Is Thailand safe? We found traveling in Thailand (and Vietnam) to be very safe and fun. Bangkok is a huge city and there were times when we traveled single file so we weren’t bumping into others. We were also cautious and didn’t travel at night on foot. In Chiang Mai and Pai, we didn’t have any hesitation walking around at night. Hana had a large fanny pack that carried everything she needed. I had a front sling pack that I used often (and it carried a much needed water bottle) and a smaller fanny pack when it was a short journey. We always wore our fanny packs as a sling so the pack was in front of us.

When is the best time to travel? We can tell you when not to travel. We traveled during late March and early April and wouldn’t travel here this time of year again. The locals laugh and tell you they have three seasons, hot, very hot, and extreme hot. March and April are extreme hot. It was over 100 degrees almost every day. In Bangkok, it was very humid but it wasn’t as much in Chiang Mai and Pai. However, in Chiang Mai, it was the end of their growing season and they burn all their crop remnants so it was very smoky. Even though Pai was in the mountains, it was still very hot and smoke lingered there as well. No matter where we went, it was critical to have not only water, but electrolytes, and snack foods for fatigue (I carried nuts). We found it was easier to just buy electrolite packets to add to the water to keep hydrated and healthy instead of gatorade type drinks. Electrolyte packets can be purchased at any pharmacy and bottled water was always available… gatorade was not.

How expensive is it? The cost of everything in Thailand and Vietnam was very inexpensive, including AirBnB’s. $100 baht was worth $2.73 in US currency. Keeping that in mind, a full body massage was $300b, a nice breakfast, lunch or dinner was $100-150b and sometimes less. AirBnB costs averaged $10-$25 US a day and we picked nice places with pools, air conditioning, washer/dryers.

How did you get around? It was easy to walk and we enjoyed walking and looking. There were times when it was just too hot, we were too tired, or it was too far and we’d book a Grab (Uber). The Grab was so easy. We created an account, linked our credit card, and then you just book, like an Uber. They picked us up very quickly and were very safe. Average cost was $2.00 US - a long ride (an hour) ran about $15.00 US. Taxi’s were double and triple that cost.

What did you bring with you? Pack light: We brought everything in a back pack on our back. We didn’t want to be moving around with luggage. I had a full sized back pack and then a small front pack for easy access while on excursions, or overnighters. Clothing: We brought 3-5 sets of lightweight clothing and inter-changeable for normal wear. Because there were clothing requirements for the temples, we brought our own “full cover” clothing. This wasn’t necessary as all the temples have temporary items for you to wear while inside. Toiletries: Bring the basics in small containers. Be sure and check what your lodging provides as they often provide soap, shampoos, lotions, etc. You can also purchase small toiletries in country for very cheap and then leave them when you’re done, reducing your pack weight.

Medications? We used a Travel Clinic for our vaccines and got a list of necessary medications to bring, in addition to whatever you normally carry. We had diarrhea and vomiting meds, as well as misc other items for our safety. The advice they give you is to travel with your prescription meds to be in their primary container with the prescription on the bottle. To reduce bulk, I took the prescription label off the bottle and put it on a small ziplock with meds in it. I did the same for vitamins. No one every checked our luggage or questioned our medicinal contents. Be sure to bring bug repellant or get it in country.

How was local transportation? The options for in country transport was Grab, taxi, bus, travel vans, train, and airplane. We only used a taxi once and they were more than double the price of a Grab. We used buses and travel vans to various destinations such as from Chiang Mai to Pai. We also used trains as you’ll see in the stories. All were very reasonably priced and we enjoyed the experience.

Where did you buy provisions? Oddly, 7-11 is everywhere and has just about everything. When we bought food, it was usually at the local outdoor markets or we ate out. Remember how inexpensive everything is, it was cheaper to eat out than to buy food and eat in.

Be prepared! Take the time to find out how to travel in other countries, don’t make any assumptions.

Thailand does not require a Visa, but Vietnam does. It was easy to search on line and get the required documents we needed.

Although we were never checked, we had all our vaccination documents as it was required in both countries. We also purchased travel insurance just in case - gratefully, we didn’t need it, but it was good to know we had it.

We brought several hundred dollars in cash and then exchanged it in country. ATM’s were everywhere and we did use them once when our cash was low. The cost for the ATM was very minimal. We occassionally used our credit cards, but most places wanted cash.

Research blogs for valuable information and talk to others who have traveled to your destination. I followed several Facebook groups on Thailand and learned a ton of information on places to go, things to do, things to be careful about, etc. Because it’s an open group, I was able to ask questions and get timely feedback from folks who had experience. Hana had several friends who also provided valuable intel on where we were going. We used AirBnB and other travel sites for event recommendations and were never disappointed.

Be sure you have an international plan on your cellphone covering the locations you are traveling. If you don’t, you can get a sim card in country, but then you don’t have access to calls from home. We brought an old phone in case we needed a sim and could still use our regular phones but didn’t need it. I had international plans on my T-mobile account and then we used the wifi’s wherever we found them for searching data.

We were prepared and didn’t have any issues.

Above all - have a great journey and create memories.