The Best Places in Thailand for Families

The Best Places in Thailand for Families

If you are looking at travelling to Thailand, you will certainly find many places that are family-friendly — with a spot of digging.

And the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has definitely been making efforts in recent years toward fading out the country’s reputation as a backpacker or seedy types’ party hub and instead trying to reinvent itself as a place for families and more ‘discerning’ travellers.

Yet it is worth considering that many visitors make the mistake of assuming everywhere in the country is ideal for families – full of smiling, friendly, and welcoming people who love kids, with easy access and transportation for all. Certainly this is true in some places, but not everywhere in Thailand fits the bill entirely.

Bangkok, for instance, is in many ways one of the least family-friendly places in terms of its crowds, humidity, and probably the main one – transportation.

Image by Bernard Spragg from creativecommons.org

Even though it is the one place in the country that has a transport system as such, it can be a nightmare for anyone with kids or even worse a pushchair, as it just isn’t that easy to get around with one in the city. The pavements in many areas also leave a lot to be desired after years of abuse from motorcycle taxis taking short cuts.

When you have beautiful and picturesque islands with plenty of beach activities, mountain regions with cooler weather, and the city with its various modern amenities to choose from, it’s a case of weighing up the various factors that make up the bigger picture. Consider how these different scenarios could affect your ability to keep the kids pacified, not to mention well-fed.

It could be what seems like the little things that make all the difference to your trip’s success for all involved.

Image by klodo6975 sourced from wiki media commons

Travelling to some of the southern regions of Thailand is a highly popular choice, and these spots undoubtedly have the most beautiful coastlines in the country.

Phuket is no problem as it has its own international airport on the island, but getting to the resorts in some of these regions can take the equivalent of a mammoth jungle trek which often involves trips by plane, road and boat. Not entirely ideal with grumpy little ones in tow.

From afar it is sometimes easy to overlook any possible downsides to the holiday that may be encountered by those with families, and especially anyone with really young children. Much of it depends on your family’s needs and wants in terms of modern amenities and attractions, as well as preferred cuisine.

It is a good idea to be specific and selective, rather than trying to squeeze everything into one trip. Hitting the mountains up north, followed by 2 days on a beach in the south, and winding up slogging around the capital would exhaust even a seasoned traveller.

Well-known centres like Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket are all popular for their own specific reasons, but it won’t be too practical to try and see them all with a family in tow.

So here are a few family-friendly spots that should help you to make a decision on the most suitable approach to any potential trip.

Hua Hin

Image by Ahoersteme sourced from wiki media commons

This great town on the coast is popular with Thai families looking to escape from Bangkok for a few days or a long weekend. It is just a couple of hours away from the capital by road.

Hua Hin is actually the kind of place that can be attractive for every age, and has many beaches and surrounding mountains with decent viewing points. It has some interesting temples, a fair few great restaurants, night markets, and water parks. Hua Hin is also a golfing centre and tour companies offer club rental and transport to any one of 10 courses, some very scenic.

The centre can get a bit crowded at peak holiday times, but the southern part of town is more of a relaxing base. This area is close to attractions such as the Black Mountain Water Park. You can also venture up to Wat Khao Takiab, the Chopsticks Hill Temple, where you encounter both monkeys and some great sea views.

Kids and families alike can enjoy the clean-looking beaches or take in other local attractions. There are regular events and festivals including a local jazz festival. There are also some great natural features in and around the area like the Pala-U Waterfall located in Kaeng Krachan National Park.

Image by UweBKK from creativecommons.org

Hua Hin is one of the few Thai resort regions thankfully devoid of anything resembling a seedy or rowdy bar scene. It’s a fairly quiet place although not to the point where it gets boring. There is a lot less hassle here for families due to much of the tourism being local, which also makes it a bit less expensive than many tourist spots.

You can find a wide range of accommodation from reasonably simple guesthouses to luxury resorts and spa-retreats.

Prachuap Khiri Khan

This is actually a complete province, and is actually where you’ll find Hua Hin (the nearest from Bangkok). But there is also much more to it than the well-known and popular town, and the province makes for a great holiday destination in its own right.

Image by UweBKK from creativecommons.org

Prachuap is a bridge between the southern and central regions of Thailand, and has a great stretch of coast lined with beaches, national parks, hilltop temples, golf courses and many other attractions. The numerous towns include ones heavily populated by tourists during high season, as well as a few lesser known, more sedate examples.

Largely though, this is some of the best family holiday area in the country that is still largely undiscovered and undeveloped (at least mass tourism-wise), and even many Bangkokians don’t venture much further than Hua Hin for a vacation.

Further south than Hua Hin is Pranburi, a more laid-back seaside city with a mangrove-forest walkway, and some of the best wind-surfing in Thailand. It’s also close to Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park where there are yet more quiet beaches, magnificent geographical features like limestone caves, and a wetland rich in birdlife.

Image sourced from creativecommons.org

You can find more hilltop temples populated by monkeys like the one at Khao Chong Krachok, a great family-oriented beach at Ao Manao, and other refreshing features of the landscape like Huai Yang waterfall and the Kui Buri National Park. This is actually considered one of the best places in Thailand to spot elephants in the wild.

