Culture, history and colour

Bangkok

The cosmopolitan capital Bangkok is bursting at the seams with life, buzzing with tuk-tuks and markets, dotted with elaborately-decorated stupas and full of fascinating sightseeing prospects. Spending a few days here is a must for any traveller who wants to get to grips with Thai culture and history. Head for the old town area, known as Ratanakosin, hugging the banks of the Chao Phraya River, for a delightful dose of culture and temples.

Chiang Mai

In the north, visitors can discover colourful hill-tribe villages, jungle-enveloped ruins and temples, and tuck into some of the best red and green curries in Thailand. The lush region of mountains, valleys and rivers around Chiang Mai has an almost mythical quality, and the city itself is an important stop on any cultural tour of Thailand.

Ayutthaya

This World Heritage city was the royal capital of Siam between the 14th and 18th centuries and is the perfect place to explore Thailand's deep and fascinating history. The city is brimming with temples, shrines and ruins, most of them contained within an island surrounded by rivers and canals. Here you'll find countless stone Buddhas and once-illustrious Khmer-influenced palaces.

Natural splendour

Khao Sok National Park
Thailand is blessed with some of the most beautiful scenery in Asia and has a wealth of national parks to protect its natural bounty. The area of Khao Sok National Park in southern Thailand has one of the oldest rainforests in the world, where limestone mountains and deep valleys are blanketed in rich and exotic flora and fauna. Explore the lakes, caves and waterfalls on a nature trek, go in search of monkeys, clouded leopards, tapirs and sun bears, and get up close to an elephant at Elephant Hills Jungle Camp. The camp offers luxury tents and floating lodges that make a perfect base for exploring the park.

Remote retreats

Ko Phi Phi

Ko Phi Phi Don has several luxury resorts, but if you want to really get away from it all, the smaller island, Ko Phi Phi Lee is a magical paradise and has a stunning turquoise lagoon hidden behind limestone cliffs, which was famously featured in the film The Beach.

Ko Lanta

Part of a scenic archipelago off southern Thailand's Andaman seaboard, Ko Lanta features mile-upon-mile of pristine palm-fringed beaches. There are a few resorts lining its western coast offering seclusion and luxury. Flatter than its neighbouring islands and covered in tropical vegetation, visitors can get back to nature trekking in its ancient rainforests, exploring its waterfalls and caves, or diving the coral reefs beneath its aquamarine shores.