There is always a flexibility when you travel alone. You don't know where you land up. The only thing that we need to keep in our mind is a budget planning.This was my 4th memoriable trip outside India. Thailand is a place where you get to explore beautiful blue water ocean, a perfect romantic beach, city lines, architectures, monastery , culture and traditions and finally a lot of food which is cheap and yummy. This Blog will guide you how to plan your trip efficiently and not just to cover the regular cities that is covered in a travel package tours but to explore Thailand in a greater way. In this Trip I made a road trip from Chiang mai to Pai, Krabi,Phuket, Ko phi phi,Rayong,Pattaya and Bangkok with many Island Hoppings which I have mentioned in the blog.
Bangalore to Bangkok Flight-(16000 rupees Round trip)
Visa Information- Generally for the citizens of India we get visa on arrival for 15 days. I would recommend if you are planning a long vacation where you not only want to explore beach and night life, but want to explore the culture, festival, museum, art then it's advised to keep 20 days in hand. You can easily get tourist visa by applying it on thailand embassy website. link:http://www.thaiembassy.com/thailand/visa-on-arrival.php
Visa cost- 4000 rupees
Car booking: I booked a rental car from chiang Mai airport. once you arrive in the airport, you will find a lot of self drive car rental services outside the airport. Booking is done with credit card option. make sure you check the car before they handover the Key to you and also check for the Insurance paper. They debit some security money in advance at the time of booking which will be refunded to you once you handover the car without any damage.
Requirements- You need to have a valid passport and an international driving License.
CHIANG MAI
I landed in Bangkok where I directly took a flight to Chiang mai which is like 2 hours of journey from Bangkok. You can book a flight (costs 1000-3000 baht) before hand and make sure you have enough gap between the connecting flights. I almost had 5 hours in hand. The best time to visit chiang mai is in the month of November as you are going to witness the famous festival called le cratong , (Lantern Festival). I prefer hostel and it was from hostelworld.com, it costs 200 baht a night for a bed in 6 mixed dorm.The price may fluctuate according to the demand.so, you need to make sure your booking is done before 2 months. To be in a safer side, I would recommend not to pay before, but pay at the counter when you are arriving at the Hostel. The local transport medium should be a scooter or else a battery car. it's cheap and affordable. It's easy to rent a scooter in chiang mai but the only thing is you have to have a driving license (of your country)and the driver must wear Helmet. Generally you can rent a scooter from local shops or you can ask in the Hostel. People will guide you from where to rent a scooter in a cheaper price.
I took enough rest on day 1 of my arrival in chiang mai. on day 2 I rented a scooter and I went to this beautiful temple named Wat Phra That Doi Kham. Though I had a rental car, I wanted to ride a scooter for a day.
The place is well connected by roads. one can easily take shared Autos or a scooters. From the car park at the temple's base visitors can climb 309 steps to reach the pagodas or take a tram.Once inside the temple grounds visitors must be appropriately dressed and must remove footwear. The original gold plated chedi is the most holy area of the temple grounds. Within the site are pagodas, statues, bells, a museum, and shrines. Aspects of the what draw from both Buddhism and Hinduism. There is a model of the Emerald Buddha and a statue of the Hindu God Ganesh. Views of Chiang Mai can be seen on the far side of the temple.Entrance fee is 30 Baht. I personally love the Buddhist Prayer and the architecture of the temple is astounding. There is also plenty of street food options which you can try outside the temple.
Next day I went to Tiger Kingdom which is in Rim tai district. I took my scooter it's hardly an hour journey from main city.Entry fee of Tiger kingdom varies, starts from 500 baht depends on whether you want to touch the tiger also it depends on the size of tiger you want to hold. Surprising thing to see here is how Humans have made a carnivorous animal as a pet. It's recommended to follow the instruction of the Tour Guide.
Le cratong festival
The Loy Krathong festival takes place on the evening of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. The dates of Loy Krathong change every year. This is always a source of confusion. Loy Krathong usually falls in the month of November.This festival is famously known as Lantern Festival. I got an opportunity to fly a Lantern and make a wish.I would recommend you to be in the festival for at least 3 hours. Here you can observe a lot of things like thai culture, history behind the festival and yes, huge crowd after all people from all over the world fly to witness this festival.
