5. Places to see and activities to do

Bangkok — Thailand's bustling, frenetic capital. The Grand Palace in Bangkok is one of the must-sees.

Grand Palace

Ayutthaya — a historical city, UNESCO World Heritage Site and old capital of Thailand

Wat Phra Si Sanphet

Founded around 1350, Ayutthaya became the second capital of Siam after Sukhothai. Throughout the centuries, the ideal location between China, India and the Malay Archipelago made Ayutthaya the trading capital of Asia and even the world. By 1700 Ayutthaya had become the largest city in the world with a total of 1 million inhabitants. Many international merchants set sail for Ayutthaya, from diverse regions as the Arab world, China, India, Japan, Portugal, the Netherlands and France. Merchants from Europe proclaimed Ayutthaya as the finest city they had ever seen. Dutch and French maps of the city show grandeur with gold-laden palaces, large ceremonies and a huge float of trading vessels from all over the world. All this came to a quick end when the Burmese invaded Ayutthaya in 1767 and almost completely burnt the city down to the ground.

Today, only a few remains might give a glimpse of the impressive city they must have seen. Its remains are characterized by the prang (reliquary towers) and big monasteries. Most of the remains are temples and palaces, as those were the only buildings made of stone at that time. The great cultural value of Ayutthaya's ruins were officially recognized in 1991, when the Historic City became an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its proximity to Bangkok made it a popular day-trip destinations

• Chiang Mai — de facto capital of Northern Thailand and the heart of Lanna culture

• Chiang HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Chiang_Rai"Rai — gateway to the Golden Triangle, ethnic minorities and mountain trekkings

• Kanchanaburi — home of the Bridge over the River Kwai and numerous World War II museums Kanchanaburi features several elephant camps but one of the largest is Taweechai Elephant camp

• NakhonHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Nakhon_Ratchasima" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Nakhon_Ratchasima"Ratchasima (Khorat) — largest city of the Isaan region

• Pattaya — one of the main tourist destinations, known for its rough nightlife

• Sukhothai — Thailand's first capital, still with amazing ruins

• SuratHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Surat_Thani" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Surat_Thani"Thani — home of the Srivijaya Empire, gateway to KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui"Samui, KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan"PhaHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan"Ngan and KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Tao" Tao

• Other destinations

• KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Chang" Chang — once a quiet island, now undergoing major tourism development

• KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lipe" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lipe"Lipe — small island in the middle of Tarutao National Park, amazingly unspoilt with great reefs and beaches

• KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan"PhaHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Pha_Ngan"Ngan — site of the famous Full Moon Party with miles of quiet coastline

• KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samet" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samet"Samet — the nearest island beach escape from Bangkok

• KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui"Samui — comfortable, nature, and entertainment hippie mecca gone upmarket

• KhaoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Sok_National_Park" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Sok_National_Park"SokHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Sok_National_Park" National Park — one of the most beautiful wildlife reserves in Thailand

• KhaoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Yai_National_Park" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Yai_National_Park"YaiHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Yai_National_Park" National Park — take a night time jeep safari spotting deer or visit the spectacular waterfalls

• KrabiHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Krabi_Province" Province — beach and watersports mecca in the South, includes AoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ao_Nang" Nang, RaiHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Rai_Leh" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Rai_Leh"Leh, KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Phi_Phi" Phi HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Phi_Phi"Phi and KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lanta" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lanta"Lanta

• Phuket — the original Thai paradise island, now very developed but still with some beautiful beaches

• Beaches and islands

Chaweng at dusk, KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui"Samui

• Most visitors come to Thailand for its stunning beaches and islands.

• Golf

• Golf arrived in Thailand during the reign of King Rama V one hundred years ago. It was first played by nobles and other elitists of high society, but since then, things have certainly changed. Over the past decade or so, the popularity of golf in Thailand has escalated; played both by local Thais and visiting foreign tourists and expatriates.

• Meeting to the recent needs of an average of 400,000 foreign golfers coming to Thailand annually, golf in Thailand has turned into a huge local industry with new courses constantly being churned out. Golf alone is annually bringing an income of 8 billion baht into the local economy. The amount of golf currently being played in Thai is so colossal that the country has rightly been given the nickname "The Golf Capital of Asia". Thailand offers over two hundred courses with high standards.

• There are an abundance of reasons why golf in Thailand has become so huge. First, if you compare the cost to most golfing countries in the world, membership and course fees are exceptionally low. The general low cost of vacationing in Thailand itself makes the country ideal for cost-efficiency minded tourists. Also, many of the golf courses in Thailand have been designed by top names in the game such as Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Greg Norman and they are located in delightful locations.

• Outdoors

• Thailand's a big enough country that you can find a place to practice almost any outdoor sport. Some selections:

• Rock climbing - the cliffs of RaiHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Rai_Leh" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Rai_Leh"Leh in Krabi are arguably among the best in the world.

• Snorkeling - Phuket and its surrounding islands, Phi HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Phi_Phi"Phi, Koh Tao, and Some areas in the Similans have some wonderful snorkeling over coral reefs.

• Scuba diving - easily accessible KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Tao" Tao and AngHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ang_Thong_National_Marine_Park" Thong National Marine Park (near KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui"Samui) draws the crowds, but also possible in KohHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Koh_Chang" Chang, Pattaya and Krabi, and the SimilanHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Similan_Islands" Islands are worth the journey. One of the newest hot spots for diving is KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lipe" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Lipe"Lipe - Small island in the middle of TarutaoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Tarutao_National_Park" National Park amazingly unspoilt, great reefs and beaches absolutely stunning, a must see. See also DivingHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Diving_in_Thailand" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Diving_in_Thailand"inHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Diving_in_Thailand" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Diving_in_Thailand"Thailand.

• Trekking - very popular up north around Chiang Mai and Chiang HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Chiang_Rai"Rai

• Surfing - possible in KhaoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Lak" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Khao_Lak"Lak, Phuket and KohHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Koh_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Koh_Samui"Samui

• Liveaboard Diving see the separate Diving in Thailand article

• Other

• Dinner Cruise - dinner cruises have become one of Thailand's must visit spot for any visitors to Thailand. One of the most popular and leading dinner cruise in country is Chao Phraya Princess.

• Spas - Although spas weren't introduced here until the early 1990s, Thailand has quickly become the second-highest ranking spa destination in the world. There are a phenomenal variety of spa types, and spas can be found at almost every destination in the country. The most popular spas can be found at major tourism destinations such as Phuket, Pattaya, HuaHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Hua_Hin" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Hua_Hin"Hin, Bangkok, KoHYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui" HYPERLINK "http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui"Samui and Chiang Mai.

• Medical tourism - Many travellers go to Thailand to undergo medical treatments at a fraction of the cost charged in their home countries. The renowned Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok attracts on average 400,000 foreign patients per year or an average of 1,000+ a day. Other hospitals, such as Samitivej also specialize in serving foreigners. Private hospitals in Thailand are accredited by the government according to standards that meet or exceed those in North America, and many of the doctors in Thailand hold international accreditation and relevant licenses. Popular treatments, ranging from cosmetic, organ transplants and orthopedic treatments to dental and cardiac surgeries, are available at a price much lower than the US or Europe. Treatments also include physical and mental therapies.

Questions

1. Which places of interest would you recommend to see in Thailand?

2. Which interesting facts about Ayutthaya have you found out?

3. What kinds of holidays are popular in Thailand?

4. Give examples of outdoor sports one can practice in Thailand and which parts of the country are suitable for practicing them?