Thailand- Land of Smile

Thailand: A Vibrant Travel Destination Full of Culture, Flavor, and Adventure

The ‘Land of Smiles’, Thailand is a marvelous travel destination for those who love a varied experience, ranging from city life to island seclusion, scrumptious food to enriching ancient culture for the luxury traveller, for a family holiday or backpackers’ adventure.

A Tourism Hub for All

Tourism plays an important role in the economy of Thailand, which welcomes around 25 million visitors a year. The country offers the perfect mix of modernity and tradition, hypermodern and yet oriental. Cities such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket are all well served by airports of international standards, also having a comfortable infrastructure and a fast transport network to make travel extremely easy. The fact that Thailand is one of the best on the extreme end of budget travel is another strong magnet. Anything from food to transport has the budget traveller in mind.

Cultural Treasures to Explore

Yet it is the culture, the fact that Thailand has preserved so much of its heritage, that I think most accounts for Thailand’s allure. The language is Sanskrit based. The population is overwhelmingly Buddhist and the religion is omnipresent in the daily life of the population; in the temples, the statues, the monks, the presence of chanting rituals. In Bangkok, Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kaew stand tall in the open with their golden spires and opulent architecture and symbolism. In its chillier northern city of Chiang Mai, one can feel a more relaxed and spiritual atmosphere. One can find literally thousands of temples there.

Festivals will also give you a glimpse of Thai life. The Songkran festival, celebrating Thailand’s New Year, takes place every April when the whole country joins in a national water fight, while November’s Loy Krathong sees lanterns, complete with candles, float on rivers and light up skies across the country. If you want to know more about Thai tradition, you should consider joining them.

Culinary Paradise

The food is one of the great pleasures of any visit to Thailand – colourful, spicy, fragrant and, above all, very diverse. The whole culture is built around street food, and a conversation about Thailand rarely gets far before it touches on its night markets, where rows of food stalls are the principal attraction. In the capital, Bangkok, you can eat sticks of barbecued meat, bowls of spicy tom yum soup or steaming pans full of pad Thai any time of night, for only a few US dollars.

The food differs by region, with the north specialising in the khao soi (spicy, coconut-based noodle soup) and the south opting more for heat with its gaeng tai pla (a sharper, saltier, fermented fish curry). Be sure to try some sweet and savoury som tam (papaya salad) along with a couple of plates of absolutely delicious mango sticky rice for pudding.

Thailand’s emphasis on fresh, healthy ingredients such as vegetables, herbs and seafood means that, while you’re treating your palate to sumptuous flavours and combinations, you’re also treating your body right. It’s a balanced dish, with sweet, sour, salty and spicy notes hitting your palate in perfectly harmonious balance.

Natural Beauty and Adventure

Thailand is just as amazingly diverse in terms of its landscapes as it is in terms of its culture. From limestone cliffs at Krabi to mountain ranges at Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, the country offers visitors a variety of topography to explore. Those addicted to sun, surf and sand will find such on its southern islands, such as Koh Phi Phi, Koh Samui and Phuket, where baby powder sand and clear waters await under the sun in the waters of the Andaman Sea, to the east and south of the gulf. Snorkelling, scuba diving and island hopping are popular activities particularly in the Andaman Sea.

For any outdoor enthusiast, northern Thailand is paradise. The mountains around Chiang Mai and Pai offer numerous UNESCO-protected hiking trails through dense jungle, ethnic hill tribe villages and shimmering waterfalls. Ethically operated elephant sanctuaries allow you to befriend and participate in the daily life of these gentle giants.

Spirituality and Wellness

Thailand has long been considered a wellness destination because of its focus on religion, spirituality and yoga and its traditional approaches to healing: famous across the planet for its addictive style of massages – based on a combination of acupressure (pressure point manipulation) and assisted stretching to release knots and muscle tension, and prolong vitality – you can get cheap massages in now-everywhere spas in urban areas and at the beaches.

Meanwhile, Thailand is also a centre for weekends and retreats that promote yoga and meditation. Many travellers also head north, for stillness, in wellness centres that run ‘reset’ programmes for mind and body. A stay at one of these retreats offers an ideal setting to come off the grid and recharge.

A Shopper’s Dream

Thailand itself is a shopper’s perfect fit, from high-end malls in Bangkok to local markets in rural areas. Bangkok’s original Chatuchak Weekend Market, known as the world’s largest weekend market, has everything from clothing to handicraft, old pottery and porcelain and even pets. If you are looking for local products, Chiang Mai has a number of night markets where you can buy handmade stuff and textiles from local craftsmen.

For those who prefer retail therapy in a more modern, air-conditioned environment, Bangkok’s upscale shopping centres such as CentralWorld, Siam Paragon and IconSiam are brimming with everything from international brands to homegrown Thai designers. The prices compete with, if not beat, most Western countries to become a shopping paradise for bargain hunters.

Conclusion: Thailand, a Destination for Every Traveler

You come for the culture, the cuisine, the nature, the wellness or the thrill, but there is always more to discover in this viscerally rewarding Kingdom of Siam – where the capital Bangkok is one of the world’s most pulsating metropolises, the islands are as chill as anything in the Pacific, and the mountains in the north are home to tribes so exotic they sound almost mythical. And it’s always good value, which you add to the winning personality of the Thais and you have one of the world’s greatest travel destinations right here.

Each time you go, Thailand will always have something new to see, and whether it’s your first time or your return, the country of smiles will always be enchanting. Interested of se this wonderful country? You can easy book your ticket here.