Holiday in Thailand/Malaysia...anybody been there?

[dubaimum]

Thinking of goin to Thailand next year with dh and ds who will be just 4 when we go, have any mumsnetters been there and can recommend hotels, villas etc, thinking of a couple of days in Singapore and a couple of days in Kuala Lumpar then on to Phuket for a week...and did you book flights and accommodation separately or via travel agent? Any advice welcome

Oooh. Very envious. Spent lots of time travelling in Thailand and loved it. As it is so cheap, it is easy to afford hotels of a very high quality out there for relatively nothing. Internal flights are also very cheap and on planes that are really clean and smart so worth travelling around if you have time. We booked the international flights and accomodation all online and separately to get the best deals. TBH, once over there, we changed our itinerary several times and booked other hotels, flights etc. as we realised how affordable it was. To give you an idea, in North Thailand we could hire a guide and a driver complete with air con. top of the range 4x4 for the day to take us everywhere and anywhere in the mountains and jungle for about £20 (incl. boat trip and hire of two elephants..). Mind you, that was about 5 years ago but even still, massive bargain.
Depends on what kind of people you are as to how you book it - play safe (esp. for your son) and book all of it with leading travel rep so you have everything pre ordered and reserved for you or if feeling more relaxed I would book your flights and first two nights accomodation and go with the flow.
Must say, one word of caution - I hated Phuket. Very commercialised and touristy. Felt a bit ripped off there in terms of money and cheap sightseeing touristy type beach hacks. It was beautiful and if you can see beyond the fact that everyone wants a piece of your pocket then it could be for you. Personally, didn?t like travelling all that way to be bombarded with people asking me to buy coca cola every ten minutes!
A friend was out there this summer and loved Singapore - stayed at the Holiday Inn and has not stopped raving about it.

I am going with dh and 4 kids at the end ov november, so will have lots of news for you when i come back in Jan.

We booked our tickets through travelbag, and it cost us just under 2000k, travelling on etihad airlines ( new one replacing united arab emirates), stopping briefly in abu dhabi there and back. Getting accommodation when we get there.

Which part of phuket did you stay in Stripy? We have a friend in Thailand who says there are still lovely parts to be found .

I think it probably works out better value to book it all together, although we never do because we can't make up our minds where to stay at the time we book our flights. Also in Malaysia most of the top hotels are cheaper for Malaysians, and dh has a Malaysian passport so we tend to book them ourselves. We used Trailfinders for our flights this time, Flight Bookers used to be good, but they've become less helpful in the last couple of years.

Singapore is nice and clean, easy to get around and plenty to do but very western. Kuala Lumpur is practically one big traffic jam and the air quality is terrible, but it's much more asian, while still being safe and friendly (and much cheaper than Singapore). We have to go every year because the in-laws are there and we normally stay with mil so I don't know what the hotels are like.

We're off to Langkawi, Sydney and Kuala Lumpur tomorrow. Malaysian Airlines have a new flight route that goes London-Langkawi-Kuala Lumpur, and it's very good value. The last time I was in Langkawi it was charming, but that was 6 years ago and I think it may have become more touristy since then, but I can't imagine anywhere in Malaysia being the kind of place where tourists are seen as walking cash-machines.

Have a great trip Bran

Thanks for the info Stripymouse, i hate being pestered to buy things, we want to get away somewhere "nice" this will be our first proper family holiday next year so want it to be really special, we live in Dubai so we thought that we would go to Asia seeing as we are already half way there, is there anywhere else you would recommend? Will look forward to Lou33's thoughts when she get's back!!

PS Etihad isn't replacing Emirates just another middle east airline, let me know what they are like cos when we have been checking the flights to Singapore/Bangkok they have been the cheapest

Have a fab holiday

We spoke to Etihad. UAE closed down and Etihad has taken it's place, or that is what we were told. I like the sound of them though, the economy seats are bigger than most others apparently, and all have little tv screens, which will keep my kids occupied for a bit i hope. Also they have agreed to store ds2's wheelchair in the cabin, not the hold, which helps enormously.

