We spent 30 days in southern Thailand, the goal was to travel from Malaysia to Bangkok to get our Burmese visa. Thailand is a country that offers a lot of activities and different landscapes, that's why we first went south and we'll go north after Myanmar.
BUDGET
The course of the bath is very unstable and from one withdrawal to another you can lose a lot like winning, it's really random and not practical for the budget! On average on our stay the rate was 1€ for 37,86 baths. A budget of 20€ per day and per person was planned, i.e. 1160€ for both of us. We really spent 1012€, an average of 18.07€ per day each. We saved another 148€. This budget does not take into account Benjamin's Open Water and Sylvie's snorkeling outing that were planned as a gift.
The average budget per day for one person is as follows: €4.40 for transport, €3.75 for accommodation, €6.75 for food, €1.74 for visits and €1.43 for extras.
It should be noted that it is possible to spend less on food but we have enjoyed ourselves because eating is a priority for us and when we love, we do not count!
ABOUT SOUTHERN THAILAND
You've never traveled to Thailand if you don't know the Seven Eleven! These are small shops that can be found absolutely everywhere, open 24/7. Very practical, we must admit that we know them by heart!
There are many ladyboys, they are men who have "become" women. So sometimes we have doubts and try to find out if it is or not.
Macaques are used to men and are not afraid to come and grab your food directly from your hands, to the point of showing their fangs, so be careful!
Thai people will greet you with a smile and help you spontaneously when you have a problem.
There are bank charges for each withdrawal (about 200 baths)
To say hello and thank you it's not the same if you're a man or a woman, be careful not to make mistakes it can be confusing ^^
Hello : Sawat di Khap (man); Sawat di Khaa (woman)
Thank you: Kop koun Khap (man); Kop koun Khaa (woman).
HOW TO GET AROUND?
There are many means of transport that take you almost everywhere in the country. We have travelled a lot by train, it is the cheapest but also the slowest solution. Having the time, it was perfect for us and it is always more fun to travel with the locals and admire the scenery! Many passengers take the bus because there are so many of them and most of the trips are made at night, which saves one night at the hotel. To pick up your tickets, you can go directly to the bus stations / station or go through the agencies / guesthouses but you may have to pay an additional commission. Be careful, sometimes buses are quickly filled up depending on the destination and the period, so check a few days before to be sure you have the one you want and book it.
To go to the islands, there are companies that offer bus+ferry trips or only the ferry depending on your point of departure. Prices vary a little bit or even a lot depending on the agencies, we advise you to go directly through the transport companies and not through the tourism agencies that act as intermediaries and take a significant margin.
In Bangkok, you will also have the choice between taxis, BTS (aerial metro), mototaxi, taxiboat, ferry, etc. The taxibaot is the cheapest way to travel between the different tourist points. Do not take the one with the blue flag because it is the tourist boat par excellence that costs 40 baths no matter where you go down. Choose the others (orange, green or yellow flag), they are much cheaper and make the same trip. For taxi-meters, make sure that the driver turns on his meter (he must start at 35) because if he announces a price orally, it is necessarily more expensive! Finally, for the metro, the price varies according to the distance you will travel between each station.
Domestic flights are cheap and allow quick travel from one major city to another.
WHAT TO EAT?
In Thailand you can find everything! Rice with tarantulas you have a choice. The street food is good, you shouldn't be afraid to go for it. It's even better sometimes than in some restaurants. The traditional dish is PadThai and is made of noodles with tofu, grilled shrimp and egg with a sweet sauce but each restaurant does it a little differently, we've never had the same thing twice! Otherwise we find the classics like Fried rice or Fried noodle. We really advise you to try food in the night markets, there is something for everyone and the atmosphere is friendly. Of course, there are also European restaurants and we don't hide anything from you, we sometimes took a little detour to eat spaghetti or burgers!
WHERE TO SLEEP?
You won't have to worry about that side, you will always find a place to sleep. However, prices vary greatly depending on where you are. For example, in Bangkok we slept in a dormitory for 600 baths (15.85€) while in Kanchanaburi we had a bungalow with private bathroom for 150 baths (3.96€)! We never booked a room except for Koh Pha Ngan because we were told that during the Full Moon Party we might not have a room that matched our budget. Concerning Bangkok, prices will vary according to the district where you are located, so do not hesitate to go door to door between the guesthouses to find your happiness. In terms of comfort, we weren't thrilled, but it was still reasonable and as they say: we get value for our money!
OUR IMPRESSIONS OF SOUTHERN THAILAND
We really liked this part of the country, more touristic it is sure but it is really worth a look. Between the karst mountains and the diving spots, there is everything you need to enjoy the view. During our stay, we also enjoyed being able to land on an island for a week as if we were on holiday. When we had problems with orientation or a problem with the scooter, the Thai came to help us right away without even having time to ask for something and that's really nice and always with a smile! We do not regret having made the choice to make Thailand in two parts, to fully enjoy these regions.
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