Things to do in Thailand
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TOP SELLER
Explore Northern Thailand
8 days (ex Bangkok)
by Intrepid
Soak up the dynamic vibe of Bangkok city, Try fried bugs at the Sukhothai night market, Explore Lampang's enchanting ruins by bike, Watch elephants bathing in t…Not LP reviewed
from USD$905 - All things to do
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Tuba
Part storage room for over-the-top vintage furniture, part friendly local boozer, this bizarre bar certainly doesn't lack in character. Indulge in a whole bottle for once and don't miss the delicious chicken wings.
reviewed
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Chatuchak Weekend Market
Among the largest markets in the world, Chatuchak Weekend Market seems to unite everything buyable, from used vintage sneakers to baby squirrels. JJ, as it’s also known, is the ideal place to finally pick up those gifts for people back home, not to mention a pretty item or two for your own home. The market is roughly divided into thematic sections, the best guide to these being Nancy Chandler’s Map of Bangkok. Because Chatuchak is a Thai institution, food also plays a significant role, and there are numerous drinks and snack vendors, and several good restaurants on the outside edges of the market. Plan to spend a full day, as there’s plenty to see, do and buy. But com…
reviewed
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Night Bazaar
This extensive market sprawls along several blocks. Roofed concession areas, regular shops and street vendors offer a huge variety of Thai goods at bargain prices. Designer goods - real and fake - are also on offer. The Night Bazaar attracts foreign importers, impressed by the discounts given to bulk purchases.
Good buys include Phrae-style sêua mâw hâwm (blue cotton farmer's shirt), northern- and northeastern-Thai hand-woven fabrics, yâam (shoulder bags), hill-tribe crafts (many tribespeople set up their own stalls here; the Akha wander around on foot), opium scales, hats, silver jewellery, lacquerware, woodcarvings, iron and bronze Buddhas, as well as many other item…
reviewed
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Blue Elephant
The Blue Elephant got its start in Brussels more than two decades ago as an exotic outpost of royal Thai cuisine. After spreading to other cities, the owners boldly chose Bangkok, the cuisine’s birth mother, as its ninth location. Set in a stunning Sino-Portuguese colonial building with service fit for royalty, the restaurant also features an impressive cooking school.
reviewed
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Lotus Diving
This dive centre has top-notch instructors, and owns not one, but two beautiful boats (that's two more vessels than most of the other operations on Ko Pha-Ngan). Trips can be booked at their office in Chalok Lam, or at the Backpackers Information Centre. Recommended.
reviewed
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Babylon Beach Club
Accessible by dirt road are the seaside, polished, whitewashed environs of the Babylon Beach Club. Under new Italian management, lunch is more casual 'beach fare' such as burgers and salads while dinner gets more lavish with mains such as prawn and asparagus risotto.
reviewed
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Big Blue Diving
If Goldilocks were picking a dive school, she'd probably pick Big Blue – this midsize operation (not too big, not too small) gets props for fostering a sociable vibe while maintaining a high standard of service. Divers of every ilk can score dirt-cheap accommodation at their resort.
reviewed
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MBK Food Court
The granddaddy of Bangkok food courts offers dozens of vendors selling dishes from virtually every corner of Thailand and beyond. It's a great introduction to Thai food, and standouts include an excellent vegetarian food stall (stall C8) and a very decent Isan food vendor (C22). To pay you must first exchange your cash for a temporary credit card at one of several counters; your change is refunded at the same desk.
reviewed
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Café Primavera
If the coffee was just a tad better, this dark-wood and marble-topped table trattoria is just the kind of place we’d like to make our local cafe. The pizzas and homemade gelati offer more hope, and the friendly and efficient staff seal the deal.
reviewed
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Chopper's Bar & Grill
So popular that it's become a local landmark, Chopper's is a two-storey hang-out where divers and travellers can widen their beer belly. There's live music, sports on the big-screen TVs, billiards and a cinema room. Friday nights are particularly popular; the drinks are 'two for one', and dishes are half-priced as well. Cheers for scored goals are interspersed with exaggerated chatter about creatures seen on the day's dive.
reviewed
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Scubafish
One of the best dive operations on the island is located at Baan Laanta Resort on Ao Kantiang; there's also a small second office at the Narima resort. Unlike some of the large and impersonal operators based in Ban Sala Dan, Scubafish runs personal and personable programs tailored to one's needs, including the Liquid Lense underwater photography program. The three-day dive packages (9975B) are quite popular.
