1 Family Highlights of Thailand

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Nowhere is the term ‘developing world’ as apt as in Thailand.Few countries have changed so fast and so quickly over a single

generation. Children who used to play in the sand outside driftwoodshacks now run deluxe air-conditioned beach resorts with swimmingpools and spas: villages made of wood with dirt streets flocked withblack-painted bicycles are now cities of concrete and glass, rushingheadlong into the 21st century.

Despite all this, Thailand in many ways retains an almost childlikeinnocence; a reverence for the past alongside a fervour for the future.Anywhere in the country you can step out of the traffic into the calmoasis of a Buddhist monastery and find an open welcome from theresident monks. Travelling with children is a breeze. All Thais – andI’ve yet to find an exception – seem to genuinely love children, andare especially fascinated by small westerners, something they veryrarely see. While adults must negotiate commercial relationships andpractical matters, children are exempt. With their curious, kind andgentle personalities the Thais you meet can calm and charm thehottest, tiredest, western child.

As if this wasn’t enough, Thailand is a land of exceptional naturalbeauty. The beaches are sublime, from the Gulf of Thailand to thelong glimmering waters of the Andaman Coast. But there’s nothingbland about this tropical landscape. It rears up in sheer limestone out-crops in the south and rugged mountain landscapes of the north, shel-tering minority hill tribes and riven by cave systems, tracked by riversand – off the main roads – immediately reverting to a traditional wayof life.

On an urban level, the Thai culture has blossomed with all theadvantages of the modern age but has kept in touch with its tradi-tional past. Candles and sacrifices still grace spirit houses alongsideeach new Thai home, and temples are filled with devout Buddhistspaying homage.

Thailand is nothing like Europe. Those who’ve visited before asbackpackers will know this and long to return. In many ways it ismore simple to travel here as a family than it would be in Europe.There are hotels to suit all budgets, and getting around is easy, with ahuge range of transport options for every given route. In every resortcity there are ‘planned’ attractions for children, but just as many high-lights come from the smallest encounters, the spark of new friendshipswith other children that transcend culture and language. And if thereshould ever be a problem, a missed flight, a hotel reservation goneastray, a smile and a few well-flung baht will solve most issues in a waythat just wouldn’t be possible in the ‘developed’ world. If you want tointroduce your children to a new way of life, rapidly overhauling ourestablished western model, Thailand is perfect.

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BEST FAMILYEVENTS

Of all Thailand’s spectacular fes-tivals, SongKran (see p 19 and p 53) is the one that displayseach Thai’s inner child. The ThaiNew Year celebrations bring thecountry to a halt in frenziedwaterfights that transcend cul-tural barriers and bond the gen-erations. Shops set out great vatsof water in the street and recruitvisitors, friends and family tofight running battles with open-backed pickup trucks carryingtheir own barrels of water, usingtheir height to drench pedestri-ans below. Coming at the heightof the hot, humid build up to the rainy season everyone gets soaked – and nobodyminds. The concept is that the water will wash away yoursins, and occasionally spiritualinsights creep in: a little old ladydabs flour on your children’scheeks for good luck, and quiet

ceremonies in temples mark thestart of a new year, but generally,for most children, it’s the water-fights they remember. In thenorth the endless drenching bat-tles go on for days; the south,more reasonably, calls a truceafter one day.

BEST WATERBORNEADVENTURE

From the canals of the capital tothe tropical islands of the south,Thailand is a marine society.Fast, sleek and loud, longtailedboats spray past more genteelpassenger vessels. Even moun-tain rivers are negotiated in rub-ber zodiacs and rafts made frombamboo. Of all the aquaticadventures on offer, one standsout: the sea canoe tours ofPhang-nga Bay’s hongs (p 133).Here you paddle through hid-den, bat-filled caves to discovermiraculous lagoons in the heartof sheer limestone islands,unique ecosystems concealed,over the ages, from the outsideworld.

BEST SNORKELLING& DIVING

Teaching children to dive isbrave or possibly foolish, butsnorkelling has acceptable risks –and there are few countries thatcan match Thailand’s tropicalwaters for coral reefs and fish.There’s superb diving in the

Elephants in Ayutthaya

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Gulf of Thailand, off Pattayaand in Ang Thong NationalMarine Park near Koh Samui.But the ultimate snorkelling, inseason, is off the AndamanCoast. Take a boat from Phuket(See p 134) and sail south to dis-cover vivid coral reefs, brightwith the colours of endlessshoals of fish, with occasionalglimpsed pelagics lurking in thedepths.

