10 days in Thailand
- Kate O'Dowd
- Aug 29, 2024
- 8 min read
I recently spent 6 weeks under the hot sun, mostly studying along the beautiful cliffs on the coast of Koh Samui...but... as they seem to say: work hard play hard... here is what I recommend for 10 days in Thailand.
Studying??? In Thailand- girl what you talking about. If that just went through your mind, allow me to clarify. I am a yoga instructor (if you are reading this on my website you might be like well...yes...ha!) and I completed my 300 hour yoga teacher training at Vikasa. Vikasa offers 200 hour programs as well as mini trainings in business, sound healing, yin, etc. I would absolutely recommend this training or any of their other options. What I loved is you are living and breathing the work day in and day out. Everyone in the training grows so close because you are together all the time for 5 weeks and it is intense. During their 300 hour training they assume you know how to teach, so they spend a lot of the time having you experience. This was super helpful for me running around trying to make a living to get to feel what I'm facilitating others to feel. So bottom line- yes I recommend.
-pro tip- sign up WAY in advance, they normally give a good deal if you are in the first 10 sign ups and they fill up quick.
Vikasa is located on Koh Samui- which is an island I recommend hitting! Lets get down to it.
Overall pro tips:
-Download the app "Grab" it is their version of uber and is super easy to use, you even can order a scooter to hop on the back of for cheaper then a car. If you do take a taxi or a tuk tuk alwayssssss try to talk them down from the price they offer up
-Come with a lot of Bahts (Thai currency) you can get them in the airport- but have US cash all ready to exchange because some cards get eaten by machines. cash is king
-You can visit from the US and many other countries for 30 days with no visa it is easy to get another 30 days in person.
Bangkok-
1 day: get used to the time difference, check out some of the floating markets, or....like I did just treat Bangkok as a layover and fly right to Koh Samui.
Koh Samui-
3 days: fly Bangkok to Koh Samui. From here it is easy to ferry over to some islands (including the full moon party one- Koh Phangan) and Koh Tao which is supposed to be lovely!
Where to stay-
$$ Vikasa! It is also a hotel. Even if you do not stay here stop by, they have public yoga classes in The White Sala (which has an ocean view and you can hear the waves...I mean CMON!) The Life Cafe is also open to the public (try the burrito and add tempeh thank me later) public can also get massages here, when its nice the massage table is under a hut on a cliff...over looking the beach...
$$$ Wild Elephant Cottages: come here whether you stay here or not! The lobby holds goods from a local lady who makes beautiful boho clothes- think linen pants and kimonos and crop tops (it is called One Love). They also have a restaurant that has maybe the best table side guacamole (that you get to mix yourself!) and fresh hot out of the oven chips I have ever had. Plus while you are sitting enjoying your guac at 1:30pm each day you have a view of elephants walking past you!
$$$$$ Four Seasons: yet remember everything here is still cheaper then it would be in the U.S. This resort is stunning. It is small, the spa has mini wooden homes instead of treatment rooms, the beach has a hammock to swing over the water, oh and the newest season of White Lotus was filmed here...
What to do-
Fisherman's village is the cutest "town" to walk around, they have a big night market on Fridays and Sundays
-Coco Tams: good wood fired pizza that you can enjoy on the beach. Every night at 7:15pm and 9pm there is a fire show which is cool to see but beware if you are sitting on the beach during the show there is a good chance someone will come up to you without asking and swing fire around your head. Hey I warned ya!
-next to Coco tams is their breakfast spot- they have beach chairs you can sit in for free which is a nice way to spend the afternoon before you grab some za!
-Good things: chocolate chip cookie. need I say more?
-Roastery: for those coffee drinkers I have heard the roastery in Fishermans is epic.
When your down by Fishermans you will be close to the big Buddha statue (5 minute drive) which is cool to see but there's not much more to do around it.
Chaweng:
Another town! Not much to walk around BUT
-Phensiri: good sit down Thai restaurant
-Flo coffee
Lamai:
-Silver Beach is a nice little beach- where you can get a cheap massage right at the beach
-Lamai Health store for your health food needs!
Continue on down the road to...
Overlap stone (TWO!)
pro tip- Don't go to overlap stone 1, it is touristy and they charge you 200 bhat. There is also no hike, you get out from the car park and BAM! BUT do drive here or get dropped off here- and then continue on foot up the paved road until you see a little trail sign to overlap stone 2- this is a quiet beautiful short BUT STEAP hike to a great view and its only 20 bhat.
Other fun hikes-
-Na Muang waterfall
-Hin Land waterfall: 45 ish minute pretty easy hike to a waterfall that is super fun to swim in.
Where to go for a drink and a view-
-The Cocoon View Point: okay food, the real draw is the views of lush greenery all around you. You sit at normal tables but there is a cute over hang swing you can sit in for pictures.
