(This is just a quick write up with not so much detail. Hopefully will update and neaten this TR when I have more time. Pls do comment and ask any questions and I’ll do my best to reply.)
SingaporeStarted off the trip with a 13 hr flight from LHR-SIN on Singapore Airways, very friendly staff. Unfortunately we forgot to order kosher meals so we can’t report back on that. Would’ve loved to see what they would have given😅. (I suspect it would’ve been a slightly better Hermolis meal than the ones BA serve, which is what we’re used to.)
We arrived in SIN at 7:30am on Tuesday morning and went to The Jewel in the airport. The fountain in the Jewel doesn’t get turned on until 10, which was a shame but was definitely impressive as it was! One thing we noticed our whole time in Singapore was that there were no waiting times for anything!
We took a taxi, using the Grab app (which we used for most of our trip), to our hotel, the Hyatt Andaz. Taxis were quite cheap in Singapore.
It was a nice hotel and was very quiet. We managed to check in early which was great as we managed to catch a quick power nap before heading out for the day!
view from our room
We headed to Aniba restaurant for lunch, was a really nice place. We checked the Kashrus certificate, as there wasn’t much details about Aniba when we were doing research. We must have looked a bit unsure when we walked in and we were proactively offered to speak to the mashgiach. There were a few things that were on the menu that weren’t chalav Yisrael but we spoke to the mashgiach and he showed us what we can have. The food was very tasty!
We then walked to the Merlion Park (7 min walk). It has a good view of Marina Bay Sands and the Skyflyer, was a nice place to see everything at once! You can also take a river cruise from there.
We then took a taxi to Gardens by the Bay and walked around there. Was very impressive!
We headed back to our hotel to cool off in the pool and then walked to Awafi restaurant in the Chabad house. The Chabad house is based in a Jewish community centre, we needed to show our passports to security in order to enter the building. The restaurant was being renovated so they were using a hall upstairs temporarily.
We then headed to the water and light show by the Marina Mall. They have 2 shows, one at 8pm and one at 9pm, lasting 15 mins. It is really something worth going for, was really amazing! We then walked around the Marina Mall and saw the Gardens by the Bay lit up. Then headed back to the hotel.
Gate/boarding area in SIN airport. (you’d be forgiven for mistaking this for a 5-star hotel lobby!)
Koh SamuiWe had a short flight at 10:15 am to USM with Scoot (which is a budget airline of Singapore airlines).
Was such a unique airport. Mainly outdoors!
Then took an 10 min taxi ride to the hotel. We weren’t able to use any taxi apps at the airport, so we just took the airport taxis.
We stayed in the Hyatt Regency for 2 nights which was a beautiful hotel.
We then went across the street to rent a scooter for 2 days. Was 250 thb ($7) per day.
We then headed to Chabad pizza (10 min drive). The food was great!
Then we headed back to the hotel and went to the beach and pool. They have 4 pools, mostly empty. It was all very quiet, clearly not busy season! We took kayaks, they also have kids toys to play in the sand, snorkeling, knee boarding and more!
We then went to Japaniko for supper, food was very good!
A day in Ko Pha-NganThe next day we went for a day trip to Ko Pha-Ngan. We rode by scooter to Chabad pizza to get sandwiches to take with and then rode to the pier. We took a 50 min boat ride from Haad Rin queen pier at 10:30am to Haad Rin Pier in Ko Pha-Ngan.
You can buy tickets at the pier for 200 thb per person, for each way. There are places you can buy tickets online but they are usually more expensive. We did see that some people brought their scooters onto the boat, which in hind sight we should’ve also done as we ended up renting another one, once we arrived.
After renting a scooter (also 250 thb) we drove for around 45 mins towards Mae Hat beach. It was a really beautiful ride to the other side of the island, with picturesque views along the way! You could also stop at some waterfalls along the way. Mae Hat beach was quiet and nice, had deck chairs and umbrellas which we paid for (200thb for 2). There were people giving massages in a hut at the back of the beach and a few bars. They also have a unique part to this beach. There is a pathway of sand inbetween the water so you can walk to another island!