BEST ELEPHANTEXPERIENCE

You won’t see any elephants inBangkok: they’ve been banned as a traffic hazard. Everywhereelse in the country you will.Although some are still wild,most are domesticated, havinglost their traditional role in log-ging and agriculture. Elephantslive as long as humans, need250kg of food each day and con-tinue to breed: funding them isoften a considerable problem.Throughout the country loneelephants roam the streets,guided by their mahout, beggingshopkeepers, restaurateurs andpeople to buy them food. In theremote jungle interiors of thesouthern islands they are kept incamps, earning their living byletting westerners wash themand go for lumbering forestrides. At Phuket’s Fantasea agreat herd performs in unison,acting out scenes from Thai his-tory and mythology. It’s in thenorth, however, that they areseen at their best: around

Chiang Mai (see p 211) a selec-tion of elephant camps put ondisplays where these majesticanimals play football, performmusical concerts and paintworks of art that would put VanGogh to shame.

BEST BEACHES

With the huge sweep of the Gulfof Thailand and the long run ofthe Andaman Sea coast, Thailandhas beaches to suit every mood.Not all are perfect. Photographsrarely show that the beaches ofthe southern Andaman, Koh Jumand Koh Lanta, and the shelteredinlets of Phang-nga Bay oftenslope slowly far out to sea.They’re great as large ocean-sizedfamily wading pools, but no greatshakes for swimming. Others areonly perfect for six months of theyear: at certain times monsoonwinds make many of the beachesin Samui and Phuket broodingand dangerous, as the windsbring rip-tides and waves. Foryear-round equanimity and per-fect soft sand, I’d choose thesmall bays of Koh Samet: specifi-cally the social golden sands ofHaad Sai Kaew. See p 100.

BEST AQUARIUM

It’s not just tourists who flock toThailand’s aquaria. Most Thaishave no culture of swimming:water is seen at best as where fishcome from, at worst as a drown-ing hazard. Children are not

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encouraged to swim in the sea,and certainly not to dive belowits surface. A number of aquariabring the experience to them.Startlingly sophisticated andambitious aquaria, often builtwith Australian expertise, havebeen built in Phuket andPattaya, and although both areexcellent, the best one is whereyou’d least expect it: occupyingan area the size of two footballpitches below one of the capital’sbest shopping malls. Yes, thebest aquarium is in Bangkok.See p 63.

BEST TIGER TREAT

Captive tigers inevitably evokemixed feelings. That such mag-nificent creatures should becaged and confined seems intol-erable: even worse are the 50-baht photo opportunities wheretiger cubs, sucking on baby bot-tles of possibly tranquilised milk,are passed from tourist to tourist.Soft sentiments don’t solutionsmake. Thailand’s remote forestregions are already home to asmany tigers as they can support:any captive animals releasedwould soon be killed as theyfought to establish their own ter-ritories. At Sri Racha Tiger Zooyou can see how easily theybreed, where a pig acts as a surro-gate mother while coachloads ofKorean tourists say ‘ahhh’ andtake photographs. I’d go for thecontroversial Tiger Temple (see p 70) near Kanchanaburi, where circumstances have led apioneering Buddhist temple to

become a well-known and popu-lar refuge for all types of animal.

BEST RIVER JOURNEYS

Roads are a recent developmentin Thailand. Until recently riverswere the main line of communi-cation. In the north of the coun-try you’ll still see rafts made ofbamboo crashing through shal-low rapids, and you can ride onone yourself – though these daysThais will pole your boat safelydown the river and you’re nolonger allowed to steer it your-self. From Bangkok longtailboats, named after the plume ofwater thrown up by the propellerdangling on the back of a truckengine, tour the backwatercanals, revealing the disappearingThailand of stilted buildings overwater, where commuting is byboat and the canal waters aresomehow used to wash clothessparkling white on makeshiftfront-step laundries. But the firstprize has to go to the inexpensiveriver taxis that make travellingthrough the capital city a pleas-ure, easing their way betweencargo vessels, pleasure cruisersand dine’n’dance discos and alsowhisking you between Bangkok’sgreatest sights. See p 62.

