Although a short amount of time, 10 days in Thailand is absolutely doable. Whether you’re looking to party, lounge on a beautiful island or get to interact with elephants, this itinerary has got you covered! I suggest you book a one way to Bangkok and fly home through Phuket if possible. If it ends up being too expensive, book a round trip from Bangkok as it will be your cheapest option. Check out my blog on how to book cheap flights!

Day 1 - Arrive In Bangkok, Thailand

I would use this first day to explore a bit of the city and get acclimatized to the time change as you will for sure be jet lagged. If you arrived late afternoon or at night, my suggestion is to drop your stuff off and head straight to backpacker street (Khaosan Road) to have a few drinks! Backpacker street is literally a street full of night clubs and bars as well as TONS of street side food vendors and shopping stalls.

If you are not into rowdy nightlife, this is probably not the spot for you. For a more low-key night, there are tons of night markets around Bangkok to check out that you may enjoy. The point is, stay awake at least till 11pm-ish if possible to get that sleep schedule right and to fight the jet lag.

Day 2 - Explore Bangkok

Use this day to explore Bangkok and all the things this booming city has to offer! Make sure that temples like the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Wat Arun are at the top of your list of things to do as they are absolutely stunning. If you’re looking to shop, there are tons of local markets like Chatuchak Weekend Market , Soi Rambuttri, Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market, Train Night Market or one of the many absolutely massive malls. When I say massive, I’m talking mall inception, malls inside of malls inside of malls, no joke….. It took us hours to find our way outside of these things. The temples and markets alone will take the entire day to see!

Day 3 - Bangkok -> Chiang Mai

Catch a flight up north to Chiang Mai which usually cost between $20-$25. This is where you will get your elephant experience at Elephant Nature Park. Be sure to book in advance as they do tend to sell out. Also, call or look online to see how many people are booked on each trip and find the retreat with the least amount of bookings/people. Keep the human to elephant ratio as low as possible so you can have more one on one time with the elephants like we did! We were lucky enough to have 5 humans with 4 elephants. After you’ve booked your Elephant Nature Park experience, take the day to relax, explore old town and some of the amazing markets they have around town for some shopping!

Day 4 - Elephant Nature Park, Chiang Mai

Today you’ll get to experience the most incredible, humane interaction with elephants. You guide will pick you up from your accommodation early in the am and drive you up to your excursion location. Once you arrive you’ll walk straight into the park where the elephants live. Here you will feed, bath and interact with the elephants all day. You’ll get to go on a hike through the mountains with them and let me tell you, walking side by side with these gentle giants is the most insane experience. You’ll stop off halfway through the hike where you’ll enjoy some lunch while the elephants graze in the general vicinity as they please. After lunch, you’ll head back down to their base camp where you’ll get to bath the elephants in the river. Every experience is different so make sure to read the descriptions on each excursion before booking. Some of these are family/kid friendly as well which I think is amazing. Imagine getting to take your kids on an excursion like this! We did the Care For Elephants - Single day excursion which I highly recommend to everyone!

Patong Beach - Steps away from city center of Phuket. This beach us usually super overcrowded but okay for sunbathing.

Day 5 - Rest Day or fly to the Phuket

Flights to Phuket are usually $40+ from Chiang Mai. Now I’m not the biggest fan of Phuket due the beaches in the main area of Patong are not very clean and the party scene there can get a bit too much, but if you’ve never been you need to experience it at least once in life! Although Patong Beach near the city center isn’t the nicest, you’ll find more appealing beaches if you drive further down south. Patong Beach and the city center are the perfect home bases if you’re planning to island hop! Tour booths and shops line the streets of the city so you will have tons of options to choose from for booking. Here you can do day trips to different islands in the area like Phi Phi Island, James Bond Island Coral Island and much more. You arrival day in Phuket would be the perfect day to plan which island hopping excursions you’d like to go on!

Day 6 - Island hopping

This would be a great day to join one of the many excursions offered at hotels and street vendors around town. Like I said, you’ll have more than enough options to choose from so be sure to bargain any offers that are given to you. Most of the island hopping excursions schedule pickups early morning and the tours will usually last all day until just before sunset. You’ll most likely be exhausted from your island hopping excursion so maybe take this night to chill or go out and test taste some of the hundreds of street vendors tasty and inexpensive delights! Unless you’re like me… If you’re ready to rally for a night out, head to the chaotic twilight zone that is Banlga Street.

Nia Harn Beach - 18.6km from Patong Beach

Day 7 - Beach Day

I stated earlier that Phuket is definitely not known for it’s beaches and this is true, to some extent. But if you’re looking for a lazy day in between all your crazy adventures, grab a Tuktuk or Go-Jek ( similar to UBER ) and head to one of these beaches:

Day 8 - Similan Islands (only open Oct-May)

Similan Islands are still super high on my bucket list. Unfortunately, its been during the off season that I have visited this side of Thailand so I’ve alway, for some reason, missed that October - May open time frame. But if you are in Phuket during this time, absolutely take the opportunity to check these islands out. They are absolutely STUNNING.

Day 9 - Go out with a bang!

Now I always like to start and end my trips with a bang, so if I were you, I would use my second to last day to party haha. Bangla street is the place you want to be for a crazy night out on the town! Think Bourbon Street in New Orleans, but bigger, slightly more sketchy and ridiculously insane. This street has something for everyone including budget friendly bars with cheap drinks to night clubs with bottle service! Pick your poison and have a fun night out on the town!

If you’re feeling like going over the top, definitely check out a full moon party. But be warned, this is a journey haha. You’ll have to take a bus to the other side of the island and it is a very young crowd. Not only that but almost everyone I’ve spoken to has said they’ve been drugged and or been pick pocketed. If I were you, I’d suggest waiting to experience a full moon party on Koh Phangan which are a little more laid back and known to be less dangerous. I went to the Koh Phangan Full Moon Party a few years ago (2017) and it was a lot of fun! I never felt unsafe at any point in time.

Bangla Street Phuket. This photo depicts how you will be by the end of the night on this street… Lol blurry vision, bright lights and an insane night haha!

Day 10 - Beach Day

Your last day in Thailand! If you’re flight home is departing from Phuket, I would use this day to recoup by lounging on the beach or at the pool or if your flight is out of Bangkok, head back to the airport to start your journey home!

I hope this itinerary helps you plan your future trip to Thailand! I know many are on limited time when they travel, so hopefully this gives you an idea on how to experience everything from interacting with elephants, lounging on beautiful beaches and partying the night away with people from around the world.

For more videos and photos of my time in Thailand, check out my instagram Highlight reel!

Thailand 10 Day Itinerary