What else to see besides Pattaya?

[avondell]

I am planning to go to thailand in about a week (if everything goes according to plan), never been there and have a few questions.

A friend directed me to this place as a good spot to get answers.

 

I was wondering whether anyone here had any tips on what to do to get to know a little bit about the country and the people

before heading to Pattaya (must sees in Thailand so to say)? There are tons of tips on the net, but that country

is huge and you can't see everything in 2-3 weeks. 1 week is reserved for Pattaya, but what to do with the rest?

 

The must sees are scattered all over the country and I have no idea on how expensive it is to travel in Thailand.

That limits my action radius at the moment. To put into other words, I am looking for a part of Thailand with

a high must see places/travel distance ratio to spend some time there before going to Pattaya.

 

Thanks in advance

Avondell

[Edge]

Bangkok and Chiang Mai are pretty essential?

 

Check AirAsia flights to CM.

 

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[bungee]

Travel is cheap. From Bangkok airport to Pattaya (116km) costs about 1000 baht in a taxi or 200 baht on a coach.

[ironmaiden]

Sukhotai has always been a favorite of mine, beautiful ruins and it's on the way to Chiang Mai so you could include that one too. A few islands in the south should be on your list, if you want to see what the country has to offer. Phuket, Phi Phi, Ko Samui just to name a few. That will easily fill up your short holiday, and will give you a good impression of what Thailand is about. Spend a couple of days in Bangkok too of course, but you will be arriving there so that's obvious right?

[allwet]

Thailand has so much to offer, it really depends on what your interested in. With that said, I wouldn't miss Bangkok and Chiang Mai. If your into beaches then you could look into Koh Chang or some of the southern islands. IMHO, Phuket is overpriced with over crowded beaches.

[avondell]

Travel is cheap. From Bangkok airport to Pattaya (116km) costs about 1000 baht in a taxi or 200 baht on a coach.

Ok, that puts things into perspective.

 

Sukhotai has always been a favorite of mine, beautiful ruins and it's on the way to Chiang Mai so you could include that one too. A few islands in the south should be on your list, if you want to see what the country has to offer. Phuket, Phi Phi, Ko Samui just to name a few. That will easily fill up your short holiday, and will give you a good impression of what Thailand is about.

*scribbles down furiously* Will check the web for more info on that.

 

Thailand has so much to offer, it really depends on what your interested in. With that said, I wouldn't miss Bangkok and Chiang Mai. If your into beaches then you could look into Koh Chang or some of the southern islands. IMHO, Phuket is overpriced with over crowded beaches.

I would like to see something from country and culture, don't want to get stuck in pattaya for 3 weeks.

 

Spend a couple of days in Bangkok too of course, but you will be arriving there so that's obvious right?

The plan calls for a slow start and I have heard horrible things about "One night in Bangkok". ;o)

 

Thanks so far, the tips are appreciated.

Edited April 15, 2012 by avondell

[portfolio]

3 weeks is plenty of time just visit your must sees before being captured by pattaya it will hook you in !

 

air asia for cheap flights phuket/koh samui great for a week on the beach

 

chang mai for a relax in the mountains

 

the maninseat61.com for train travel very cheap and scenic tho slow but grab a sleeper for £20/$30

 

trained d own to singapore and up to chang mai utterly fantastic imo.

 

trip advisor good site too.

 

assume your flying into bangkok a night in both nana soi4 and soi cowboy must be done.

 

enjoy

[allwet]

 

 

I would like to see something from country and culture, don't want to get stuck in pattaya for 3 weeks.

 

 

Good idea. This is what I would do:

 

Spend 3 or 4 days in BKK to see the temples, Royal Palace, Chinatown etc. All this would be done during the day which means you can hit Nana and Cowboy at night. Spend one of the days you are in BKK to do a day trip to Ayutthaya which is easily accessible by train.

 

Head up to Chiang Mai for a week where you can get a sense of Thai culture and also go to some of the outlying hill tribe areas. Plenty to do up there.

 

Spend a few days at Koh Samed which is kiddie corner to Pattaya but worlds away from it. It's a beautiful laid back island with nice beaches.

 

Spend a week in Pattaya.

 

[Anokanite]

When in Pattaya check out the Sanctuary of Truth. It's Thailand's only wooden Pagoda. All hand carved and constantly being worked on. Just take Naklua to Soi 12, take left head to ocean. Well worth a scoot across town.

[Ksyvr]

There are nice island past pattaya too...koh Chang koh samet....that way you can keep going in the same direction