Hi everyone, we are in the final stages of converting my company’s reservation sites for Bali and Thailand into charitable sites (where the money / commission we earn directly from the hotels goes to one of two local children’s charities – in Bali, this is the Bali Children’s Project in Ubud - in Thailand, this is the Mercy Centre AKA Human Development Foundation in Bangkok). You can see the new site progressing here: Travel Ethos – it is not fully functioning yet. My company’s existing sites will divert to this one once everything is ready.

Anyway, I NEED VOLUNTEERS! (No, it won’t cost you anything but a few minutes on your PC).

In order to make both the Thailand and Bali sides of the reservations site equal, I am having to write some area summaries for Thailand. To be candid, I did not travel outside Phuket that much, except to go shopping or whatever in either Bangkok or Singapore. So I have written a page for Phuket, but need help writing pages for Bangkok, Koh Samui (I can do this, but I have not been there for a while), Pattaya, Hua Hin / Cha-Am, Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Chiang Rai / Golden Triangle (I can do this at a push), Phitsanuloke / Sukhothai / Aythuaya etc. and maybe some other areas.

Below is the text I am going to use on the Phuket area guide page on Travel Ethos, can anyone help me write the other area guides in the same style??? Please, pretty please? It is for a good cause (not my beer fund)!

Phuket

Phuket is the major Thai beach destination and has widely varying areas for different tastes; we order these below by approximate overall tourist numbers. With all Phuket tourist areas we would point out that your shopping is far better done in Phuket Town which has several large department stores, many specialist Thai stores, plus the inevitable t-shirt, etc. tourist stores, but at a much lower price than the tourist areas. We recommend you ask your hotel if they can have a metered cab come and collect you to take you there. Getting a metered cab in Phuket Town on the street itself is not a problem.

Patong Beach
Filled with go-go bars (where western men pick up a Thai girl for a fee and for the night), discos, regular bars, mass tourism quality souvenir shops, by the 100g priced (to hide the high cost) seafood restaurants, frequent US navy shore leave visits, the tuk-tuk mafia (where you can not get a better, cheaper, safer, air-conditioned meter taxi) and tour group hotels; Patong is primarily a young persons and bar girl seeking male destination not really suitable for families or discerning travelers. Most hotels are the other side of the beach road. The beach is sheltered by headlands so the waters are generally quite clam, but unlicensed and uninsured jet-skis and other motor driven craft have a habit of regularly injuring or worse a tourist or two. Hawkers (beach salespeople) walk up and down the rows of sun-loungers touting their wares making it very hard for you to relax. There is a large gay “krak-toy” (lady boy) area in the center on Soi Bangla.

Karon Beach
Karon has a go-go bar, regular bar and souvenir element similar to Patong in its center. The rest of Karon Beach is generally given to very large tour group hotels which some families may well be suited to. Most of the hotels are the other side of the often busy coastal road. The beach is generally free from hawkers and jet-skis, although they do exist. The very long beach has no headland shelter so it is not often suitable for swimming due to the resulting waves. The tuk-tuk mafia again prevent metered taxis from picking passengers up here.

Kata Beach
There are actually two Kata Beaches, Kata Noi and Kata Yai which are separated by a headland. Kata Noi is very similar to Karon, Kata Yai is much more secluded, sheltered sea wise) and has more of a village feel to it. Both Katas are suitable for families with few Thai girl “venues” to make the parents blush.

Bang Tao Beach
This is where many of the better luxury hotels are located, exclusively so, which means you will only be able to shop and eat by foot within the hotel community at controlled (very high) prices. Many of the hotels are actually separated from the beach by beach shack vendors selling everything from suits to seafood. If your hotel is set back from the beach, they will recommend you use the beach lakes that separate the various hotels. Unfortunately these have less air, so are hotter, and are spoiled by jet-ski noise and a few hawkers.

Kamala Beach
Actually a Muslim village, but do not let that put you off as it brings benefits such as less crime, no go-go bars, etc. Kamala has developed considerably over the last few years but still retains a village atmosphere with some very good restaurants, some on the beach.

Nai Harn Beach
Has both a luxury and a sprawling tour group hotel with very small rooms. Nai Harn (the center section) is a popular choice for local expatriates as there are very few hawkers, you can rent a beach lounger and buy cold drinks from the attendant at reasonable prices, plus there are a large number of restaurants nearby. The furthermost beach section from the hotels is a hang out for the local gay community. Nai Harn can have some very dangerous undertows which makes allowing children in the sea and even your own swimming out of your depth something to consider carefully.

Surin / Pansea Beach
Nice clean and relatively undeveloped beach with some lower cost room options, making it the beach of choice for many backpackers who want to see the sea and avoid Patong.

Rawai / Chalong
The beaches are not that good but the views to the islands are spectacular. Here you will find a range of beachfront and hillside hotels with some stunning views. Chalong is a major dive operator location. As these beaches are on the sheltered side of Phuket, the sea is generally very calm and there are fewer strong winds. Although Phuket is now protected by an effective tsunami warning system, the sheltered side of the island only suffered raised sea levels / small amounts of flooding in the 2004 tsunami, those with a phobia about such things but who still yearn for a beachfront location may sleep better here. This area has a good number of very good restaurants and bars, several actually on the beach.

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There are two categories of travellers, those that experience a country and those that take their home with them wherever they go.

Be warned, as with any forum, picking a fight with the admin guy is not recommended!

I will do one for Samui if you want

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Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

how do you want it doing on an attachment sent to you or as a post?

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Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

So then others can critique / add to it?

Thanks J
Mark

__________________
There are two categories of travellers, those that experience a country and those that take their home with them wherever they go.

Be warned, as with any forum, picking a fight with the admin guy is not recommended!

I am glad you added add to it!

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Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

Thanks, but I really need this for the next couple of weeks

__________________
There are two categories of travellers, those that experience a country and those that take their home with them wherever they go.

Be warned, as with any forum, picking a fight with the admin guy is not recommended!

Would I get special edit privileges (for life) ? Could do Cha Am maybe.

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“Not all those who wander are lost.” Tolkien.
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

do you plan to live ?


Could your offer stretch to Cha-Am and Hua Hin; I want to put them in as one area?

__________________
There are two categories of travellers, those that experience a country and those that take their home with them wherever they go.

Be warned, as with any forum, picking a fight with the admin guy is not recommended!

Non of your lip young Mark or I'll go off again, THEN what would you do?? BTW....why are you being so stingy and obstinate about my edit privileges? Do you honestly think a genteel old lady like me would spam this place with porn ads???

No I can't do Hua Hin. I rented a WE house in Cha Am for a few months once so I know it quite well. It's not the sort of place I'd chose go to on holiday at all....beach sucks, the water is murky and its got deckchairs and banana boats...bit like Jomtien...but it's convenient as rents are cheap and it's not far from BKK.

I only went to Hua Hin a few times when taking trains and buses. Remember going to a Thai night club there once though... mainly because on the way back two crazed pickups nearly knocked me off the back of a young man's motorbike....local mafia chase. One of the mafia guys hung out of the window with a gun in his hand and said "Sorry, not you farang" so that was OK.

Do you want Cha Am or not? I'll let you do the editing shall I? Don't blame me if it's full of spelling mistakes and appalling grammar!

__________________
“Not all those who wander are lost.” Tolkien.
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.