Thailand: Bangkok And Pattaya – Through My Eyes!

Thailand is one of the destinations that’s frequented by Indian travellers. It stays so due to its proximity to our country along with being a pocket friendly holiday destination!
Having travelled to a lot of countries in the world where shopping was definitely not easy on the pocket, Thailand was a breath of fresh air! Not just that, it had unlimited options for entertainment and amusement as well.

I travelled to Thailand recently with my husband, two kids and many others from our extended family. It was a carefully chalked out itinerary of visiting various tourist places during the day and having the evenings to our own. If it’s a time bound holiday, we always prefer having tour operators handling everything for us as that way we end up saving a lot of time with the HOWs and WHATs! In fact, going through a tour operator also helps in planning your trip when you don’t have the time to do so.

Although it was difficult to communicate at most of the places there, we kinda managed to make our way through! Like every other tourist does! Wink! And since communicating is a problem for most, they don’t really bother much to talk. Then there are those who go out of their way to make you feel at home! And sometimes, that’s enough.

During our 5-day busy-swamped-up vacation, we managed to have our favourites! With kids, its almost impossible to relax, especially when you yourself are the ‘enjoy-every-moment-kinda-mom’! You can forget about chillin’ on a beach in your monokini and flip flops, with a drink in your hand. Coz then you have to take your kids everywhere possible so that they have an unforgettable holiday! Nevertheless, I did manage to have a ‘me-time’ when we returned to the hotel after a hectic day. All thanks to their adorable grandparents! So, I have shortlisted some places that you gotta visit with kids or without!

These are the spots in Thailand which totally stole my heart!

1. Terminal 21, Pattaya

A totally different mall experience, like never before! Its fun for kids and adults alike. With brands ranging from all over the world, it’s a shopper’s paradise. This airport themed mall is four floors of amazement! With each floor dedicated to and adorned like one particular country, its like you travelled to so many places all at once!

• The ground floor is where the magic begins! With the gorgeous 27-meter replica of the Eiffel Tower, the whole floor gives a Paris-y vibe! The fashion capital of world’s mini version is loaded with brands like H&M, EVEANDBOY, LACOSTE, RADLEY LONDON, UNIQLO and many more! There are various photo-ops that make you feel that you are in the French capital and the land-of-love!

• Move one level up and you reach London! Here, you will find the iconic red London bus and a red phone box/booth, and you’ll get the London vibes instantly! It also houses fashion brands like F LAB, HYBRID, KEDS, Under Armour and many more along with a humungous Foodland Supermarket.

• Travel one more level and you reach the beautiful land of Italy. This floor is home to replicas of the iconic Leaning Tower of Pisa, Gondola of Venice and Verona, the hometown of Romeo and Juliet. The floor is great for shopping with more than 30 health and beauty stores!

• Tokyo is your next destination as you move another level towards the sky! Be enchanted by the cherry blossoms and around 250 shops in street market style! This floor also houses various restaurants and cafes where you can gorge on sea food and stakes.

• Next up, is San Francisco! The Golden Gate Bridge’s replica along with the railroad and the tram is a treat for the eyes! Stop here for awesome international cuisine at renowned restaurants along with a huge and easy-on-the-pocket food court with more than 30 eating joints!

• Finally, Level 4 is the Hollywood land which houses seven SFX cinemas and Active Z which is the most evolved playground in Thailand.

2. Sriracha Zoo, near Pattaya

The Sriracha Tiger Zoo is located in Sri Racha which is a city that falls around 97 kms from Bangkok. The zoo is believed to be home to the largest populations of tiger and crocodiles in the world! It’s also considered to be a tiger breeding zone. Although, I am not a zoo person and despise such controlled environments for wild animals, but one corner of my mind says that this is the closest that we can ever get to these animals! Imagine feeding a tiger cub milk through a bottle as it holds your hands! And an elephant holding you up in the air with his trunk wrapped around you! Totally aww-worthy!

3. Coral Island, Pattaya

For a mermaid like me, lazing around in the shallow crystal clear and sparkling waters of this beach is the highlight of my vacation! As I lay in the water, with the sun and a gorgeous sky above me, the world seemed like an endless place and I, a tiny speck! There is so much about nature that we still need to experience. One lifetime can never be enough. The clear shallow water is perfect for non-swimmers or those afraid of depths! The beach buzzes with various water activities like jet-skiing, parasailing, banana boats, snorkelling and so much more! While having done most of the water activities at earlier points in life, my favourite was just relaxing on the white sand beach, immersed in the turquoise waters!

4. Safari World

Another superb place to feel close to nature and enjoy its antics! Safari world is a world where I loved getting lost in! From feeding bananas to giraffes to feeding grains to umpteen birds who come and sit on you, this place was a sheer delight! While they host various animal shows, my personal favourite remains spots where I can have a personal interaction with the animals and look them in the eye! Hence, the giraffe feeding terrace is one rocking place! You see hordes of these beautiful towering creatures bringing their necks up to a terrace, letting you feed them and touch them! The plus is, they are roaming around freely in their natural-like-habitat! A drive towards the end takes you through forested areas where you can spot various wild animals like tigers, lions, bears and the likes, just being themselves!

5. Platinum Mall, Bangkok

Shopaholics, behold! Still swooning over this one-of-a-kind mall which is heaven for budget shoppers looking for good quality stuff. The clothes/footwear/accessories here are next level and the prices are highly competitive. Once was definitely not enough, and I ended up going there twice! And both the times, I shopped till I dropped! Clothes at dirt cheap prices range from casuals, formals, glamourous and uber chic! It’s like a heaven for shoppers and a must visit for people like me, who arrived in Thailand with one clear agenda – Lots of Shopping!

6. Dream World, Bangkok

It’s the land of fantasies for children with castles, snow world, rides, water slides, rollercoasters, animal farm and lots of places to eat at! The showstoppers of this amusement destination are the Super Splash, the Snow World and roller coasters Space Mountain and Sky Coaster! My personal favourite – the Super Splash. I would highly recommend everyone to take a ride through water and get drenched! However, would also suggest you save this for the last part of your day here as the peaked energy levels coupled with gushing water can drain you out totally! But it is not to be missed, you would want to do this over and over again!

7. Under Sea Walking

It’s a different world under water and it’s a great feeling to touch base with it! Walk on the seabed relishing vibrant views of the life under water! The walk is performed with the help of a helmet which is connected to an oxygen compressor via a tube. There are no ropes or harness, but only divers that take your hand and guide you through your walk. You are also given bread bits to feed the fish and the experience of them feeding off from your hand is unparalleled!

8. North Pattaya Market

Finally, for the romantics, this is a place is a must visit! Located in north Pattaya, this market is all about scrumptious Thai street food, gravelled floor, cosy places to sit and eat and great service! Throw in some live music and it goes one notch higher! And the adornment of string lights all over the place make it look like a dream land! It’s a perfect place to sit, eat, relax and enjoy live music with your nears and dears! Easily accessible by tuk-tuks, this market is not to be missed!

As my list draws to an end, I turn all nostalgic about my vacation. Another most memorable thing about the holiday was the food! Oodles of variety and taste – perfect recipe for holiday fun! And now that I’ve covered most of the fun stuff, I can happily aim at relaxing at a beach, the next time I visit Thailand. So, when are you planning yours?