Traveling: Unlocking Thailand, the Gate Towards the Asian Culture

The longest trip I have ever made and the longest flight took me to one of the most amazing places on Earth, Thailand. A country that has been through so much, war and tsunamis, yet managed to make it through and be one of the most desired destinations for travelers around the world.

Last year I was a bit unsure whether I should purchase a trip to Zanzibar or not when a friend told me that I should pick Thailand instead. A few weeks after British Airways made an offer on the tickets from Bucharest to Krabi, with 2 stops, one in London and one in Doha, so I ended up purchasing the ticket and preparing myself for the exotic trip.

The 14 days from Thailand were split between Phi Phi Island, Bangkok and Ao Nang.  My selection of hotels, flights, and areas was made by me and I was not paid in any way to advertise them.

 I was really disappointed when one week before my departure the company modified the hours and instead of a 4 hours stop, I had a 20 hours stop. The company only offered to refund the money but no other alternatives, given that I had already purchased the accommodation I went on with it, but I strongly recommend you against buying tickets from British Airways. Apart from them being completely unreliable, on the flights that are less than 5 hours you will have to pay for food and beverages on economy class, so you will basically fly low cost but paying for a full service. The flights from London to Doha and Doha to Krabi were operated by Qatar, but due to the fact that I did not purchase the tickets from Qatar I didn’t have internet in Doha, yes 20 hours stop and no internet because the only complimentary WIFI is from Qatar to their direct customers. Also, Qatar was offering a complimentary tour of Doha, but only for their direct customers. If you are planning a trip to Asia with Qatar, make sure you buy the tickets from them, so you don’t have to pay a tremendous amount of money on WiFi or meals. 

Thailand a visa is required; make sure you verify before the trip what are the options you can take, the Romanian citizens can choose the VOA (Visa on Arrival) it costs 70$ and you can stay for a period of maximum 15 days. The things you will need are: one photo of the required format(4×6), 70$ at some entry points you can pay in dollars or euro, but in some you will be required to give them in Bath, the local currency and last you will have to have 400$(350euro) in cash to show the agent that you have enough money to live for 2 weeks. Usually, the paperwork takes around 15-20 minutes in Krabi.

For the time that we had there, we decided to split is as follows: 2 nights in Phi Phi Island, 1 night in Ao Nang prior to the flight to Bangkok, 2 nights in the capital and 8 nights back to Ao Nang. From the airport we took the bus and ferry to Phi Phi, make sure you ask your hotel if it is reachable by foot or by boat, we ended up walking through the jungle and getting lost in the forest a couple of times before arriving at Tokko Beach Resort.

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