Mae On

Thailand doesn’t look big on the map, but its diversity is great. If you urgently need a few days or weeks of relaxation by the sea, Thailand is the place to go. There are quiet beach towns like Songkhla, developed tourist resorts such as Phuket or Ko Chang, party hubs like Pattaya or Ko Phangan, and activity centers – for example, Krabi. If you are after nature, go caving in Soppong, track down wild elephants in Khao Yai National Park, take a diving trip to Similan Islands, or visit Thi Lo Su, the largest waterfall in the country, remote and hard to access. Those of you with ethnographic interests can visit mountain villages north of Chiang Mai, where Hmong, Akha, Karen, and other tribes have preserved their traditional ways of living. For travelers searching more quirky experiences, Phuket hosts parades of Chinese mediums possessed by ancestral spirits for nine days every year, and in the center of Bangkok you can visit a shrine dedicated to a cobra, with a modern legend attached. If by chance you are pursuing a spiritual quest, try a vipassana course, get a magic tattoo that may grant you superpowers, or exchange ideas with young Thai artists in Ban Silapin. And when it comes to history, Thailand is a treasure house: it is the only country in Southeast Asia that has never been colonized, preserving its own outlook, customs and lifestyle.

Thailand

Chiang Mai Province

San Kamphaeng Hot Springs are nowadays a public recreation area near Chiang Mai. The territory is green and sufficiently relaxed but human-maintained rather than natural. For soaking in hot water, swimming in a pool, or picnicking, it is still good enough.
© Istock/Mindklongdan

San Kamphaeng Hot Springs, San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai

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