Thailand is the ultimate backpacker's destination because it is budget friendly and it has a lot to offer; from its magnificent islands, amazing food, rich culture etc., you will be spoilt for choice. Before I tasted international travel, Thailand was my dream destination, thanks to a Kenyan travel blogger called Adventure Sign. The best time to visit Thailand is between January and May for the best weather. Before I travel to any country, I always set a goal for what I want to experience in my time there. My goal for Thailand was to sample as much Thai food as my stomach could allow, experience Thai culture, explore a couple of islands, indulge in water sports and finally experience the night life in Thailand. And that’s exactly what I did! Below is my itinerary.
Bangkok
Starting off strong is Bangkok, the capital city. This is where you will most likely be landing. Often times I refrain from touring the big cities because I don’t find much appeal in them. However, Bangkok is an exception to this rule. Bangkok is not your regular city; it has got its own charm and unique character. I chose to spend 3 days here, but I could have easily spent a week. I won't lie, my most anticipated experience in Bangkok was the night life, thanks to the movie “The Hangover Part II” (If you have watched it, you know how wild it gets). After finally experiencing the night life in Bangkok, I can attest that it indeed lives up to its name. Let’s get into what I did in Bangkok
Night markets
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Thailand is known to have one of the best night markets in the world, and the biggest night market so happens to be in Bangkok. At 7pm night markets start to spring all over the city, some open from as early as 5pm. The night markets I visited were:
Khao San Road. This is a road that gets transformed into a night market at night. The Road is usually closed on both ends and the restaurants along the road bring chairs and tables outside. There are also a ton of street food vendors selling all sorts of foodstuffs to choose from. I tried a couple of foods and the one that I can really recommend is the Khao Soi soup. This soup is not easily available in other parts of Thailand so better take advantage when you are here.
There are also a couple of pubs along this street, so you can have your dinner and hop into a pub for some entertainment.
Icon Siam Mall. At around 7pm, the first floor of Icon Siam mall transforms into a night food market. Since this one is inside a fancy mall, the market feels a little upscale than the usual street food markets. This is where I went on my first night in Bangkok. I absolutely loved it because they had all the different varieties of Thai food you can think of in one place. If I remember correctly, I ate Pad Thai, Mango Sticky Rice (a must try) and Thai milk tea. Afterwards I went on to explore Icon Siam mall and found a rooftop lounge with live music and a breathtaking view of the Chao Phraya River.
Night Life
If you are a fan of the night life, you might want to check out Soi Cowboy Road. This is the red-light district of Bangkok and it has all sorts of wild things going on there. One of the scenes in The Hangover Part II was shot there, so if you want to satisfy your curiosity, head on there.
The highlight of my night life experience was at Space Plus Club in Bangkok. This is one of the most popular clubs in Bangkok. I really enjoyed my time there, from the music, to the sound quality, the crowd and performances. Speaking of performances, they had an entire Thai dance performance, female dancers, the DJs had quite the entrances and they even had a dragon-mask parade in the crowd at some point. It felt more of a concert than a normal club.
If you love rooftop bars, I can recommend Octave Rooftop Lounge and Bar. It’s located on the 49th floor of the Bangkok Marriott Hotel and provides 360 degrees view of Bangkok’s skyline.
Excursions
I took a day trip to the Damnoen Saduak floating market. In the past, daily commerce in Thailand was conducted mostly along rivers and canals. Foreign tourists travel here to shop, eat, and absorb the atmosphere of Thailand water markets that have been like this for over 100 years. Damnoen Saduak is the straightest and longest canal in Thailand. You will get to experience vendors selling food and merchandise on boats and along the river. If you like history and culture then this might be an activity for you.
I also visited the Maeklong Railway Market where a railway line passes through the middle of a market. The market is called life-risking market because its stalls are attached to the Mae Klong-Ban Laem railway, which is a short railway line running from and to Mahachai and Mae Klong. Vendors at the market put out parasols or canvas to protect themselves against the sun. The shelters stick into the railway where visitors walk and do their shopping. When each signal of the arriving train rings, chaos happens: vendors will rush to close their parasols and canvas, along with clearing all goods that will obstruct the coming train at a great speed. Once the train passes, parasols and canvas will be reopened as goods are again put into their usual place next to the railroad. It was definitely an interesting site to see but a little short-lived. Because it was a two-hour drive away from the city, it’s probably not something I would go out of my way to experience again.