Another popular spot to release lanterns is at Nawarat Bridge just outside of the moat and Thapae gate. There are a few bridges in Chiang Mai where tourists will be releasing lanterns for Yi Peng.
I went to the Nawarat Bridge to see the festival of lights and Loi Krathong, as the Nawarat Bridge is over the Ping River. You could see floating lanterns as early as 6:30pm and they continued throughout the night. Note the laws change every year, but it is illegal to fly lanterns before the city has stopped air traffic for the night. big lantern costs around 90 baht.
Pai is a town in the Mae Hong Soon Province of northern Thailand. It sits in a valley on the banks of the Pai River. It's known for its nearby gorges, hot springs like the Tha Pai Hot Spring and waterfalls like Mo Paeng Waterfall. Downtown, food stalls and handicraft shops line Pai Walking Street. West of town lies Baan Santichon, a traditional Chinese village with clay houses and eateries serving Yunnan cuisine.
It's easy to take a bus from chiang mai to Pai which is around 3 hours journey. Pai is a village where most of the things made are organic. you guys can visit to nearby places like pai's waterfall and pai's walking street. Be aware of mosquitoes. it is recommended to carry mosquito spray with you.
I spent few days in Pai,then I drove to Krabi with my friend. It's 18 hours journey from chiang mai. There is also bus services available from chiang mai to krabi. When you are making a road trip, in the way you will get a lot of food stations. lot of pineapple shops as pineapple is very cheap in thailand. you will also love the road journey, make sure to take enough breaks and enjoy the nature and your journey.
There are so many places to visit in Krabi. generally you will find options of Island Hoping. I would recommend to go for a package where it covers few islands. I went to koh pada Island, bamboo island, phra nang island. It costs around 1000 baht by spped boat and 500 baht by long tail boat. I would recommend you all for a speed boat ride. You will get to see 4 Islands, they offer free snacks(fruits and a water bottle) along with snorkelling(provide snorkells) and they have some dedicated time slot for each Island. you get 2 hours in koh pada for snorkelling.
Next day I went to Ko phi phi island. I was amazed by the beauty of Islands, so I thought I should stay in Ko phi phi Island. People those who love partying, Ko phi phi is the place for partying. You get to see a lot of sacks where Fire shows, fun games goes on. This island never sleeps. I booked a hostel in ko phi phi Island.link is provided below forhostelbooking. https://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Hangover-Hostel/Koh-Phi-Phi/268871
I would recommend to keep your budget short because this island is very expensive. The cost of a water bottle is twice as available in the main city.
I was back to Krabi by a Ferry. You will easily get a ferry from Ko phi phi Island. ferry would hardly cost you 15 baht. you can also check the timings of ferry in the following link :https://www.phuketferry.com/koh-phi-phi.html
I explored the night market in Krabi (aao nang Night market). Here you will find cheap clothes, paintings, home decorations in an affordable price. You can try variety of cuisine here.
Next day Early morning I started a trip from Krabi to Phuket. It's hardly 2 hours journey. You will enjoy this trip. You can also easily get a taxi from krabi to phuket. since I already had a car, I enjoyed the drive. I drove to Patong as it is attracts many tourists for it's night life and beautiful view of beaches. I booked a hostel in 6 bed mixed dorm, again the booking was done from hostelworld.com. There are many places to visit in Phuket but again it depends on your point of interest. Since I visited so many Buddha Temple in chiang mai, so, I thought to skip Temples and I was focused on Night Life, old city view of Phuket as will as Rang Hill.
Bangla Road really comes to life once the sun sets. The road is closed to vehicle traffic and becomes a 400 metre festival of neon lights, loud music and cheap beer. Jammed most nights of the year, it is quite a friendly and lively place to walk around as bars and clubs compete with each other for customers. If you’re looking for a fun night out in Phuket, Bangla Road should be your first (and, often, only) stop. Almost all of the bars are outdoors or open-fronted, so the music from each one blends into a mess of mixed beats. Beer bars occupy most of the street's length, with several go-go bars and a few pubs, restaurants, discos and shops rounding out the attractions, both on Soi Bangla and down its side streets. Street performances are also common most nights, which can make dodging around the tailor shop salesmen, leaflet distributors, street vendors and ping pong show touts more difficult, but it is all part of the fun.I did many Bar hoppings as there is no entry charges for any clubs or pubs. I loved the ambience of Illusion Show & Discotheque bar. I even went to watch a boxing match here in bangla street.
