I’m planning a vacation to Thailand and India and would like feedback on my itinerary. A few things I have planned are Patara elephant farm on the 11th and I want a short trip to see Angkor Wat. So far this is what I’ve come up with, it might seem fast paced but that usually how I do it.
Fri April 5th-fly from IAH to BKK (arrive Sunday the 7th before noon)
Same day flight to Siem Reap
8th- All day visit Angkor Wat
9th-half day in Siem Reap (markets maybe) then late flight back to bkk
--Once back in bkk I could take a night train to Chiang Mai
10th-Chaing Mai (Tiger Kindgom and night market)
11th-Patara Elephant farm (pick up at 7:30am)
12th- Travel back to bkk (Night train)
12, 13, and 14th-bkk sites and Songkran
15th-flight to New Delhi (either 1am-4am or mid-day 1:00pm-4pm)
16th-Delhi (Sites)
17th-Agra
18th-Jaipur
19th and 20th-Delhi (Sites then shopping)
21st-Fly home at 4am
What are your thoughts on the layout? The 11th is set and I will be picked up from my hotel at 7:30am. I could push things back a day and have the 11th and 12th in Chiang Mai and not fly to Delhi until the 16th. If I do push things back I would have to fly from bkk to Chiang Mai the evening of the 10th because the night train wouldn’t arrive by 7:30am on the 11th. I thought I would finish with two days in Delhi because I’ve heard not to book travel too close and I wouldn’t want a train back to Delhi to be delayed and cause me to miss my flight home. Do you think I should drop Jaipur and add that day somewhere else? I read a post that mentioned the triangle: Shatabdi Express from Delhi at 6:10am to Agra at 8:10am then I could take a 5:40pm-10:30pm train to Jaipur (Or overnight in Agra then early morning train to Jaipur) I mainly want to just see the sites like the Taj Mahal and Palace of Winds maybe the forts too. I was looking at a day tour of Jaipur by the government but it says it’s full. I really want to spend time in Delhi shopping for rugs, fabric, and small items to decorate a house or office with and for gifts.
I know there are different train stations and I’m having trouble finding a hotel. I’d like to keep it under $50 a night. I found The Suncourt Hotel Yatri, could anyone tell me if this would be a good place to stay so that I could get to the train and also to sites and shopping? I looked at the map and it seems close to the train but I’m not exactly sure where I will want to shop and where the sites are. I have my visa for India and will apply online for the visa to Cambodia closer to the date. I know this is a bit scattered but I appreciate any feedback.
Advice on travel plans
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It looks like you have little interest in the temples of Angkor. A mere day will give you enough time to Explore the main temple, but the are dozens of accessible temples in the Siem Reap Area. You might want to take look at a copy of Dawn Rooney's book, Angkor: A Guide to Cambodia's Wondrous Temples. If you are interested in the temples, cut Chiang Mai and spend the three days required to see just the major temples of Angkor.
Are you interested in how the animals are treated at the places in Chiang Mai? If you are rally an animal lover, the only two places you would want to visit are the Elephant Nature Park or the Thai Elephant Conservation Center. You would want to avoid places with captive tigers.
If you do want to go to Chiang Mai, I'd suggest you forget the train unless you are a train fanatic, as it takes a lot of time and doesn't save you much money. Air Asia has very cheap flights.
Have you been to Asia before? Travel (especially in India can be slow and more complicated than you expect. Scheduling yourself this tightly is asking for things to go wrong.
This whole itinerary looks like you are just checking off items on a list.
There is so much to see at Angkor that I don't see the point of traveliing there just for one day.
I second what Kathie has to say about the treatment of animals, but I disagree about the trains, provided they are the night trains.
You India itinerary just looks crazy. Go to Delhi and Agra.
Sounds like you need to spend some time with some good guidebooks.
your india tour is not possible to do.. each city takes the better part of a day to get to..
1 day in SR is a waste of time almost..