Two weeks in Thailand - itinerary suggestions

[FeelingALittleWoozyHere]

After some ideas for Thailand next year
Parents and 2 kids, 10 and 13

Flying into Bangkok, arriving Friday 25 March. Staying with family for a few days then leaving on Monday 27. We have until Saturday 10 April before we need to fly back, into Heathrow. Can fly back from a different airport.

I have been to Thailand before, backpacking, MANY years ago so I know alot will have changed.

Fancy 2-3 days in a few different places after we leave Bangkok. Want to go south, probably flying- hate long train or bus rides and definitely don't want an overnight one.

Previously went to Koh Tao, Samui and Phangan so would rather do something different- was thinking the west coast - maybe Krabi maybe Phi Phi...unsure really. Don't fancy Phuket

Any suggested itineraries? We like exploring, hiking, some pool and beach time. Happy with fairly basic accommodation, nothing too high end- trying to keep costs down

Monday 27th- Sat 2nd (?) Chaing Mai (fly there from Bangkok)

Chaing Mai to Krabi flight.

Koh Lipe was an absolutely gorgeous island. We spent about a week there and could have stayed another week. When we were there we spent a week in Koh Lanta and then caught the speedboat to Koh Lipe. Koh Lanta is lovely too if you prefer not to visit the little islands.

Thanks for the island recommendations. I went to Chang Mai before and would rather just go south from BKK so focusing on those areas really. Will Google those recommendations 😀

I got the train from Bangkok and went to Kanchanaburi, which is where the death railway is. It is well worth visiting. It's a couple of hours from Bangkok. I stayed there for a couple of nights.

Thanks, I went there previously too - loved the waterfalls

To be honest I think anywhere in Thailand is amazing. I've been to Koh Tao, Koh Phangnan, koh Samui, Ko Samet, Pattaya. Only place I'd not go back to is Ko Samet, which was lovely but just not my ideal. We are doing Pattaya and Phuket this year (we go every year). Last year we also went to Cambodia which was beautiful and even cheaper than Thailand. We flew from BKK, it onky takes 1.5 hours and we loved it.

Next year we are doing a week in Thailand and a week in Philippines. We intend to go to Chang mai at some point too.

We really don't like Bangkok that much. It's all too busy and in your face. But always spend a few days there.

With two weeks and children aged 10 and 13, I’d try not to include too many places so the trip doesn’t feel rushed.
After Bangkok, Krabi would be a great choice for a family trip. It has beautiful beaches, island trips, nature, and plenty of activities without feeling as busy as some other areas. Koh Lanta could also be worth considering if you prefer somewhere more relaxed and family-friendly.
A route like Bangkok → Krabi/Ao Nang → Koh Lanta → Bangkok could work well and avoids long overnight journeys.
I was also looking at different Thailand itinerary ideas recently, and this guide has some useful information on destinations and experiences:
genztravel.co.uk/thailand-holidays/
Hope you have an amazing trip Thailand is a fantastic country for families!

Island hop via ferry

Krabi
Koh Lanta
Khoh Lipe
Langkawi
Fly back to Bangkok

Or

Bangkok
Chaing Mai
Chaing Rai

Or

Bangkok
Singapore or Kuala Lumpur
Penang
Langkawi
Khoh Lipe

Check the dates when Songkran, New Year water festival occurs

Following as am currently being overwhelmed with choice for the same period next year!

@Thickasabrick89 did you go direct from Koh Lanta to Koh Lipe? We're doing this trip in mid November and I'm worried about the boat ride - I've heard it can be rough.

We're going back through Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur so only have to do it once thankfully.

Flying out from Malaysia is loads cheaper.

I wouldn't hurry back to Phi Phi, we stayed on the quiet side of the island, but as it was so remote you had to get there by long boat and the long boats would sit in the bay next to the beach with their engines running all day. The hotel was great but the noise really put me off. It was beautiful in the evening after they went home!!

I want to go to koh Lipe and koh lanta when I take my kids

Not Chiang Mai. The farmers burn their fields at that time of year and it's all smoky. South is a good shout.

