With 2 kids aged 10 and 13 our holidays have changed from beach based to activity based with a bit of beach. This poses the most difficult question; where to go ?

Having lived in Asia as a child, backpacked through Asia in my youth and now hitting mid 40s (I have noticed Im in a different age category for any questionaires) I thought Thailand is the place for us to head on this intrepid journey. Well maybe intrepid is a little over the top. My advice to all is to avoid your first stop in Bangkok. This is because it is just not a very exciting place to be for children, bloomin hot and a city. We landed in Bangkok and transferred on an internal flight to Chiang Mai.

Chiang Mai is a wonderful city with a village feel. We stayed at The Chedi, a beautiful resort in what I think is the perfect location, yards from the superb night market yet a complete haven of peace and tranquility. Highlight of the activities was the day spent Zip wiring in the jungle (an hour out of Chiang Mai). You have to try this out. The kids loved it. A close second was an elephant ride followed by bamboo rafting down the river. Tropical Sky carefully chooses its Elephant Camps, using the Chang Dao camp where there is only one demonstration a day and the animals are without doubt carefully looked after. There are tribe visits, boat trips, Temple tours and from July – Jan white water rafting and kayaking too. We wish we had stayed even longer and gone to Chiang Rai, got the boat to Luang Prabang in Laos but that’s another holiday.

After 5 nights of exercise we went to Phuket. I admit to being anxious about this island, fearing populated grotty beaches and tacky tourism. I was pleasantly surprised. We stayed at Andara Resort near Kamala Beach. I admit this is not a cheap place to stay but if you can afford it I assure you, this is the best place I have ever stayed in, anywhere in the world. It is simply stunning with rooms so cavernous I got lost. Kamala itself is touristy, there is no denying that and the beach was busy but with kids we decided we like this, plenty to do, fabulous local street restaurants and beach stalls for lunch and dinner, the best and safest swimming sea we have been in and shops to browse through. There is even greater shopping to be had in Patong 10 minutes drive away.

Bangkok was our last stay and despite all the press coverage about the demonstrations we felt very safe. For kids Im not sure what it has to offer, its very hot and there are only so many temples a child can see. But if you can, make sure you stay in a hotel with a pool, we stayed in The Metropolitan with a huge pool. Location for me was perfect, very close to the big night market which is good for last minute shopping.

Nothing beats Thai hospitality though, The friendly people and welcome they give you puts other countries to shame. The service is impeccable and the people are adorable.

If you want a real holiday, different from the norm and not all beach then give us a call. You will not go for a 14 night beach holiday again. A family holiday in Thailand is an extraordinary experience. You just have to do it.

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