เมืองไทย
BEST DESTINATIONS IN
Thailand
FOR FAMILIES
Torn between Phuket and Pattaya? An exciting city stay in Bangkok, or visiting hill tribes in Chiang Mai? We reveal the best places to holiday in Thailand with kids.
Click on the icons to read more!
Torn between Phuket and Pattaya? An exciting city stay in Bangkok, or visiting hill tribes in Chiang Mai? We reveal the best places to holiday in Thailand with kids.
Click on the icons to read more!
BANGKOK
It’s worth spending at least a couple of days in Thailand’s bustling capital to soak up the energy of one of Asia’s most vibrant cities – and introduce the kids to Thai street food! Begin with a trip to the Grand Palace, which was built for the king in the 1780s, and the neighbouring Buddhist temple Wat Pho to see the largest reclining Buddha statue in the country. American businessman and “Thai silk king” Jim Thompson’s house – now a museum showcasing his impressive art collection – is like an oasis in the middle of the city, while seeing goods sold out of wooden boats on a tour at Damnoen Saduak Floating Market will be an eye opener for the kids. There are also loads of family attractions, including Safari World Zoo, Dream World Park theme park and SEA LIFE Bangkok Ocean World.
Images: See manatee at Safari World, The Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho, The pool at Centara Grand at Central Plaza Ladprao Bangkok
WHERE TO STAY
The five-star Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld is a 55-storey hotel with fabulous views over the city from its rooftop restaurant Red Sky. Attached to Asia’s largest shopping centre, with fantastic restaurants and the Skytrain, it has a large pool with a sundeck on the 26th floor, along with an award-winning SPA Cenvaree, a gym and tennis courts.
On the northern side of Bangkok, a short walk from the Chatuchak weekend market and the subway, the five-star Centara Grand at Central Plaza Ladprao Bangkok has a large resort-style pool and is connected to the Central Plaza shopping centre. The four-star Centra Phra Nang in the old part of Bangkok, close to Khao San Road and the Grand Palace, is an affordable option for families.
PHUKET
A longtime favourite of Australian travellers, this province off Thailand's south-west coast has an abundance of gorgeous beaches and loads of family-friendly attractions. They include the fantasy and adventure-themed Tribhum and Carnival Magic theme parks and water parks Andamanda Phuket, Splash Jungle Water Park and Blue Tree Island Phuket Water Park. You can also go ziplining through the jungle at Hanuman World Phuket, check out Phuket 3D Museum, and play dinosaur-themed mini golf at Dino Park Phuket. If there’s an animal lover in your clan, include a visit to Thailand’s biggest aquarium, Aquaria Phuket; feed, shower and walk with elephants at Elephant Jungle Sanctuary and learn about conservation at The Gibbon Rehabilitation Project and Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation. Be sure to book an island-hopping tour to see Phi Phi Lee, where the movie The Beach was filmed, and Khao Phing Kan, which was the setting for the James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun. And don’t miss the Sunday Walking Street Market (also known as the Lard Yai Market) in Old Phuket Town.
Images: Kingdom of Lights at Carnival Magic, The lagoon at Blue Tree Phuket, The lazy river at Centara Grand Beach Resort Phuket
WHERE TO STAY
As you would expect, family-friendly resorts abound on Phuket. A short walk to Karon village, Centara Grand Beach Resort Phuket Karon Beach has its own water park, a large pool with a lazy river and waterslide, a kids’ club, and an award-winning spa, while Aussie favourite Centara Karon Resort Phuket (reopening in November 2024 after a major renovation) has three pools with swim-up bars, waterslides and an awesome kids’ club. On the south-west coast, Centara Kata Resort Phuket, Kata has a small toddler pool with a mushroom waterfall, a waterslide and a separate children’s pool. Surrounded by shops and restaurants, it has an awesome kids’ club with bunk beds that’s open until 10pm, so children can sleep while their parents go out to dinner.
KRABI
Instantly recognisable by its sheer limestone cliffs, this town is on the mainland around 650 kilometres south of Bangkok. Like Phuket, it makes a great base for island hopping, and also boasts beautiful beaches and jungles where you can visit cave temples and go swimming in waterfalls. You can also try rock climbing at the boat-access only Railay Beach, soak in the tiered rock pools at Krabi Hot Springs and in the Emerald Pool in nearby Khao Phra Bang Khram Nature Reserve. Catch a taxi or local bus, called a songthaew, to Krabi Town to check out the markets which are held every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night, and see the large golden Buddha statue that sits at the top of the nearby temple complex, where monks live and worship.
Images: Relax at Coast Beach Club and Bistro, An aerial view of Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas, The pool and waterslides at Centara Ao Nang Beach Resort & Spa
WHERE TO STAY
On its own 500-metre-long beach amongst the karst cliffs, the five-star Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi is ideal for families, with a cascading pool with a waterslide, a colourful kids’ club with a ball pit and a lively beach club with an outdoor pool table. It is an ideal place from which to go kayaking and join island hopping tours.
The resort town of Ao nang, which is lined with beachfront seafood restaurants where you can dine with your feet in the sand, is another excellent option. Located at the quieter end of the beach, the four-star Centara Ao nang Beach Resort & Spa is set around a free-form pool and beachfront terrace, with a kids’ club and a range of free activities. Its mix of accommodation includes family rooms with bunk beds, pool access rooms and rooms with private pools. Nearby Centara Anda Dhevi Resort & Spa has a large pool with a waterslide, a kids’ club, pool access rooms and family suites.
