• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Getting There & Away

Sŏrng·ta·ou leave from Sangkhlaburi’s bus station (40B) every 45 minutes between 6.40am and 5.20pm. The 28km journey north takes around 40 minutes.

The border is a short walk from the sŏrng·ta·ou stop in Three Pagodas Pass.

Return to beginning of chapter

Southeastern Thailand

* * *

CHONBURI PROVINCE

SI RACHA

KO SI CHANG

PATTAYA

RAYONG PROVINCE

RAYONG

BAN PHE

AROUND RAYONG & BAN PHE

KO SAMET

CHANTHABURI PROVINCE

CHANTHABURI

TRAT PROVINCE

TRAT

AROUND TRAT

HAT LEK TO CAMBODIA

KO CHANG

AROUND KO CHANG

PRACHINBURI & SA KAEW PROVINCES

PRACHINBURI

AROUND PRACHINBURI

THAP LAN & PANG SIDA NATIONAL PARKS

ARANYA PRATHET

* * *

There’s nothing moderate about southeastern Thailand. Catering to holidaying hedonists and laid-back hippies, the region represents the many attractions of Thailand – in their extremes.

First there’s Pattaya, a testosterone-fuelled, heavy-breathing resort town, where skirts are short and heels high. It’s reinventing itself as a family place, but Pattaya still sweats a buzzy late-night aphrodisiac. At the other end of the region, in geography and intensity, is Mu Ko Chang National Marine Park, where islands rise from waters the colour of blue skies and are just as clear.

And then there’s everything in between.

The razzle-dazzle of jewels lures dealers to Chanthaburi’s gem markets. Equally alluring are Ko Samet’s aquamarine waters and white beaches, which once earned it a name that translates to ‘Vast Jewel Isle’, and on weekends you can watch – or join – Bangkok locals as they make a different kind of trade: weekday anxieties for weekend amusements.

More subdued but no less attractive are the region’s subtle hints of Old Siam: teak houses and pier buildings scattered along the coast. Si Racha’s pier-front looks across the cargo ship–studded water to Ko Si Chang, a quiet island with hillside temples often overlooked by weekend Bangkok escapees. Trat Province, with its riverside ambience and excellent budget lodgings, invites backpackers en route to Mu Ko Chang and Cambodia to ease off the travellers’ accelerator.

Finally, several national parks round out the offerings. In the northern area around Prachinburi, white-water rafting and mountain biking are on offer, while in the smaller parks near the coast, day trips to tiered waterfalls offer shady respite from the buzz of towns and traffic.

* * *

HIGHLIGHTS

Taking in the temples and shrines of Ko Si Chang (Click here) from the back of a souped-up túk-túk

Transitioning from wild to mild in Pattaya (Click here), with its cabaret- and club-filled nightlife and its amusement-park, family-oriented day life

Navigating the footpaths from beach to beach and bungalow to bungalow along the eastern coast of Ko Samet (Click here)

Swinging in a hammock while contemplating another lazy beach day on mellow Ko Mak (Click here)

Embarking on a sweaty jungle trek (and cooling waterfall swim) on mountainous Ko Chang (Click here)

BEST TIME TO VISIT: NOVEMBER-MAY

POPULATION: 3.6 MILLION

* * *

Climate

Southeastern Thailand experiences a three-season, monsoonal climate: a relatively cool dry season in November and December is followed by a hot dry season stretching from January to May. A hot wet season follows from June to October.

During the wet season, Ko Samet stays unusually dry and is the region’s most ‘monsoon proof’ island.

National Parks

The islands of Ko Samet (Click here) and Ko Chang (Click here) fall within national parks (Khao Laem Ya/Mu Ko Samet National Park and Mu Ko Chang National Marine Park, respectively) and are the region’s biggest drawcards after Pattaya. Ko Chang is covered in dense, unspoilt forest, and while the island’s coastline is developing fast, the interior is still rugged and untouched.

Khao Chamao/Khao Wong (Click here), Khao Khitchakut (Click here) and Nam Tok Phlio (Click here) National Parks hold fewer surprises, but are worth a visit for a break from the coastal buzz.

Getting There & Away

For the