to 
TonyT's 9th Thailand blog:
18 days in and around the country:
Christmas 2025 to January 2026.
Page 1
This ninth journal or blog was written whilst in Thailand over the Christmas period 2025 and into 2026. Although it's called the "9th", I've actually traveled Thailand firstly in 2007, twice in 2011 and three times in 2012 which are not documented on-line, so this is visit to Thailand No.13.
We can only manage 18 days in-country on this trip due to limitations of our son's school attendance. Even with so short a time we have lots of family members to go visit and old friends to catch up with as well as taking a genuine holiday somewhere; probably on one of Thailand's fantastic islands.
This trip is slightly different as, for the first time, my eldest son, Dann is joining us. After all the years I've been married into a Thai family he is yet to meet this side of the family.
There's a LOT to pack into this shortest ever trip to Thailand and a LOT of kilometers to drive in my ageing but trusty Toyota truck.
This visit was badly marred and disrupted by the sheer unnecessary stupidity of the skirmishes over border territory between Thailand and Cambodia.
There’s been bad blood between the two countries for many, many years.
Prior to leaving UK, it was very much 50/50 as to whether we would be able to travel to Surin Province to stay with our family. They had been evacuated several times in recent months because this nonsense.
The UK Foreign Office advised not to venture within 50km from the Thai/Cambodia border all the way from Ubon Ratchathani down to Trat. It was Trat we needed to get to in order to cross over to Ko Kood. In fact, most of our route to Trat by car was well within this zone.
The Thailand-Cambodia conflict stems from a century-old, poorly demarcated border, intensified by disputes over the Preah Vihear Temple and other areas, fuelled by nationalism, political manoeuvring and more recently, interconnected issues like scam centres, leading to periodic armed clashes, troop build-ups, and diplomatic crises.
More detailed information as of December 2025 can be seen: here
My original 3-month visit in 2013 around Thailand can be viewed here:-
TonyT's 1st 3-month Thailand blog
Additionally, there are lots more blogs which can be found via the links here:-
TonyT's 2nd Thailand blog, early 2015
TonyT's 3rd Thailand blog, late 2015
TonyT's 4th Thailand blog, 2017
TonyT's 5th Thailand blog, 2018
TonyT's 6th Thailand blog, 2022
TonyT's 7th Thailand blog, 2024
TonyT's 8th Thailand blog, 2025
In the event we had to scrap all plans of getting up to the family farm in Phanom Dong Rak, Surin as the border conflict is on-going. Furthermore, my mother-in-law has had no time to prepare for our visit; especially as my eldest son is with us on this trip. He has yet to meet this other side of the family so it’s a double disappointment. I would have loved to show him the true rural Thailand instead of the phoney, sugar coated crap of the big cities and touristy areas.
So, a big change of plans was in order:-
Instead of driving up to Phanom Dong Rak we are now planning to taxi from Bangkok to my brother-in-law James’s house in Chonburi and meet up with my second brother-in-law, Joe who will bring my car down from Surin. Once I have my car back, we’re free to carry on with the itinerary. The only difference being we’ll be spending two days on Ko Chang instead of with family. No option but to avoid the danger areas along the Thai/Cambodia border.
Anyway, here’s the hectic (revised) journal/blog:-
Our mixed and very complex itinerary on this trip was:.....
18th December: Early morning flight with Emirates from Manchester, UK via Dubai to arrive in Bangkok on the morning of the 19th at around 07:30.
Taxi from Suvarnabhumi Airport, BKK to our apartment in Khlong Toei off fthe Sukhumvit Road near Nana.
2 night stay in Bangkok.
Taxi from Bangkok to Chonburi where my brother-in-law, James, lives. Here, I'll pick up my car which has been driven down from Surin by my other brother-in-law, Joe.
Drive from Chonburi to the ferry port at Ao Thammachat to Ko Chang
Check into the KC Grande resort for two nights and CHILL.
Check out of KC and drive to our next destination near Trat.
Overnight stay at Banpu in Trat Province.
