In 2007 my mother and I traveled to Thailand for two weeks. We booked a tour throughout the country with Gate 1 Travel. I stopped by a Gate 1 booth at the Travel & Adventure Expo and was able to find part of our itinerary (it has been a bit tweeked since 2007). The following is a sample Thailand itinerary:
Day 1: Leave the USA
Day 2: Arrive in Bangkok, Thailand.
Day 3: (Bangkok) City tour. Visit temples including Wat Pho (with the giant reclining Buddha), Wat Arun, and the Grand Palace & Wat Prakeaw.
Day 4: (Bangkok) Visit the floating market.
Day 5: Travel to Chiang Mai.
Day 6: (Chiang Mai) Spend day at Mae Sa Elephant Camp. Visit markets.
Day 7: (Chiang Mai) Visit tribes including Mae Salong Hill tribe.
Day 8: (Chiang Rai) Visit Sukhothai Historical Park.
Day 9: (Chiang Rai) Visit Mae Sai Border Town & Golden Triangle. You are able to see Cambodia and Burma. Also, visit Wat Rong Khun (the White Temple).
Day 10: Travel to Phuket.
Day 11: (Phuket) Take a boat to Phang Nga Bay, Lawa Island, Koh Pannyi Sea Gypsy Island (a village built on stilts in the middle of the ocean – AMAZING), and Koh Ping Kan (“James Bond Island” – “The Man with the Golden Gun” was filmed there).
Day 12: (Phuket) Take a speedboat to Phi Phi & Khai Islands (have you seen “The Beach” with Leonardo DiCaprio? It was filmed there. Absolutely AMAZING).
Day 13: (Phuket) Spend day on beach. Rent some jet skis, shop, have fun and relax.
Day 14: Return to Bangkok and then to USA.
Some other notes for Thailand travelers:
- Shop! The markets and malls are amazing!
- Go to a nightclub. The nightclubs in Bangkok were the best I have ever been to.
- Eat lots and lots of Thai food.
- Get Thai massages. They are cheap and amazing.
- Bring respectful clothing if you plan to visit temples. In other words, bring pants or long skirts, shirts that cover your shoulders, scarfs, etc.
- Ride in a Tuk Tuk (taxi).
Enjoy Thailand! It is one of my favorite countries I have ever been to and I HIGHLY recommend it.
Great post! I am going to Thailand and Hong Kong in June and will bookmark this post for tips!
Thanks for reading today’s post. If you have any suggestions for additions to this list after your trip of must dos, please let me know!
Awesome! I miss Phuket so bad.
Me too!
How is Gate 1? …I actually worked for them a few years …or decades, back.
Good post
John
They did a great job especially with giving us flexibility to explore on our own.
Love the elephant!
Looks like you had a great tour! I think you covered the best of Thailand
) Nice!!