Thailand or Vietnam - Beach holiday - Where to go?

[MattS5]

So, having been to Thailand some 20 years ago, staying at Koh Samui, I'd like to go back.
However, Samui looks to have changed loads in that time, and not in my mind for the better, or maybe I'm just older and looking for different things.

I could also be interested in Vietnam too (my son has just been there travelling Oz and SE Asia and it looked, as I expected, to be fab)

Would likely be looking at Nov or Feb, duration of 10-14 days, a total budget up to £5k for myself and girlfreind seems reasonably achievable.

But where ? Ideally after a relaxing beach holiday, not mad quiet but not mad noisy either.

Krabi seems to get decent reviews, but anywhere else I should be looking?

Thanks

Edited by MattS5 on Friday 18th July 12:29

[Doyliestag]

Have you considered Hua Hin in Thailand? I have been there a couple of times but not since 2017.

[Composite Guru]

We stayed at the Apsara Beachfront Resort in Khao Lak in March. It’s was a fantastic hotel and in the more relaxed area north of Phuket.
Highly recommend that area.

I was put off by Krabi because of the transfer time from Phuket.

[nikaiyo2]

Con Dao in Vietnam is cool, do a couple of nights in the Six Senses resort then move on to something more normal, Secret hotel is amazing value.

Rayong might fit your bill for Thailand.

Hua Hin is nice the centara is really old world, the Wyndham is one of my fave hotels but the location is not brilliant (I have not been for a few years mind)

Phuket is lovely, avoid Patong, Kata, Karon stick to the north and east but make sure you visit Phuket Town

[Somebody]

Another vote for Hua Hin. You need to pick the hotel location though. We stayed at the Standard.

[HotJambalaya]

check out Phu quoc in vietnam

bit left field, Koh Rong in Cambodia. (take small denomination PRISTINE US dollars)

[Griffith4ever]

Koh Chang - has a mix of every thing, from mid-developed, to coconut tree paradise beaches. 45 min flight (or easy bus) from Bangkok. Stay mid island and it has loads of nice restaurants etc, with some peaceful beaches, go further south and it gets very peaceful, but still with places to eat etc.

[White-Noise]

I flew into krabi and had a break on koh lanta. However I'm not sure I would recommend it many of the beaches had lots of broken glass on them which really stained it so that's something to research. There were also instances where lots of Russians or Chinese arrived which I'd like to avoid in future. I'd certainly go back to Thailand though but I'd do my homework based on the above.

[RichFN2]

I only stayed in Ao Nang and Railay beach when I stopped in Krabi, the location is stunning but Ao Nang is a large coastal tourist town with endless restaurants and some bars along the beach front. Some restaurants and hotels are dry so you might need to buy some drinks for your room, you will also have some Malaysian food options (which is fantastic)

Railay is just a 1 big stunning beach cut off from the mainland, and some shack style bars and restaurants with a few hotels. There is a lagoon at the top of cliff but you are literally rock climbing to get to it. You can see everything in about an hour so its a location that divides opinions, for me its a nice place to chill for 2 nights then move on.

Phuket was way too big and busy compared to the other islands we stayed at it just doesn't feel like an island at all, nice enough but I probably wont go back. Phuket town is quite cool though.

I never made it to them but the Ko Yao islands are supposed to be great if you want laid back and less developed, also never heard a bad word said about Ko Chang.

My personal favourite was Koh Tao and Phangan was lovely once the full moon party had finished, most of the island is really quiet if you stay away from the main party town.

[chip*]

OP,

If you are put off with Samui, then I suggest you avoid Ao Nang too. It was many years ago, and the Ao Nang main road was just endless restaurants/ bars then. I stayed near the Holiday Inn, and saw the sewage running directly onto the mediocre beach which was quite off putting...

Koh Tao - the east side is much more quieter when I went, and it was decent for snorkelling (iirc, all the diving schools are on the west side if that's what you want).

[Alorotom]

Another vote for Hua Hin - used to have a little place there 20odd years ago where the Marriott is now - lovely small town.

I tend to stay at Cape Nidhra when I go back - great spacious rooms all with a private plunge pool - really nice place and well situated just off the beach and half way between Blue-Port and the town centre area (5-10min walk in each direction)

[Puggit]

Check out Koh Jum Villas near Krabi... Quiet around the resort, but there's a few decent beach bars along the beach.

Maybe a week there and a week in the more chaotic Ao Nang. We loved both!

[havoc]

Been a long time since I've been to either, but in terms of beaches / climate:-

- Thailand's rainy season ends at different times on different sides of the peninsula - forget which, worth googling before deciding when you go - pretty sure November is still edge of rainy season for one and thick of it for the other.
- Gulf of Thailand in our experience has choppier/cloudier water than the Andaman Sea (which, Ao Nang beach aside, is the picture-postcard white-sand / crystal-clear water type)
- The more mainstream Thai resorts are apparently now overrun with Russian tourists during high season, so research carefully. Plenty of smaller ones if you're prepared to put the effort in.
- The Vietnamese beaches we visited (Hoi An and Long Hai) were more darker orange-y sand and choppier/cloudier waters, but it was fine sand still and they were long stretches of clean clear beach. Hoi An in particular seemed quite breezy, but again may have been time of year.



As for culture:-
- Taste in food is personal, but also consider your tolerance to spice - you can always find less-spicy food in Thailand, whereas we (OK, my wife) found that more difficult outside of the hotels in Vietnam.
- Thai people are very welcoming. South Vietnamese people pretty similar, North Vietnamese people notably less so - more Chinese-style aloof, with a strong undercurrent of anti-Western racism (or was 15 years ago). That said, the Thai can be just as racist - 'farang' = foreigner AND barbarian.

