More than seven years ago, when I was still a fresh-faced student, I spent three months backpacking in New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia. It was a trip I’d worked hard for, bartending alongside my degree in order to fund the fun.
It was also the trip that changed the course of my life.
After ten weeks of bussing all over New Zealand’s South Island and exploring the East coast of Australia, my travel pal and I touched down in Thailand.
Our time in the first two countries had been replete with epic hikes, jaw-dropping natural landscapes and a whole lot of goon (Byron Bay oi oi!), but it was only on my first day in Thailand that I had my first real dose of culture shock.
You see, Thailand hit me like a ton of bricks with my first glimpse of a country that was completely different to my own. After the relative familiarity of anglophone NZ and Australia, I suddenly found myself in a fragrant land of smiles where each of my senses were heightened. It was as though the vibrancy and saturation had been amped up inside my head.
Thailand made me fall in love with travel and persuaded me to pursue a life of adventure. For this reason, I tell everyone that they should go backpacking there. My little brother was inspired by my tales of Chang-fuelled misadventures in paradise and booked his own trip to Thailand when he was old enough.
Our passports might be safely stowed away for now, but I take great comfort in dreaming of future trips. We’ve all had more than enough time to decide where we’d like to visit next, but I’d like to encourage you to go travelling in Thailand when the time is right.
Why you should travel in Thailand
So, why is Thailand the ultimate place to go backpacking when travel opens back up again?
1. It’s cheap
Simply put, Thailand is a cheap country to travel in. Flights there can be pricey but once you’re there, you’ll find almost everything is cheaper than it is at home.
Getting around Thailand can easily be done on a budget and you can take advantage of its location to pop over to neighbouring countries if you’d like to backpack through more of South East Asia. Obviously you’ll need to check current visa restrictions and make sure you plan ahead in order to get your visa in time, but it would be a shame to go all the way to South East Asia and only see one part of it!
While I was in Thailand, I managed to hop over to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat and go to Vietnam to cruise in Halong Bay. Those are placed I’d never have visited had I not been in Thailand.
The journey from Bangkok to Cambodia involved a cheap-as-chips taxi ride with a man called Banana – but that’s a story you can read about in my older blog posts.
If you’re on a super tight budget while backpacking, travelling around Thailand by train is usually the cheapest option. Of course, the journeys are longer and you get varying levels of comfort depending on what you can afford.
The third class train cabins in Thailand are quite an experience.
2. Thailand has a rich culture
I’ve been to more than fifty countries, but none of them quite compare to Thailand in terms of culture. Thailand’s history and traditions are evident everywhere you look. You notice it in the spiritual offerings laid out in the streets of Bangkok, the magnificent temples that nestle between phone shops and the small bow you’re greeting with in every establishment.
And as a traveller, it’s easy to immerse yourself in local life. There are so many authentic things to do in Thailand, from cookery classes to trips to remote villages.
3. The weather is great
Temperatures average around 25°C in Thailand. If you like the heat, you’ll like it there. The country has a rainy season from July to October but even in rainfall that seems to move sideways, it’s always warm.
4. You can earn while you travel
There’s a reason Chiang Mai is one of the most popular cities in the world for remote workers and anyone who is trying to become a digital nomad. The cost of living in Thailand is low compared to other countries, and if you work online remotely you can enjoy a pretty lavish lifestyle with your earnings.
Now that many of us in full-time employment have been forced to work from home, you may have decided that actually, you quite like not having to commute to the office every day. Why not make the world your office and head to Thailand on a working holiday? Answering emails from a beach bar in Phuket is definitely less boring than doing it from your kitchen.
Wi-Fi in Thailand is strong, there are loads of co-working spaces in the cities and if you stay in one of the less touristy parts of the country, you can live on a lot less than you can in the UK.
5. The landscape is diverse
Whether you thrive in buzzing cities like Bangkok or prefer to stay close to the beach life, or maybe you crave rural life in the mountains; Thailand’s landscape offers a happy place for every type of traveller.
During my time backpacking in Thailand, my friends and I hopped from postcard perfect party islands like Koh Phi Phi to the chaos of Bangkok and up north to comparatively tranquil Chiang Mai, where we visited the famously ethical Elephant Nature Park. We went from tropical isles to traffic-choked streets and on to lush wilderness, but found something to love about Thailand in each destination.
6. The people are friendly
It’s not called the land of smiles for no reason. Thai people are some of the funniest, most welcoming and generally sweet people I’ve ever met. Tom and I sometimes reminisce about our time in Thailand and we’ll always remember some of the individuals who helped us: a hysterical lady called Yo who sorted out visas for us when we left it too late, and an adorable guy called Kai who ran the hostel we stayed at in Chiang Mai.
It’s the people that make a trip, and in Thailand you can guarantee that they’ll make it pretty special.
7. Thai food is fantastic
I expected to lose weight in South East Asia, but in fact it was quite the opposite. Steaming bowls of pad thai, red-hot ‘jungle curry’ and colourful portions of papaya salad (som tam) make eating in Thailand a real pleasure.
You can order Thai meal kits to recreate the magic at home with Rosa’s Thai Meal Kits here.
8. Thailand’s nightlife is famous
From the bright lights of Khao San Road to the iconic Full Moon Party and other all-night raves on the beach throughout the party season, Thailand’s nightlife scene is nothing short of epic.
We had some crazy nights out in Thailand and the best bit was that absolutely everyone was in the mood to have a good time.
Thailand is extra special to me because it’s the place where Tom and I first travelled together. Well, not together – we were two groups of friends from different places, and we had arranged to meet up in Koh Samui. Who would have thought that we’d end up living together!
Having ‘done’ Thailand on a budget all those years ago, I’d love to go back and experience the opposite end of the scale one day. There are some incredible luxury hotels in Thailand and I’m keen to see how a trip to Thailand would play out with a bigger budget.
With a bit of street market browsing and a few bar crawls thrown in to remind us of our roots, of course…
This is a collaboration with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). Views are my own.
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Arabela says
I only stayed in Bangkok for two days when I had a weekend off in Shanghai but those two days couldn’t have been spent any better! I agree with all the things you mentioned and another thing I’d like to add is that the tourism infrastructure is incredibly developed, so it’s the perfect destination if you’re new to traveling.
Katy (A Rambling Unicorn) says
Great post. I spent 2 weeks in Thailand several years ago and can’t wait to go back. Thanks for the inspiration.