Personally I would recommend to be very careful in this streets as you might lose a lot of cash because many of these salesmen would take you to their club and might charge hefty amount also be aware of Pick pocketing.
Next day i went to James bond Island.
Island Hopping
I took a package tour for Island Hopping i.e. to James bond island, Monkey island. The package include 4 Island Hopings. I got the package from one of the shop located in patong Beach.This Included Pick up from Hostel then they give fruits as snacks, Snorkels for snorkelling, a spped boat tour.It's easy to find such tour packages. I would strongly recommend you to Bargain at First. It costs 1000 baht for Island Hoppings in Phuket. If you want to visit an Individual Island, you can reach there by speed boat service.
Khao Rang Hill is one of Phuket’s most famous viewpoints. Located to the northwest of the city centre, its summit offers views out over the town, to the south of the island, neighbouring islands and along the hills forming the ‘spine’ of the island, upon which sits the impressive Phuket Big Buddha.
Khao rang Hill restuarant is famous for traditional pad thai. i tried pad thai and it was really good though it's bit expensive than the regular restaurants.You will enjoy the calm soothing view from the hill top.
Phuket to pattaya is like 14 hours drive. make sure you take road 4 highway,It's time saving. I reached pattaya in the evening, so I thought to explore the famous walking street.walking street is similar to Bangla street of Phuket.I did many Bar hoppings.
I spent one night in pattaya. I booked a hostel from hostel world.com
There are many places to visit in pattaya. I didn't have that many days in hand, so i skipped other things and thought to go for a massage. I went for foot masage which was 500 baht for an hour. I would say Massges are very cheap in Thailand. I thought to take rest and enjoy the Night.
From Pattaya to bangkok it's a 3 hour journey. as soon as I reached Bangkok I visited to a friend's house. I didn't do any tours in bangkok as next day i had to catch my flight in early morning.
I submitted my car in the airport. I was struggling with mixed emotions I was happy I made this trip (from north to south) east to west) I was sad because my Vacation came to an end. sometimes, You feel like it's difficult to try all these things by your own, renting a car, driving, exploring new cities but once you do it you develop that confidence. I hope this blog gives you enough confidence and hope to plan for a New trip.
overall If you are looking for a memorable road trip and you are a passionate driver. if you like Road journey this trip will help you to develop your self confidence.
Budget- car rental:- 1400(rupees)*19(days), Patrol- on an average(46000 rupees), Hostel-12000(average) for 19 days, Food- 3 times meal (5000 rupees),other expenses(6000 rupees)
Frequent searches leading to this page:-
Thailand tour package from Mumbai, Thailand tour packages from Ahmadabad, Thailand tour packages from Amritsar, Thailand tour packages from Surat, Thailand tour packages from Kerala, Thailand tour packages without airfare
' fill='%23359391'%3e %3cpath d='M46.1538462%2c43.5714286 L41.5%2c50 L36.8461538%2c43.5714286 L36.8670256%2c43.5714286 C36.3173077%2c42.7142857 36%2c41.6851429 36%2c40.5714286 C36%2c37.4854286 38.4535641%2c35 41.5%2c35 C44.5464359%2c35 47%2c37.4854286 47%2c40.5714286 C47%2c41.6851429 46.6826923%2c42.7142857 46.1329744%2c43.5714286 L46.1538462%2c43.5714286 Z M41.4294872%2c39 C40.6150641%2c39 39.9487179%2c39.675 39.9487179%2c40.5 C39.9487179%2c41.325 40.6150641%2c42 41.4294872%2c42 C42.2439103%2c42 42.9102564%2c41.325 42.9102564%2c40.5 C42.9102564%2c39.675 42.2439103%2c39 41.4294872%2c39 L41.4294872%2c39 Z' id='Location-white'%3e%3c/path%3e %3c/g%3e %3c/svg%3e)