[daqinggregg]

We’re big fans of Vietnam, of the two major cities we prefer Hanoi over Ho Chi Minh, more history and character, the later seems to be going for full on development, but that’s progress.

Nov to Feb, is the end of the rainy season, temperatures in the North may not be that warm, Hanoi 15ºC to 25ºC, obviously in the mountains a fair bit cooler.

A beautiful country, with a huge variety of things to see, excellent beaches, breath taking vistas, interesting cities, all backed with a mix of Asian and French culture.


The highlands in the North are spectacular; the central belt has lovely beaches and Hanoi well worth a visit.

Domestic travel by train is easy, rolling stock fairly old but pleasant enough, we only traveled in the day (travel forming part of the holiday). Internal flights are cheap, sometimes cheaper than the train.

Beaches, most people go to the historical (touristy) town of Hoi An, but there are so many other choices, best to do a bit of research and see what suits your needs. Obviously the further South the warmer (quite noticeably) it will be

Motorcycle hire also cheap and plentiful (recommend an international license) police do sometimes check. Hai Van Pass (Top Gear Vietnam special) is well worth riding (near Hoi an) can be done in a day.

Hotels are available for any budget, clean and well equipped, last time we travelled (for 5 weeks) we spent around, £30 per night (some with pool), clearly the more you pay the plusher you get. Cuisine is the highlight, both local and foreign, great breakfasts and dinners, the coffee is really something special.

Money, outside of the major cities credit cards are not widely accepted, always best to have some cash as a backup. Connectivity in general is excellent, better than parts of the UK. Grab (uber) is widely available.

Mrs. DG and I love Vietnam, hopefully be there later this year of early next year.

[Griffith4ever]

Agree - 'nam is fab, and Sa Pa (northern Highlands) is just amazing. Did a farm-stay. Thought it would be a gimmick. I was not! Ended up doign Kareoke with Mun, our host, drinking fire water, and dancing. He cried when he sang.

Weathe be careful in Jan/Feb - rained all the time in Hanoi last time we went. Got a lucky clear sunny window in Sa Pa.

Trains and planes are cheap. We've not done the beaches in VN as the reviews all seem to indicate they are a compromise, and Thailand is so close we stick with what we know.

[Trash_panda]

If not limited to just those 2... try/look at the Philippines,

If you go, do the 3-5 day boat trip between el nido and coron or the reverse route

[onny]

With 2 weeks. You can easily do 1 week in Vietnam, somewhere like Danang / Hoi An and then take a short flight to BKK and head down to Hua Hin. I like Vietnam more as its feels like Thailand 10 - 15 yrs ago. Its more affordable then Thailand as well.

[Griffith4ever]

havoc said:

Been a long time since I've been to either, but in terms of beaches / climate:-

- Thailand's rainy season ends at different times on different sides of the peninsula - forget which, worth googling before deciding when you go - pretty sure November is still edge of rainy season for one and thick of it for the other.
- Gulf of Thailand in our experience has choppier/cloudier water than the Andaman Sea (which, Ao Nang beach aside, is the picture-postcard white-sand / crystal-clear water type)
- The more mainstream Thai resorts are apparently now overrun with Russian tourists during high season, so research carefully. Plenty of smaller ones if you're prepared to put the effort in.
- The Vietnamese beaches we visited (Hoi An and Long Hai) were more darker orange-y sand and choppier/cloudier waters, but it was fine sand still and they were long stretches of clean clear beach. Hoi An in particular seemed quite breezy, but again may have been time of year.



As for culture:-
- Taste in food is personal, but also consider your tolerance to spice - you can always find less-spicy food in Thailand, whereas we (OK, my wife) found that more difficult outside of the hotels in Vietnam.
- Thai people are very welcoming. South Vietnamese people pretty similar, North Vietnamese people notably less so - more Chinese-style aloof, with a strong undercurrent of anti-Western racism (or was 15 years ago). That said, the Thai can be just as racist - 'farang' = foreigner AND barbarian.

- Aye - We often have found the Koh Chang side (known as the North, even though it's East to my eyes) to be hot and clear in Nov when the Anderman peninsular is cloudy/grey. Its a pricey transfer if you do it last minute!
- Andrman side - yep - calm. Phangnang, often choppy
- The Russian thing is very real. Even less spoilt places like Koh Chang are now heavily overrun with Ruskies, particulalry white sand beach and Kai Bae back areas. They holiday a bit like the Germans, towels at dawn on sun loungers (which they often never even use), congregate in groups, but are not friendly to non Russians, unlike the Germans. Hard to make em smile. We tried hard but found them to be brash and dour. If you are sharing space with them they can be pretty entitled. Even down at a lovely secluded "posh" place on Chang, The Chivapuri, which is normally very peaceful, we had a Russian lady drinking gin and flicking through insta whilst her kids were bombing the infinity pool right by where we were sat admiring the sunset in what was a calm peaceful pool. She just ignored them - they did this every day - I actually called her a moron and I'm fairly sure she understood. :-)

Families (Brits and French particularly) are becoming more common as they realise it costs the same as a EU 2 week break, which changes the feel / dynamic in small resorts / bungalow setups completely. Once idylic small islands are losing their castaway feel with screaming and running little darlings everywhere round the pool / dinner table / bars. We really noticed it last winter. Even in Koh Jum.

The Russian factor is a big enough issue that on the Thailand Reddit sub, you can't even type the word Russian without your post being auto moderated (deleted).