Chiang Mai or Koh Samui
 

Hi All,

I will be traveling to Bangkok in November. I plan on also visiting another city in Thailand, and I am debating on whether I should go to Chiang Mai or Koh Samui. In Thailand, I have only been to Bangkok and Phuket.
Any input is greatly appreciated.

I will be in Thailand for a total of 7 days, and I wanted to split Bangkok with another city.

Thanks in advance for your time.

Koh Samui is worth the time, but you can't go wrong with either. Samui is more beach experience while Chiang Mai more mountains so take your choice.

Two very different destinations - beach versus nature/mountains. Depends on your interest really, but note that November is the tail-end of the rainy season in Samui.

totally different destinations!
landscape with hills, forests and culture with a huge variety of temples, handicraft etc. versus beach, islands, night entertainment

If you enjoyed Phuket you'll also likely enjoy Samui. Chiang Mai is a better option if you want something different from both places you've already been. Since it's a short trip also consider Chiang Mai has many more flight options than Samui, which is privately owned by Bangkok Airways with only a handful of flights a day to/from BKK. The overnight train is also a practical option to/from Chiang Mai so you don't "waste" any time travelling, less feasible to/from Samui.

handful of flights a day to/from BKK to Samui?
there are actually more than 20 per days in both direction, even during low season and Bangkok Airways plan to add more...

Samui Airport eyes increasing flights to 73 per day from 50

Right you are, forgot to remove filters from a previous search when I checked. Won’t edit since your reply wouldn’t make sense but OP can disregard that bit.

4 handful than :) but still expensive, compared to other flights in Thailand, since privately owned/managed airport

I am leaning toward Chiang Mai. As I am looking at hotels, since I don't really know the areas, what areas would you recommend for hotels?

I see locations listed as Night Bazaar, Chang Khlan, or Old City, but they really don't mean much to me as I have never been.

I prefer the Anusarn night market. It has everything including live music, foot massage and good food ( depending on where you eat), souvenirs and also a lot of shops and restaurants on the Main Street. The Dusit Princess CM is within walking distance too.

You should also compare your calendar to the festival calendar. Per Google Loy Krathong and Yi Peng are on Nov 5/6 in Chang Mai. I highly recommend timing your visit if you can, all the lanterns in the sky and river are beautiful. 100% would pick that if it works.

If your dates don’t match then as other people said it’s beach vs nature / culture (there is a nice monastery in Chang Mai). There are also a lot more luxury / points hotels in Koh Samui if that matters to you.

well the Night Bazaar is very touristy, old City is the square within the old city walls, Changkhlan is more like a throughroad to the southern part of the city,

well the best hotel areas with many restaurants and markets within walking distance are between old city and Mae Ping river (the Night Market and Loy Kroh barstreet are also in this area) and Nimanhaemin (in the east of the city close to the Chiang Mai university and therefore with a younger crowd and a bit less touristy). In the old city there are many cheaper small hotels and guest houses...

Thanks, all, for the feedback thus far. This is helpful.