BEST TEENAGELAND CHALLENGE

There are a number of courseswhere aspects of Thailand’s

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culture are imparted to youngvisitors, including carving soapand fruit, Thai cookery classesand Thai boxing lessons. But thegreatest – and attainable – senseof achievement can come fromclimbing. Climbing courses areavailable on Koh Phi Phi andKoh Samui as well as amongstthe mountains of the north, butthe greatest of all are up thesheer limestone cliffs that backRailay Beach, near Krabi. See p 142.

BEST HISTORY LESSON

Thailand’s sense of traditionimbues the country, from thehumblest spirit house to thegrandest incense-strewn temple.Get up early on any morningand you’ll see monks streamingforth to beg for the ingredientsfor their one daily meal. Acrossthe border in Laos this attractsmobs of video-toting tourists,

but in Thailand it’s just routine.The origins of this tradition aresometimes lost in the tumul-tuous world of Thailand today.For a sense of the spiritual rele-vance of this ancient culturethere are few places to beatAyutthaya, an hour fromBangkok. Once the country’scapital but now a rural hinter-land, its stupas and chedis crum-ble in the tropical heat and anantique Buddha head, lovinglycarved from stone, has beenembraced by the roots of a stran-gler-fig tree. See p 66.

BEST ACCOMMODATION

Best Resort Hotel

In Thailand’s race into the 21stcentury, most of the best beachesnow feature at least one resorthotel. Only one has five. TheLaguna Beach Resort on Phuketis the most family-friendly

View from a longtail boat in Bangkok

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member of the Laguna Resortcomplex, an ‘integrated resort’ offive leading resort hotels set on abeach and a series of inter-linkedlagoons. Guests can shuttlearound between all five hotels,and for a small fee make themost of their extensive facilities.This opens up 30 restaurants, 15swimming pools and three spas.There’s an 18-hole golf course, a‘Camp Laguna club’ teachingteenagers abseiling, rock climb-ing, tennis, horse riding andmore. Facilities include a water-park, a marine centre with complimentary hobie cats, wind-surfers and instruction, children’sclubs for all ages, and two semi-resident elephants, Ann and babySara. See p 146.

Most Stylish Hotel

The Thais’ natural love of beautyand harmony has, in its longrecent boom, been celebrated ina number of remarkable hotels

and resorts. The Alila in Cha-amshould perhaps be a member ofthis eclectic group, but that is, tobe brutally honest, Balinese –which is not quite the same. Foran icon of modern Thailand atits most urbane and sophisti-cated, the ultimate hotel has tobe the soaring capital presence ofThe Banyan Tree, Bangkok. Seep 74.

Best Self-Catering

For families, self-catering is oftenan attractive and convenientoption. Freed from the choicebetween endless child meals andthe dangers of unexpected spicesin local dishes, parents can cookup comfort food for the youngand make expeditions to exploreat their own, unhurried pace. Anumber of self-catering apart-ments and villas are inexpen-sively available throughout thecountry, but for the ultimate pri-vate pad the Karma Samui has

The ultimate private pad at Karma Sumai

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the edge. Four-bedroom villaslook to the sea over privatepools, kitchens are equippedwith fridge-freezer, dishwasher,microwave and coffee machine,while laundries feature washingmachines and dryers. Add hugeflat-screen TVs and DVD play-ers with a children’s library offilms and you have everythingyou could need to create yourown Thai home. See p 184.

Best Beach Hotels

Thailand’s tourism started withits beachfront hotels, the simplewood-and-rattan beach huts of40 years ago spread around sim-ple restaurants serving localfood. You can still find modestestablishments like these, butnow you have to look further, tothe outlying islands. The originalpioneers have built on their suc-cess by adding sophistication:replacing bamboo with concrete,adding air-conditioning andswimming pools and, increas-ingly, becoming jostled byneighbours trying to cash in on

their success. A few have man-aged to resist the urge to expandand maintain their personal wel-come, but perhaps the one thatbest encapsulates the small-scalecharm of a great beach hotel isactually expatriate-run, theWaterfront at Bophut on KohSamui. Family-run by a Britishcouple, this small and idiosyn-cratic place has just a few roomsbuilt right on the sand, with allthe comforts of home in simply-furnished rooms set around apool packed with floaty toys.The restaurant closes at 6.30pmeach evening, so it’s just as wellthat it is at the heart of one ofSamui’s most restaurant-friendlyvillages: there is a vast choicewithin easy walking distance,and babysitting is available. Seep 188.

