THAILAND TRAVEL INFORMATION

People: Thai are generally quite friendly but Thailand is so much commercialised these days that we always got the feeling we were treated like walking wallets. Which probably is true to their standards, but it not always gave a nice feeling. Score: 7

Landscape/Nature: from what we have seen, Thailand does have some nice landscapes. Green and lush. Obviously Bangkok is not, but not far from Bangkok one can already find forests. The dramatic landscape around Krabi was beautiful. Wildlife unfortunately was hard to find. Score: 8

Transport/Infratructure: the roads are generally fine. Especially between touristy points of interest roads are just fine. To get from point A to point B is not very hard in Thailand: lots of possibilities% Score: 8

Wildlife/Animals: like in so many other Asian countries, animals have a hard time in Thailand. It seems that everything that lives and moves is considered food so disappears in the cooking pot. Score: 5

Food: good% Thai cuisine is really good, especially if you like rice of course. Score: 8

Climate: Thailand does have quite a pleasant climate, although it can get quite hot and humid. You get used to it though, even when walking around Bangkok in the middle of the day% Score: 8

Culture: Thailand still has interesting things to see although by no means as interesting as Cambodia (Angkor Wat). The temples that you can still visit in Bangkok for example are the typical colourful and glamorous ones. Other "cultural" tours include the bride over the river kwai or the floating market, horrific tourist traps. Thailand has shot itself in the foot if it comes to real cultural interests. Even the long necks in the north put the bangles around their neck just for the tourists e.g. for making money. Score: 6

Hygiene: of course depending where you stay, but hygiene was quite allright in Thailand. Bangkok however is not the cleanest place on earth and air pollution is fierce. Score: 7

Costs of Travelling: Thailand is still relatively cheap. And still loads of backpackers find their way to this country. Score: 8

Safety/Stability: although there were some demonstrations going on in Bangkok when we visited, we felt safe. There are worse places to go on earth I guess. Score: 8

Excitement/Adventure/Challenge: sorry, but Thailand is too commercial to my taste. Tourist traps everywhere. Not many unbeaten paths left. To go for the beach and diving is ok, but that's about it. Score: 5

Overall score: 6.5

With this score Thailand will not enter our top list of countries of the world to travel.