For inspiration: Intrepid Southern Thailand Family Holiday

I'd tweak it a bit to cut out Phuket and spend a night or two on at floating hotel on Cheow Lan Lake.

If I were you I’d look at the Ao Nang / Railay / Ko Lanta areas. Fly into Krabi and just explore that corner of Thailand. You can also get to Phi Phi easily if you decided to.

I've been about 8x, but admittedly, the last time was a few years ago and I was in Phi Phi pre tsunami! I know you don't want to go to Phuket, but there are many places other than Patong Beach- which I'd never return to! We stayed down the coast at Kata beach which was much quieter, but there are even sleepier, fishing villages on the east coast. Note that Phuket has an international airport.

Another time we went to Koh Chang on the far east coast. We flew into Trat airport, 20km via bus to the port and then a 30min ferry to the island. Trat borders Cambodia and we saw trips to Angkor Wat- if that is something of interest? I won't suggest an itinerary as I'm sure others with more recent experience can help with that.

We are also doing 2 weeks (actually 12 days 😢) in this area with an 11 and 14 year old.

Currently my draft itinerary is Bangkok-Krabi (Ao Nang)-Koh Lanta- Koh Kradan-(possibly overnight train)- Bangkok.

Ao Nang doesn’t hugely appeal to me tbh but it seems like a good base to do fun activities (zip wire etc) and boat trips and see the karst scenery. Considered staying at Railay instead but it’s harder to do activities from, and packed with day trippers. Kids may enjoy the buzz of Ao Nang I hope and we can visit Railay.

Koh Lanta wasn’t originally on my wish list but everyone seems to love its chilledness and there’s a decent choice of activities (including a reputable elephant sanctuary Following Giants) so it’s not just beach.

Koh Kradan really is just beach, but a beautiful one! Koh Ngai is similar.

I considered Koh Lipe, it looks beautiful but I met someone who said they found it really busy and crowded. Your timing is less peak season than ours though so might be less busy for you?

Also considered Khao Sok and Koh Lak (jumping off point for Similan/Surin trips) but in the end both were just adding too much travel for the time we have available and weren’t sufficiently “must see” to merit the diversion (tho this is obviously personal to us and takes account of places we’ve been already).

I’d say look at a map of the Andaman area and if you want to move every 2/3 days, then choose places pretty close to each other so you’re not spending hours on a boat or driving. And work in a logical order, east to west or west to east. That’s been our approach.

Of course we haven’t actually been yet so all this needs to be caveatted!!

That's what we did, yes speedboat 3 hours and was flat. Husband and daughter fell asleep

@Thickasabrick89 oh I'm praying for calm seas when we go. We're both islands lovely. I'm so looking forward to Koh Lipe...we're there for 7 nights.

We had a similar amount of time in Thailand and after a couple of nights in Chang Mai we flew down and spent 2 nights at Elephant Hills in Khao Sok national park which included one night in their main camp with canoeing and time seeing and feeding elephants that have been rescued and then one night on a floating tent on a pontoon in Cheow Larn lake. This was the absolute highlight of the holiday - waking up early to the sound of the gibbons in the forests around us, a forest trek to some caves and kayaking plus swimming in the lake. We then had a week in Khao Lak which was very relaxed.

We’re going in November and going to:
Phuket for 4 nights
Elephant Hills for 2 nights
Krabi for 4 nights
Bangkok for 3 nights

it’s just me and DH but and I did lots of research and wanted a good mix of beach, water, walking, nature, elephants(!), and then a little bit of crazy city/busyness.

We spent 6 nights there when we went and I genuinely could have stayed another 6! My favourite beach location in Thailand

Go see the elephants in Chang Mai for sure! Islands are beautiful, also good to experience Bangkok

We are going same time next March/April and doing:

3 nights bangkok
3 nights Ao Nang
5 nights somewhere peaceful on a beach in Krabi*
1 night in Khao Sok (floating bungalow - very excited)
Final night back in Bangkok

*We looked at Ko Lanta, Ko Phi Phi, Railey and Khao Lak but decided we didn’t want to travel too far in between and the scenery in Krabi is my fave. But Khao Lak was a close second.