Phuket Island
I took a one-and-a-half-hour flight down south to Phuket. If you have done your research online, you may have come across comments that Phuket is so crowded and overrated. This initially put me in a dilemma whether to skip Phuket or not, but I am so happy I didn’t skip it. My thoughts are, people’s opinions vary depending on what they are looking forward to experience in a particular place, so it’s important to know what you like and what you don’t like when picking destinations. Phuket is the largest island out of the 1430 islands in Thailand, so you bet there is a ton of stuff to do here. I’m an explorer, so the more there is to explore, the better for me. There is also access to a lot of amenities like big shopping malls, all sorts of restaurants, hospitals, plenty of activities, resorts etc. Some of the smaller islands tend to be lacking in some amenities like shopping malls and a variety of activities. At the end of the day, I think the criteria for choosing which island to visit lies in your preference. Do you like being outdoors exploring, meeting new people, engaging in different activities? Or do you like to lay on a sun lounger all day by the beach sipping on cocktails? I`m more of the former, so Phuket was perfect for me.
My accommodation was along Patong beach where most tourists hang around. While some people might argue it is too touristy and crowded, I personally didn’t mind it at all since it made it so easy for me to navigate as a tourist.
Let’s get down to the activities I did in Phuket
Old Phuket Town
On my first night here, I headed over to Old Phuket Town. I loved the old historical buildings and the colorful shops along the streets. The architecture here is a harmonious blend of Chinese and Portuguese influences, very lovely if you ask me. Luckily, I was right in time for the Sunday night market. There were a lot of food stalls selling delicious street food and shops selling all sorts of merchandise like shoes, clothes, accessories etc. There were a couple of street performances too. I remember a guy impersonating Elvis Presley right from his outfit to his vocals, a couple of girls were playing some sweet melodies on their violin and there was a Michael Jackson impersonator moon walking to the famous Michael Jackson song “Smooth Criminal”. If I had more time, I would have made another trip to this old town, particularly for its history and architecture.
Day trip to Similan Island
Similan Island is only open for tourism from October to May, which is the dry season. I would describe it as Zanzibar and Seychelles fused together. The beach had incredibly soft white sand and the water was crystal clear and light blue which reminded me of Mnemba island in Zanzibar. The Seychelles part is because the beach had rocks resembling the unique granite rocks found on the beaches in Seychelles. The water was warm, clear and I could snorkel very close to the shore without having to go far out into the ocean. That right there was my highlight because it meant that I didn’t need a floater to snorkel. I’m still not confident enough to go into the deep ocean without a floater.
We visited several islands that make up the Similan Islands and each Island was just as beautiful as the last if not more. I love swimming in warm crystal-clear waters, so I had my fair share of swimming. We had lunch at a designated area in one of the islands and a huge water monitor lizard decided to join us for lunch too. These are considered the largest species of lizards after Komodo dragons, and turns out they are not harmful but considering the way it was gulping down food, I won’t be petting a monitor lizard any time soon.
The trip to Similan Island was an entire day because it was a bit far out from Phuket. It's worth mentioning that we took a 2-hour speed boat and it was a rough ride on the ocean, so if you are prone to getting sea sick, this might be something to reconsider. The trip was overall amazing and I 10/10 recommend it.
Thai Boxing
I had no idea Thai boxing was a thing, let alone a huge deal. Every time there is a boxing match about to happen at the boxing arena, there will be posters all around town advertising it. Sometimes you will spot cars with banners and speakers moving around town handing out posters. Now I’m not a huge sports person but this really got me curious and I’m so glad I went. Note that the stadium tends to get packed quickly so it's better to get there early. The game typically takes place at night between 9pm and midnight.
This was my first time attending a live boxing match and I had lots of fun. The crowd was very hyped and the boxing matches were entertaining. I specifically loved the part where the boxers were flexing on their opponents. They even had a session where kids were kick boxing. Grabbing a cold beer and enjoying a nice game with good company is something I could get used it. I even managed to get a quick snap with one of the boxers from Thailand who had won on his boxing round.
