A Thai love affair, she keeps drawing me back!

My 11th time back to Thailand in 2025 and this time I was taking a group of friends who hadn't been before. Needless to say I loved organising the trip itinerary and still found loads of things to see and do that were new to me too.

First few days were in Bangkok. Love it or hate it, I love the hustle, bustle and vibe in this hectic city! The food and bar scene is world class and probably one of the highlights, especially the midnight Tuk Tuk food tour, all that street food and back alleys was amazing! Finishing with a drink over the temple Wat Arun which is all lit up at night.

Some highlights of the food and bar scene we went to this time were; Mami Rose, Crystal House Grill Bar, Tribe Bar and Vertigo and Moon bar at the Banyan Tree hotel. We stayed in the Patpong area at Amara which was central to everything.

Days 2 and 3 were all about temples and palaces, taking in the Grand Palace, Temple of the Emerald Buddha and Reclining Buddha (those HUGE feet!). We also got to the MRT train to Keyha, the end of the line and visited the Ancient City, the worlds biggest open air museum full of temples, old and new and replicas. You need to hire a golf buggy ideally as this place is huge!

Day for was up early for a private day trip to the Maeklong Railway market and Damnoen Floating market, but hectic for different reasons but good to get there early. The train comes a few times a day and back again shortly after as it's the end of the line. It really does get THAT close, within inches of you so best to step back far enough. We stopped at After The Rain cafe on the way back to Bangkok for lunch which was cute. You can ride the boats up and down the waterways which was a novel touch.

Part 2 was onto Phuket where we had a beautiful private villa in the southern town of Rawai. Again, a great food scene, notable highlights for us were the Treehouse, On the Rocks, Grooov Bar, Day and Night in Phuket old town and of course, the private chef called selly who we organised locally. The food was de-lish!

We did an early bird day trip up at 4.30am to get the speedboat to Phrang Na national park and James Bond Island. Another worthwile excursion up early to avoid the mass of crowds. This included a trip to the floating village, one of the only Muslim only villages in this area, and various viewpoints including a kayak stop amongst the mangroves. This was a semi-private group tour (less than 16 people) and was booked through Klook.

We did Phuket Town for an evening and the night market whcih was pretty. The old town here is steeped in Portugeues history and that is replicated in architecture on the main strip. Other things we did were the beaches, Surin being one of our favourites.

Part 3 was a hop across the mainland to the Gulf of Thailand and Koh Samui. Having all been fans of the White Lotus series, the draw was the fact the majority of the series was shot here. We pre-booked afternoon tea at the Four Seasons hotel, the main film location. The food itself was incredibly presented in driftwood believe it or not! And of course the location too, which you'd expect from the Four Seasons group.

Again, the food and bar scene on this island were great. Highlights were Pi Restaurant (on the beach), Cocoon (in the mountains) and Dining on the Rocks.

We organised another semi-private trip to Angthong National park but this time on a yatch rather than a speedbaot. It was fairly luxurious, all food and drink included and our own sunbeds on the deck. It was a real leaiurely pace therre are back for 3 hours. We stopped off twice to different islands and climbed to the top of the highest viewpoint. The steps are very steep and uneven and it was bloody hot!! Worth the view but equally worth the swim in the sea afterwards.

Finally, onto Bangkok for an airport hotel and i stayed again at the Ammata Lanta hotel resort. Being an AV geek, the planes fly right over! The hotel is, pretty kitsch and niche and a cool place to stay in the round huts that are parallel to the runway.

Until next time, Kap Khun Krap.