Thailand HM

Saramg26

My FI and I are thinking about Thailand for our HM next July, does anyone have any recs as to what part we should look to stay in or visit? We want to be near the beach but also near some places to explore/get authentic food. 

We need to stay at a Marriot Hotel. 

Thanks! 

KatWAG

I stayed at the JW marriott in Phuket for part of my honeymoon. It was amazing. The restaurants were great and our room had its own private pool! There were also baby elephants that wandered around the resort (with a trainer) that you can feed and play with. But the JW is at the northern most part of the island. And it is about an hour from the downtown "city" part of Phuket.

I also went to Chiang Mai. And I loved it. I am not sure if there is marriott there or not. I would still consider going even if you cant get a marriott hotel. THere are plenty of places to stay that are reasonably priced.

We also spent a few days in Bangkok, which was my least favorite city,. But I would still recommend going because the Flower markets and the Grand palace are beautiful.

girlinchicago

We were in Thailand for 12 nights this past December, plus an additional night in Hong Kong on our way back.  

We spent 3 nights in Bangkok, 4 in Chiang Mai, 4 in Krabi, and then another night in Bangkok prior to our departure.  I wouldn't have changed the itinerary one bit.  All three cities are distinctly different and each was amazing.  

Are you able to stay at any hotel in the Marriott family?  If so, you'll have lots of options.  I just did a quick search in Google for Marriott Thailand and there were 17 properties available. 

Without more information on your budget, how long you want to travel for, etc., I'd recommend spending some time in Bangkok at a Marriott hotel, heading up to Chiang Mai and staying somewhere on your own (you can find inexpensive options), then heading down to Phuket or Krabi. The Ritz Carlton Phulay Bay is where the Hangover 2 wedding scenes were filmed.  The hotel we stayed at (The Tubkaak) is on the same beach and the view from the beach of the Hong Islands was unforgettable.  

Since you say you want to explore and eat authentic food, I definitely recommend a stop in Chiang Mai.  They had the most incredible night market there, with tons of food stalls, performers, shopping (cheap!), and just a great energy.  While in Chiang Mai, we also did a day of cooking classes with A Lot of Thai, spent a day with elephants with Patara Elephant Farm, went to Tiger Kingdom to see/spend time with baby tigers, and explored the city and its many wats.  Overall, it was our favorite city.  Maybe look at the Shangri-La or the Le Meridien - they should be fairly well priced, as most hotels in Thailand are, and they both have a super central location right next to the night market.

Flying between cities is quick, easy, and super inexpensive on Air Asia.   

I'd also recommend checking out the Samantha Brown Thailand episode.  It's downloadable on itunes.  That got me really excited for our trip!