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| Wishing all my readers a very happy travelling year in 2015 ! |
" Men at 25 play football. Men at 40 play tennis. Men at 60 play golf. Have you noticed that as you get older your balls get smaller "
" In every free & east travelling, your body may be tired but your dreams are alive "
" Travelling solo is like an one man army in action. You look after your own food, shelter & logistic. Rain or shine, you move on "
" My 10 days travelling solo to Thailand (Hatyai, Hua Hin, Bangkok, Sukhothai, Chiangmai, Chiang Rai & Golden Triangle ) from 21 - 30/1/2015 - taking a train & bus ride from Malaysia to Northern Thailand - a land of smiles and saying Sawadika to Thais "
Travel itinerary: Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) > Hatyai > Hua Hin > Bangkok > Sukhothai > Chiang Mai > Chiang Rai > Chiang Mai > Bangkok > Hatyai > Kuala Lumpur
Total cost incurred (10 days) : 7,934 bht + Rm36 = Rm920 (US$255)
Hostel (6 nights): 1,460 bht
Day tour: 700 bht (Golden Triangle & Chiang Rai)
Food: 1,410 bht + Rm8
Metro/Taxi: 304 bht
Tut tut: 160 bht
Entrance fees: 380 bht
Bicycle hire: 30 bht
Sundries:96bht
Luggage storage: 50bht
Trains(total): 1,594 bht + Rm28
Kuala Lumpur>Hatyai = Rm28
Hatyai>Hua Hin = 749 bht
Bangkok>Hatyai = 845 bht
Long distance bus(total): 1,750bht
Hua Hin>Bangkok = 180 bht
Sukhotai>Chiangmai = 228 bht
Chiang Mai>Bangkok = 500 bht
Hatyai>Kuala Lumpur = 500 bht
Exchange Rates: US$1=Rm3.60; Rm1=9bht, 100bht=Rm11.10
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| Map of Thailand |
In my previous visits to Thailand, I did not have the opportunity to visit Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai. So the thought of visiting these two cities was always lingering in my mind for sometime. My last visit to Thailand was in June 2013 (Krabi, Phi Phi island, Koh Samui & Phuket).
In January 2015, I took advantage of the cool weather and decided to go ahead with this overland trip from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to northern Thailand. Unfortunately, my wife was not able to accompany me for this trip. For this free & easy travelling using trains & buses, I started my journey in Kuala Lumpur and along the way, I visited Hat Yai, Hua Hin, Bangkok (1 night), Sukhothai (2 nights) & Chiang Mai (3 nights). For the entire trip, I spent a total of 3 nights in the trains & 1 night in VIP bus ! I was not able to visit the Bridge of the River Kwai as the weekend rail car excursion tickets were all sold out on Saturday when I was in Bangkok.
In Chiang Mai, I signed up a day tour package for my visits to Chiang Rai, Golden Triangle, Mae Sai & the Yao Hill Tribe. This was more economical in terms of cost & time !
Most Malaysians would prefer to fly to Bangkok or Chiang Mai but I chose the long winded way by taking trains & buses so that I could see more of the Thailand's country side and also giving me more opportunities to meet & chat with a mix of local & overseas travellers (including my home country) along the way !
The Sukhothai Historical Park, an UNESCO world heritage site impressed me a lot.
In January 2015, I took advantage of the cool weather and decided to go ahead with this overland trip from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to northern Thailand. Unfortunately, my wife was not able to accompany me for this trip. For this free & easy travelling using trains & buses, I started my journey in Kuala Lumpur and along the way, I visited Hat Yai, Hua Hin, Bangkok (1 night), Sukhothai (2 nights) & Chiang Mai (3 nights). For the entire trip, I spent a total of 3 nights in the trains & 1 night in VIP bus ! I was not able to visit the Bridge of the River Kwai as the weekend rail car excursion tickets were all sold out on Saturday when I was in Bangkok.
In Chiang Mai, I signed up a day tour package for my visits to Chiang Rai, Golden Triangle, Mae Sai & the Yao Hill Tribe. This was more economical in terms of cost & time !
Most Malaysians would prefer to fly to Bangkok or Chiang Mai but I chose the long winded way by taking trains & buses so that I could see more of the Thailand's country side and also giving me more opportunities to meet & chat with a mix of local & overseas travellers (including my home country) along the way !
The Sukhothai Historical Park, an UNESCO world heritage site impressed me a lot.
Given Malaysia's close proximity to Thailand and an efficient air & land transport, one could just visit Thailand at any time of the year ! I believe Thailand is a great tourist destination, famous for her clean & beautiful beaches, temples & palaces, historical sites, friendly people, low cost of accommodation, cheap & tasty Thai food - for sure tourists will put up a broad smile as soon as they land in any of the cities in Thailand - a land of smiles !!! Can't wait to say Sawadika to Thailand again !
Travel Highlights:
Chiang Rai
Travel Highlights:
Chiang Rai
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| White Temple, Chiang Rai |
Golden Triangle
The Golden Buddha statue overseeing the Mekong River
Chiang Mai
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| A Wat (Buddhist Temple) in Chiang Mai |
Sukhothai
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| Sukhothai Historical Park (UNESCO) |
Bangkok
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| Victory Monument, Bangkok |
Hua Hin
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| Hua Hin Beach |
Hatyai
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| Clock Tower, Hatyai |
2015, a year of the Goat, Sheep & Ram is about to begin ! The year of the horse (2014) is about to end soon but are you as an ardent traveler still horsing around the globe ?
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| Are you a Billy goat or Nanny goat ? |
