Thailand Trip Report

Patong beach! OMG! I'm still blown away! We spent 4 nights and slept at Rayaburi hotel @R350 per room bnb booked via agoda.com (1 000 bhat refundable key deposit) . If you book here, be sure to go for the deluxe king room - the rooms are in the main building and face Beyond Patong resort. For this price I was very skeptical about what I would find there, but I was thoroughly impressed. service, cleanliness, breakfast (different menu daily), huge bath, huge room, white bedding - I was happy. The hotel has a rooftop pool and jacuzzi - but I didnt use it (never had time). If you like outdoor activities-its perfect. If you like lounging by the pool - rather book elsewhere.
There's a 7eleven downstairs (yay) everything is cheap. Booze u can only buy between 11am and 2pm and again from 5pm till midnight).

Dinner we ate at the Beyond Patong night market - opposite our hotel and the prices were so cheap we ended up eating there everyday! meal prices started at 50 bhat up to 190 bhat. Cockatils 200bhat gets you 3 cocktails. But we opted to buy drink at 7eleven and just buy food at the market. Again I was impressed with how clean thailand is. In SA eating streetfood is like playing russian roulette - in Thailand cleanliness from street vendors is the norm.

Daily activities - thai massages (200-300 bhat for full massage...in Phphi its 350 upwards). We also did the tourist stuff - full day trip to see the popular places - everything was rushed so I didnt enjoy it . I'm one of those people who take their time doing things. So next day we booked our own cab for the day 800 bhat and he took us anywhere we wanted & waiting for us :love:.

Nightlife - Bangla road - went every night. Its next street from our hotel so we walked there (to and from). Tried out the clubs (Tiger, Illuzion and those smaller side ones), pingpong shows (still traumatized!) , strip clubs - I didnt drink any booze though. Saw alot of people getting drunk beyond walking :eek: I assume its the infamous Phuket bucket or 500 bhat open bar! lol!

The weekend Phuket night market was abit of a disappointment because its mostly fleamarket kinda stuff for sale. But its still a good place to shop for clothes and basic gadgets. prices way cheaper than our Bruma and downtown JHB china shops.
 
Last edited:
Mosquitos - I bought repellant & still got bitten :laugh: I suspect it was when I was out and about though. I only went to the hotel to sleep.

The heat - you will survive :ROFL: drink lots of bottled water, dress light & if you wear brazilian weaves - PLEASE leave that at home SA & plait your hair instead.

What I'll miss the most - 7eleven 24hrs cheap prices :love: and the scooter drivers, they are everywhere!like flies! OMW :eek:

Emirates - trip coming back to SA - I packed a powerbank in the my checked-in luggage and I was called by airport security to come take it out. If you can afford busniess class or get an upgrade offer - please go for it...that dubai/sa leg of the flight is always full so no chance of having the whole row to yourself for sleeping.

Dutyfree shopping - if you have to buy something then stick to stuff that is not sold in the normal shops. Its really not worth it unless you are a whisky fan like me. Got myself few bottles of Jane Walker 12yr old & Exloplorer's club limited edition spice route.

Wifi- I didn't buy. Everywhere we went we got free wifi most of the time (most tourist hotspots, hotel, shops, massage parlour, airport, emirates flights, mall). The longest I stayed without wifi was when I was alseep.
 
Last edited:
ice_cubes said:
Dinner we ate at the Beyond Patong night market - opposite our hotel and the prices were so cheap we ended up eating there everyday! meal prices started at 50 bhat up to 190 bhat. Cockatils 200bhat gets you 3 cocktails. But we opted to buy drink at 7eleven and just buy food at the market. Again I was impressed with how clean thailand is. In SA eating streetfood is like playing russian roulette - in Thailand cleanliness from street vendors is the norm.
Click to expand...

Also heading there end of October with a similar itinerary. I assume the street food is better than the restaurants? Any recommendations for vendors and restaurants in the Patong area and Phi Phi ?
 
