4 Day Itinerary in Thailand

I live about 30 minutes from the Thai border but it took me half the year before making it to Thailand! My friend from home came to visit (!!!) but we had less than week since I wanted to stick around for Hari Raya in my community (and ended up going with my friend to get his tonsils out?) so we settled on this high speed tour of a country close by! You could certainly spend weeks in Thailand, but we hit the highlights: Bangkok - Ayuttaya - Chiangmai. I've heard amazing things about Krabbi and Phuket, so maybe more on them later in the year! Here's what to do and how to efficiently get around to see all you can in just a few days :) Day 1: Bangkok

You could definitely spend more than a day in Bangkok (it's massive and incredible) but if you fly in the night before and stay centrally located, you can see a lot in just a day. We went high class and stayed at sala rattanakosin Bangkok, a really nice hotel (that we would definitely recommend!) and I would recommend staying in this area regardless: right by Wat Pho and the Grand Palace so it's easy to head out on foot early in the morning. There are more hostel options around Khao San Road, the bar street, as well which would serve you well if you plan on staying out late!

8am: Breakfast by the Chao Phraya River

There's so much activity going on on the river! Looking out on Wat Arun was above and beyond, but having breakfast by the river put us on track for a beautiful, busy day. 9am: Grand Palace

The most expensive attraction of the day at about 15 USD, but it’s absolutely worth it. The huge temple complex you first walk through was the highlight for us: glittering walls, ornate doors and sky-high statues. The palace itself is almost British in its architectural style, but we were unable to enter it or the national temple with the Grand Jade Buddha.

We realized once we were there that it was a day of mourning: Thailand is still going through the grieving process and ceremonies for their king, you passed away last year. We were blown away by how revered he still was: pictures and offerings on every other street. He certainly ruled through some tumultuous times in the past century!

You do need to be dressed conservatively to enter; I was actually busted or wearing leggings! There are sarongs available at the stalls just outside for like $3 if you are similarly caught being too wild. 12pm: River Cruise

Ferries are actually the cheapest way to get around Bangkok, at 50 cents a ride (tuk tuks going the same distance would be $4-$5). We took several of them throughout the day! If you're willing to spend a little more, we took a $13 river cruise, and it ended up being just us in the boat! It was a great way to see more of the city and its inner canals, plus its a lot of fun and gets you off your feet if you're feeling a little jet lagged.

We even saw a tiny floating market: if you want to see the full market, you'll have to be in Bangkok on the weekend. 1pm: Wat Arun and Lunch

Our boat dropped us at Wat Arun, the river temple! ("Wat" is thai for temple) We opted not to enter, but spent a good bit of time at the markets right outside. We got lunch in this area as well: I recommend trying Pad Seow (sweet soy sauce, rice noodles), mango sticky rice, Thai pineapples (so sweet!), Thai tea (orange, sweet, iced, milk tea) and famous Pad Thai (peanut sauce) of course! 3pm: Wat Pho

After a failed attempt at visiting the museum (do your research on opening times before you head out) we ended up at our favorite temple of the day! It had less tourists around, and was the largest complex of temples we visited. It is right by the Grand Palace so you could do these two together. It hosts the largest Recling Buddha in SE asia (it really was HUGE) as well as tons of other gardens and smaller temples. 4pm: Flower Markets

So the flower markets are actually not that touristy/tourist friendly and lots of other things are being sold, but it was beautiful! We ended up ducking into floral café after wandering the rolls of flowers, produce and electronics and it was adorable! 6pm: Pad Thai

Do it for the 'gram. We liked Art Cafe right near Wat Pho (and our hotel). 7:30pm: Ferry at Sunset The ferries are so cheap and offer beautiful views if you want to catch the sunset! They stop running right after this so you will need to tuk tuk or taxi home (both are affordable). We got off on the central pier. 8pm: Sky Bar

Only a 5 minute walk from central pier, this rooftop bar was featured in the Hangover 2. Its EXPENSIVE but how else are you going to see Bangkok's glamour as hard dark falls?!

