Thailand · Long read
The Trip: Three Weeks Of Thailand
A guide bla bla bla
Three weeks of Thailand
Our trips started off in Amsterdam with a cup of coffee and later on a big bowl filled with noodles, vegetables are pork or shrimp- the Asian journey started.
Bangkok
Bangkok is an amazing but enormous city consisting of smaller cities. Landing on Suvarnabhumi airport is an experience on its own but getting to the city is as easy as it is cheap. We recommend using Grab to reserve a taxi because of it’s easy to use and super quick. Grab even has a private area at the airport for its drivers to quickly pick-up landed travellers. The public transport alternative we used was the skytrain, departing from within the aiport and dropping you off on one of the hundreds stations acros Bangkok. After about 30 to 40 minutes you arrive in the city and immediately get to enjoy skyscrapers, billboards and the hot chaos Bangkok brings. Since we went to Thailand in April, we should have switched to shorts before leaving the plane…
Bangkok does not have one city centre like most European cities. The main sections for you to discover are Old town near Rattanakosin & the Chao Phraya River, Talat Nio where you find the biggest Chinatown in the world, Lumphini and Sukhumvit and lastly the upcoming trendy neighbourhood of Ari. Planning around 4-5 days is sufficient to enjoy the city, but do not expect to fully indulge in the local citylife.
Old Town is tourist-packed since the main highlights are located here. Start by visiting Wat Pho, the Grand Palace and cross the Chao Phraya River to visti Wat Arun. To avoid thousands of tourists, we recommend to visit early in the morning or late afternoon and try to go with the Thai flow and relax around noon.
Talat Nio offers tree-packed narrow streets that can feel like a maze but is very nice to visit since it offers a different view on day to day Bangkok. People take more time here: from making coffee to hanging their laundry to dry. Talat Nio is great for walking around without a plan. Spend the afternoon here and enjoy the small shops or workshops. For coffee freaks, stop at the well-hidden Mother Roaster to taste some crazy coffee combinations. We like our coffee black and straightforward though.
Sukhumvit and Lumphini Park are the richer parts of Bangkok, this neighbourhood is filled with corporate buildings and gated expat compounds. Since our first hotel was located in Sukhumvit, we started our Bangkok journey here. It’s a nice calm (“calmer”) area with premium restaurants and malls. We quickly walked to Lumphini Park, a 56 hectare park on Royal ground. Enjoy a walk along the lake, check out the monitor lizards that walk freely or escape the sun under the trees.
We also decided to visit Ari, because we see that as an upcoming neighbourhood. You can find trendy coffee or cocktail bars in this area. Ari has a general calmer more youthful vibe then busy central Bangkok. We spend a couple of hours here before heading back to our hotel.
Chiang Mai
The second largest city of Thailand is not something you should let pass by on you trip. Although it is part of virtually every trip to Thailand, we think it is still worth spending a couple of days here. Getting to Chiang Mai is very easy and can be arranged via road, rail or air. The two most popular ways to travel from Bangkok to Chiang Mai are by nighttrain or by plane. You can book a flight starting at around €50 one-way per person and takes a little bit more than an hour. Travelling by nighttrain from Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station in Bangkok to Chiang Mai Railway Station (take the SRT SP13 line) is something a lot of travellers do and promote because of the price and backpack-ish vibes. You can chose The train ride takes about 13 hours and crosses right through the rural inlands. If you want to travel around in the cheapest way possible, or don’t like any form of comfort we suggest you take the train. For us, this was a fun but one-time experience!
Chiang Mai has a beautiful old city enclosed by ancient walls. Because of these walls, the inner city is super easy to explore as it separates it from the busy outer city. You can spend as long as you want inside the city walls enjoying the shop-filled streets and its small restaurants. On our first day we explored the Wat Chedi Luang, a massive ancient temple sadly partially destroyed by an earthquake. There is a newer temple on these ground worth checking out as well! You can head back onto the main road and explore the inner city some more. Before ending our little Chiang Mai city trip, we sat at the pool at My Chiang Mai Boutique and started planning our days in Ao Nang.
Ao Nang
After an intentional multi-day stay in Chiang Mai, the journey continues 1.500 kilometers south towards Ao Nang – Krabi province. We took the adventurious nighttrain to Chiang Mai, so we treated ourselves to a comfortable flight to Krabi International Airport (KBV). Air Asia has daily flights but you have to book in advance of course. We booked directly at Air Asia and had absolutely no problem. Beware of brokers which can raise prices significantly, if you see the Air Asia (Air Asia Move) green website you know you’re in the right place.
We decided to stay in Ao Nang for 4 days. Knowing the province of Krabi is particularly beautiful, we intentionally packed it with planned expeditions. This was our 4-day itenerary:
| Day 1 | Arrival, Beach & Dinner |
| Day 2 | Early hot springs, jungle walk to Emerald & Blue Pool, Tiger Cave Temple climb |
| Day 3 | Early island tour & snorkeling |
| Day 4 | Kayaking in Ao Thalane |
The first day we walked around the main road towards the beach and laid down our towel. The impressive limestone rocks immediately draw our attention. The bigger surprise was the temperature of the water…It’s not our first dive into tropical, but somehow I was expecting colder water. The water was almost body temperature but calm. After some time, we enjoyed the beautiful sunset and a nice restaurant.
