Slow Travel in Thailand

Flat illustration of a limestone cliff above a turquoise bay with a climber on the wall and longtail boats below, deep teal and gold

Islands & Beaches

Railay, Where the Climbs Are Worth It and the Weather Is Not

Four hundred routes on limestone two hours from a beach town, which is why half the world's top climbers spend a season there, which is also why you should not turn up in May.

Flat illustration of a crowd with water buckets and soaked clothing at a Thai temple gate festival, deep teal and gold

Temples & Culture

Songkran in Chiang Mai, From Someone Who Has Lived Through Four

For three days the entire city turns into a water fight with 40,000 people who have all independently decided to soak strangers, and the only correct strategy is to stop trying to keep your phone dry.

Flat illustration of three islands seen from a boat with a longtail, showing a quiet beach, a full moon party crowd and a diver, deep teal and gold

Islands & Beaches

Koh Lanta, Koh Phangan, or Koh Tao: Picking the Right One in 60 Seconds

These three islands get grouped together in every list and they are not remotely interchangeable. One is for staying put, one is for the full moon, and one is for diving.

Flat illustration of a commuter boat on the Chao Phraya river with temple spires and a skyline behind, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

The Chao Phraya Boat Is the Best Transport in Bangkok and Nobody Uses It

Eleven baht, fifteen minutes, and a view of the city most people pay four hundred baht to see from a rooftop bar. The reason the river is empty of foreigners is that nobody explains it.

Flat illustration of a seaside promenade with high rise towers, a beach umbrella and fishing boats, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

Pattaya, Honestly: What the Town Is and Whether You Should Go

I have spent enough time in Pattaya to have an opinion most travel blogs refuse to print: the town is genuinely not for me, and that is a feature.

Flat illustration of a bowl of curry noodle soup with a noodle press, lime wedges and chilli paste beside it, deep teal and gold

Street Food

Khao Soi, and the Eight Other Northern Dishes You Should Eat

Khao soi is the dish Chiang Mai is actually famous for, and the version in the tourism brochure is a coconut soup with a photograph on it.

Flat illustration of a steel railway bridge over a wide brown river with limestone karsts behind, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

Kanchanaburi and the River Kwai, Honestly

The Bridge on the River Kwai is a good bridge and the war museum beside it is worth two hours, and neither is the reason to come. Erawan Falls is.

Flat illustration of heavy rain falling over a Thai street with umbrellas and puddles reflecting lights, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

Thailand in the Rain: What the Monsoon Actually Does to a Trip

The rain in Thailand is not a grey drizzle that ruins a holiday. It is two and a half hours of heavy rain most afternoons, then a clear sky.

Flat illustration of a Bangkok canal with longtail boats and a riverside temple skyline in the background, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

Where to Stay in Bangkok, by What You Can Afford

There are six parts of this city that a visitor should consider and one of them, Rattanakosin, is the one that almost everybody books for the wrong reason and then regrets.

Flat illustration of red brick temple ruins with a headless Buddha statue in grass under a big sky, deep teal and gold

Temples & Culture

Ayutthaya Is Better Than Bangkok's Temples, and It Is a Day Trip

Bangkok has a Wat and a fraction of the ruins. Ayutthaya has the capital of a 400-year kingdom standing in a field, it is an hour away, and the train costs 20 baht.

Flat illustration of an elephant and a mahout walking in a forest reserve with no saddle, deep teal and gold

Temples & Culture

Elephant Sanctuaries: What Actually Happens, and What to Walk Away From

The difference between a genuine rescue sanctuary and a riding camp is visible from the car in four seconds. It is whether there is a bull in the herd.

Flat illustration of a cold morning mountain scene with mist in valleys and a jacket over a temple roof, deep teal and gold

Slow Travel

The Cold Season, and Why It Is the Only Time to Come

There is a temperature in northern Thailand in December that people who have never felt it cannot be made to understand, and it changes what a trip is worth.