News Forum - Top 5 destinations for a weekend trip near Bangkok in July (2022)

[Thaiger]

Are you tired of the city life in Bangkok? With several long weekends coming up soon, now is the perfect time to plan for a beautiful escape from the hustle and bustle of the capital. Fortunately, there are numerous magical destinations around Bangkok to help you refresh during the long weekend. Whether you’re yearning for an adventure or you just want to relax, here are some of the best destinations for your perfect long weekend gateway. 2.5-hour drive away: Kanchanaburi – fascinating history and riverside scenery Kanchanaburi is surrounded by mountains and forests and is lined by a stunning river. […]

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[BigHewer]

Kanchanaburi gets my vote as well. Often overlooked as a destination and an absolute must-see for anyone with a reverence for and appreciation of World War II history.

[BigHewer]

1 hour ago, BigHewer said:

Kanchanaburi gets my vote as well. Often overlooked as a destination and an absolute must-see for anyone with a reverence for and appreciation of World War II history.

What’s so funny about that @WilliamG? 

[WilliamG]

2 hours ago, BigHewer said:

What’s so funny about that @WilliamG? 

The bit about WWII history.

[oldschooler]

3 hours ago, BigHewer said:

What’s so funny about that @WilliamG? 

“White Guilt/ Colonial Apologist/ Statue Tear Down/Racist Churchill” Syndrome perhaps strikes again ! 
Trust Me, I’m a Doctor and a (proud) stale pale male too

[oldschooler]

16 minutes ago, WilliamG said:

The bit about WWII history.

Perhaps you would prefer the Alternate History of “ The Man in the High Castle” Book & TV series where Germany & Japan won WW2 ?

[Guest1]

3 hours ago, BigHewer said:

What’s so funny about that @WilliamG? 

Funny is that in the WW2 museum near the bridge, they have items in there, the Heli and the plane as no1 and 2  example, which wasn't even made at WW2 times . That is "funny"

[Guest1]

Just wondering, but wouldn't Ayutthaya also be a valuable weekend trip? Preferable done in the week? Like all weekend trips, done by/with Farangs, should be done outside weekends and Thai public holiday times? 

[WilliamG]

23 minutes ago, oldschooler said:

Perhaps you would prefer the Alternate History of “ The Man in the High Castle” Book & TV series where Germany & Japan won WW2 ?

Got to Episode 3 and gave up on it. Fantasy world. WE WON!

[BigHewer]

52 minutes ago, WilliamG said:

The bit about WWII history.

If you appreciate the comedic value of  WWII, then I highly recommend Kanchanaburi. It’ll be a laugh a minute for you.

Words fail me.

[oldschooler]

32 minutes ago, WilliamG said:

Got to Episode 3 and gave up on it. Fantasy world. WE WON!

Alternate World. You gave up too soon. Fantastic Series.

[Chaimai]

6 hours ago, BigHewer said:

Kanchanaburi gets my vote as well. Often overlooked as a destination and an absolute must-see for anyone with a reverence for and appreciation of World War II history.

 

I agree.

 

Although there is much more to Kanchanaburi than the town, railway, bridge, menam kwai (pronounced 'kwair')  noi, Bell's Pizza and Hellfire Pass (although those in themselves are reasons to go). 

 

I like the Good Times resort which has an excellent breakfast location.

[palooka]

May be wrong but have vague memory (2011) that the bridge you go on today is not the original which was some distance away. 

Seems the whole thing is now a bit of a tourist trap, courtesy of the movie, but well worth the effort.

2011 you could wander over the bridge to Burma, get a removable stamp on paper insert in your passport (you paid), tour the Burmese village, spend as as much as they could con you out of, and then wander back to Thailand where immigration removed the stamped paper and you went your merry way with the only confirmation that you set foot in Burma only in your head not your passport.

Off then to the junction of two rivers,  very short trip on a boat to an  island supposedly the central point of the Golden Triangle, Thailand  Burma Laos, with another village tour where the guide drank a shot of whiskey from a large jar with a dead cobra inside.  He kindly offerred but I passed on that one.

[Marc26]

Back to destinations

 

I would add Koh Samet to that

 

Only 2.5 hours to the ferry pier

Some of the clearest blue water I have seen in Thailand

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=koh+samet&rlz=1C1GCEJ_enCA874CA874&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjCiYnnl_H4AhVyP30KHVlNAWQQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1920&bih=1057&dpr=1

[23RD]

5 hours ago, BigHewer said:

If you appreciate the comedic value of  WWII, then I highly recommend Kanchanaburi. It’ll be a laugh a minute for you.

Words fail me.

Many thanks for pointing me in the direction of this topic BH.

I visited Kanchanaburi in 2012 with another former Serviceman and found it a very humbling experience. 

 

[BigHewer]

8 hours ago, palooka said:

May be wrong but have vague memory (2011) that the bridge you go on today is not the original which was some distance away. 

Seems the whole thing is now a bit of a tourist trap, courtesy of the movie, but well worth the effort.

I think so. Some even say it’s the wrong river as well where the current tourism is all centered. Depends who you ask.

I’m not sure when I was last there. Maybe 2011? A lot of new developments and facilities. Seemed like they were starting to capitalize on the tourist $$$.

[Marble-eye]

1 hour ago, BigHewer said:

I think so. Some even say it’s the wrong river as well where the current tourism is all centered. Depends who you ask.

I’m not sure when I was last there. Maybe 2011? A lot of new developments and facilities. Seemed like they were starting to capitalize on the tourist $$$.

A staggering fact is that 100,000 lives were lost in the construction of the bridge, 90% were Asian and 7000 POWs consisting of mainly Australian, British and Dutch. 

The bridge in the movie was actually filmed in Sri Lanka. 

 

"The 1957 film ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’ made it famous… even though it was shot at a different bridge at a small town in Sri Lanka.

But it has become the icon for the ill-fated Thailand-Burma Railway and the horrors associated with that scene of World War II."

https://www.timetravelturtle.com/death-railway-burma-thailand/

 

[BigHewer]

12 minutes ago, Marble-eye said:

A staggering fact is that 100,000 lives were lost in the construction of the bridge, 90% were Asian and 7000 POWs consisting of mainly Australian, British and Dutch. 

A tragic episode in our history. I wasn’t aware of that diversity until I visited the museums and cemeteries in and around Kanchanaburi. 

The best museum IMO is the one at Hellfire Pass outside the city, which offers an audio guide with first hand accounts. 

[Mazz11]

Hellfire pass was an amazing experience. To see how they drilled the holes with hammer and steel to place explosives in the excavation is a testament to the resilience of those that survived.

This period of the war is one of the events in time that should never be forgotten.

Unfortunately I'm afraid that the human race's penchant for cruelty is still evident in event's transpiring around the world right now.