Long weekend escape Thailand getaway ideas

[buksida]

Mrs Buksi and I have an anniversary coming up at the end of May so would like to take a long weekend (4-5 days) trip away from Thailand somewhere new where we haven't been yet.

Should be within about three hours flying distance to limit traveling and flight costs, no visa bullshit for either of us, decent weather (we get enough rain at home), and not off-the-chart on costs when we get there. Here's what we've already considered and why they were not suitable.

Taiwan - 'plum rain' season (will probably have a longer trip there later in the year)
Macau - same reason as above
Hong Kong/Singapore - Mrs B doesn't want a major city/concrete jungle
Male (Maldives) - dry country
Sri Lanka - both need visas (better for a longer trip)
Malaysia/Indonesia/Laos/Cambodia - been already
Vietnam - been already but there may be somewhere new such as Sapa in the north or Dalat.

I know that doesn't leave much but if anyone has any ideas for a short break, easily accessible from Bangkok, please post here.

[joelle]

How about Borneo, there are direct flights from Bangkok to Kota Kinabalu and then you can rent a car to travel around, go to Mount Kinabalu which is the highest mountain in Borneo and Malaysia. With an elevation of 4,095 metres, it is the third-highest peak of an island on Earth, the 28th highest peak in Southeast Asia, and 20th most prominent mountain in the world.
Beautiful scenery worth the trip.

[buksida]

You're on the right track ... but we went to Kota Kinabalu in 2015. Agree, beautiful scenery and it was a great trip.

DSC_0352-1.jpg (134.64 KiB) Viewed 672 times

[joelle]

You're on the right track ... but we went to Kota Kinabalu in 2015. Agree, beautiful scenery and it was a great trip.


DSC_0352-1.jpg

Yes that's one of the great places we went to in Borneo.

How about beautiful Cameron Highlands in Malaysia which is another interesting place not too far.

[Nereus]

Male (Maldives) - dry country

All of the resort islands serve alcohol. It is expensive and you cannot take any with you.

[buksida]

How about beautiful Cameron Highlands in Malaysia which is another interesting place not too far.

That's a possibility, went there in the 1990s and enjoyed the area.

Edit: such a shame you can't fly to KL from HH any longer.

[joelle]

How about beautiful Cameron Highlands in Malaysia which is another interesting place not too far.

That's a possibility, went there in the 1990s and enjoyed the area.

Edit: such a shame you can't fly to KL from HH any longer.

Agree was very practical, such a pain to have to go all the way to BKK
You could go by bike, that's what we've done

[buksida]

A ride would be good for a planned longer trip but not a quick getaway which is what we're after.

Failing international travel, we'll look at somewhere domestically, but we've been to most places in Thailand and it becomes very homogenous after a while.

[Bamboo Grove]

Don't know about the visas for Thai people, though.

72-Hour Visa-Free Transit Policy: Guilin, Harbin, Changsha

Valid for: passport holders from 51 countries or regions, including the USA, the UK, Singapore, Canada, Australia, and Germany

Cities that can be visited: Guilin, Harbin, and Changsha

How to apply: You just need to apply for a temporary entry permit at the entry airport.

The transit requirement: You need to be going via China to a third region or country.

Guilin is nice.

144-Hour Visa-Free Transit Policies: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong...

Valid for: Travelers from 53 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand

Cities that can be visited: Beijing, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang, Qinhuangdao; Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing; Shenyang, Dalian, Qingdao; Chengdu; Xiamen, Kunming; Wuhan; Guangdong; Chongqing; Xi'an; and Ningbo.

Kunming, Chongqing and Chengdu are within 3 hours flight.

https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelg ... mption.htm

[Bamboo Grove]

Thai citizens do not need a tourist visa when travelling to China. China Visa free is free for Thai citizens. With this tourist visa stay is usually short with a period of 30 days. Applicant is not required to be present when applying for China visa free. A total of 3 documents are required for applying China visa free. You can find China visa exemptions. (Source: https://visalist.io/china/visa-requirements/thailand )

https://visalist.io/china/visa-requirements/thailand

[buksida]

China is out because I would need to go to Bangkok to do biometrics for a tourist visa - its just too much hassle for a short break.

[Bamboo Grove]

Did you read that part of visa-free travel?

[Bamboo Grove]

When I went to Zhuhai for the first time, with an visa-on-arrival, they did all the fingerprints and photos on the border.

[Nereus]

What about Palau? Visa on arrival, direct flight from Singapore.
Some good diving sites around the island.

[buksida]

If you’re 14 to 70 years old, you must apply for a visa in person at a visa application centre. You must provide biometric data (scanned fingerprints) as part of your application.

Visa-free travel is for Thais, not gweilos! They're much stricter with US and UK passport holders.

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advic ... quirements