Temple cities, cool northern hills and two coasts with opposite monsoons, so there is nearly always a good beach somewhere.
Thailand is the easiest long-haul trip in Asia to get right: a direct overnight flight, easy hotel service and food worth the journey on its own. The skill is choosing which Thailand you want: Bangkok, the northern temples or the islands.
The two coasts run on different weather. The Andaman side, with Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga Bay, is best from November to April. The Gulf, with Koh Samui, stays drier through summer and takes its heaviest rain from October to December. We match the beach to your dates.
The honest caveat is crowds. Phi Phi fills with day boats by mid-morning and parts of Phuket are overbuilt, so we steer towards Phang Nga, Koh Yao Noi and the quieter bays of Samui, and time the famous sights for early starts.
The experiences we plan most often, with the months they are at their best.
Bangkok makes most sense from the water. Stay on the Chao Phraya and use the river boats to reach the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Wat Arun. A private longtail through the Thonburi canals shows wooden houses and small temples that have barely changed. Arrive at the Grand Palace as it opens, with shoulders and knees covered.
Chiang Mai is cooler, slower and greener than Bangkok. Inside the moat sit Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Phra Singh and the Sunday walking street market. Beyond the city, Doi Suthep and Doi Inthanon give you forest trails and hill villages. For elephants, choose a sanctuary where you watch and walk rather than ride.
Phang Nga Bay is a drowned landscape of limestone towers between Phuket and Krabi. Go by private boat with sea kayaks and paddle into the hongs, hidden lagoons inside the islands, at the right tide. Koh Panyee, a stilt village over the water, makes a good lunch stop. Calm seas run from November to April.
Samui is the Gulf's big island, with its own airport and good villas on the quieter north and west coasts. It is the obvious beach for July and August, when the Andaman side is rough. Spend a day in Ang Thong National Marine Park to the west, climbing to the viewpoint on Koh Wua Talab. Avoid November, the wettest month.
Thai food changes by region, and a morning in a market with a cook is the quickest way to understand it. In Chiang Mai that means khao soi and northern sausage; in Bangkok, the stalls of Or Tor Kor and the street food of Yaowarat, the Chinatown. The better schools are small and happy to cook mild for children.
Songkran, the Thai new year from 13 to 15 April, is a country-wide water fight, at its liveliest and most chaotic in Chiang Mai. Loy Krathong falls on the full moon of the twelfth lunar month, usually November, when candlelit baskets are floated on rivers. In Chiang Mai it coincides with Yi Peng lanterns. Book hotels early for both.
Choose by coast first. In Bangkok, stay on the river for the old city. Chiang Mai has old-city boutique hotels and resorts in the Mae Rim valley. On the Andaman side, pick Phang Nga or the quieter north of Phuket. On Samui, look to the north coast.
We match each trip in Thailand to hotels, lodges and villas chosen for the way you travel. Tell us what matters and a specialist will suggest two or three that fit.
Ask for hotel suggestionsThailand has three seasons: cool and dry from November to February, hot from March to May, and rainy from roughly June to October. Rain usually comes as a heavy afternoon burst rather than grey days, so the green season suits Bangkok and the north.
The coasts are the complication. The southwest monsoon roughens the Andaman Sea from May to October, while the Gulf islands take their rain later, from October to December. For a summer holiday, go to Samui. For Christmas, go to Phang Nga or Krabi.
A 12-night trip of temples, the cooler north and a long spell by the Andaman Sea. Best from November to March. 12 nights.
Arrive overnight and settle by the river. Early visits to the Grand Palace and Wat Pho, a canal trip and dinner in Yaowarat.
A short flight north. Walk the old city temples, take a cooking class and spend a day at an elephant sanctuary in the hills.
Drive north to the White Temple and the Golden Triangle on the Mekong.
Fly to Phuket and cross to a quiet resort on the bay. Kayak into the hongs and take a longtail to Koh Yao Noi, then fly home via Bangkok.
Practical notes checked against their sources. For entry and safety, the FCDO advice for Thailand (opens in a new tab) is always the authority.
Thai Airways flies direct from Heathrow to Bangkok overnight in about 11 and a half hours. Chiang Mai, Phuket, Krabi and Koh Samui are about an hour onwards by domestic flight.
UK passport holders can currently visit visa-free for short tourist stays and must complete a digital arrival card online before arrival. Read the FCDO entry requirements (opens in a new tab). FCDO advises against travel near the Cambodian border.
Read the FCDO entry requirements for Thailand (opens in a new tab)
Check TravelHealthPro (opens in a new tab) well before you travel. Day to day, respect the heat and sun, drink bottled water and use mosquito repellent.
The currency is the Thai baht. Cards work in hotels and most restaurants, but markets, taxis and street food want cash. FCDO warns of ATM skimming, so use machines inside banks.
Prepaid SIM cards are sold in convenience stores and at the airport; you need your passport to register one. A tourist eSIM is simpler.
Tipping is not traditional in Thailand. Smarter hotels and restaurants often add a service charge; where they do not, rounding up is appreciated. Guides and drivers are the people we suggest you tip.
From November to April, choose the Andaman coast: Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga Bay. From May to September, choose the Gulf, especially Koh Samui, which stays much drier while Andaman seas are rough. October to December is when Samui is wettest, so the Andaman coast takes over again.
Parts of it are. Patong and the west coast around it are crowded and built up. The far north around Mai Khao, and the resorts across the water in Phang Nga Bay, feel very different. We often suggest Koh Yao Noi for couples who want the easy Phuket flights without the crowds.
Two full days suits most first visits: the Grand Palace and Wat Pho, a longtail through the canals, a market and an evening eating in Chinatown. Add a third if you want a day trip to the old capital, Ayutthaya, or time to recover from the flight before heading north.
Yes, with the right plan. From June to October the rain usually falls in short afternoon bursts, and Bangkok and Chiang Mai are green, quiet and good value. The key is the beach: choose Koh Samui or Koh Tao on the Gulf side and avoid the Andaman coast, where some boat trips stop.
Tell us a little and a specialist will reply with ideas, dates that work and a price. Best months: November to February.
A long, narrow country of limestone bays, lantern-lit old towns and street food that changes every few hundred kilometres.
A Hindu island of temple ceremonies, rice terraces and clifftop villas, with a spa culture that runs deeper than hotels.
Ancient cities, tea hills, leopards and beaches in an island small enough to cross in a day.
Orangutans in Borneo’s rainforest, the street food of George Town and island beaches on two different monsoon coasts.
