Coast and country on the backroads of Thai provinces
There are plenty of hidden treasures to discover beyond the tourist traps of Thailand.
Off the trodden track in the kingdom’s provinces.
1. Bang Saray, Chonburi Province
Snoozy Bang Saray sits on the Gulf of Thailand 20km south of party town Pattaya, and a world apart. Development will be inevitable (Bangkok is just two hours’ drive away) but Bang Saray’s long, clean beach is not yet overshadowed by condos or hooned by jet skis. You can amble here along a tree-shaded shore of pop-up seafood eateries, fishing boats and flaming sunsets. Lacking notable night life, Bang Saray instead offers day trips and diving on the offshore islands or excursions to the giant petroglyph icon of Buddha Mountain.
Stay By far the most stylish retreat is Sea Sand Sun Resort, which sits on the secluded northern beachfront amid huge grounds that more resemble a lush botanic garden.
2. Khao Yai, Nakhon Ratchasima Province
When it comes to wine, the making and drinking thereof, does Thailand quickly spring to mind? If not, check out Khao Yai, a few hours north of Bangkok where a handful of boutique wineries now produce surprisingly good “new latitude” wines. With a huge national park for adventurers, Khao Yai has become a favourite inland getaway for Bangkok residents and has seen the arrival of golfing, vineyards and resorts. Try a winery tour and tasting at the pioneering PB Valley Winery (with excellent tempranillo and chenin blanc) or family-run GranMonte vineyard where Nikki Lohitnavy, a winemaking honours graduate from Adelaide University, produces, among others, fine viognier and syrah rose; granmonte.com.
Stay The comfortable Botanica Khao Yai Resort is an ideal base.
3. Sop Ruak, Chiang Rai Province
Stand on the Mekong River shore at Sop Ruak and in one sweeping glance take in Thailand, Laos and Myanmar, which is why it is far better known as the Golden Triangle. Ninety kilometres east of Chiang Rai in northern Thailand, low-key Sop Ruak offers river excursions, markets, massage, restaurants and, almost inevitably, a big Buddha sitting atop a temple that overlooks this confluence of countries and waters. Don’t miss the impressive Hall of Opium Museum, which recalls the area’s infamous smuggling history.
Stay The standout accommodation is Anantara’s Golden Triangle Resort with an acclaimed Elephant Camp that sets the standard for ethical interactions with the mighty jumbos.
4. Laem Mai Phim, Rayong Province
In-the-know folk from the capital often make the four-hour drive south to Laem Mae Phim but it’s fairly rare to find foreign tourists here. Mae Phim cape is on the east coast of the Gulf, well south of Pattaya and Koh Samet, and has excellent offshore island diving sites, including a renowned wreck dive.
Stay One of the best beaches here, adjacent to Ao Khai (Egg Bay) fishing village, is home to the four-star Centara Q Rayong resort, which overlooks a tree-lined shore where two fishing boats, a couple of kayaks and a strolling couple might be called a crowd. There are several seafront restaurants along this bypassed shoreline but little by way of night life.
5. Khao Sok, Surat Thani Province
Khao Sok National Park is one of Thailand’s unsung wonders. This realm of lakes, soaring karst peaks and rainforests sits well north of Phuket, midway between the Andaman and Gulf coasts, and forms part of the country’s largest wilderness. Some of Thailand’s last remaining tigers and wild elephants survive here, as do eagles, macaque, deer and gibbon. The water world of its giant Cheow Larn Lake is home to small “raft house” resorts, which are your base for kayak trips and jungle hikes.
Stay The nearby African-style, tented camp of Elephant Hills sees guests feed and groom, but not ride, the tame residents. Hosing down and scrubbing an elephant is like being at a jumbo car wash — and unexpected fun for both parties.
6. Ranong, Ranong Province
This small provincial capital on Thailand’s west coast ducks its head below the radar of over-tourism. Known mostly as a stepping stone to more celebrated Andaman Sea attractions, Ranong’s main street is still dotted with classic Sino-Portuguese shophouses, a Chinese temple or two and food markets. There’s a reconstructed old palace, the local hot springs are indeed hot and there’s good trekking to the waterfalls of Ngao National Park and mangrove forests. The emerging holiday island Koh Phayam sits just offshore, while live-aboard dive boats regularly depart from Ranong to spectacular Richlieu Rock. A short ferry ride brings you to Kawthaung, Myanmar, embarkation point for the pristine Mergui Archipelago.
Stay Try Ranong’s aptly named Hidden Resort as your base.
7. Sukhothai, Sukhothai Province
A city with a Sanskrit name that means Dawn of Happiness must surely have had an optimistic outlook. And so it seems for Sukhothai, the first capital of old Siam. During a golden age from 1238 to 1378, this Camelot-like kingdom became the cradle of Thai art, architecture and language. Today it’s exceptionally well preserved, World Heritage-listed ruins occupy a large archeological park near the modern town of Sukhothai, 430km north of Bangkok. Stupas, temples of intricate masonry and imperturbable Buddha statues rise from the park’s broad lawns. Fifty kilometres away, ancient Sukhothai’s equally well-named twin, Si Satchanalai (City of Good People) is similarly rich with UNESCO-listed ruins.
Stay Make Sukhothai Treasure Resort your setting-out point for local excursions.
8. Koh Samet, Rayong Province
Centuries ago, when Koh Samet was known as Vast Jewel Island, its beauty inspired Thailand’s best-loved poet, Sunthorn Phu, to pen the tale of a lovesick mermaid and a prince exiled to the island. Walk one of Samet’s less developed shores and you can easily get the romantic drift. Three hours’ drive southeast of Bangkok, this popular but little-promoted island is mostly about long beaches and long lunches, with some snorkelling or kayaking thrown in, and firestorm sunsets.
Stay Hat Sai Kaew (Glass Sand Beach), the island’s most populated shore, is an 800m strand of open-air restaurants, and its best hotel is Sai Kaew Beach Resort. At Samet’s far southern tip, Paradee Resort, on its own private beach, is a retreat literally fit for royals.
9. Pai, Mae Hong Son Province
This cool mountain town of music, great food, spas and hot springs was once a market village for tribal Shan people but in recent decades Pai has become a magnet for Thai creatives and young travellers. Its temperate, 600m altitude rewards visitors for enduring the 137km journey of snakes-and-ladders curves from Chiang Mai. Having morphed in one generation from down-home Buddhism to Buddha Bar, from opium to caramel lattes, Pai is too gentrified for some. If so, join a two-day rafting trip on the Nam Khong River. An easy paddle through the magnificent forests of Lumnampai National Park eventually delivers you to Mae Hong Son, an authentic Thai hill town of monks, mist and mud baths.
Stay Rest your head at the five-star, award-winning Pai Island Resort.
10. Khanom, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province
No one paid too much attention to Khanom, a quiet fishing port south of Koh Samui, until word got out about its two singular attractions. A pod of pink Indo-Pacific dolphins romps in these waters, while onshore, the white sands of Na Dan Beach stretch to infinity. Join a cruise through the marine park where the dolphins live. They’re soon around your boat, riding the bow wave or woofing down sardines scattered by deckhands.
Stay The closest airport at is Surat Thani, 90 minutes north of Na Dan Beach, where the Aava Resort & Spa features bungalows, villas and front-row views of that beautiful shore.