L-Dog said:
Also heading there end of October with a similar itinerary. I assume the street food is better than the restaurants? Any recommendations for vendors and restaurants in the Patong area and Phi Phi ?
Click to expand...

Phiphi I ate at Sabai restaurant, they are next to Irish Pub. Their meals plus free coke are between 100 and 150 bhat. I didn't bother comparing because i was happy with the service. Snacks n booze I bought at 7eleven.

Patong i never ate at a restaurant, bought all my meals from the street vendors. Most have tables and serve you. Drinks n snacks also got from 7eleven
 
20180927_180758.jpg
25 bhat each from 7eleven. The wine prices are insane, so I drank these for most of the holiday.
 
@ Your whiskey, if it wasn't bought at 7/11, big C or a proper shop, its not real stuff :) just to let you know in-case you didn't.

Other than that, good stuff, glad you enjoyed it!
 
poffle said:
@ Your whiskey, if it wasn't bought at 7/11, big C or a proper shop, its not real stuff :) just to let you know in-case you didn't.

Other than that, good stuff, glad you enjoyed it!
Click to expand...

lol! proper shop.

The Phuket Simon Cabaret was a waste of money - I fell asleep for almost half the show. I am definitely not their target market. My friend, on the other hand, thouroughly enjoyed the show. The costumes and choreography is excellent, but not my kinda thing. Was planning to also do FantaSea the next day, but cancelled.
 
:love: Pimp bell :ROFL:
20180925_200742.jpg

20180926_114340.jpg
:X3: seems like the norm, spotted a few of these... babies on chairs and weaving through traffic.

20180926_170916.jpg

Bought some for trying when back in sa
20180926_065101.jpg

Simon Cabaret - I took a pic with them and had to popout 100bhat! Lol! I have since learnt to ask for prices before doing stuff.
20180926_170926.jpg
 
question from my side, I understand most flights to Thailand from JHB go via Dubai, is this the cheapest? or can flying somewhere alternative work out cheaper?

like flying from jhb to Hong kong (direct) and catching a Dragonair to Thailand, phuket?
or even flying via LHR via BA direct to Thailand work out cheaper

reason I ask, is I would rather avoid that part of the world (Dubai) if possible, for political reasons.
 
eg2505 said:
question from my side, I understand most flights to Thailand from JHB go via Dubai, is this the cheapest? or can flying somewhere alternative work out cheaper?

like flying from jhb to Hong kong (direct) and catching a Dragonair to Thailand, phuket?
or even flying via LHR via BA direct to Thailand work out cheaper

reason I ask, is I would rather avoid that part of the world (Dubai) if possible, for political reasons.
Click to expand...
I doubt you are going to find cheaper tickets than Emirates sale prices.
 
Rather look at the Singapore Air option, it is the best and easiest way to get to Thailand.
 
GrootBaas said:
I doubt you are going to find cheaper tickets than Emirates sale prices.
Click to expand...
Last time I checked Emirates was the most expensive and Kenyan or Ethiopian was the cheapest if you book well ahead of your trip.
 
I paid R5700 for my Emirates tickets with short stop overs. Their Dubai to Cape Town leg is just in a shitty plane. It is packed with people and there is very little space.

If there is a slight difference in price between any airline and Singapore then I would always go with the Singapore option.
 
bokka1 said:
I paid R5700 for my Emirates tickets with short stop overs. Their Dubai to Cape Town leg is just in a shitty plane. It is packed with people and there is very little space.

If there is a slight difference in price between any airline and Singapore then I would always go with the Singapore option.
Click to expand...

Agree'd. It's Also flight times to the middle east, 7 hours then another 7 hours is taxing.. but when its 10 hours and then 2 hours, to me it just feels much better... and the SIA A350 is nice to fly on (Usually less crowded then the SA -> Dubai route anyway)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X