This itinerary accompanies the main feature from T’s Travel issue, which traces the spread of Buddhism across Asia. In his three-part cover story, Aatish Taseer follows Buddhism’s journey through Nepal, Thailand and Taiwan.
Thailand has a way of turning first-time visitors into loyalists who return time and again. The temples, the food, the beaches, the night markets: It all adds up to a sensory overload, and being there for 10 days barely scratches the surface. What it does allow for, with some planning, is a journey through three of the country’s most compelling destinations: Bangkok, the frenetic, endlessly layered capital; Chiang Mai, the more contemplative cultural heart of the North; and Phuket, the island province in the south where jungle-covered hills meet some of the Andaman Sea’s most exquisite coastline.
Luckily for travelers, Thailand has long sat at the more affordable end of the spectrum of Asian tourism. A night at one of Bangkok’s most celebrated riverside hotels typically costs a fraction of a comparable room in New York or Paris, and the same goes for a dinner at a three-Michelin-star restaurant. Other adventures, like a visit to an ethical elephant sanctuary or a full-day private boat charter through Phang Nga Bay in Phuket, are remarkably within reach.
To build this itinerary, we turned to two advisers with deep, complementary knowledge of the country: Duncan Greenfield-Turk is the founder of the luxury agency Global Travel Moments and specializes in Southeast Asia, among other regions; Chomwan Weeraworawit, a Bangkok native who founded the creative consultancy Mysterious Ordinary, co-curated the 2022 Bangkok Art Biennale and, with her husband, the designer Philip Huang, co-founded a fashion label that works with textile artisans in northeast Thailand. Each day includes an option for those who want to splurge on a hotel or meal and a more economical option for the budget-conscious. (Hotel rates are for two people.)
Day 1: Bangkok
The best introduction to Bangkok is from the water. On your first afternoon, before jet lag sets in and before you’ve formed any fixed impressions of the city, hire one of the drivers of the narrow wooden vessels known as a long-tail boats to take you along the Chao Phraya. The river is Bangkok’s spine — lined with grand temples, colonial-era trading houses and old neighborhoods — and seeing it this way gives the city a logic it doesn’t always offer from the street. Afterward, grab a table for dinner at Nusara. If there’s one splurge worth making in the city, it’s Chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn’s restaurant near Wat Pho temple complex that’s named for his late grandmother and inspired by her cooking. Guests start with cocktails downstairs at the Nuss bar before being led up to the first-floor dining room, which holds barely 10 people and opens onto views of Wat Pho’s illuminated spires. The 12-course menu consists of delicate, inventive small plates that pay homage to Thai cuisine such as crab curry with horseshoe crab roe and pad kra pao with Thai Wagyu.
High: Capella Bangkok, a favorite hotel of Greenfield-Turk’s, sits on the Chao Phraya and offers a rare sense of calm in this teeming metropolis, partly on account of its living room-like lobby that offers barista-made coffee. “And then there’s Côte by Mauro Colagreco, which is reason enough to book a room,” says Greenfield-Turk of the property’s French- and Italian-inspired restaurant. Rooms from about $900 a night.
Low: Chomwan often suggests that friends stay at Sukhothai Bangkok, in the embassy district near the 142-acre Lumphini Park. The interiors are characterized by teak woods and Thai silk fabrics, the pool is surrounded by gardens and even the locals love the hotel’s restaurant Celadon for its authentic regional cuisine. Rooms from about $300 a night.
Day 2: Bangkok
Thailand has more Buddhist temples than almost any other nation on earth, a reflection of the fact that over 85 percent of the population practices Theravada Buddhism, a tradition that has shaped Thai art, architecture and daily life for centuries. In Bangkok alone there are more than 400 wats, or Buddhist temples, and they’re best visited in the morning, before the heat and the tour buses arrive (usually at the same time). Greenfield-Turk recommends Wat Arun and Wat Pho, whose reclining Buddha fills an entire building, as the two most essential, and there’s an inexpensive ferry that crosses between them. A quieter alternative is Wat Bowonniwet Vihara, a royal monastery established in 1824 where members of the ruling Chakri dynasty have historically come to study.
From there, walk to the Jim Thompson House, the teak compound of the American businessman who helped revive the Thai silk industry in the 1950s before disappearing in 1967 under mysterious circumstances. The house is one of the few surviving examples of domestic Thai wooden architecture in the city, and the adjacent Jim Thompson Art Center hosts contemporary exhibitions.
Lunch is at Thipsamai, which is “modest, crowded and absolutely worth it,” says Greenfield-Turk. After that, the afternoon is well spent at Iconsiam, an enormous, mixed-use development that includes an eight-story shopping mall, if only for the indoor floating market on the ground floor, a surreal, air-conditioned re-creation of a traditional one.
