool at our hotel, which we did for the rest of the day. At night, we then went to the MBK Centre which is open from 10am to 9pm everyday of the week! It is a multilevel shopping centre that has a market concept, just within a centre! You have different levels for different categories such as clothing, technology and food. We had a good meal in MBK Centre in the food court which has their own crediting system. You need to purchase a card and put credit on that card in order to pay for food within the centre. Payments are not to be made in cash, so make sure you purchase a card when you first enter the food court!

Tips to take-away!

Purchase a sim card at the airport, it’s cheap and makes your trip so much easier!

Always make sure the Taxi uses the meter, as it is much cheaper.

Bargain with market stalls! A lot of the time the owners will be open to negotiate.

Wear cool and comfortable clothes to the Chatuchak as it gets extremely hot and exhausting in the hot weather.

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What are my expectations?

Hey guys! So after much anticipation, I will be travelling to Thailand for the first time, in less than a week! I have heard from many friends who have previously travelled to Bangkok and Phuket, that it is a great destination for a cheap overseas trip. Already, that’s a bonus on my end but through the research I have done through other travel blogs, I have also learnt that there is no need to spend too much time in Thailand. Which is great as I was searching for the perfect destination to visit for a short and satisfying trip. I have consistently discovered through multiple blogs that there it is recommended to stay no more than 3 days in Bangkok. Being the country that is crowned the king of street food, I am extremely excited to try all there is to offer! I have also seen through pictures, that Phuket is the home to extremely beautiful beaches and resorts. I will be ending my stay in Thailand in Phuket, to wind down from the adventures in Bangkok. To keep updated with my travels and hopefully pick up some helpful tips and tricks for your future adventure to Thailand, tune in to my upcoming blog posts!