I liked KL. The mall under the Petronas towers was rather good and DH adored china town for all the fakes. The atmosphere in the evening was nice too.
Singapore is wonderful, I regret that we only stayed two days and so didn't get to see very much.
Phuket was where DH proposed to me, so I guess I have a rose tinted memory of it. We enjoyed it.

I think there is a thread in the archives about thailand. Tom went there iirc, and twink is full of advice as well.

I went to Malaysia last year with DD (who was 18 months) and we loved it. Particularly Kuala Lumpar - The playgound under the Petronas towers was the best I've ever been to anywhere, and as Lowryn says the mall was rather good too. We stayed at the Corus Hotel, which we booked on the Web. A nice hotel with a pool and good buffet breakfast, and reasonably cheap, just a few minutes away from the Petronas towers and an underground station. The people were lovely with DD.

I live in Phuket if you want to contact me via CAT? Have also been to Singapore (but only for the day!) and KL.......but am planning to take my DD (15mths) to SIngapore for Christmas

)

sarahu, could I contact you as well please? We are going to Phuket in December, and would love to be able to ask you some questions.

yes of course you can lou33, though not sure which email address I registered could be the one I don't check very often.....let me look!

yes its Ok its the one i check every day!! fire away

I'm toying with the idea of persuading DH we should go to Thailand at Easter.

sarahu have e-mailed you, thanks

Lou33 hope you have a fab time, let me know how you enjoyed it when you return.

Many thanks

Will do.

Have emailed you sarahu.

Soups, that was our second choice of time to go.

Soupdragon - Thailand is HOT in march/April - its the hottest time of the year!!!

Hi Sarahu

I'm planning on taking DS (aged 3) and DD (age 4 months) to Thailand in Jan / Feb next year. DS is fascinated by elephants and had hoped to take him up north to Chiang Mai to see and possibly ride an elephant. Have you been up to that part of the counrty and would you recommend it with 2 kids and DH?

Many thanks

Pam

We have a 14 mth old child and we're travelling to Malaysia for 2 weeks. I have asked my pediatrician about immunizations but apparently they have told us that they don't provide those vaccinations, that we have to go to a travel dept to get Hep A vaccinations. Is it necessary to get it? Should we be worried about anything else?

Pam 70
Chiang Mai is a lovely area - often cooler than other areas as it is surrounded by hills. You might want to check out a climate chart for this area at this time odf year as from what I remember it is quite chilly then. You would be abl to ride elephants in many other places in Thailand, not just Chiang Mai!

chingscherer I guess that the jabs for Malaysia are similar to those for THailand - in which case you would need Hep A, Typhoid, Dip Tet and possibly Japanese Encephalitis, Hep B and Meningitis

Thanks for that Sarahu - I'm guessing that Chaingmai in January wouldn't be patch on Ireland in January??

OOoh you lucky thing. I LOVE thailand. Have spent many months there in my young, free and single days and we went there March this year as a family (with 20 month old). I have travelled over many parts of Thailand and its all different and beautiful in its own right. However, with kids I recommend Koh Samui. Check this amazing place out:

www.rockyresort.com

it it british owned and managed with lovely thai staff. they seriously cannot do enough to help you. fab position, best to hire a car really so you can come and go as you please ( a really nice air con jeep only costs around £9 per day). the food at this place is great, you get massage on beachside for a few pounds, there are lots of wonderful spas nearby (def go to Tamarind spa)

we did it independently. booked accom through rocky resort website. booked flights through bridge the world(i just did loads of searching and they had best price).

good thing (but maybe sad to say it) there is a big tesco on the island so plenty of nappies, kids toys, sandals, biscuits etc. etc,

the only thing i found difficult with a child is thai people seem fascinated by western kids (esp little ones) and they want to touch them and kiss them. i had been warned about this but was a shock when thai woman at hotel kissed him on lips YUK - she kept trying to do it and pick him up so when i saw her coming i would quickly pick him up and turn my back!! she got the message. she meant no harm but as i was told they would never do it to thai kids so have no right to do it to others.

def make sure you get air con rooms, and if you want any more info i can talk on thailand forever
you will have fab time!
pinkmamma

how much was the rocky resort per nite?? sounds amazing