Hello from Thailand

[Fro]

Liked Le Meridien Mark, but could have been anywhere in the world, big resort with a beach and a pool.

Was good and bad, but certainly wouldnt have wanted to be in the guts of Patong.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

And that's why I like it.....you can go to Patong and enjoy the atmopshere, but then go back and be away from all the crap.....depends what you are after...Ladyboys and Massages....you'd be wasting your time there....honeymoon or relaxing holiday away from the madness that is Patong...great spot.

 

[Matabele]

[quote author=Matabele link=topic=186537.msg320850#msg320850 date=1299576417]
[quote author=Cambo link=topic=186537.msg320794#msg320794 date=1299566095]

for the blokes who are on my fb pics are up now some funny stuff there

Including the elephant in the manly jumper?
[/quote]
calling me an elephant now mate
[/quote] Nah mate, you said you rode an elephant that was wearing a manly jumper.

 

[Garts]

Been back a couple of times since 07 Fro, good cheap holiday.

 

[Cameron]

Been back a couple of times since 07 Fro, good cheap holiday.

exactly garts. Can't wait to head back. Depending on my status at the time I might put up poll on here and let you blokes decide weather I get a massage or not.

But only if I'm single 😉

 

[Dan]

Stayed at the everson six senses in 08 was a great resort and just hired a scooter to get over to patong and had a cab driver for dirt cheap that we called any time of day or night

 

[ManlyBacker]

I'm positive that the best time to go is from mid-Nov onwards as Garts says. The rainy season is July to October and it starts to get cooler from November as well.

 

[WAMF]

I've just returned from my honeymoon. 2 weeks on Koh Samui.
Stayed at the Hansar Resort Samui which is a lovely hotel with quality rooms in the best location on the island (Bophut). Fantastic weather every day. Highly recommended.
Stay, taste, feel, play, love.

 

[clontaago]

See i'd prefer to be in Patong. Most of the nicer places are set back off the main strip and once inside the confines of your resort you wouldnt even know how crazy it is outside.

We stayed at the Patong Beach Hotel (from memory). Cheap, set back off the main road with a beautiful pool and bar area, great spot.

Also if you want a decent feed, head into Phuket town. Ask one of the bar staff about it. They know most of the good spots where there are no tourists and some of them will be happy to drive you there (45 mins each way), wait while you eat and drive you home for about $40.

 

[WAMF]

There is bugger all to see or do for non Thais in Phuket Town.
You can get great street food and find plenty of small authentic ma & pa restaurants on every single street in Phuket, without the need to waste time going to that rubbish dump area.
If Phuket Town is a stop on an island tour you may be doing, fine and well but to go all the way there from Patong, just to eat, no thanks.

 

[ManlyBacker]

I ate charcoaled meat on a stick from a street vendor and even the locals couldn't identify what sort it was. Probably my only dubious decision. Won a good amount betting on kick-boxing held in a ring in the middle of a bar. The guy who paid up was French and I didn't know what he said but he wasn't happy. Worst bar I was in had upgraded all the urinals to new ones but didn't bother with putting the plumbing in at the bottom so it ran on the floor. Heaps of good/strange memories from an interesting place to visit.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

You can only but imagine the stories I can tell....this year is my 37th as a travel agent, and back in my younger days I semeed to be going overseas every second week on some junket (oh the good old days).

I am lucky enough to have step foot on every continent, bar the big white land below us and have stayed in 5 star magnificent hotels, to 1 star fleabag dives and everything you can imagine in between.

I have eaten from street vendors in places like Goa, Mongolia, Pakistan, delighted in 5 star high teas in places like the Peninsula at Hong Kong and Raffles in Singapore and everything else in between.

The memories I have would fill a 600 page novel, but I'll tell you the place I love most.....good old Oz....whilst loving places like Italy, Turkey and France (to name a few) nothing beats a Sandy Beach on the sunny coast, or outback Australia!!

Thus ends my reflection for today!!

 

[Fro]

you mightnt have done any posts in this thread to do it deliberately Mark but i reckon you may score some business out of it 🙂

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

Ha Fro wasn't meant that way.....I have been VERY lucky, been to some strange places and lived to tell the tale.

 

[Fro]

nah i realise that, doesnt mean it wont.

our agent has given it away so i'll be looking for a decent one next time we go anywhere exotic.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

yeah well let me tell you I won't have too many years left myself.

One of the problems today is that 99% of agents have been in the job for 5 minutes, especially if they work at Flight Centre.

The really good knowledgeable ones are hard to find, it's why I dont have a street frontage any more, far too many tyre kickers and I prefer to do everything by reccomendation only (apart from the Sports tour stuff which is mainly for fun anyway...beleive me I couldn't retire on what I make form the MWTS).

When travel gets complex it's handy having a good agent, I know more about airfares (for example) than most...I know how they work, how to get the best out of them BUT also the little "tricks and things to know" that the internet doesn't tell you.

Generally I find that people will want to do it themseleves and then will make a gigantic **** up by doing it that way.... and then usually return with their tail between their legs.

There's no doubt that simple stuff can be done on the net, ie domestic flights or a simple point to point fare....beyond that a good travel agent is worth their salt.

For example I made some bookings yesterday for two familes (4 in each) going to Milan for a holiday....I have been able to book and hold (for a week) flights with Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific and Emirates.. and hold the fares levels....each option has their benefits and the famailies will get together this weekend to decide....now you just can't do that on the Internet, it's instant payment and you can't book and hold those carriers.

That's the advantage and flexibility that an agent can offer at times.

 

[Fro]

yeah ours was in the same position, was my wife Aunt, she rana little 1 person shopfront, but couldnt compete with the net etc, and as she was pushing 60 she didnt want to. so she sold up and got out.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

I'm the same...I had a big operation (employed 12 people at one stage)...gave up trying to be everything to everyone....moved upstairs to a small office, now just me and a right hand man (Chris).

I don't need to make a fortune, really just having a bit of fun until I can get my Super tax free (couple of years to go).

No pressure, no tyre kickers...great life!!

 

[Matabele]

nothing beats a Sandy Beach on the sunny coast, or outback Australia!!

  The problem with living on the Sunshine Coast (or in my case the Hinterland of, which is even better) is where the hell do you go for a holiday.  'Fraid to say after 8 years on the verge of the outback in Dubhole, it doesn;t hold much attraction for me. 

 

[Fro]

Tasmania is far from the worst place for a Holiday Matas.

We have Skifields (after a fashion).

there are 2 options which are different to where you are.

Having said that Qld is where we tend to go admittedly 🙂

And you are right on Dubbos..