Khao Yai & Bangkok with kids - 7D6N - June 2019

For the first time after having 4 kids, we ventured out of our comfort zone and took a plane to a crowded city – Bangkok. With a kid-friendly itinerary planned out, we managed to save some sanity and enjoyed the trip, some parts if not all…

Surviving the crowded Bangkok with 4 kids

If you have read my previous travel posts, you may have noticed that we like going to the countryside or resort most of the time for some peace and quiet. 2 adults travelling with 4 young kids under the age of 9 including 2 28-month old toddlers is challenging. Everywhere in Bangkok is swarmed with people, in the malls, on the streets, on the trains. I may lose a kid somewhere in Bangkok if it is just my hubby and I bringing them there.

If not for the presence of my extended family members, we might not have the courage to bring them to Bangkok at all.

Our Solution

Nonetheless, there are times when it was just the 2 of us dragging along the 4 little ones. We survived the crowded city using the toddler carriers. We did not even bother to bring our pram. The carrier is the most straightforward way to navigate ourselves out of the not-so-pram-friendly, stressful and congested streets. Check out my post here on why we babywear and my review of Kol Kol and Tula.

We spent 3 nights in Bangkok, and 3 nights in Khao Yai. Nope, it wasn’t a shopping trip for us in Bangkok. The kids have no interest in malls. In fact, shopping was so tiresome for them that they act up in the malls frequently. So while the rest of the adults went for shopping, massages and supper, we brought them to do their kiddy stuffs or went straight back to our accommodation for some early nights.

Khao Yai

Our 2-night stay in Khao Yai was all about taking in the fresh air and interacting with farm animals. The pace was slow and relaxing, and the kids did not give me a lot of trouble.

Itinerary in Bangkok and Khao Yai

Sharing our itinerary for Khao Yai and Bangkok with kids.

Day 1: Singapore to Bangkok in the afternoon, and self-drive to Khao Yai

We chose to self-drive in favour of total flexibility and cost-savings. With just Google Map and a local data plan, my gung-ho hubby rented a Toyota HiAce from the reliable Hertz* that we always hire for self-drive trips and drove us up north-east of Bangkok to Khao Yai.

However, a 2-hr road trip was unfortunately extended to 4 hours as we unwittingly selected a flight time that clashed with Bangkok’s infamous evening rush hour. With our flight’s arrival at 4 pm, a trip to the car rental shop and quick shopping for water and snacks, we got ourselves into a massive traffic jam not far from the airport.

We filled our famished tummy with fast-food along the way. By the time we reached our Khao Yai lodging at Floating Mountains, it was pitch dark.

We enjoyed our stay in Floating Mountains. For a huge family consisting of 10 adults and 6 kids, we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly in this spacious lodging.

Day 2: Khao Yai – Day Trek in the National Park

We arranged for a family-friendly day trip for the family members to experience a short trek in the jungle and for the little ones to understand the biodiversity in the jungle. We also climbed down and up a couple of challenging and narrow flight of steps to visit the Heaw Suwat waterfall and Heaw Narok waterfall.

The guide from Khao Yai and Beyond adjusted his itinerary based on our physical ability.

Unfortunately due to an unexpected rainfall, the path which he thought was easy for the young and old turned out to be muddy and slippery. It was overwhelming for many of us. Navigating up some slippery mud paths while wearing sleeping toddlers was a little challenging for my hubby and myself as well.

A couple of our family members fell and all of us came out muddy. The kids dreaded the muddy trek and my daughter freaked out near the end of the trail.

I guess it was great fun for everyone. Since the first trek turned out to be rather tough for some of us, we did not attempt any other trek thereafter. It was a family trip after all, and we were not there to torture anyone.

There was supposed to be a subsequent night safari ride to catch a glimpse of the nocturnal animals living in the national park. We gave it a miss to meet up with my sister for dinner.

