Travel off the beaten track and experience

Sihanoukville, Cambodia, may look close to Koh Chang, Thailand, on the map, but the journey’s quite a long one — I’ve been on the road for eleven hours, and I’ve only just arrived on the island. I’m sitting in the back of a sawngtaew on the way to the hippie enclave of Lonely Beach. To my left is an affable, mid-forties Scottish man; across from us is a couple in their late twenties.  The guy is tall and Irish; his ponytailed girlfriend, Thai. “Reckon it gets hot in Koh Chang?” the Scotsman asks. “Not for her,” the Irish guy says, his arm draped lazily around his girlfriend.  “She’s from the hottest part of Thailand.  Right between Bangkok and Chiang Mai.” From the way the Thai girl looks at him, you’d think he was talking about how he discovered the cure for cancer. Her cheeks are pink; her eyes are shining. “We’ve been traveling all day and all night from Chiang Mai,” the Irish guy...

When I was learning about Chiang Mai, I kept hearing the same themes: “It’s so nice and relaxing here.” “It’s much calmer than Bangkok.” “It’s a great place for a family.” So a nice city, but no nightlife destination by any stretch, I assumed. Was I ever wrong! On my first night out in Chiang Mai, I met up with a friend I made on the bus from Bangkok and we found ourselves drinking watery mango mojitos in a farang-filled bar in the old city.  Not very exciting. So we changed course and headed to an all-Thai club, making friends with a magician and his friends, then dancing in an after-hours club and ending with a 4:30 AM meal in what I assume was a combination restaurant and gas station. A few days later, Unbrave Girl and I were sitting down to our sworn final drink of the night when we were given red roses and a bottle of whiskey by three Thai guys, then taken to the VIP section of a club for dancing. Seriously, they know ...

Planning your trip to Northern Thailand? If you have a limited time, you may be wondering if you should visit Chiang Rai or Chiang Mai (or both?). In this post, we compare both cities so you can make your decision according to your preferences. Note that if you have 4 days or more to visit Northern Thailand, you could easily visit both.  Day trips to Chiang Rai are organized from Chiang Mai on a daily basis. You can read about my own experience here.   Chiang Rai vs Chiang Mai – Activities   Let’s discuss the activities you can do in both Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai. Depending on your interests, you may find this helpful to make a decision.   Chiang Rai Activities     Chiang Rai has a solid reputation overseas since this is the destination to see the most beautiful temples in Thailand. You may have seen photos of the White Temple over Instagram – and this is why many people even decide to go to Northern Thailand. If you like temples and...

When traveling to Koh Lipe Thailand, you’ll more than likely find yourself gazing off into the Andaman Sea at the nearby islands. Odds are you’ll be looking over at Koh Adang, which is one of the closest islands to Koh Lipe and one you should definitely go explore. If you are looking for the best view of Koh Lipe it’s a must to hike up to the Koh Adang viewpoint. We’ve put together this Koh Adang guide with everything you need to know and the best things to do on Koh Adang. Get to Koh Adang  |  Koh Adang Viewpoint Hike  |  Koh Adang Waterfall Hike | Things to do Koh Adang |  Koh Adang Accommodation | Facilities Koh Adang Guide   Where Is Koh Adang Koh Adang is part of the Tarutao National Marine Park located in Southern Thailand in the Andaman Sea. It is easily reached from Koh Lipe. Koh Adang is the second-largest island in the Tarutao National Marine Park, it spans 6 km long and 5 km wide. Koh Adang is also sometimes written Ko Adang and in Thai: ...

Thailand is well known for its beautiful beaches and exceptional snorkelling spots and there is no better place than the Krabi region. We recently stayed at Crown Lanta on the island of Koh Lanta with the kids and we wanted to take them out for a snorkelling trip they would never forget. Koh Rok snorkelling is tough to beat!

If you need camera gear, repair, our anything camera related there are only a handful of quality options on Chiang Mai. In my two times living in Chiang Mai and buying a lot of camera gear here, the best place to buy a camera or camera gear in Chiang Mai is the Pantip Plaza. However, there are a few others that aren’t bad either. Update: We have had one report this store has closed, if you make it over here let us know if this place is still here. It is a popular photo shop chain in Thailand, but maybe they moved. We are not currently in the city, but try to keep these pages up to date. For the best selection of camera gear in Chiang Mai head to Pantip Plaza. Located on the south-east side of the moat this plaza is your go-to spur for everything camera related. There are about 10 shops selling everything from the basics too hard to find high-end equipment. I usually end up at the FotoPro store on the first level because they have the biggest selection of quality gear. For basi...

As many of you know or can imagine, Asia can be a strange, wonderful, crazy and sometimes terrifying place. It’s a complete culture shock for most people and a lot of things can seem completely bizarre. Here are some of my favourite examples of the strangest things I saw in Asia. I tried not to include any of the typical things like people eating scorpions and ping pong shows. Weird Things I Saw in Asia 1) BOAT POOP Let’s start this off strong. I was in Thailand. I was on a dingy heading back to the dock, minding my own business. I was happy enough worrying about whether or not this flimsy inflatable bath toy, a complete excuse for a boat by the way, would get us back safely to land. However, a passing fishing vessel disturbs my thoughts and I look up. I see a man hanging off the back of the boat. My God, has he fallen over the side?! Does anyone know he’s there? Is he a stow away?! Somebody do something! Oh, Hang on, he’s not wearing any pants. Yep, that...