Thailand Itinerary Feedback
 

Hi all -

I am going to be going to Thailand for the first time at the end of the month. Any feedback on the itinerary? It's as follows:

SFO > BKK Dec 29th, arriving Dec 31st at 1am. (Super long layover in Taipei)
Dec 31st - Jan 3rd : Bangkok

flight from DMK > URT (then ferry to Koh Samui) Jan 3rd, arriving 3:30pm
Jan 3 - Jan 7: Koh Samui

flight from URT > DMK > CNX Jan 7th, arriving 2pm-ish
Jan 7 - Jan 11: Chiang Mai

flight from CNX > DMK arriving 9:30am-ish
Jan 11 - 14th : Bangkok

BKK > SFO Jan 14th, leaving 5:00pm


My questions are:

1) is that too much time in Bangkok? I want to eat a ton of street food, go to a floating market, see the grand palace etc.

2) Do I have enough time to squeeze in Ang Thong and a visit to Ko Tao for snorkeling? Should I skip snorkeling in Ko Tao and just see if I can book something in Ang Thong?

3) is that adequate time in Chiang Mai? Will I be able to squeeze in visiting an Elephant camp, a cooking class, a daytrip to see the White Temple in Chiang Rai, and seeing Doi Suthep? How realistic is it for me to visit the White Temple?

4) we want to see Ayutthaya. Should I try to take the train back from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and see this on the way? Or just make this a daytrip on the 2nd leg of my Bangkok trip?

5) Is it too ambitious to try to squeeze Sukhothai in somewhere?

To help guide answers, I'm traveling with my boyfriend and he's very much into golf & history while I'm more interested in foodie spots and beach activities.

Thanks in advance!

Don't have answers to all your questions, but here's some info:

1) Looks like you'll be staying 6 nights in BKK total. That should be fine. Ideally, you should do all the palaces/temples in one morning. I suggest doing Wat Arun/Temple of Dawn, then Temple of the Reclining Buddha, then the Grand Palace/Emerald Buddha in one morning...they're all within walking distance of eachother and go in the AM to avoid the heat. You'll find street food everywhere, so don't worry. But do make sure to visit Yaowarat (Chinatown). Floating market is a little further away, so that'll be a good half day trip.

3) I think 4 nights in Chiang Mai will suffice. I did all that you mentioned in 3 nights/2 days, minus the White Temple. I highly recommend "A Lot of Thai" cooking class in Chiang Mai and the Elephant Camp in Lampang (a little further away).

Have fun and safe travels!

Seems like a decent itinerary to me.

I do not believe it is feasible to visit the "white temple" as a day trip from CM, but it's been several years since I was there. It's a fairly windy mountain road trip. I also don't think it would worth traveling all that way just to visit this one particular temple. I personally didn't think it was all that interesting.

Doi Suthep is one of the major sights for CM and quite easily done in a morning or afternoon.

I would not take the train from CM to BKK. Do Ayutthaya as a day trip from Bangkok. It's a well traveled route. I think most tours stop at Bang Pa-In Palace on the way which is worth a visit.

Yes, I think it is too ambitious to squeeze in Sukhothai in my opinion unless you are flying in and out. But even then I would spend a couple of days there and visiting the surrounding sights like Si Satchanalai. Maybe just save it for your next trip. Don't try to see it all in one go. Slow down and enjoy it. :-)

If you go to a floating market, try to go with a local guide and not a huge group. Try to go early in the morning. I have seen it really clogged up with larger boats packed full of people. Early in the morning in a small private boat is the way to go! There is good eats to be found, but the handicrafts are usually way more expensive than you will find elsewhere in Bangkok.

I can speak for Bangkok.

The Grand Palace might take a whole day.

The temples - Wat Pho and Wat Arun another half a day.

This plus other smaller temples can be done in other half day.

One more day can be devoted to Chinatown and the floating market

And coming to Bangkok, you need to spend some time shopping, so take that into account as well.

Any update on this thread? Im planing a trip to either Thailand or Vietnam for the end of this month and if I go to Thailand I am debating on spending 4 days in Chiang Mai or Bangkok and the other 3 days in the other...any input from your experiences?

7 day trip? Hopefully you're already in Asia.
I like Thailand and Vietnam. I think it totally just depends on what you are looking for. Food, beaches, relaxation, historical sights, nightlife, architecture, etc? For Vietnam I would recommend HCMC, Nha Trang, Hanoi and Phu Quoc as possible destinations. Your 3/4 days in Bangkok and Chiang Mai sounds reasonable.