-The Jungle Club: great place for an afternoon drink. Another GORGEOUS look out. They have iconic red bean bags scattered around along the wooden floor which gives the feel of a tree house. Beware coming here in the rain- cars can't drive up the road in the rain to pick you up (speaking from experience)
^I would recommend making a rezzy at both of these
Krabi
3 days- enjoy the cutest open air little airport at Koh Samui and hop on a flight to Krabi. Krabi is slightly quieter then Phucket but you can still enjoy the same stereotypical trip to Thailand long tail boat along the coast. You should island hop one day, hike one day, and perhaps head to Khao Sak National Park the last day depending on how much travel you want to do!
Where to stay-
-Ao Nang is the busy party area BUT has plenty of accommodation
-Raily Beach- rename this to a post high school European back packers heaven. It is only accessible via long tail boat so you have to boat here- there are a few PACKED hostels.
-if you are booling one of the only Ritz Reserves in the world is here in Krabi!
What to do-
Island hop of course!
-Pipi islands: I didn't end up going here but everyone that did says the way to go about it is to rend a private long tail boat or a speed boat (the price is very reasonable) and it takes you 45 minutes to get to Pipi from Krabi so you want to be sure the seas are calm. This beach is where The Beach, the Leonardo DiCaprio movie was filmed
-Hong Island: a quieter island to visit, it is very very small. Theres a 15 minute stair master climb to an insane look out of the island
-I would skip Raily beach BUT if you find yourself there definitely do the hike up to the view point (you will want sneakers) this hike is a 10 minute straight scramble up ropes (safe but steep) to a stunning view.
pro tip- while climbing stay towards the left, if you go right it brings you to a lagoon and people said that trail was even more hairy
Who knew we'd hike so much in Thailand?
Khao Ngon Nak Nature Trail
This hike is no joke- but it is a MUST DO! We did it at sunrise- it was a full 2 hours to the top (4 hours round trip and hang time at the summit) and WOW mountains all around. Very cool perspective from probably being on a beach your other days in Thailand,
-Khao Sak National Park is two hours from Krabi so if it's on your bucket list you could add it on while your in Krabi! They have these floating bungalows over the lake you can stay the night in.
Chiang Mei
4 days- now fly over to the jungly mountain heaven which is Chiang Mei. The city is of course so cool- but the real magic is beyond the city limits in the hidden greenery!
Where to stay-
$$$$: Four Seasons: put it on your bucket list this is one of the nicest hotels in the world I think. They offer such fun activities like make your own tie dye from berries, help in the rice fields, bathe water buffalos...etc.
$: Many many hostels all throughout the city.
What to do-
Wats- temples: There are SO MANY WATS! You can go around Old Town in the city and go in one that suites you- OR what we did-
-Hike Wat Pha Lat to Wat Doi Suthep- hike the monks trail! This took around 3 hours one way. The grab will drop you off and you have a 40 minute difficult but do-able hike to Wat Pha Lat (this temple is so pretty, its in the greenery and there's a small waterfall and many statues/ little rooms to walk into. it is very fair land)
pro tip- you walk from there back into the woods along a river for around 10 minutes (do this even if you don't continue to hike up to Wat Doi Suthep)
-then you come across the road (you could walk down the road a few minutes to the car park for those that drove up to Wat Pha Lat or continue on the hike- to do so, cross the road) then it is back into the woods for another hour and a half for a steep climb (don't do it when muddy its very steep and mostly on clay). This was a very quiet path, not touristy at all. You will eventually emerge and have 10ish minutes back walking on the road until you get to the temple
-Wat Doi Suthep is more commercial and charges a fee/ is a lot busier.
-From Wat Doi Suthep its super easy to call a grab so you don't have to retrace your steps
pro tip- Download the All Trails app and download the route!
-also have a long sleeve to pull on to visit the temples-a lot of them they don't allow your shoulders or knees to show
Nature-
-Elephant Nature Park: 1,000 percent an ethical elephant sanctuary- you can't touch or feed the elephants (or even get too close to them for a picture). I would say do the afternoon half time tour- its more then enough time, you follow around the elephants and observe them close up. During the afternoon tour you also get to see the elephants walk along the river home to where they sleep for the night. The tour will pick you up where your staying!
-Sticky Waterfalls: weirdest cool thing- you can walk up the waterfall and your feet will stick to the waterfall. There are definitely tours but you also could rent a car.
I didn't do these but they looked cool-
-Wachirathan waterfall
-Pha Dok Siew Nature trail
The City-
-Wualai walking street- a big night market on Saturdays
-Old town: nice area to walk around-
-Fern is a cute little bakery in old town where you can sit in a little garden and listen to jazz...I mean.
In short-
No matter how you spend it or what is brining you there, Thailand is a place of buzz, bustle, sunshine, kind kind people and you will have an amazing time no matter where you land!!!!!
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