The second day started early since we wanted to beat the swarm of tourists to the hot springs in Khlong Thom. You might think: with 39 degrees, who would go into even hotter water springs? The locals we joined in the springs told us its good for blood circulation, muscle and joint pain. After several hot springs we took a short walk to the Emerald pool and the more exciting Blue pool. The Emerald pool is for swimming, the Blue pool absolutely not. The water is full of vulcano minerals which gives it the super cool bright turquoise color but makes it also too hot and sulfur-rich… we would advise against swimming there! After lunch, we took the bus to the entrance of the Tiger Cave temple (Wat Tham Suea): the most important spiritual place in Krabi. “Of course” this means that women have to cover their shoulders and knees. We both are in fairly good condition but the stairs to the actual cave were brutal, it might have been the heat or the 1260 very steep steps. To see a big Buddha located on top of the mountain in combination with view was amazing.
The third day was an even earlier start, again to keep ahead of the swarm. We had an amazing full-day boat tour from Ao Nang harbor all the way to the Phi-Phi Islands, Hong Islands and the famous Maya Bay. To stand on an island not wider than 50 meters and see the sun rise was an amazing experience.
Our last day in Krabi was upfront my favourite: kayaking in the Ao Thalane mangrove. This time we could sleep in a bit more than the previous days. We were picked up by a – how do you describe this – a small sized tuk tuk/van with open air benches in the back. The driver of this vehicle turned out to be the kayak diver as well! Once at the spot we got a waterproof bag and instructions and off we went! From the first moment it was beautiful and well-organized. From open-water to in between cliffs and even into very shallow caves surrounded by monkeys who ‘may or may not jump on the front of your kayak’. The whole tour took about 5 hours and most of the time we were alone with our small group of three kayaks. If you like being around water and jungle this Get Your Guide trip is honestly one of the coolest to do!
Koh Pha Ngan
Our final destination was the tropical island of Koh Pha Ngan, 50 kilometers off the coast of North-East Surat Thani. From Ao Nang we booked a mini-van that took us to the harbor in the North-East of Surat Thani in about 5 hours. From there, we took the ferry to Koh Pha Ngan. This took us a good 2 hours as well. All in all, if you seek comfort, I would recommend something else. Try to find a grab driver that is willing to drive you to the harbor.
Once we arrived on Koh Pha Ngan we needed a ride to the other side of the island. We decided to stay on the quiet side of KPN on the North-East side. The open-air van took about 40 minutes of interesting roads to cross the island and bring us to our resort. From there, we felt like royals. The guard houses, the luggage carts, the houses – everything at Santhiya Resort build with perfection.
After more than two weeks of walking, hiking, reading and early mornings, we planned on relaxing on KPN. The resort suited this goal very well: massages, morning yoga, cocktail bars, swimming pools and a private beach. We stayed here for four days but could never get enough of the tropical surrounding and the chill vibe this place has. To head back to Bangkok, the hotel arranged a boat transfer to the nearby island of Samui. As Europeans, we are used to very large airports like Heathrow or Schiphol Airport. The airport on Koh Samui was something we’ve never seen before. After security, everything was open-air again. You could easily walk up to the runway or simply walk around back to the security offices. It felt more like those lounge spots on festivals rather than an airport. Anyways, it was time to head back to Bangkok.
Last days in Bangkok: Muay Thai
During our second stay in Bangkok, we wanted something different then Sukhumvit, so we stayed at Villa Bangkok near Phra Nakhon. If you plan on going on trips where you stay at multiple cities or places, especially if you mix big cities with tropical islands, we find it very nice to end in a city that is a paced a bit like home. Without a couple of days in Bangkok, we would go from a peaceful island to the buzy cities of the Netherlands. Bangkok felt like good intermezzo before heading back home.
During the last days of our trip, we went on a hidden gems river tour. The guide took us on the canals of Old Bangkok. These canals have been the center of the city back in its forming days, all traffic from commute, construction material and mail went over these canals. After its massive growth, the focus of the city shifted more and more away from this area, shown by the governmental negligence around these areas.
In the evening, we went full Thai experience and visited a Muay Thai match at the Rajadamnern stadium. With bigger shows during the weekend, the thursday show we visited was packed with locals instead of tourists. The show went on from 19:00 until 00:30 with matches during either 10 seconds (KOs are quick!) or the full 25 minutes. During the evening, we started talking to a big Thai family appearently there to support two brothers both fighting. Before I knew it, we joined them and I had a neon-sign in my hand and shouting the brother’s name during his fight.
The last couple of hours of our trip, we visited the massive ICON SIAM mall to kill some time, had lunch and booked a Grab to the airport. Although we didn’t see everything of Thailand, we really loved the diversity of the trip!
Thailand · April 2026
Our journey through Thailand
From the streets of Bangkok to the mountains of the north and the beaches of Koh Phangan. Follow our trip step by step.
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1
Bangkok, Thailand
Amsterdam to Bangkok
We started our trip in Deventer and travelled to Amsterdam by train with two large backpacks. Security went smoothly and we had plenty of time before departure, so we started our Asian journey with a large bowl of noodle soup.
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2
Bangkok, Thailand
Lumphini Park, Ari and Siam
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3
Bangkok, Thailand
Wat Pho, Chinatown and Golden Mount
