Thailand Family Adventure

Bangkok remains Southeast Asia's capital of cool, seamlessly blending modern luxury with vibrant street life. From swanky shopping malls and Michelin-starred dining to wild, anything-goes nightlife and bustling street markets, the city hums with sensory intensity. A saffron-robed monk rides past on a motorbike; in the flower market at Pak Khlong Talat, women thread marigolds and orchids onto garlands. Tight alleys sizzle with street food, sultry air soupy with fragrant steam; open doorways frame Thai boxing matches in session. Amid the flurry of everyday life, there are pockets of calm – wind chimes tinkling on empty lanes, temple courtyards with just the Buddha for company.  

Deep in the hills of northern Thailand, shouldering up to the border of Myanmar, Chiang Rai emerges through the trees, a sacred haze of splendorous temples. This is the heart of the region’s Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. Chiang Rai is a city defined by all its colors: by the greens of its tea plantations, the fuchsia flesh of dragon fruit at the Night Bazaar and the startling, cobalt vision of Wat Rong Suea Ten temple, whose regal blues leaves visitors silent with wonder. The countryside around the city teems with biodiversity, natural wonders and thriving tradition in the villages.  

On the south-western island of Phuket, it’s less about the temples and sights and all about the beach. Fringed with palm trees, tapering into almost luminescent aquamarine waters, this is Thailand’s tropical, go-slow destination for lazy days and watersports adventures – snorkeling over coral reefs or stand-up paddleboarding. Away from the coast are the historic streets of Old Phuket Town with its colorful shop houses and street food markets, and the golden stupas and white-marble magnificence of the Big Buddha at Wat Chalong.