Lisa & Eoin
Things To Do
Maekok River Village Resort
The resort we will be using for the wedding is also an Outdoor Education Center and has a wide range of activities that they are willing to put on for guests on the Saturday and Sunday. The prices of these are below: We will end a spreadsheet out nearer the time with more details of timings and when to sign up. They are all dependent on a minimum of 6 people signing up. If there is anything you are particularly keen on doing from the list below please let us know: Onsite: High ropes, Archery, Climbing wall 150 baht pp Chinese village of Mae Salong 750 baht pp 4 to 5 hour visit Hilltribe and temple visit 400 baht pp Kayaking 500 baht pp Biking 300 baht pp Boat trip 200 baht pp Three dish Cooking course 1100 per station 2 ppl station. Min of 2 stations.
What the guidebook says to do
Below is a link to some of the more obvious tourist sites in Bangkok. The other recommendations are some of our suggestions of things to do in Bangkok.
Eat, eat, eat in Bangkok.
There are absolutely loads of amazing places to eat and drink in Bangkok - far too many to mention here. I have put together a Google My Map of some of our favourite places to eat around the city which you can find at the link below.
Bang Krachao Island
Bang Krachao (or the Green Lung) is our favourite place in Bangkok and it's where we bring all our guests. It's virtually traffic free and feels nothing like Bangkok. One of the easiest ways to get to Bang Krachao is to get a taxi to Wat Bangna Nok (https://goo.gl/maps/H4fkcH1oFPpviepFA) where there are ferries crossing the river every few minutes. The ferry costs less than 10 Baht and you can rent bikes on the other side for less than 100Baht. Rent a bike, cycle around and stop for a drink and food when you're too hot.
Ride Bangkok's canals
If you want to avoid the traffic and see a different side of Bangkok, we recommend travelling by canal boat. Thonglor Road (Sukhumvit 55) - a place with lots of bars and restaurants - is a good starting point. Get a taxi to where Thonglor Road meets the canal, and walk across to the pier on the other side or ask your taxi driver to bring you here: ทองหล่อ ท่าเรือ (Thonglor tharuea) Get a boat in the direction: Pratunam Pier. When you get to Pratunam Pier, you'll have to switch to another boat. This isn't a real interchange - it's just as far as the boat goes and then you switch to a different boat going in the same direction. The majority of people will be doing the same thing, so just follow everyone else along the pier and get on the next boat. At Ban Krua Nua, you can visit Jim Thompson's house. If you continue to the end of the line - Phanfa Leelard - you'll be a tuktuk away from the Golden Mount, Khao Sarn Road, Democracy Monument, the Grand Palace, Wat Pho etc.
Rod Fai train market
This is a quirky vintage night market open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays which sells a range of random items from clothes to antiques. There is even a section with vintage cars. Wandering around the market and stopping at the various little bars and street food stalls is a great way to spend an evening in Bangkok. There are a number of restaurants in the market which specialise in really tasty ribs, and there's a great all you can eat seafood BBQ place next door. We recommend taking a grab taxi to get here. It's about 30 mins from On Nut depending on traffic.
Khao Yai national park
Want to see elephants in the wild? This is probably the best place in Thailand to see them. Khao Yai national park is about 2 hours north of Bangkok and can be reached easily by bus or private car. Pak Chong is the closest village to the national park and has lots of quirky places to stay for reasonable prices. You can also choose to camp in one of the 2 main national park campsites where you are guaranteed to see lots of wildlife. Khao Yai is home to lots of different animals such as hornbills, deer, porcupines, elephants, monkeys and more snakes than I have seen anywhere else in Thailand. Probably the best way to guarantee to see it all is to go on one of the Greenleaf wildlife tours at the link below. There are also lots of hiking routes - that you can do with a ranger by booking directly at the national park office - which take you through the jungle and past numerous beautiful waterfalls.
Chiang Dao, Northern Thailand
Chiang Dao is a beautiful little village in Northern Thailand, a few hours drive from the wedding venue. We visited here for the first time a few years go and spent a fantastic long weekend scootering around the local countryside. There are lots of things to see and do in and around the village such as hiking, biking, visiting caves, temples and hot springs. Climbing Chiang Dao is a definite highlight; recommended by a colleague as something you must do before you die. The village is also home to two fantastic small guesthouses The Nest and The Nest 2 which serve delicious Thai and western food and Thai craft beer (they also serve normal beer). This is some of the best food in Northern Thailand in one of the most beautiful settings. Definitely worth a visit either before or after the wedding if you have a spare few days.
Koh Mook and Koh Kradan
These are our two favourite islands for a beach holiday in Thailand. Both have stunning white sandy beaches and are relatively quiet compared to some of the more famous beach resorts in the south. Koh Kraden is particularly good for snorkelling, and Koh Mook is home to the famous emerald cave (a 20m long tunnel that you swim through to reach a secluded beach). We stayed at a lovely resort called Koh Mook Sivali Beach Resort which has bungalows right on the beach and is built on a beautiful white sand spit. There is a small selection of local Thai restaurants on both islands but no noisy party scene. We'd recommend exploring the local food options rather than eating at the hotel where the food wasn't great. Both islands are close to each other and easy to reach by longtail boat from the mainland. The closest airport is Trang which has frequent flights to Bangkok.