High: A table for dinner at Sorn is currently one of the hardest to get in Bangkok; in 2024, it became the first Thai restaurant anywhere in the world to receive three Michelin stars. The place specializes in southern Thai dishes such as gaeng som, a turmeric-based curry with young mangosteen, which the chef-owner Supaksorn “Ice” Jongsiri sources almost entirely from that region.
Low: Chomwan, who has an eye for the under-the-radar corners of the city, likes the unusual cocktails — including a tequila-based concoction made with tomato, pomelo and Vietnamese coriander — at the intimate Ku Bar, located in an old printing factory on Phra Sumen Road. For something more atmospheric, Opium Bar, on top of Potong, a restored shop house in the Charoenkrung district, offers excellent bar snacks: “The fried pork toast is to die for,” she says. Greenfield-Turk suggests visiting the street food star Jay Fai in the Old Town for her well-known crab omelet.
Day 3: Bangkok
Today is largely about shopping. Head to Chatuchak Market for vintage finds, especially Thai ceramics and textiles, or spend the morning on and around Yaowarat Road, in Bangkok’s Chinatown, where galleries and coffee bars have recently moved in among the traditional gold shops and noodle vendors. Philip Huang’s studio and showroom in a historic renovated building carries artisanal clothes and housewares alongside the stylishly billowing hand-dyed clothes from his line. Around the corner, the designer Shone Puipia, a graduate of the fashion school at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, makes contemporary clothes to order. According to Chomwan, her “trousers and bow jackets are stunning.”
High: “Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin, in the Siam Kempinski Hotel, is a refined lunch option that reimagines [traditional] Thai dishes with modern techniques,” says Greenfield-Turk. “It’s a good midpoint between the intensity of Bangkok’s street food and the more formal dinners in the city. While it’s considered fine dining, it’s still more affordable by the standards of the city’s tasting-menu restaurants.”
Low: 100 Mahaseth in the Charoenkrung neighborhood is another favorite of Chomwan’s. “The veggies and dips at the start of the meal, like the papaya salad, are incredible, and I appreciate how he sources from all over the country. The bone marrow and steak are especially delicious.”
Day 4: Chiang Mai
A 75-minute flight north brings you to Chiang Mai. Founded in 1296 as the capital of the Lanna Kingdom, a distinct northern civilization whose language, cuisine and temple architecture diverged significantly from the kingdoms of the south, it still feels a world apart from Bangkok. The Old City sits within a square moat, its corners marked by crumbling fortified bastions, and within those walls are more than 30 temples, many of them dating to the 14th and 15th centuries. The city has a population of less than a million, which makes it the largest in the north but still modest by Thai standards, and it’s navigable on foot in a way that Bangkok, with its 8 million people, never quite is.
Chiang Mai’s other major draw is the craft culture that grew out of the old royal court. Silk weaving, silver work, lacquerware, natural dyeing and wood carving all remain living trades here, and you’d be remiss if you didn’t spend some time in a few workshops and galleries, the best of which are concentrated around the San Kamphaeng Road corridor. The surrounding mountains and the cooler air (temperatures drop into the 50s on winter evenings) give the city a welcome crispness after the humidity of Bangkok.
High: The 31-year-old Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai in the Mae Rim valley, about 30 minutes north of the city, may be the predictable choice, but given the views — looking out over working rice paddies toward the mountains — it’s easy to see why. The cooking school there is also a standout, says Greenfield-Turk. Rooms from about $1,080.
Low: The wellness-focused Aleenta Retreat, which opened in 2023 at the foot of Doi Suthep mountain, offers daily yoga, sound therapy and Qi Gong. If you prefer to stay in the Old City itself, Chomwan recommends the 25-room Rachamankha hotel, which sits around the corner from one of Chiang Mai’s most famous temples, Wat Phra Singh. Rooms from about $320.
Day 5: Chiang Mai
Of the city’s many temples, two should not be missed: Wat Chedi Luang, built in the 14th century, once housed the Emerald Buddha (Thailand’s most sacred image, now in Bangkok’s Grand Palace) and its ruined chedi, partially toppled by an earthquake in 1545, still rises high above the surrounding streets. Monks from the attached monastery are available for conversation in the late afternoons. Wat Phra Singh, at the western end of Ratchadamnoen Road, is the Old City’s most revered active temple: the Lanna-period murals inside the Viharn Lai Kham chapel depict stories from Thai literature and scenes from everyday Lanna life in the 19th century. Both temples are best experienced at dusk, when the light softens and the tour groups have largely moved on.