Best Guest House

The guest house culture is strongin Thailand, with simple familyhomes in busy city centres ekingout a living by accommodatingforeign visitors. Few do this with

Swimming pool at the Waterfront Hotel, Bophut

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such enthusiasm as King’s Homein Hua Hin (see p 194), where a small property within 200mfrom the Squid Piers and thebeach feels rather like Dr Who’sTardis. Enter via a smallentrance hall and you are ledthrough a warren of rooms,packed with memorabilia redo-lent of the owner’s nativeHolland, with huge soft beds,TVs and fridges in every room.For a cultural experience ofmodern Thailand central HuaHin is hard to beat, with someof the country’s best seafoodserved in inexpensive marketrestaurants and a lively, Thai-oriented beach culture.

BEST EATINGOPTIONS

Best Day Out

It’s rather a hack across KohSamui from the main beachresorts, but children and theirparents love the Babylon

Restaurant on Bang Por Beach,and it’s an excellent choice if thesea is too rough to swim. Fivebouncy castles are set in a safelyfenced and lightly supervisedcompound and although it’shardly a theme park the atmos-phere is pleasant and relaxing.They were digging a swimmingpool when I was there and therestaurant serves sensationalThai food at local prices on thewater’s edge, with distant viewsof the mainland. Let lunch lastuntil late: while most of Samui’sbeaches get the sunrise, this onegets the sunset. See p 195.

Best Educational Dining

At almost all major resort areasthere are evening dinner showswhere sophisticated lighting sys-tems and elaborate special effectsshowcase Thailand’s history andculture. Some put on magnifi-cent performances but miss outon the food: with others it is theother way round. For the perfectcombination of fine dining and

Exotic fruit picked in Koh Samui

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a genuinely spectacular displayof acrobatics, stylised fights andcostumed dances, the best isBangkok’s Siam Niramit. See p 83.

Best View

The expansive view over the cityof Chiang Mai is just part of thepleasures of dining at the PalaadTawanron, set above the city’sfantastic zoo. There is a separatechild menu, highchairs, and aclown often follows families,making balloon animals. Asnight falls the lights of the citysparkle in the distance, and youcan also combine your meal witha twilight safari, meeting noctur-nal species you might have over-looked through the day. Livemusic plays every night: reserveearly to make sure of a table witha good view. See p 229.

Best Sunday Lunch

This quintessentially British tra-dition is recreated at countlessBritish theme pubs across thecountry, which you’ll find inalmost all major resort areas. Butyou don’t fly half-way round theworld to eat roast beef andYorkshire pudding in the tropi-cal heat. Instead go to the BBCrestaurant on Koh Samui’s GreatBuddha Beach, where everySunday lunch is followed byrelaxed jazz on the sands as thesun glints from the gold Buddha,out in the bay. See p 195.

Best Active Meal

They serve a seven-course lunchat the Coral Island Beach Clubon a small island just off Phuket,but that’s not why anyone visits.A simple day-pass opens up aworld of watersports includingscuba diving, power snorkelling,clear kayaks, banana boating andsea canoe expeditions. The per-fect way to build up a healthyappetite in the tropical heat. Seep 157.

Best Meal – Ever

I can’t tie this down to oneactual meal but know where ithappened: on a homestay in thevillage of Ban Talae Nok on theAndaman Coast. A relief pro-gramme set up after the 2004Tsunami arranges for westernfamilies to stay with local vil-lagers, and we found a host fam-ily who might have been poorbut certainly didn’t starve. Freshsquid, prawns and tasty villagechicken were just the proteinhighlights amongst a constantselection of seasonal fruits,cashew nuts and rice. Alongsidea series of snacks, Thai meals aremade up of several shared disheseaten as a family, something thatmost visitors miss as they followwestern eating patterns and buyfood plate by plate. Thanks,then, to our hostess: Nooliha ofBan Talae Nok. See p 127.

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