The further south you go into the province the more you will encounter different beach towns, like Bang Saphan Yai and Ban Krut. These are just small resort towns with really attractive beaches.

Chiang Mai

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The nature-loving and the more outdoor-type families will also enjoy the northern capital of Chiang Mai. It offers plenty more outdoor activities than somewhere like the highly urbanised concrete chaos of Bangkok.

Here there’s a nice backdrop of the northern Thai mountains, with a few cultural touches unlike anywhere else in the country. Visiting local Lanna Buddhist temples and learning about their 700-year long history is a completely different experience than doing a Bangkok ‘temple tour’ for instance.

In the northern regions the weather is cooler, the pace is slower, and the people more friendly than in the capital. The open landscapes and more spread-out terrain lend themselves well to the Thailand experience.

Chiang Mai weather is considerably more comfortable for the little ones and will certainly help to lessen the tendency towards frayed nerves all round. This makes it a great area to play outside for hours in.

Chiang Rai

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Thailand’s northernmost province is for some reason overlooked by a lot of visitors to the SE Asian nation. Many only go as far as Chiang Mai, possibly believing it to be the only must-visit destination up north.

Certainly both are worth a visit, but in many ways Chiang Rai is actually hard to beat when it comes to layered mountains and grand rivers by way of the Mekong. It offers a perspective of the country that many travellers are completely unaware of.

There are also some fairly unique-looking temples and buildings up this way too by way of Wat Rong Khun (the White Temple), Wat Rang Suea Ten (the Blue Temple) and Baan Dum (the Black House). These structures were all designed by two Thai artists and they serve as creative interpretations of various spiritual themes that exist in the country.

There are some great options in the countryside in terms of river views, historic ruins, and the Golden Triangle region where Thailand meets Laos and Myanmar. You can enjoy mountains views, flower gardens and tea farms at elevations of 1,100 to 1,700 metres at Phu Chee Fah, Doi Tung, and Mae Salong, where temperatures tend to get way lower than any most people would associate with Thailand.

Bangkok

Image by Marcin Konsek sourced from wikimedia commons

Of course Bangkok is the most developed part of the entire country. And although this brings with it its fair share of chaos amid a distinct general lack of greenery (and the lack of traffic-flow — or people-flow, for that matter) the amount of kid-friendly activities is also abundant if you don’t mind braving the crowds to get to them.

On paper it is easy to get around the sprawling city as the public transportation infrastructure, namely by way of the ever-expanding BTS and MRT lines, is quite modern and covers all the main areas. But the city is densely-populated and humid, and can be quite frustrating in more ways than one for families.

Bangkok SkyTrain, image sourced from Pixabay

But you will find some of the best cinemas in the world here, along with swimming pools, bowling alleys, skating rinks, huge trampolines, indoor playgrounds, aquariums, and pretty much all other manner of leisure and entertainment you can imagine. Not to mention food of pretty much every variety including more pizza and ice-cream options than anywhere else in the country.

Phuket

Image by Eustaquio Santimano

If your idea of a holiday with the family is being by the beach, then Phuket could be one of the best options. Yes, it is a tourist area — and yes, it is expensive compared to many other parts of Thailand.

But it’s still relatively easy to get to as islands in the south of Thailand go. It’s possible with some airlines to fly directly into Phuket International Airport. And with beaches and resorts along the coast galore, the pristine stretches of white sand and clear waters will undoubtedly provide hours of fun for your kids.

In sightseeing terms there are natural parks, water parks and aquariums, although you will have to pay through the nose to get around on this island. And it does have its rowdy nightlife areas, namely around the Patong area. It might be an idea to steer clear of these areas and the immediate vicinity if you are with kids.

Kanchanaburi

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This is scenic and historic town on the River Kwai with some of the most impressive waterfalls in the country.

Kanchanaburi is only 130km o the west of Bangkok, which makes it popular for shorter trips. But it is also the third largest province in the country and may be worth considering for a longer adventure.

There are a host of museums in the region related to the Thai-Burma Railway and the 100,000-odd prisoners and forced labourers who died during its construction, courtesy of the invading Japanese Army in 1942-43.

One of the main attractions is the well-known rail bridge that inspired the 1957 film, ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’. Hellfire Pass is another memorial site where you can hike a stretch of an otherwise closed railway that was apparently the most gruelling section to build.

If war history is not your thing though there are lots of fantastic natural attractionsin Kanachanaburi such as the popular Erawan Waterfall and the more remote Huai Mae Khamin waterfall. Plenty of natural swimming opportunities here, and you could even venture to the misty lakeside town of Sangkhlaburi close to the bordering Tenassarim Mountains near Myanmar.

Most of Kanchanaburi town is family friendly, but there is a nightlife area that you may want to avoid at the south end of Mae Nam Kwai Road. The north end of this road is much better, or even on the west side of the river. There are also quality resorts set in even quieter areas along the River Kwai, a bit more out in the rural areas.