THAILAND: A one-week holiday that will have you back for more

Introduction

A trip like this is suitable for those who have just a week in Thailand but still want a bit of sun along with the culture.

To keep the travel time down, you're never more than a few hours from Bangkok on this trip, but you'll still get to experience some of Thailand's lush scenery and tropical island beaches.

One advantage of using a trip like this as a base, is that there's lots of potential for sidetrips, and that week-long stay can easily stretch out into a month.

Weather

Pay attention to the weather! There's few things as miserable as a weeklong long sojourn on a sodden island. More climate information can be found here: Travelfish interactive weather map.

Suggest trip length

The suggested minimum time for a trip like this is one week, though two weeks is far more comfortable.

Sample plan

1) Bangkok -> Kanchanaburi (lush scenery, river trips, national parks, trekking, historical interest)
2) Kanchanaburi -> Bangkok
3) Bangkok -> Ko Samet (tropical island)
4) Ko Samet -> Bangkok

Save some time

One day: fly from Trat to Bangkok
One day: Visit Ayutthaya as a day-trip rather than as an overnight stay
Two days: Visit Kanchanaburi as a long day-trip (not recommended)

Take a side trip

One day: Strike north from Bangkok to the ancient capital of Ayutthaya. While it can be visited as a long day-trip, an overnight stay is recommened.
Two days: Further west from Kanchanaburi lies the remote town of, Sangkhlaburi -- well worth the effort to reach if time allows
Two days: Visit stunning Ko Mun Nork -- not cheap, but it is lovely.
Three days: Head further east for some more island-downtime on the very popular Ko Chang, or the neighbouring islands of Ko Maak or Ko Kut.

Map

Sample Trip Times (in hours)

To help you work out how you'll get around, we've listed the trip durations for the various forms of transport available. Note that with the exception of flight times, these are average trip times, so no hate mail if you take the slow train.