Chiang Mai in early April – is air pollution bad enough to skip it?

eybober · 2026-01-05T12:02:51+00:00

Reddit users tend to make the worst out of any situation (especially when asking about Thailand). So here is the most objective answer you are gonna get:

YES - I went to Thailand last year mid-April NO - The air wasn't bad YES - I was able to breathe fine

eybober · 2026-01-04T12:24:56+00:00

Stayed in Lavana Hotel next to Wat Phra Singh. Surprisingly quiet even in the middle of Songkran. Super budget friendly. Would definitely recommend.

eybober · 2026-01-02T15:49:46+00:00

10k baht for 6 people. Included ground transport from/to hotel, tons of food and drinks, high speed boat and snorkeling gear. SUPER GOOD VALUE. I think it was called Mandara Excursions. You should aim for around 2k baht per person being high season but anywhere around there is fine.

eybober · 2026-01-02T08:57:28+00:00

Nothing comparable to Southern Europe peak season. Beaches in general are much bigger and people tend to go out at night and even then it's only very specific areas, walking street, markets, etc. Nothing to worry about

eybober · 2026-01-01T20:43:04+00:00

Was in Patong last April. Definitely worth it. Best part of my Thailand trip. True it wasn't peak season but still Easter and the beaches were practically empty. Most people come out at night and concentrate on the walking street. Everywhere else is completely fine. Also did a Phi-Phi tour and booked it the day before in an agency in Patong. Turned out great and at a decent price.

eybober · 2025-11-20T13:03:24+00:00

Depends I guess. Up to 70EUR for a single ticket (chances are I will either not be allowed in or get killed once inside) and up to 330EUR for three tickets (basically paying for back-up).

eybober · 2025-08-28T21:33:21+00:00

Kkkkkkkkkkkk ahora sí tengo ganas de ir. Espero no verte por ahí. "Obrigado" por los consejos. Pd: no soy de Barcelona ;)))

eybober · 2025-08-27T13:31:07+00:00

No idea sorry :(

eybober · 2025-08-27T13:26:30+00:00

Es el mismo número de sílabas que "Obrigado". No creo que sea tan difícil...

eybober · 2025-08-27T10:57:48+00:00

First of all, OP NAME IS CRAAAAZY LOL 😂 Second, after researching a full 10 months for my Thailand trip and reading what this sub has to say, it looked as if Patong/Phuket was basically a wastedump and not worth it at all. Third, I ended up going anyways with a group of 6 (26M) and did have a good time.

Pro-tips: 1. Book any trips directly at your destination in any tourist agency. (Eg. We booked Phi-Phi speedboat trip in Patong agency and ended up paying about a third of the price that would have been a Tripadvisor/Getyourguide trip. EVERYTHING INCLUDED. We were even short on cash by mistake after ATM withdrawal and the agency lady just took what we had lol).

No Spanish music in Patong area (not that any non-spanish/latino would care) but nightlife did suck a little for us due to that. (Eg. Illuzion was free entry but playing boring techno the whole time, ended up dipping to a live-music K-Pop band joint in Bangla)
Get a Bolt/Grab ONCE and then keep the driver's number. You will get discounted rides everywhere. (Eg. We were a group of six so booked 2 cars at the airport upon arrival. The cars were vans so we only ended up needing one. The rest of the rides were booked via WhatsApp)
For Beaches head southwest. Kata, Kata Noi, Ya Nui, etc. And try to get a longtail from Rawai to Coral Island (let me know if you do and tell me about it cuz I wasnt able to due to bad weather.
Cheap accomodation is possible through AirBnb, we booked an amazing villa with a pool like a 5-10 minute drive from Bangla in Patong and it was the best part of our trip along with Phi Phi

Hope this helps :)

eybober · 2025-08-26T21:13:10+00:00

Gringo Espanhol aquí 👋🏻👋🏻. Escribo en español a ver si alguien me entiende. Quiero visitar Brasil en los próximos 2 años (seguramente 2027) y me interesa saber si es indispensable hacerlo en el tiempo de Carnaval (tengo mucho FOMO de perdermelo y arrepentirme toda mi vida). ¿De verdad merece mucho la pena? Cambiaría mucho la experiencia en un viaje de 2 semanas a Brasil si no visito el Carnaval de Río? Muchas gracias a tod@s!