30 minute drive to Laem Sok Pier and leave the car at High Season parking.
Catch the 13:40 ferry to Ao Salad on Ko Kood.
Check into the Captain Hook Resort for 2 nights.
Check into the nearby High Season 5-star resort for a 4-day stay.
Catch the 13:50 ferry back to Laem Sok and drive 3-4 hours to Pattaya
Check into our hotel in Pattaya for a 3-day stay into the New Year.
Option 1: drive to Bangkok and stay in our suite for 2 days, or, option 2, leave our car at a friend's house near Pattaya and taxi to Bangkok and stay in said suite.
Either way, my brother-in-law will collect my car and take it back to Surin.
Taxi to Suvarnabhumi Airport, BKK for our return flight to UK.
PHEW!! That's quite a complex trip.
Many of the complications on this visit were caused by late bookings for the hotels and resorts. I normally book up to 6 months in advance, but on this trip it was down to a few weeks. This was due to my eldest son trying to get time away from his work over the busy Christmas period.
For instance, I could not get consecutive days booking for our whole stay on Ko Kood which meant booking two resorts and making the most of the availability. It also meant I was forced to book into the expensive 5* High Season simply because all other resorts were full booked.
OK, here comes the blog.....
BANGKOK
FRIDAY 19th DECEMBER, 2025:
Left our home in UK at 05:00 on the 18th December to get to the airport for check-in.
Both flights courtesy of Emirates on time and uneventful.
Arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 07:30 on the 19th and endured the usual under-manned passport control and into the massive amphitheatre which housed the baggage reclaim carousels. As usual our carousel was #23; right at the furthermost point; the last one in fact.
This meant an equally long walk dragging cases to the Meeting Point but onnce there, we were met by our driver and were in his pre-booked SUV taxi to our apartment block off Sukhumvit Road in Khlong Toei.
Clearly, as it was still early in the morning it meant we could check-in but not actually use our apartment; which was after 12 noon.
We plan to stay in the capital for only 2 days, during which we have several duties to perform.
Exchange GBP into THB. I tend to take a wad of cash into Thailand and change currencies at one of the many on-street change booths all over Bangkok. I usually get a far better exchange rate and you can opt for when the rates fluctuate to your advantage. It's also cheaper than using ATM's.
Buy Thai SIMMs (single inline memory modules) cards for the phones; I'm not using an e-Sim this time. I also need a separate SIMM for the aircard I use with my MacBook which allows me internet access where there's no WiFi only a phone signal. This an extremely tedious process as it entails having your passport page photographed followed by a mugshot of yourself followed by bureaucratic nonesense. All this takes up at least 10 minutes in the 7-11 shop; we had 4 passports; do the math; it takes a long time.
So, we went a-wandering and bought said Thai SIMM cards and exchanged some cash. A late breakfast was in order which was, as ever, so very easy to do in Bangkok Sois (streets).
We were all so spaced-out after the long flights that we crashed out for 3 hours and after showers and a change of clothes we were on the move again.
First off, seeing as it was 4pm a few Chang beers over in Soi-4 was called for followed by a stroll down the Sukhumvit Road and down to Soi-8 for one or two more beers. Completing the circle by having dinner in Hilary1 in Soi-4.
A final beer up on the roof terrace of the hotel gazing at the bright Bangkok lights and it was time for sleep.
An early(ish) night thanks to a combination of lack of sleep, beers and jetlag.
LEFT: The author and sons with Bangkok backdrop
RIGHT: My two sons, Dan and Jack
SATURDAY 20th DECEMBER.
Second day in the capital. Decided to show eldest son some Thai culture, so we booked a taxi and did a touristy visit to the Grand Palace.
The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings at the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam since 1782. The king, his court, and his royal government were based on the grounds of the palace until 1925.
I'd been there back in 2015 and was impressed and this was still spectacular. Spent 2 or 3 hours here and then made the mistake of ordering a taxi back.... we should have jumped the MRT train as the taxi was sqaure-wheeled for most of the 45 minutes it took.
