Trips and Travel
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We'll have three weeks and my plan so far is at least one week around Pai and one on the southern islands like Koh Muk or so. Open for suggestions. Haven't been there since 1998. Will you still be there in Feb? Meeting would be awesome.
si tacuisses
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@Denman-John I was there on a trip with my church so we didn't do any of the typical treks. We hiked to some remote villages in Gyangphedi and Gorkha. Then we went to Pokhara and hiked to the Australian basecamp for Annapurna. It was very smokey and cloudy when we were there though so didn't get great views unfortunately. Pokhara was a cool town with a lake. We got to explore Kathmandu with some of our local contacts also which was such an experience, like nothing else I have ever seen! One of the guys let me ride his motorcycle through the streets and it was total chaos and so much fun! Glad it was peaceful when we were there, such terrible stuff that happened recently.
Not sure if you have been there before, but the airport was also a bit of a chore to fly out of. I think I heard they only have one runway for international flights so we ended up sitting in the plane for like 2.5 hours before taking off. Was still a great experience to go!
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@Denman-John I don't think so! My girlfriend is moving to Sri Lanka for work, so I think my big trip this year will be travelling there to see her and visiting the Maldives nearby.
“𝑁𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑢𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏 𝑦𝑜𝑢. 𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑒𝑒𝑡 𝑖𝑡, 𝑖𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑡𝑜, 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑡𝑜𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑚 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡.”
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@Crease Thanks for your great response! I was there in December/early January and remember seeing your post/pictures after I returned. We were in kind of in the same areas as I did the Langtang trek and then the Poon Hill trek in the Annapurna region. Loved Pokhara and was a great place to chill for a few days between treks. Kathmandu is probably my favourite city in the world! Although is has grown a lot since I was first there in ‘93, it still has the same vibe. It’s chaotic but it works. Looking forward to going back again in December. From the most recent reports I’ve seen online, it looks like they are moving forward positively and are open to tourism.
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@T4920 That sounds like a wonderful trip you have planned and look forward to seeing pictures and stories from Sri Lanka! I’m hoping my wife and I can make it there in the next few years. Would love to hear some firsthand experiences.
My wife and I just booked 4 nights at Pai Country Hut and are getting excited. Last year I had a rough plan for Thailand and kind of winged it and had a great time. This year I think there will more “planning” involved
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@Denman-John oh amazing, it will be nice to introduced her to the area! You rode the Mae Hong Son loop last time didn't you? I'll be sure to do that next time, shameful I haven't done so yet, but I just get stuck in that Pai-hole
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@endo said in Trips and Travel:
We'll have three weeks and my plan so far is at least one week around Pai and one on the southern islands like Koh Muk or so. Open for suggestions. Haven't been there since 1998. Will you still be there in Feb? Meeting would be awesome.
You’ll have a great time in Pai! I imagine you’ll be flying into Chiang Mai and heading to Pai from there. The road from CM to Pai is beautiful and worth renting scooters in CM and riding there and back (4 hours each way roughly). That would also give you transportation in the Pai area. You could also take a bus/van and rent scooters in Pai to get around. As for the islands, they each have their own flavour. My favourite is Koh Chang in the southeast on the Cambodian border - very chill, great beaches and lots of nature. When I was younger I liked the southern islands, but now that I’m getting older I tend to like quieter places to “relax”.
For places to stay in Pai, I’ll quote @T4920 “If you're able to get a room at either Pai Country Hut, Nest House or Ban Pai Riverside do it!” They are all good and nicely located on the quiet side of the river, while still being 5 minutes away from the walking street. We were fortunate enough to get 4 nights at Pai Country Hut this time. The other 2 places were already booked up for the time we want to be there (early January).
Apps: I’ve had good luck using Agoda to book hotels in Asia. Grab and Bolt for most of your local transportation needs.
Unfortunately it doesn’t look like we’ll be able to meet on this trip, but I’m confident it will happen when it’s meant to be.
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Thank you @Denman-John will try to get a room in one of the places you mentioned. What about 'burning season'? I only heard about that recently. We will be in the North End of Feb, is that already a problem then?
si tacuisses
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@endo you may well catch the burning season at end of Feb, but when it starts isn't an exact science...
It's manageable in Chiang Mai/Chiang Rai, but you really don't wanna be in Pai or around the Mae Hong Son area when it's going in. I have friends that live there year round and it looks truly awful
