We finally made it to Thailand over Christmas vacation! It has been on my bucket list since we moved to Okinawa! Since we got back from Thailand a few weeks ago, I have had so many questions about our trip so I thought I would give you a complete guide of everything we did. I spent many months researching this trip so hopefully this will save you a lot of time and help make your trip as amazing as ours was!
The day the boys got out of school for Christmas vacation we packed up and headed to the airport. The weather is absolutely perfect in Thailand this time of year, and I was worried that it would be really crowded. After talking with some of the locals in Thailand, we found out that we came at the perfect time to miss the big crowd. So I recommend that if you go in December try and go the week right before Christmas. There is only one direct flight from Okinawa to Thailand so we flew on Peach Airlines. It is only about a 4 1/2 hour flight from Okinawa.
It was the middle of the night when we arrived in Bangkok. Traveling with a family as large as ours I like to have transportation arranged ahead of time. I booked all of my airport transfers with Tours With Tong. It was only 1200 bhat, and the van that they picked us up in was huge. It was actually like nothing I have ever seen before. We called it the party van! I wish I had a picture of the inside! The van was waiting for us as soon as we had our luggage and we were off to our hotel to get a little rest before the next day!
We stayed at the Millennium Hilton which is right on the Chao Phraya River. The rooms have beautiful views of the main river that runs through Bangkok. Many of the temples and tourist attractions are located on this river. The Hilton had a free water taxi that would take you right to the pier to hop on the water taxis. The water taxis were only about 100 to 200 bhat to go up the river. The pool was our favorite part of the hotel!
Early the next morning, we headed for the famous floating market and train market outside of Bangkok. Once again we booked with Tours With Tong. We took the half day tour to the markets so that we could explore more of Bangkok in the afternoon. The half day tour which left the hotel at 7:00 and retuned at 12:30 was 5200 bhat for our entire family in a large van. I highly recommend this tour company, and I would request Lily to be your tour guide. We learned so much from her on the way to the markets. She also knows a lot of the “Mommas” that sell from their boats at the market. The best thing about this tour was that we were some of the very first people to get to the market. We were able to watch as the market came to life.
The unique, beautiful, and colorful floating markets are one of the most famous attractions in all of Thailand. There are several floating markets around Bangkok, but we close to visit Damnoen Saduak, the best known and most visited.
Damnoen Saduak is a large, colorful market packed with longtail boats selling all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and famous Thai dishes. Our “Momma” took us through the canals in search of the best foods to try. Since we got their early, we were just about the only tourists on the canals. As we were leaving, it was getting very busy and a lot more crowded . I highly suggest getting there as soon as it opens. We tried lots of different food, but we loved the Mango Sticky Rice and Coconut Ice Cream!
After we left the floating market, we headed to the famous train market. Our tour guide, Lily, took us around the market and to the best place to watch the train. This was one of the most interesting places. The shop owners have to move their shops each time the train goes through and put them right back up. It was amazing to watch! The train was so close to their shops that it went right over some of their items for sell that were on the ground.
After we returned back to the hotel, we spent a few hours having lunch by the pool and swimming. It was a nice break in the middle of the day before we headed down the river to see Wat Arun.
Wat Arun or “The Temple of Dawn” is my favorite temple in Bangkok! I wanted to head there at sunset to see the beautiful colors as the sun was setting. We took a water taxi from the hotel right to the temple! The temple was just as beautiful as I imagined!
The sunset at Wat Arun turned out amazing! The best part about going to the temple in the evening is that when you take the water taxi back to the hotel all the temples are lit up at night! We had the most amazing day in Bangkok!
As I sat on the beautiful beaches of Okinawa watching my boys play without a care in the world, I thought about all the Americans that sacrificed everything on these same beaches so that my boys could have the freedoms they have today. So go out and live a life worth living! 