reviewed
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Love at First Bite
Tucked deep into a residential soi on the east bank of the river, this famous dessert shop is filled with middle-class, cake-confident Thais. Don't be surprised to see folks posing in front of the dessert display case for a souvenir photo. It's on the eastern side of the river about 500m north of the tourist office.
reviewed
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Apple & Noi's Thai Cooking Course
If you don't know your sôm·đam from your đôm yam then Khun Noi can assist. The one-day course starts at the local market and ends, four dishes later, at the dining table.
reviewed
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Da Stefano
An intimate, well-decorated, air-con place, Da Stefano focuses on fresh Italian cuisine, with one of the better wine lists in town.
reviewed
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Baru
OK, imagine that (fashion) disaster has struck. More specifically, that the ‘bozos’ at the airlines have misplaced your bags. Which means that you have arrived on Phuket with only the clothes on your back – ie sweaty leather shoes, a ‘comfortable’ (read: unsexy) ankle-length skirt and a long-sleeve knit sweater (relax, we know, you were dressed for the plane). But now the sun is shining, the beach boys are beckoning and you need a shot of beach sexy (think skimpy bikinis, beach wraps and candy-coloured flip-flops), and fast. Welcome to your Eden.
reviewed
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Anusan Night Market
Anusan is a buzzing food market best known for its Thai-Chinese seafood restaurants. Stalls surround a large cluster of tables where each 'restaurant' has a section allocated with its own waiters. Nearby are other stand-alone restaurants, some of which have their own prawn holding ponds acting as centrepieces for their menu speciality. The prices are higher than they ought to be but these are special-occasion splash-out restaurants for Thais. Try Lena Restaurant here, where a kilo of succulent grilled prawns will set you back 300B. Or have a stab at the fish in Thai spices and basil leaves.
reviewed
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Le Banyan
Sukhumvit’s trendy diners demand change every six months: new menu, new décor, new chef, anything to chase away restaurant boredom. But for the monogamous eaters who value a stiff-lipped experience, this classy French restaurant proves its dinosaur wisdom with formal efficient service and traditional fare. A lush garden surrounds the charming house illuminated with candles and gleaming wine glasses. The house speciality is pressed duck, but the seared foie gras steals the show.
reviewed
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Taling Pling
You know you've picked well when Thai families outnumber expats. And you get a stylish setting, pretty enough for Bangkok gays. A few menu standouts include yam plaa salid taling pling (a fried fish salad with the namesake sour vegetable), chicken wrapped in pandanus leaves and phàk dam lung (stir-fried gourd leaves).
reviewed
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AUM Vegetarian Food
Aiming square at the health-conscious traveller is AUM's vegetarian delights. There's organic coffee from Laos, seasonal juices and a range of all-veggie Thai-style stir-fries, soups, salads and rice dishes. The restaurant has an eating area with floor cushions and low tables. A more expensive, limited Japanese menu (that includes sweet chilli maki) is also available.
reviewed
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May & Mark
One of the first places in town to start serving Western food way back when, May & Mark still does it best thanks to recipes collected from helpful faràng (foreigners of European descent) over the years. Specialities range from excellent fresh bread to bangers and mash and cordon bleu meals.
reviewed
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Ko Kret
The cheapest and most local way of experiencing riverine Bangkok is by boarding the Chao Phraya Express Boat at any tha (pier) and taking it in either direction to its final stop. Also appealing are the Sunday trips to Ko Kret and back.
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Elephant Nature Park
Khun Lek (Sangduen Chailert) has won numerous awards for her elephant sanctuary in the Mae Taeng valley, 60km (1½-hour drive) from Chiang Mai. The forested area provides a semi-wild environment for the elephants that have been rescued from abusive situations or retired from a lifetime of work. Visitors can help wash the elephants and watch the herd but there is no show or riding. Volunteer work for up to four weeks (that includes helping to wash the elephants and provide their health care) is available – see the website for details.
reviewed
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Sovrana Spa
At first blush it looks like just another local massage salon. Then you’ll notice the gallery is stocked with all-natural aromatic oils, soaps and creams, which seems like reason enough to indulge in a massage, facial or both.
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Starbeam
One of Surin's many expat hang-outs, this one has a broad menu that includes pizza, breakfast burritos and an almost-good-as-home grilled cheese. It's north of the bus station.
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Adventure Club
Our favourite diving operation on the island runs an excellent assortment of educational, ecofocused diving, hiking and snorkelling tours. You won't mind getting up at 6am for the much-loved shark-watching snorkel trips on which you're guaranteed to cavort with at least one reef shark.
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