Category: Thailand

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The best hostels in Thailand: the coolest spots ranked

Finding the best hostels in Thailand can be quite overwhelming. With the country continuing to boom as a backpacker destination the offer is almost limited less. Luckily for you I visited the country over 5 times, and I am here to help. This read lists the best hostels in Thailand that fulfill all the No Road Back criteria.

All of these hostels are very social without being raunchy party hostels. All of them have good common rooms or big leafy backyards. Their locations are excellent, the beds are comfortable, they have comfortable boutique double rooms as well as dorms and the hostels are run in an environmentally conscious way without compromising on adventure or comfort. Whether you are looking for a hostel in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Ayutthaya or one of the Thai islands, we got you covered.

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The 5 most overrated products for backpacking

backpacks in pickup truck

Let me tell you what not to pack when going on a backpacking trip. Packing your backpack for a trip is different for everybody. Some take weeks to plan and use lists to make sure they don’t forget anything. Others, like me, start the evening before. We all have one thing in common though: we over pack. Heavily too. To make matters worse, there are some travel items that everybody seems to be recommending while they are really not that great. Or even useful. You pack them, drag them around your whole trip and unpack them back home. Never really used them at all. So in a probably futile attempt to rid the world of these overrated and useless travel products, and to give myself a nice opportunity for a rant, here are the 5 most overrated travel items for backpacking.

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2 weeks in Thailand: a highlights itinerary

The first country that often comes to mind when people contemplate travelling to South-East Asia is Thailand. The country is cheap, the food is tasty and the people are friendly. The country is developed enough to have plenty of pretty hotels, good healthcare and good infrastructure but there are still plenty of places to truly go off the beaten path. It is no wonder that people fall in love with the ‘land of the smiles’ and keep on returning. I visited five times and still love it. Travelling to Thailand for the first time and looking for a guide? Look no further, you clicked on the right article. In this 2 week itinerary, I’ll explain all about where to go, what to eat and where to stay!

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Koh Tao, the best island to visit in the Gulf of Thailand

houses on koh tao

Koh Tao, the smallest of the three main island in the Gulf of Thailand is by far the best to visit. The beaches are the prettiest, the atmosphere is great and all main activities in the Thai Gulf are centered on or around this island. There have been some horrifying stories about Koh Tao in the news the last couple of years, but do not let this deter yourself from visiting. The little green gem in the azure blue waters is a tropical paradise for all who visit.

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Koh Pha Ngan, partying the moon away

Koh Pha Ngan is undoubtedly linked to drinking bucket after bucket of long island iced-tea while dancing around a campfire with neon paint in every shade of the rainbow on your face. The full moon party that takes place here once a month is famous worldwide and draws in huge crowds of young backpackers that come for nothing else than partying. But is Koh Pha Ngan any fun if the moon is not showing its full face? I decided to travel there exactly in the middle between two full moon parties to find out. 

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Chiang Rai, what to do and where to eat

Chiang Rai, is a quieter, smaller and less pretty version of Chiang Mai. But a few of its sights make it worth visiting nevertheless. Being located an hour and a half north of Chiang Mai it makes for a perfect stop on the way to Laos (if you are taking the 2-day slow boat). Food and accommodation are dirt cheap, the climate a lot nicer than the Southern regions of the country and there is enough to do. So why not go?

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Chiang Mai, a city guide

Chiang Mai is probably my favourite city in Thailand. On my visit to the country, I planned to stay for only three nights because I had already been there before, but I end up staying five. It’s not just the plethora of activities, the abundance of delicious cheap street food and the countless charming temples within the thick innercity walls that make Chiang Mai so irresistible. Its the combination of friendly locals living a calm life combined with the excitement of a city that is rapidly expanding and reinventing itself that creates an atmosphere that keeps on luring more people in. Yes it is getting busier, yes Chiang Mai is losing some of its former charm as the sleepy capital of North-Thailand but no worries. There is definitely space and room for a couple of visitors more;). 

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Chiang Rai daytip: cycling to the Kuhn Korn Waterfall

One of the best day trips I undertook from Chiang Rai during my time there, has got to be a visit to the Kuhn Korn Waterfall, the tallest waterfall in Northern Thailand. It’s an easy cycle, the scenery on the way is beautiful and the waterfall, hidden in the lush jungle is quite picturesque. On my visit, I included cycling through the nearby Singha Park and visiting a miniature zoo (free entrance!). If you are looking for an active day trip that can be done independently, this is for you. 

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Visiting Wat Doi Suthep

Wat Doi Suthep is the pretty little temple at the top of a 1000 meter mountain overlooking Chiang Mai. This important religious pilgrimage destination is situated only 45 minutes out of Chiang Mai and therefore equally popular with tourists. When visiting Chiang Mai, it is a must. Getting there independently is easy, and yet it took me a couple of hours to get there due to some basic traveller mistakes. Let’s make sure you don’t fall into the same traps. 

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Ayutthaya, the old capital of Thailand

Ayutthaya, the old capital of Thailand is easily overlooked when getting your Thai itinerary together. Big mistake. I’ve travelled through Thailand on four different trips and only on my last trip did I include Ayutthaya, but it is probably the most impressive and beautiful old temple complex in the whole country. And with it being one 80 kilometres from the Thai metropole Bangkok it fits in almost any programme. So stop hesitating, go there.

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