The streets around Wat Phra Singh are also worth exploring. For souvenirs, you’ll want to wander around Kalm Village, a short walk east, where vendors and local artisans sell everything from handwoven bamboo baskets and naturally dyed textiles to batik-printed shirts. Nearby, the family-run restaurant Kanom Jeen Pa Pom serves Chomwan’s favorite nam ngiaw, a northern noodle dish with a pork-and-tomato broth.
High: For dinner, Greenfield-Turk suggests Kiti Panit, a restored teak mansion with a menu of northern Thai entrees executed with real authority, notably the hung lay curry, a slow-cooked pork dish with Burmese influences that likely evolved through a combination of the spice trade and the two-century-long occupation of Lanna.
Low: SP Chicken, a few steps from Wat Phra Singh’s gate, serves exceptional roast chicken with sticky rice in a cheerful, unpretentious interior. It’s exactly the kind of surprising, inconspicuous place Chiang Mai does better than anywhere else in Thailand.
Day 6: Chiang Mai
Grab a taxi to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, the golden temple on the mountain above the city and one of the most sacred sites in northern Thailand. The views over Chiang Mai and the valley from the terrace are special at any hour, and exceptional at sunrise. Return to the city, where Greenfield-Turk can arrange a cooking class with one of his favorite Chiang Mai-based chefs. Classes often begin with a market visit. The combination of sourcing and cooking gives you a framework for understanding the cuisine that no restaurant meal quite replicates.
Sunday evenings belong to the Walking Street Night Market at Tha Phae Gate, where local artisans sell their work. During the day, the streets around Nimmanhaemin Road buzz with Chiang Mai’s creative energy — and, perhaps surprisingly, its coffee culture. Thailand is Asia’s seventh-largest coffee producer, and the mountains above Chiang Mai have been growing Arabica beans since the 1970s. Chomwan’s favorite spot is Akha Ama Coffee, run by Lee Ayu, a member of the Akha hill tribe who works directly with growers from his home village in the mountains above the city.
High: On Ratchawong Road, Maadae Slow Fish Kitchen specializes in southern Thai seafood sourced from fishermen in Chumphon Province (not a style of cooking you expect to find this far north). The menu changes daily based on what arrived fresh, and the cooking is done over an open charcoal fire visible from the outdoor seating. The pomelo-and-fish salad and the whole grilled fish (kingfish, trevally or snapper, depending on the day) are the dishes to order.
Low: Khao Soi Khun Yai (the name translates simply to “Grandma’s Khao Soi”) is a small, open-sided restaurant tucked between two temples on Sri Poom Road in the Old City. Greenfield-Turk is partial to the khao soi, of course — “a northern Thai coconut curry noodle soup you will think about for months,” he says. The fresh egg noodles arrive topped with a tangle of crispy fried versions, and the whole bowl costs less than $2. Go before 11 a.m. or expect to wait.
Day 7: Chiang Mai
Northern Thailand’s elephant camps have courted controversy over the years, but Greenfield-Turk considers the Elephant Nature Park a model example of an animal sanctuary. Founded by the conservationist Lek Chailert in 1995, the park lies in the Mae Taeng valley about an hour north of the city. The park rescues elephants from logging operations, street begging and abusive tourism situations, and the animals move through the grounds in family groups with a freedom that tries to mimic that of the wild (there is no riding, performing or unnatural contact). Allow for a full morning here.
If you have a few extra days, consider driving about four hours north to explore the area of Chiang Rai Province that forms part of the Golden Triangle, where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar converge at the Ruak and Mekong Rivers. The region is infamous as the world’s largest opium-producing area but, at least on the Thai side of the border, it’s better known for tea, hill tribe villages and dramatic river landscapes. Otherwise, spend your final afternoon walking through Chiang Mai’s Old City before your evening flight south.
High: Greenfield-Turk can arrange a private half-day visit to Elephant Nature Park, which allows for more time with the animals, followed by an afternoon at the Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai in the Mae Rim valley. The spa there offers traditional northern Thai treatments using local ingredients like turmeric and the Chulalongkorn rose, grown exclusively for the resort. Another option: The property’s cooking school has afternoon sessions.
Low: Chomwan suggests an afternoon at the Land Foundation, about 20 minutes from the city center in Sanpatong. Initiated in 1998 by the Thai artists Kamin Lertchaiprasert and Rirkrit Tiravanija, one of the most influential Thai artists working internationally, it’s an experimental project built around working rice fields that functions simultaneously as a farm, an artists’ residency and a long-term artwork, with structures by François Roche, Philippe Parreno and others distributed across the grounds.