The views most of our ride
After spending a few hours there we rode back to Haad Rin pier to catch the crossing back at 4:00pm. This pier only had 2 crossings per day but there are other piers that also travel between the islands.
We then went back to our hotel pool until we went to Citra for supper. This was in the Chabad house and was the most busy restaurant we went to. They also have a Chabad shop there and were selling things for shabbos. The food was great!
The next day we drove to Maenam beach. Was another quiet beach. You can rent jet skis there and they also have other water sport activities. They also had a massage tent and a bar. To use the deck chairs, you had to buy something from the bar.
We then went back to our hotel beach and pool area.
Went for lunch to Pomodoro. It was quiet and food was good!
We then checked out the hotel since we were moving hotels to be nearer to Chabad on shabbos. We stayed at the Samui Resotel which was a simple straight walk, approx 10/15 mins walk from the Chabad house.
Shabbos we ate the meals at Chabad which was a really incredible experience! There were around 800 people over Shabbos! They did 2 meals shifts for Friday night. The food was good and met a lot of people! Chabad did offer options to order food and they deliver to your hotel before shabbos, or you can pick it up. It looked like they had a lot of good options!
Motzei shabbos we went to Chabad pizza after havdala.
USM Airport gate/boarding area
Chiang MaiSunday morning we had a flight from USM to CNX with Bangkok Airways. We had ordered kosher meals for this flight and all we got was an apple and a bottle of water! Not sure why they offer kosher meals if this is all they provide…
We took a 15 min taxi ride to the Shangri-La (taxis were very cheap here, only 143THB ($4.35), where we were staying. Really nice hotel, just 4 min walk to Chabad and in a great location.
view from our room
We went to CM CustomTailors(as recommended here on the forums), to see if we could make a suit and a dress in time before we leave, as we have a wedding coming up. They said we didn’t have enough time to have a dress made, as we would need more than one fitting and we were only there for 2 days. They were however able to make a suit with just one fitting. They took measurements on the spot, we chose materials etc then we came back the next day for a fitting and the suit was almost finished! Being as we were only there for 2 days, they told us they will need to ship it to us. If we would’ve been there for 1 more day it would’ve been finished! They were very friendly and seemed like they were very experienced. We have yet to see the finished product
We then went to Chabad to eat lunch.
Next door Chabad there is an Israeli tour guide place, called Yisrael tours. We went there to plan our next days itinerary. They were very helpful and even changed money for us as nothing was open due to it being a public holiday. We then went back to the hotel to cool off by the pool.
We went back to Chabad for supper.
Then headed to the Sunday night market on Ratchadamonoem Road. It was very underwhelming considering people said it was amazing and we had to do it. We later found out that it was probably quieter than usual due to the public holiday. We started walking back to the hotel and saw another market along the way. It was busier but because we got there quite late, a lot of the stands were packing up to leave already.
The next day we met our driver, arranged by Yisrael tours outside our hotel at 9:30am. Our first stop was an hour drive to Smart Elephants. It was really a great experience. We were the only people there! We didn’t come very well prepared. We got very wet and dirty there and didn’t know that would be the case! They gave us clothes to wear while there and there were showers for after. Would def recommend going!
The next stop was a 15 min drive to the long neck tribe, where you see how they live which was interesting. Then we went to the snake show, monkey show and then tiger kingdom, where you get to touch the tigers and have photos with them. They are all very near each other and were all really interesting to see! There is also atving, off-road buggy rentals and more near that area. We went to a shooting range.
Then we headed back to our hotel and went to Chabad for supper and then went back to the market which was just a short walk away from the hotel.
The next day we headed home! We flew to BKK and then had a connection flight back to LHR with Thai Airways. Flight was uneventful, meals were both the exactly the same, just one was with fish and one with chicken.
“Kosher meal” on flight to BKK
Hope you enjoyed reading and it helps you with planning your trip to Thailand! Feel free to comment and ask questions!