A bit of a bar-crawl around Sois 4 & 8 followed by dinner and pretty well used up the remainder of the day.
Page 1
This ninth journal or blog was written whilst in Thailand over the Christmas period 2025 and into 2026. Although it's called the "9th", I've actually traveled Thailand firstly in 2007, twice in 2011 and three times in 2012 which are not documented on-line, so this is visit to Thailand No.13.
We can only manage 18 days in-country on this trip due to limitations of our son's school attendance. Even with so short a time we have lots of family members to go visit and old friends to catch up with as well as taking a genuine holiday somewhere; probably on one of Thailand's fantastic islands.
This trip is slightly different as, for the first time, my eldest son, Dann is joining us. After all the years I've been married into a Thai family he is yet to meet this side of the family.
There's a LOT to pack into this shortest ever trip to Thailand and a LOT of kilometers to drive in my ageing but trusty Toyota truck.
This visit was badly marred and disrupted by the sheer unnecessary stupidity of the skirmishes over border territory between Thailand and Cambodia.
There’s been bad blood between the two countries for many, many years.
Prior to leaving UK, it was very much 50/50 as to whether we would be able to travel to Surin Province to stay with our family. They had been evacuated several times in recent months because this nonsense.
The UK Foreign Office advised not to venture within 50km from the Thai/Cambodia border all the way from Ubon Ratchathani down to Trat. It was Trat we needed to get to in order to cross over to Ko Kood. In fact, most of our route to Trat by car was well within this zone.
The Thailand-Cambodia conflict stems from a century-old, poorly demarcated border, intensified by disputes over the Preah Vihear Temple and other areas, fuelled by nationalism, political manoeuvring and more recently, interconnected issues like scam centres, leading to periodic armed clashes, troop build-ups, and diplomatic crises.
More detailed information as of December 2025 can be seen: here
My original 3-month visit in 2013 around Thailand can be viewed here:-
TonyT's 1st 3-month Thailand blog
Additionally, there are lots more blogs which can be found via the links here:-
TonyT's 2nd Thailand blog, early 2015
TonyT's 3rd Thailand blog, late 2015
TonyT's 4th Thailand blog, 2017
TonyT's 5th Thailand blog, 2018
TonyT's 6th Thailand blog, 2022
TonyT's 7th Thailand blog, 2024
TonyT's 8th Thailand blog, 2025
Anyway, here’s the hectic (revised) journal/blog:- 18th December: Early morning flight with Emirates from Manchester, UK via Dubai to arrive in Bangkok on the morning of the 19th at around 07:30. Taxi from Suvarnabhumi Airport, BKK to our apartment in Khlong Toei off fthe Sukhumvit Road near Nana. 2 night stay in Bangkok. Taxi from Bangkok to Chonburi where my brother-in-law, James, lives. Here, I'll pick up my car which has been driven down from Surin by my other brother-in-law, Joe.
Drive from Chonburi to the ferry port at Ao Thammachat to Ko Chang Check into the KC Grande resort for two nights and CHILL. Check out of KC and drive to our next destination near Trat. Overnight stay at Banpu in Trat Province. 30 minute drive to Laem Sok Pier and leave the car at High Season parking. Catch the 13:40 ferry to Ao Salad on Ko Kood. Check into the Captain Hook Resort for 2 nights. Check into the nearby High Season 5-star resort for a 4-day stay. Catch the 13:50 ferry back to Laem Sok and drive 3-4 hours to Pattaya Check into our hotel in Pattaya for a 3-day stay into the New Year. Option 1: drive to Bangkok and stay in our suite for 2 days, or, option 2, leave our car at a friend's house near Pattaya and taxi to Bangkok and stay in said suite. Taxi to Suvarnabhumi Airport, BKK for our return flight to UK. PHEW!! That's quite a complex trip. Many of the complications on this visit were caused by late bookings for the hotels and resorts. I normally book up to 6 months in advance, but on this trip it was down to a few weeks. This was due to my eldest son trying to get time away from his work over the busy Christmas period.
