nature travel, wildlife tours, adventure travel and general travel to Thailand, Indonesia and Southeast Asia

Thailand: Muang Thai

sawasdee

Few places in the world evoke the exotic images inspired by Thailand (Muang Thai, or Land of the Thai), the ancient Siam. Yet Thailand travel is easier than in most of the world's exotic destinations. A land of temples, monks, jungles and high-rise cities, Thailand stretches from the infamous Golden Triangle in the north to the border of Malaysia in the south. Home to jungle-clad mountains, islands with beauty beyond description, extensive National Parks, over 30,000 Wats (temple complexes) and a cuisine famous around the world, it also has an extensive tourism infrastructure that makes travel easier than in most parts of Southeast Asia. From the moment you arrive, greeted with upturned joined hands (wai) and sawasdee (hello or welcome), until you depart satiated with color, charm and lushness. Please call or email us us to arrange your vacation to this very special place.

Thailand sits in the center of Southeast Asia, and as well as her own jewels and unique areas is an ideal place to explore nearby countries. Direct flights from Bangkok place you in Siem Reap, the gateway to Cambodia's unparalleled Angkor Wat. The ancient city of Hanoi, seat of Vietnamese culture for a thousand years, is just a little further. To the west are the largely unvisited islands, coast and coral reefs of Burma's Andaman Sea, and Burma itself. Laos, to the northwest, is still a difficult and seldom-visited destination.

Despite the nearby temptations, no single, or even multiple, Thailand tour will enable the casual visitor to even partially explore all that Thailand itself has to offer. There are floating bamboo raft lodges in the endless bays and islands of Khao Sok National Park, where the eerie howling of gibbons echos through the morning mists that cloak vertical karst islands, and tapirs and strange flying lemurs can be found. Between the island of Phuket and Malaysia's Langkawi is possibly the most beautiful and inviting stretch of islands and reefs on Earth. The mountains of the north are home to the Hill Tribes, with their distinctive cultures, and still-working elephants. Just the ancient capital of Sukhothai also spelt Sukothai), with temples, Buddha images and palaces spread over more than 25 square miles can take days to explore. Bangkok itself, though the poster child for how not to develop a city, has the Grand Palace, Wat Pra Keo (the home of the Emerald Buddha), Wat Po with the famous Reclining Buddha (when you visit here take some coins), Wat Suthat, and the National Museum.

This short list does not begin to cover the sights, sounds and tastes of Thailand. Please select from the links below, or those found scattered throughout the text.

Wats ~ Thailand National Parks ~ Thailand Wildlife ~ Thailand Hill Tribes ~ Beaches ~Sukhothai ~ Bangkok

sample Thailand travel itineraries

general Thailand travel information

Thailand travel packing list

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