SAMUI
On the other side of the isthmus to Krabi and Phuket, Samui is Thailand’s second largest island. It also offers its fair share of beautiful beaches, including Chaweng Beach, Lamai Beach and Maenam Beach. Book a boat trip to Ang Thong National Marine Park to explore some of the 42 islands in the archipelago, which feature limestone cliffs, caves and waterfalls, and visit Wat Plai Laem Temple to see its 18-armed statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, and smiling Buddha statues, and the 12-metre-high gold ‘Big Buddha’ at the nearby Wat Phra Yai temple. Feed and walk with rescued elephants at Elephant Jungle Sanctuary, and check out the Fisherman’s Village at Bophut Beach, where traditional shophouses have been converted into cool boutiques, cafes and restaurants. Kids will also get a kick out of seeing things like fried worms and grasshoppers for sale at Lamai Night Market.
Images: Smiling Buddha of wealths statue, A family with elephants at Elephant Jungle Sanctuary, Relax on a sun lounge at Centara Reserve Samui
WHERE TO STAY
On the widest part of Chaweng Beach, the luxurious Centara Reserve Samui has a kids’ club with an array of activities and huge outdoor wet area for littlies, as well as a swim-up pool bar and adults-only pool. It offers a range of connecting and pool-access rooms. On the southern tip of the island near Lamai Beach, Centara Villas Samui has 102 contemporary villas cascading down the hillside to the resort’s own private beach, with three pools, a playground, full-service spa, gym and three restaurants.
PATTAYA
Around 100 kilometres south-east of Bangkok, Pattaya is a favoured destination for locals and expats. An 18-metre-high golden Buddha statue overlooks the city from the peak of Pratamnak Hill, while a large golden Buddha is also engraved in the limestone at Khao Chi Chan, which is known as The Buddha Mountain. The intricately carved wooden structure Sanctuary of Truth Museum, which is a cross between a temple and a castle, is also worth seeing. For an authentic cultural experience, head to Pattaya Floating Market, where fruit, vegetables and flowers are sold. Kids will enjoy spending a day at either Ramayana Water Park or Cartoon Network Amazone Water Park, ziplining at Flight of the Gibbon, and taking pictures with the 3D artworks at the Art in Paradise vision illusion museum.
Images: Vacuum ball pool fun at Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort, Sunset at the famous Pattaya Floating Market, A family at Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort
WHERE TO STAY
Set on a private beach with a water park, three-storey playground and lazy rivers throughout, the five-star Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort Pattaya is a great place for families to stay. Every room has ocean views, and it has an outdoor adventure park, two kids’ clubs, a kids’ cinema, trampoline zone, family club lounge and a digging pit where young archaeologists can excavate dinosaur bones. A few kilometres south of the city, the four-star Centra by Centara Maris Resort Jomtien suits families with kids of all ages, with Thailand’s first hobbit-themed kids’ club, a water playground, waterslides, a teen-focused entertainment zone and animation programs. If you prefer to be close to the action, Centara Azure Hotel Pattaya has a pool with a swim-up bar, a separate kids’ pool with waterslides and a restaurant with a 360-degree aquarium.
CHIANG
MAI
Northern Thailand’s biggest city is the place to go for adventure activities such as trekking and whitewater rafting, as well as cultural experiences like hill tribe visits. Located on the Ping River, it also offers amazing food, bustling markets and an abundance of kid-friendly restaurants. The city was the capital of the ancient Lanna Kingdom, and a beautiful pavilion showcasing architecture typical of the era can be found in The Royal Park Ratchaphruek. Chiang Mai also has some of the most impressive Buddhist temples in the country, including Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, Wat Chedi Luang Varavihara and Wat Umong. Elephant Nature Park, which was founded by animal rights advocate Lek Saengduean Chailert, is home to more than 100 rescued elephants. Kids will get a giggle out of the eco-friendly toilet paper made out of dung at POOPOOPAPER Park, where they can also go careening down the mud slide. They can also take part in cooking classes at Ginger Farm, and walk through the butterfly garden at Siam Insect Zoo.
Images: A girl sliding down the mudslide, The Ginger Farm, River Terrace at Centara Riverside Hotel Chiang Mai
WHERE TO STAY
When it comes to accommodation, Centara Riverside Hotel Chiang Mai has impressive views over the river and Doi Suthep Mountain from floor-to-ceiling windows in its 526 rooms and suites. The hotel also has a pool, sauna, steam room and fitness centre and is around 10 to 15 minutes' drive from Chiang Mai International Airport, the night markets and weekend walking streets.
WHEN TO GO
NOV TO FEB
This is considered the peak tourist season because of the cool and dry weather. Temperatures are more comfortable, and there is less humidity, making it an ideal time for outdoor activities.
MARCH TO MAY
While temperatures can be quite high during this period, it's a good time to visit if you prefer beach activities. Islands in the Gulf of Thailand, such as Koh Samui and Koh Phangan, are in their prime during these months.
JUNE TO OCT
This is the monsoon season, and while there is a higher chance of rain, it's not constant. The countryside becomes lush and green during this time, and it's the most affordable time to travel in Thailand.
