SOUTHERN THAILAND

Why Southern Thailand

Southern Thailand is the Kingdom’s tropical spine, a chain of limestone karsts, rubber plantations and two coastlines meeting at the Kra Isthmus. Phuket’s Sino-Portuguese Old Town and beach clubs along Patong and Kata sit a short flight or ferry from Krabi’s Railay cliffs and the emerald bays of the Andaman Sea, while Koh Samui’s Fisherman’s Village and Koh Phi Phi’s Maya Bay carry the Gulf and island counterpoint. Koh Lanta closes the loop with slower, sand-floored streets and mangrove-lined national parks. Warm water, Muslim fishing villages, hidden sea caves and some of Asia’s finest private-island resorts sit within a few hours of each other, making the south equally suited to a beach-first holiday or the final, unwinding chapter of a longer Thailand journey.

Southern Thailand pairs two coastlines and two paces – the reef-fringed islands of the Gulf and the karst-studded Andaman Sea – so a private island escape and an active dive itinerary sit comfortably within the same two-week journey, whether paired with Bangkok or stood alone.