FRIDAY 19th DECEMBER, 2025: Exchange GBP into THB. I tend to take a wad of cash into Thailand and change currencies at one of the many on-street change booths all over Bangkok. I usually get a far better exchange rate and you can opt for when the rates fluctuate to your advantage. It's also cheaper than using ATM's. Buy Thai SIMMs (single inline memory modules) cards for the phones; I'm not using an e-Sim this time. I also need a separate SIMM for the aircard I use with my MacBook which allows me internet access where there's no WiFi only a phone signal. This an extremely tedious process as it entails having your passport page photographed followed by a mugshot of yourself followed by bureaucratic nonesense. All this takes up at least 10 minutes in the 7-11 shop; we had 4 passports; do the math; it takes a long time.
LEFT: The author and sons with Bangkok backdrop RIGHT: My two sons, Dan and Jack
SATURDAY 20th DECEMBER. The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings at the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam since 1782. The king, his court, and his royal government were based on the grounds of the palace until 1925. I'd been there back in 2015 and was impressed and this was still spectacular. Spent 2 or 3 hours here and then made the mistake of ordering a taxi back.... we should have jumped the MRT train as the taxi was sqaure-wheeled for most of the 45 minutes it took.
In the event we had to scrap all plans of getting up to the family farm in Phanom Dong Rak, Surin as the border conflict is on-going. Furthermore, my mother-in-law has had no time to prepare for our visit; especially as my eldest son is with us on this trip. He has yet to meet this other side of the family so it’s a double disappointment. I would have loved to show him the true rural Thailand instead of the phoney, sugar coated crap of the big cities and touristy areas.
So, a big change of plans was in order:-
Instead of driving up to Phanom Dong Rak we are now planning to taxi from Bangkok to my brother-in-law James’s house in Chonburi and meet up with my second brother-in-law, Joe who will bring my car down from Surin. Once I have my car back, we’re free to carry on with the itinerary. The only difference being we’ll be spending two days on Ko Chang instead of with family. No option but to avoid the danger areas along the Thai/Cambodia border.
Our mixed and very complex itinerary on this trip was:.....
Either way, my brother-in-law will collect my car and take it back to Surin.
For instance, I could not get consecutive days booking for our whole stay on Ko Kood which meant booking two resorts and making the most of the availability. It also meant I was forced to book into the expensive 5* High Season simply because all other resorts were full booked.
OK, here comes the blog.....
BANGKOK
Left our home in UK at 05:00 on the 18th December to get to the airport for check-in.
Both flights courtesy of Emirates on time and uneventful.
Arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 07:30 on the 19th and endured the usual under-manned passport control and into the massive amphitheatre which housed the baggage reclaim carousels. As usual our carousel was #23; right at the furthermost point; the last one in fact.
This meant an equally long walk dragging cases to the Meeting Point but onnce there, we were met by our driver and were in his pre-booked SUV taxi to our apartment block off Sukhumvit Road in Khlong Toei.
Clearly, as it was still early in the morning it meant we could check-in but not actually use our apartment; which was after 12 noon.
We plan to stay in the capital for only 2 days, during which we have several duties to perform.
So, we went a-wandering and bought said Thai SIMM cards and exchanged some cash. A late breakfast was in order which was, as ever, so very easy to do in Bangkok Sois (streets).
We were all so spaced-out after the long flights that we crashed out for 3 hours and after showers and a change of clothes we were on the move again.
First off, seeing as it was 4pm a few Chang beers over in Soi-4 was called for followed by a stroll down the Sukhumvit Road and down to Soi-8 for one or two more beers. Completing the circle by having dinner in Hilary1 in Soi-4.
A final beer up on the roof terrace of the hotel gazing at the bright Bangkok lights and it was time for sleep.
An early(ish) night thanks to a combination of lack of sleep, beers and jetlag.
Second day in the capital. Decided to show eldest son some Thai culture, so we booked a taxi and did a touristy visit to the Grand Palace.
A bit of a bar-crawl around Sois 4 & 8 followed by dinner and pretty well used up the remainder of the day.