Overview
This was our second trip to Thailand. The first combined Phuket and Bangkok and left us very happy. In March 2026 we returned for Koh Samui and Bangkok as the final leg of our Southeast Asia journey.
People were gentle, warm, and extremely fond of babies. Thailand also had the most visible sex-tourism economy of the countries on this route.
Thailand also has a highly visible transgender community and a long public culture around gender diversity.
Queen Sirikit the Queen Mother died on 24 October 2025. During our March 2026 visit, portraits and mourning symbols remained everywhere. The government had asked officials and state-enterprise employees to observe a one-year mourning period, which fits the black clothing and ribbons we saw, including on Bangkok Airways staff.
Even large supermarkets displayed chicken and fish on ice for customers to select directly. It may be practical, but it felt unhygienic to us because we are not used to it.
Thailand's food culture is outstanding. A guide on our first trip joked that half the country cooks and the other half eats out. It feels plausible. Bangkok attracts serious chefs and Michelin-recognized restaurants because people care deeply about eating well.
Traditional dance resembled what we saw in Cambodia: controlled, prayer-like movements where hands and feet carry much of the meaning.
Traffic drives on the left. Koh Samui was physically neglected outside Bo Phut, with poor roads, asphalt, and pavements. Bangkok is a dystopia I somehow love: giant towers, stacked rail lines, and sweet rather than suffocating chaos.
Food
Fresh spring rolls were good and the rice wrapper felt stickier than in Vietnam. Pomelo salad with shrimp balanced sweetness and acidity; som tam has a similar structure using papaya.
Tom yum talay was an excellent spicy, creamy seafood soup. Lemongrass stalks are not pleasant to chew, but everything else disappeared. Tom kha gai uses coconut milk and lemongrass to create a similarly rich broth with chicken and mushrooms. It arrived in a heated bowl and stayed hot.
Pad kra pao was excellent without chili, with minced chicken and a subtle basil flavor. Green curry was hot but easier for me than dense yellow curry when mixed with rice. Tod mun kung, or shrimp cake, can be excellent when properly filled.
We ate baby shark fillet and found it surprisingly delicious. Rice noodles remained bland without a strong sauce.
Thailand is a tropical-fruit paradise: passion fruit, dragon fruit, mangosteen, and several yellow translucent fruits I could not name. Lemongrass tea tasted like grass and did nothing for me. Thai iced tea, despite the name, felt closer to a milky coffee.
A hotel coconut tart combining coconut and almond cream was superb. Packaged food requires label reading: one bag of cashews contained coconut milk and palm oil, which explained why it tasted absurdly sweet.
Verdict
Koh Samui did not meet expectations, but Bangkok won us back again. Thailand's food and warmth keep it essential to a Southeast Asia route.