Day 8: Phuket
Decades of mass resort development on Phuket’s western coast have given the island an image it doesn’t entirely deserve. The beaches at Patong, Karon and Kata can be genuinely overwhelming during peak season, but the island also has another side. Settle into your hotel in the morning, then give the afternoon to Phuket Old Town. It’s only a 15-minute drive from the beachfront resorts in Patong and Panwa to town, but the two areas feel like different islands entirely. Phuket’s Chinese and Malay trading history is written into the Old Town’s architecture: Its shop houses and colonial mansions date mostly from the early 1900s, when wealthy Chinese merchants imported architectural influences from trading ports that had been part of Portuguese networks such as Singapore and Malaya, resulting in a hybrid architecture that blends curved Chinese roof tiles with Portuguese building structures. Be sure to walk Thalang Road and Dibuk Road in the late afternoon, when the light hits the pastel-hued facades.
High: Amanpuri, opened in 1988, is where the modern luxury resort, in Southeast Asia at least, effectively began. The American architect Ed Tuttle designed it on a peninsula above Pansea Beach, and it consists of 40 pavilions and 44 villas spread across coconut groves, with five dining options and a fleet of watercraft. “What makes Amanpuri endure,” says Greenfield-Turk, “is the space, the privacy and the feeling that you’ve found something that the rest of Phuket simply cannot replicate.” Rooms from about $1,450.
Low: Arco Phuket Town, which opened in 2024 in the Old Town, is a different proposition entirely, a base among the Sino-Portuguese streets from which you can enjoy the town’s authentic flavor. (Rooms from about $165.) For dinner in Old Town, Chomwan recommends the stylish Local Canteen — where you can pair the ceviche or beef curry with natural wine — or the family-owned Krua Kao Kuk, known for its clam soup, stir-fried fish and other regional specialties.
Day 9: Phuket
A full day on Phang Nga Bay, a stretch of water about an hour north of Phuket, is a quintessential excursion from the island. Greenfield-Turk suggests going by private long-tail or speedboat rather than on a group tour. The bay is studded with limestone karsts that rise straight from the water — some are hollow, and some are threaded with sea caves that a kayak can pass through at low tide.
The main attraction is Khao Phing Kan — universally known as James Bond Island after “The Man With the Golden Gun” was filmed there in 1974. Koh Panyi, the Muslim fishing village built entirely on stilts over the water, is the stop that tends to make the biggest impression on visitors, but it’s best to arrive early to beat the crowds. Return to Phuket in the late afternoon for sunset drinks at the resort, or at the bar at Amanpuri looking west over the Andaman Sea, before dinner.
High: If, by now, you’re open to a different type of cuisine, Chomwan suggests La Gaetana, an Italian restaurant in Phuket Old Town that’s been run by the same owner for decades. “I particularly love the bottarga spaghetti,” she says.
Low: Laem Hin Seafood is a no-frills waterfront spot popular with locals. The draw is the barbecued seafood, including sea bass, clams and squid, with many dishes cooked over coals and eaten at outdoor tables.
Day 10: Phuket
Phuket’s western beaches, including Surin and Bang Tao, and the quieter Banana Beach, tucked behind a headland and reachable by a short path through the trees, are at their most peaceful in the early hours, before the beach clubs set up and the long-tails start running. Bang Tao is the longest stretch on this part of the coast, and it’s wide enough that, even on a busy day, it doesn’t feel overrun. Banana Beach is the more secluded option, and a favorite of Chomwan’s for its small arc of sand and the laid-back beach club serving grilled clams and squid.
For those who want to spend their last few hours in the Old Town, Chomwan recommends three stops. Graph Phuket does a monochrome charcoal latte that’s become a signature, though the single-origin drip is just as good. For gifts, Lemongrass House makes beauty products like oils, balms and scrubs from Thai ingredients, and the packaging is secure enough to survive a checked bag. Torry’s, an ice cream shop a short walk away, also carries local snacks — including mooncakes filled with red beans and tao sor, a crispy pastry filled with sweet or savory mung beans — that make great gifts.
High: For a final lunch on the coast, head to the Beach Cuisine on Bang Tao Beach, where French and Thai chefs serve barbecued seafood, mussels and clams marinière on a terrace right above the sand. Phuket’s airport is between 15 and 30 minutes from the western beaches and connects directly to Bangkok for international departures.
Low: After coffee at Graph, take a walk to Mee Ton Poe for a bowl of Phuket Hokkien noodles, a dish that traces its roots to the Hokkien Chinese traders who settled here in the 19th-century and shaped the island’s food as much as its architecture. Together, these stops form an impactful last impression of a slice of Phuket that lives apart from the sprawling resort economy.
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