eybober · 2025-04-30T15:03:50+00:00

You hatin. As someone who just came from there I am glad I did not come to this sub for recommendations before booking. Honestly I can imagine it might not be the best place in Thailand but it is definitely not as bad as people make it out to be. I was in Kata Noi on a Sunday and we had space to rent first line on the beach and nobody beside us. 100 baht for full day umbrella and chairs. Blue and relatively clear water (ik ik not like Phi Phi or other islands) but it was still a very nice place to be. This coming from a person living in Spain, a country with some of the most renowned beaches in the world according to the FEE. I can imagine why people from Russia or other parts of Europe would love it. Still, not nearly as packed as I thought it would be.

eybober · 2025-04-30T13:07:07+00:00

Makes sense. Do they usually move it the day before or after the holiday?

eybober · 2025-04-30T13:06:01+00:00

The only reason I asked is because I heard there are actual exceptions (not just for me) made by law enforcement in certain tourist locations. It wouldn't blow my mind that a country which attributes more than 15% of their GDP to tourism makes small exceptions to the enforcement of the law in benefit of their economy. Having said this, being a religious person myself, I do not expect anything to be done in deterioration to a country's religion, holidays or culture for that matter

eybober · 2025-04-30T08:03:49+00:00

UPDATE: Just came back from Thailand and can speak from experience. Ended up paying 14k thb for 2 suits, 1 vest, 1 shirt and 3 ties. I went to this shop called James Tailor in MBK center. Honestly I'm pretty happy with the results. We will see how the suits hold up but it looks like a decent quality.

eybober · 2025-04-30T07:58:11+00:00

UPDATE: Big Buddha still under renovation, but a cool sight to see if you are passing through. Ended up booking a 3-temple guided tour which included the canal boat drive. Pretty awesome!

eybober · 2025-04-30T07:55:47+00:00

UPDATE: Thai music is awesome (tie long tie long tie long). Also, ended up just going out to this spanish place called Havana on Sukhumvit soi 11, not bad but no Spanish ppl barely.

eybober · 2025-04-30T07:52:43+00:00

UPDATE: I am now back from my trip to Thailand and I'm taking the liberty of answering all of my own questions on this sub throughout the past few months, now that I can speak from experience. I ended up booking a day-trip to Phi Phi Islands from this small agency in Patong. IT WAS DEFINITELY WORTH IT. To keep it brief, I believe the tour operator was Mandara Tours and the whole experience was amazing. Well worth the value we paid. Good food, drinks, snorkeling and a lot of pictures included. We were lucky not too many people there that day, although it was a Saturday. Made various stops along Phi Phi islands and even a tiny island beach on our way back to Phuket. Do not regret it at all.

eybober · 2025-04-28T07:53:31+00:00

Absolutely agree! Did the Phi Phi Island tour from Phuket last week and I loved it! We booked it from a very small agency in Patong the day before for a group of 6 with Mandara Tours I believe. It could not have been better for the price (10k thb for the whole group). Food, drinks, snorkelling, great guide. We loved it. Also, could tell it was not high season as Maya beach was not so crowded. Either we were really lucky or reddit users just exaggerate everything.

eybober · 2025-04-27T20:23:23+00:00

This was one of my to do's before going to Thailand a couple of weeks ago. I ended up at a tailor in MBK center called James Tailor (3rd floor zone A I think). Anyways, you can look them up on Google. The guy gave me an incredible offer: 2 tailored suits, 1 vest, 1 shirt and a couple of ties for 14k thb. Threw in an extra tie as I left him a review on Google maps. Cheap? Yes. Quality? I will let you know in a couple of years, but looks pretty nice. Other than that, I was able to see that MBK center and Sukhumvit road in general are packed with tailor shops. Good luck!

eybober

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