Solo Thailand recommendations please!

[Daisypowers]

Thinking of going to Thailand in Jan/Feb next year for 10 days to 2 weeks and would really appreciate some recommendations for places to stay.

I'll be travelling alone and haven't travelled solo for a number of years. Ideally looking to stay in a quiet/small beach resort to chill for a week, and then maybe have a few days in the rainforests/National Parks/exploring temples etc.

Budget would be around £2k for flights and accommodation, if that's feasible.

Depends how much you want to move around and whether you want to fly into Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai? We have booked to fly into Bangkok and fly out of Phuket, so we can move around without too many transfers. Have you looked at flights yet? Our flights were £875 each economy, including cheap internal flights, so eats into the budget a lot, but then there is a very wide range of accommodation options so will then depend on what level of accommodation you are after.

Khao sok is accessible from lots of beach areas, krabi, khao lak etc

I'd get your flights to Bangkok booked now as they'll only go up in price. Don't worry about booking accommodation early ; there's plenty of choice and lots of small family-run places everywhere. Thailand is easy to travel around in, and personally I only book 3 days ahead so I can extend if I like it, move on if not. Internal flights are quite cheap and you don't need to book those at the same time as your long haul flight. However, if you book Thai Air for the international flight and later book an internal flight with them for the same day, they'll check your luggage through.
Suggest saving exploring Bangkok for the end of your trip as by then it will still m easier to navigate, less overwhelming, and you're in town ready for your flight home.

That £2k budget is perfectly feasible for 2 weeks and if you're spending so much on tickets, you want to make the most of it - I'd go for longer if I could! Look on Agoda or Booking sites for accommodation. Roadside food / small cafés in Thailand provide amazing food very cheaply. I don't book hotel breakfasts - just go out and grab fruit or pancakes from a stall. Agree with PP that Khao Sok national park is well worth visiting. This Khao Sok National Park Advice group is helpful.
Do your research first and be clear on what your priorities are - nature, scenery, culture, towns, beaches? Phuket has stunning beaches and great infrastructure but no real jungle left, landscape tame apart from beaches. Khao Lak has jungles & inland trips but beaches not as nice as Phuket or parts of Krabi. You might read that Phuket is too touristy but it depends where you go (and what you want) - Patong is the Magaluf - style area, but there are much quieter parts with a small town feel. Krabi has the amazing limestone scenery and is great for trips, hikes, jungle plus beaches. Ao Nang is much cheaper to stay at than Railay or Phi phi islands & you can do day trips to those places. But look into where you want to stay in Ao Nang - the main beach is party central, but there are much quieter areas. Chiang Mai is cheap and good if you're into temples and cannabis shops. I'm not, so it was a bit wasted on me. Doi Inthanon National Park near there was nice, though. Thailand is such a great place

Krabi is a lovely area, lots of accommodation in Ao nang, and lots of day trips to places like phi phi islands go from there. Also great for chilling on a beach. I really enjoyed Kanchanaburi which is famous for bridge on the river Kwai, really interesting if your into world war 2 history. Also Erawan national park is close and well worth a visit. Chang Mai in the north is great for temples, there’s an overnight train from Bangkok which is really good. You can easily spend a few days in Bangkok lots of temples, and things to see and do.

Have you booked?

Thailand seems to be a good place for solo female travellers.