Thai Massage
Traditional Thai massage combines acupressure, Indian Ayurvedic principles, and assisted yoga postures, but with no use of oils or lotions (however there is an option to request the use of oil which is what I did). The recipient remains clothed during treatment, which I found odd at first considering I’ve only experienced Swedish massage. There is constant body contact between the giver and receiver, but rather than rubbing on muscles, the body is compressed, pulled, stretched and rocked. This is what I imagine happens when someone goes to a chiropractor. I went to those makeshift massage shops by the beach and it was so relaxing. They were also super cheap and convenient since I didn't need any prior appointment and I could just pop in whenever. Because of this, I was able to get massages a couple of times.
Food
Phuket is where I made informed choices and sampled a variety of Thai food. My choice for dinner was always at the night market food stalls that pop up at night. I initially had restaurants lined up in my itinerary but I threw all that out of the window. Night food markets felt like the perfect way for me to experience the culture and the food at the same time. Here is where I fell in love with Pad Thai and I couldn’t resist from eating Pad Thai every day for lunch. Other foods I tried and really liked were Thai Cashew Chicken Stir Fry, Papaya Salad, Thai banana pancake with Nutella, Thai milk Boba and Khao Pad. These are the few I can remember off top of my head. I recommend Bangla Night Market for some good street food options.
Beach
Since Phuket is a massive Island, there are many beach options to choose from. The beach next to my accommodation was Patong beach which was pretty decent, but not necessarily the best in comparison to other beaches in Thailand. On my first day, I went out of my way to visit Freedom beach which was a little farther out and it included hiking down some steep path. There was an option of hopping at the back of a pick-up truck that was driving people to the beach but of course I chose to walk instead. This reminded me of Kelingking beach in Bali where I had to do a torturous hike down a super steep hill to access the beautiful Kelingking beach. I haven't quite figured yet my fascination with hiking down beaches, good things are hard to come by, I guess. Freedom beach was much more beautiful and with better views compared to Patong Beach, I guess it was worth the hike. Later on, I figured that instead of hiking to the beach, I had the option of taking a thirty-minute boat ride from Patong beach to Freedom beach. Yay!
Shopping
There are plenty of shops to buy clothes, shoes, souvenirs etc. at a good price. I took advantage of this and did a little shopping for some souvenirs and clothes. I particularly went to the shops within and nearby Bangla Road. There is also a huge mall called Central Phuket Shopping Mall where you can find fancier stores like Zara, Decathlon etc.
Beach clubs
I love beach clubs, and Phuket has so many of options. On my first day here, I went to Cafe Del Mar Beach Club along Kamala beach. Not only did they have ample entertainment of good music and female dancers putting up a show, they also offered everyone free rounds of shots on the house, twice! That was definitely a first for me, or probably someone was generous to buy the entire beach club shots? I don’t know. The food was amazing and the atmosphere even better. I highly recommend it. There are a ton of other beach clubs like Yona Beach Club which is known as the very first floating beach club in the world!
Part two of my Thailand trip will be coming out soon, where I will share my Itinerary and experience at Koh Phi Phi and Krabi Island.
Budget Breakdown, shall we?
- My flight from Nairobi, Kenya to Bangkok Thailand cost around $800. This was the price of a one-way ticket because I was to fly back to Kenya from Vietnam. The flight from Bangkok to Phuket cost $150. I consider flights to be the only super expensive thing about traveling. You could always find cheaper options for accommodation, food and activities.
- When it comes to accommodation, I always say there is something for everyone. You can either choose to stay at a hostel that can cost from as low as $10 a night or go for an Airbnb or Hotels that can cost as low as $30 a night. Accommodation in Thailand seems to be quite affordable except during the peak tourist season. Booking far in advance helps reduce the cost though.
- Food was very affordable. For a decent meal at a restaurant, you could spend as low as $5 on a plate of food. Same goes for drinks
- The price of activities can vary depending on which website you are using to source them. It is usually said that finding tour options from those vendors by the beach is usually the cheapest option since you can bargain. Using online websites like TripAdvisor tend to be pricey, but each has its own pros and cons. The price for the Similan Island tour cost around $150 and this included everything from transportation, transfers, food and snorkeling so it was a fair price. Thai Kickboxing tickets were going for around $10. The massages were also going for around $10.
- Transportation around the island is also very affordable. For taxis I used an app called Grab and most rides were under $!0. Traditional boat rides were also affordable (costing around $5) a ride if you were moving within a short distance. Getting a private boat ride can get expensive though.