It was $25 for an insanely cool (delicious) cocktail --it had dry ice in it; is that even safe?? It was fun to dress up and take in the views!

9pm: Khao San Road

If that's out if your price range, head next to the infamous bar street in Bangkok: Khao San Road. From movies etc I had Bangkok pegged as a hell hole of drugs and sin, but it certainly has much more to offer culturally as we saw during the day! If you're looking for that wild bangkok, you'll get closer that this road at night. While the ping pong shows etc are lurking about, it was a blast to just go people watch, check out the ridiculous souvenirs and listen to all the live music. We also did invest in one of those dirt cheap mojito buckets! There are tons of tuk tuks available in well lit areas when we left early at around 10:30. Day 3: Attuthaya, the Ancient Capital

10am: Train to Ayutthaya

The train station is easily reachable by tuk tuk ($3 ride from old town) and the trains are ridiculously inexpensive! Trains are absolutely the cheapest (75 cent), best (gorgeous views?), and a fairly quick (1.5 hours) way to get to the former capital before Siam: Ayutthaya. 12pm: Tuk Tuk Tour

For less than $20 (which would be less if you're travelling with more people!) we grabbed a tuk tuk for the day, since the temples are VERY spread apart, and it gets insanely hot this time of year! If you want more explanation you could book a tour with an English speaking guide, but we found this version of getting around great. Our driver was very sweet and funny! The price was by hour (5 hours in our case) so you can do more or less depending on your pace, pointing at the picture of the temples as you go. Some temples to make sure not to miss: Wat Phanan Choeng

Hosting a giant gold seated Buddha, this is the only "indoor" sight of the day. Definitely worth seeing! If you aren't pressed for time we alway enjoyed walking along the river: feeding the fish colored pellets is considered a kind of offering and it is a crazy sight!

Wat Yai Chai Mongkon

It is marketed for its white reclining Buddha, but there is so much more?

I found the endless rows of bright white seated Buddha statues striking--they reminded me of Roman ruins.

Wat Chaiwattanaram

Our favorite! This reddish temples complex was surrounded by beautiful flower bushes, and enthralled us in its rows of headless Buddha statues.

There is also a food stall right across the street that is cheap and delicious if you're ready for lunch.

Wat Mahathat

Most famous for the separated Buddha head now tucked into and encircled by tree roots, this temple complex was wide spread and definitely worth the stop.

Smaller temples: Wat Khudeedao

If you have time, let your guide direct you to other smaller temples! This one was one of the coolest stops of the day because we were completely alone. Please be respectful of the ruins, even if it's cool that you can touch and walk inside of them!! (I definitely get carried away and have to remind myself all the time). These ruins actually reminded me of the church ruins in Beaufort, SC--all the red brink and quiet stillness.

I do NOT recommend the "Floating markets" (tourist trap, nothing to see) OR "wat chang"-- I will discuss a little later about elephant riding but PLEASE DON'T. :( 5pm: Dinner at the Train Station

There's really not much to see around the Ayuttaya train station, but there's a nice restaurant there with wifi!

7:30pm: Catch an overnight train to Chiang Mai

So nice. $20 for your own little bunk--and it certainly had a fun Harry Potter vibe to it! It stops frequently but you do have a curtain, so it isn't bad at all. Actually both slept well, and it saved you on travel time! You can see the countryside rolling by if you get up early enough in the morning :) Day 4: Elephant Sanctuary

7:15am: Arrive in Chiang Mai

We recommend staying in the "Old Town": you can clearly see it on maps because it still has a wall and moat, and is in the middle of the city! There are tons of hostel options, but we went with "Cozytel," a hotel/hostel hybrid that was cheaper and so, so nice. We were even able to check in early and chill before our day with the elephants!

