As above, there is really no point at all to go to Krabi for one night only. You have 5 nights in total, so 2 destinations (Koh Samui and Bangkok) are already more than enough. I would fly straight on to Samui, spend 3 nights there and then fly to Bangkok and spend 2 nights there.

We have crossed the border three times last year. Twice into Malaysia and once back into Thailand. We do a visa run so take the night bus back to Koh Samui. We have done the same trips now multiple times and as yet have to see any signs of unrest. I see no need to take any other border unless you are on the other side of Malaysia.
Last time we went from Butterworth, we saw more police presence than we do going from Songai Kolok.

Hey everyone!

My friend and I are flying to Bangkok on 1 September and we will spend 3 weeks in Thailand. Our plan is to spend few days in Bangkok and then travel to Ko Pha Ngan. We stay there few days because of the Full Moon Party.
After that, we were thinking to go Krabi, PhiPhi Islands and Koh Lanta. I have few questions though, cos there is the wet season. Is it a good idea to travel Krabi/Lanta on September? My friend has been Thailand once already and she has seen Koh Samui, Koh Tao and Koh Phangan. This time we want to go some other places.

What you guys recommend? We are hoping to have some nice parties, lovely shores, fun/sporty activates, and see some amazing nature/history sites. What are the must see/do things in Bangkok? How about the best way to travel from Bangkok to Ko Pha Ngan? Do you have some experience; is it super rainy in Krabi? If so, what are the alternatives? Shorter rain showers will not bother us, if it is not raining nonstop.

We appreciate all your help and any tips you guys have!
Best regards,
Laura and Katri from Finland

Super rainy no.

Full moon is rubbish.

Well, I am going to be boring - if you LOVE Phuket and Koh Samui so much, why not return there ? I understand that you would like to experience / visit a new destination, but I cant think of any that really fits what you are looking for.

Instead of going to a new place that might not really be what you are looking for, maybe you are better off returning to a place that you know you like ?

Any reason you have chosen Pattaya it is the last place I would suggest for a solo female. But it would be better if you said time of the year. Oh and look at a map the places you have mentioned and nowhere near each other and in 10 days would involve a lot of travelling.

Hi,

I seen it was close to Bangkok that was the only reason. I will be going in June.

That’s why am I unsure which side is better to travel the Koh Samui or phi phi side. (Apologise for my ignorance do not know which is south/north etc)

You could head out to Erewan after Koh Samui on the way back to Bangkok. The night train from Surat Thani gets you to Nakhon Pathom in time for the morning train from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi.
If your research has given you some idea of where you want to go, just keep it flexible. In other words, get sick of a place, move on. Heck, if you wanted, you could make a side jaunt into Cambodia.

the children are 8 and 12. We just thought china as we would already have visas for china and flying in and out of beijing.

When I was living in China I took my nephews, then 10 and 11 on a trip through China. The 11 year old was very much into all the museums, history, and culture. The 10 year old thought it was a bore, because a 'vacation' needed to involve time at the beach playing in the sand with other kids.

I took them to Qingdao, mainly for the german architecture, seafood and beer, but also they have a beach. It's not Boracai or Ko Samui quality, but you might be able to think to compare it to some of France's Atlantic coast beaches

Sanya just looked very pricey to fly to from chengdu and hotels are pretty much all top end which we arent bothered by but is Sanya worthwhile to put the effort into getting there? Happy for other suggestions.

Sanya is indeed an overdeveloped, expensive hole. It doesn't get good reviews from anyone able to travel outside China for better, cheaper, more laid back beach destinations.
I certainly do not think it is 'worthwhile' but YMMV

We have 3 weeks but after the travelling around would probably loose 3-4 days on total travelling which is nt too bad, we would also save on the odd hotel night as would be on train.

I was talking about the high speed train. Beijing to Xi'an 4.5 hours. Xi'an to Chengdu in 3.5 hours. Door to door highly competitive with flying.

The sleeper trains are even better in my opinion, as you lose no daylight to travel. But some people dont like that mode of travel.

The idea would be to have some downtime after the travelling to and from xian/chengdu and have say 5 nights somewhere before we have to get back to beijing for 2 nights before leaving.

Do Beijing, (Pingyao if you like), Xi'an, Chengdu. Then fly from Chengdu to Qingdao(or other beach destination) and then take the train to Beijing before you depart. You could also fly to Xiamen, Beihai, or Shenzhen/Hong Kong(multi entry visa required).

With all of them, the beaches are not that great, so pick a destination that has something besides sand and water.

For Thailand as mentioned above you don't have to stay in hostel for cheap accommodation unless you are somewhere expensive like Phuket or Phi Phi island or main beaches on Ko Samui . You can stay in simple guesthouses or on the islands in bungalows.
Unless you particularly want to visit Phuket you may wish to avoid it as its become one of the most expensive provinces in Thailand. If staying in Khao San Rd area in Bangkok avoid eating and staying on the actual road itself but stay in the guesthouses in lanes and streets farther away. For Chiang Mai Tapeh Gate area has some inexpensive guesthouses . The town of Trat in eastern Thailand has inexpensive guesthouses . On the island of Ko Chang , Trat province ,Long Beach would be one of the cheaper beaches . Ngea has updated that the nearby island of Ko Wai still has budget priced acomm. For Ko Kood island there is cheaper accomm at Klongchao back from the beach The island of Ko Phangan is on the whole cheaper than Ko Samui.