Angkor is truly one of the wonders of the world. Chiang Mai is a huge, sprawling city. No question which one I'd choose!

But let me start by asking whether your trip has to be end of March/beginning of April. That is absolutely the hottest time of the year, and there is no time of the year when these places are less than hot. I'd highly recommend that you choose a different time of year.

You can get to most beach areas with a quick flight from Bangkok. Or you can opt for Hua Hin, just a two hour drive from Bangkok.

Browse a couple of hotel booking websites: wwww.agoda.com
www.sawasdee.com No reason you should have sewage smells in the places you stay. Thailand has wonderful places to stay at very reasonable prices.

in krabi area i like the sheraton..

but i reaLLY LIKE THE JW MARRIOTT IN KHAO LAK, A 1.25 HOUR DRIVE NORTH FROM THE PHUKET AIRPORT...

in bkk a hotel on the river is my preference.. i like the anantara riverside, but less expensive is chatrium riverside and ibis..

if you must go to chiang mai, and i would not, fly there for $100. if you live in the americas you cannot fly home directly, you must go to bkk first..

i like hua hin a lot and the hyatt there is fantastic..

flights to siem reap (angkor) are quite expensive... look at bangkok air

Thanks for your replies.
Kathie, my daughter's break from school begins the end of March and goes until Mid May. I know it is not the ideal time. At least I have lived all my life in the American South.I know. I am going to be very very very hot.
She has actually been to Hua Hin, and while that is a consideration, it would be nice to go places she has not been. There is so much to do/see.
I guess I was thinking Chiang Mai in terms of experiencing "the north"? of Thailand.I am going to explore Angkor options. It is no more expensive, actually a little less to fly home from there.

i don't believe you can fly home from there either

Korean air flies through Seoul,one stop to SFO. But the last piece I read described Angkor Wat as "scorchingly hot" in April. I do wish I could go another time, but can't. So if you HAD to go to Thailand in April, what would you do, where would you go?

Been to both. Angkor Wat and surrounds for sure.

I'd go to Japan! Farther north+ Cherry Blossom season!!

But from Thailand, I'd go to Bkk, then Siem Reap to see Angkor Wat temples. You could fly Air Asia to Kuala Lumpur and do a Malaysian island. My daughter was in Singapore for school Jan - May, and said many of the Malaysian islands were "relatively" pleasant in April.

Many thanks to all of you for your responses. I have my ticket, will be there 13 days, beginning and ending in Bangkok.From bangkok we will fly to Chiang Rai (2 nights) , bus to Chiang Mai (she has friends we are meeting) a few days at 3 Sisters(?) I think. Then fly to Phuket. Not sure from there, but the rest of the trip will be islands, possibly Railei Beach Club on Krabi. Back to overnight Bangkok, then home. I do wish Angkor Wat was in there. Another trip, another time. i still welcome any and all advice given this schedule. And none of our places are confirmed yet.

With justv13 days, I would give Chiang Rai a miss and just base yourself in Chiang Mai for you time in the north. 3 Sis is a great place to stay. A quiet street in the old town close to the Tae Pae gate and lots of good local restaurants. The staff are excellent and very helpful. The are lots of activities to be experienced in CM and its environs. Doi Suthep and Doi Inthanon National park are within easy reach. The Elephant Conservation Centre and the ChianG Mai Cookery School are also worth considering.

You really need to spend a few days in Bangkok to make the most of the city which really only leaves time for one beach resort if you don't want to spend all your time travelling from place to place.the Andaman cost has the best weather at that time of year but I am not a fan of Phuket or Krabi (much too commercialised for me) but if all you are look to do is crash out on a beach in a nice hotel then I suppose it is as good as anywhere.

no! crellston, please tell me more! i am clueless, and while my daughter has been there a few months, she is no expert. i really want to hear your recommendations about the Andaman coast.

I also don't want to shortchange bangkok.

plenty to do in bkk and surrounds.... april is the hottest month--go slow

yes, rhkkmk.definitely! daughter is now hoping our beach will be koh lanta. just going to take alot of time to get there.that was our primary reason for choosing krabi or phuket. still not sure what to do. koh lanta sounds more like our style. maybe long beach chalets?

Willsjr - here is a link to a site which provides a lot of good info on Thai islands and indeed the whole of Southeast Asia.http://www.travelfish.org/islands.php I use it extensively and find the descriptions to be pretty accurate and up to date. Phuket is a convenient airport to fly into for the Anadaman coast, I just wouldn't stay there. Koh Libong is very nice and VERY quiet for some get a away from it all time, but does take a bit of effort to get there. Khao Lak, is easily reached from Phuket but I haven't been there since before the Tsunami it was very nice then but was obivously decimated and has been rebuilt. i am not sure what it is like now but know rhkkmk has been there a lot more recently and may be able to provide more info.

We were recently in Railay beach and didn't think it that commercialized, although I don't have a lot to compare it to. The commercial area of Railay beach itself isn't large, and if you walk to Phranang beach you are on one of the most beautiful beaches I've seen and there is essentially no commercial area (there is just the Rayavadee resort at the back of the beach and some longtails that will sell you food and drink). We passed through Krabi but didn't actually spend time there.

Thanks to all.i love the travelfish site especially. Here's how it has shaped up thus far. Bangkok for the first weekend. Fly to Chiang Mai on Sunday, stay at 3 Sisters. i am letting her make the sight seeing plans. A day trip to Chiang Rai is not out of the question. 5 nights in CM. From there we go to Krabi, but in order to get the affordable flights, we need to book back to Bangkok, then a separate flight to Krabi. is it a mistake to do that on the same day with just maybe 2 hours between?
Then from Krabi(we chose krabi rather than Phuket because it is less travel time from there to Koh Lanta i think) we go to Koh Lanta where we will be at Long Beach Chalets. I wouldn't mind the (slow) ferry at all, but do you think i will regret that? i am fairly certain the hotel will send a car ---other similar ones did--a little pricey, but I'm ok with that. Just seems the ferry ride might be all part of the experience. Usually i am happier on water than in a car, but...I could be wrong? I've read so many versions. Also, where do you recommend staying the one night in Krabi if we have to? What would be close to the pier for the ferry?

2 hours should be fine to connect in BKK (in fact, even if you fly one leg on Thai Air and one on Bangkok Airways you can check your luggage through, but it may not be possible to do that if one leg is on a low cost carrier).

P.S. just remembered the low cost carriers are at DMK, not BKK, now so I guess you'd want to avoid mixing a flight into one airport and out of the other

so is that something you do at the airport once you get there? we are looking at dmk.

the low cost carriers will not "interline" (i.e., take luggage from a different connecting carrier)-- in fact I have heard that even if you fly air asia both legs they will not check your baggage through-- you need to pick it up and recheck.