11:30am: Elephant Jungle Sanctuary Tour

We arranged to get picked up from our hotel for the half day tour at 11:30am. We HIGHLY recommend "Elephant Jungle Sanctuary"! Riding 45 minutes out of the city, they gave us an information session on the history of elephants in Thai culture, as well as their treatment and biology.

They clearly put the elephants' health and happiness first. After a terrible accidental trip to a not so nice "elephant sanctuary" for an English camp in Malaysia (my friend did so much research!! It became a good discussion of animal rights with our students, but you still don't want to accidentally support something you don't agree with!), this tour was amazing. We followed what the elephants wanted to do: feeding the bananas, watching them chomp on leaves (and getting to pet them!) joining them in a mud bath and splashing them in the river! It was one of the coolest things I've ever done.

Elephants are just so MASSIVE and I was pretty awestruck/ wary of them, but they could be really friendly! It was $50, but for transport, clothes to wear, lunch, that much time with the elephants AND getting to support a place where the elephants seemed happy and well taken care of... it's definitely worth the deniro. 8pm: North Gate Markets & Jazz Cooperative

After some rest, we headed out to see some markets. This is NOT the same souviner market, but we did get some great food (spiciest curry noodles of my life, speciality in the north of Thailand!) and stopped by a jazz bar that was really cool, all right by the North Gate!

Day 5: Chiang Mai

10am: Old City – Museums

Chiangmai was controlled by Burma (Myanmar) for hundreds of years, and was independent from Siam so it's historically pretty different from Bangkok! Duck into some of the inexpensive (if small) museums in the Old City (some even had libraries!!) and check out the 3 Kings Monument. 11:30am: Old City – Temples If you aren't feeling the Temple fatigue yet, check out these modern temples!

Wat Pra Sing

Here we were lucky enough to arrive around the time of a service, so we were able to hear some beautiful chants by the monks. Wat Sri Suphan

This one was so unique! It is a little ways away from the others, so I would recommend arranging with a tuk tuk driver to take you there AND back, since we had to walk pretty far to flag down someone else to get us back to the heart of the city!

Wat Chedi Luang

This temple is ENORMOUS. There is a more modern temple in front that is worth seeing, but it's predecessor really steals the show. I was immediately drawn to the Buddhist Manuscript Library and Museum that borders the temple, but it was small and honestly really, really creepy. (Deserted + wax statues on monks) 2pm: Tuk Tuk to Nimman(haemin) Road

We spent the rest of our time in Chiangmai at this road. Filled with hipster coffee shops, crazy street art and delicious restaurants, I could see why people want to live in Chiangmai! 3pm: Thai Massage

There are certainly cheaper places, but Lantana Spa was awesome! It's only $10 for a traditional massage, but we went wild and opted for a longer 1.5 hour + oil deal for $20. Thai massages involve lots of hitting though, I’ll warn you (haha). Treat yourself. 5pm: Get Artsy – Elephant Parade

With street installations all over Asia, this company is the "largest elephant art exhibit in the world"! While it wasn't much of a"tourist" thing to do, we really enjoyed painting our own small ceramic elephants!! It took 2 hours and was about $30 but we had a blast :) It's worth walking through just to look at all the crazy designs! (Even a durian one...) 7pm: Coffee Shop, Dinner

Gotta love that coffee shop culture. We had my favorite Thai food of the trip on this street as well: chicken coconut soup! 9pm: Night Market – INCREDIBLE

We spent so much/ so little money on so many adorable souviners. It’s MASSIVE, so we were there for 2 hours easy ,and only left because we ran out of money… Things are extremely affordable, and bargaining is expected. There's also live music and restaurants! Again, tuk tuks are the cheapest and safest way to get around at night (and day if you want a break from walking!).

We departed for the airport to Malaysia early the next day, so that she could visit my school and meet my students! Thailand was a whirlwind, but we were able to fit a lot in :) Hope this post helps you as you plan your trip! Keep your eyes open for a post on a week in Cambodia soon :)