My quick review of the day trek

Being the adventurous me, I love it and I will do it again with my kids if we ever return to Khao Yai again. The guide is knowledgeable and flexible. The kids enjoyed his company as he answered many of their silly questions when trekking in the jungle. He pointed out many features in the jungle that would be of interest to children, such as a nest filled with eggs in a tree trunk, hairy caterpillars, 2 colonies of ants fighting each other, and mating cicadas.

Day 3: Khao Yai

Morning – PB Valley. Check out our experience here.

Lunch at Laos Puun Khao near the PB Valley, and along the way to Primo Piazza. I would say the food and service there is ok, good enough to fill up our tummy for the rest of our afternoon program.

Afternoon:

Primo Piazza – lots of photo opportunity and the kids loved their interaction with the animals there. Check out my post here for more details.

Toscana Valley – It was a disappointment for us. We spent 30 minutes driving from Primo Piazza to the Toscana Valley, and only to find out that the parking lots are only available for hotel guests and club members. That meant we had to park along the roadside and walked all the way in. It looked like a walk that would take us more than 15 minutes. So we took some photos from outside, including the leaning tower of Toscana, and off we went somewhere else.

Panorama Farm – It is a place to learn about growing mushrooms and its health benefits.

We thought that it would be eye-opening for us and yet it turned out to be another disappointment because the mushroom tour closed at 5 pm. We reached there slightly after. However, the retail shop was open. We managed to try out their nutritious mushroom drink that taste like a bird’s nest drink. Click here for a blog review of the tour.

Dinner at Midwinter Green

A cosy mini-castle for dinner. It is a little upmarket, justified by the superb food quality. The steak served was very tender and juicy. I am presuming that the restaurant sources its food within Khao Yai and that will explain why the beef tastes so good. Most of the food served was satisfied too, except for the pork belly pizza which turned out to be too oily for our taste.

We like the surrounding ambience and we were fortunate to enjoy a live band indoor that typically performs outdoor. Due to the rainy weather, they moved indoor that evening. Alfresco dining would have been great too without the presence of mosquitoes.

Supper – The Chocolate Factory – We were really not very lucky that day. Our intention was to participate in the Chocolate Factory Tour but the tour closed at 7.30pm. We reached there slightly after 7.30pm. So we headed up to the restuarant instead.

Service was extremely slow for a quiet day and we only ordered the ice-cream and cakes. I am not sure why this place is highly rated. Check out this post by Darren for some positive experiences.

Day 4: Khao Yai / BKK

Before making our way to Bangkok, we made a trip to Wat Thep Phithak Punnaram, another highly recommended itinerary by past visitors.

Located in Khao Si Siat Aa, Wat Thep Phithak Punnaram has a huge Buddha status at 27 meters wide and 45 meters high. The statue is situated on the top of the mountain. We walked 1,250 steps up the hill to reach the foot of the Buddha.

It was a fruitful climb. The view from the top was majestic, and we felt so peaceful having the Buddha right above us.

While we climbed the stairs, the kids had lots of fun feeding the peacocks at the bottom of the hill.

Driving back to Bangkok was a breeze. There was no traffic congestion in the midday. In consideration of the children and luggage that we had to take care of, my driver-hubby dropped us all off at our Bangkok accommodation – Better Moon Guesthouse*. Click here to check out my review of the place. Though the place is not toddler-friendly, everyone had a blast staying there.

Dinner at Asiatique and the subsequent night bazaar shopping was entirely for the adults. We took a boat ride along the Chao Phraya River to enjoy the scenic night view along the river.

Day 5: Bangkok – SEA Life Bangkok Ocean World

Young and old, we spent a couple of hours in SEA Life Bangkok Ocean World*, located in Siam Paragon. It was an enriching experience for the kids. Check out my post here for our experience.

We chilled for the rest of the day and prepared the kids for the next big day. Whereas for the rest of the adults, off they went shopping!

Day 6: Bangkok – KidZania Bangkok

The kids said KidZania was the best part of the entire trip!

In case you have not heard of KidZania, it is an indoor theme park where kids role-play and learn about various occupations such as a doctor, policeman, engineers, nurses, etc.

We took tons of photos here. Click here for the post on our experience in KidZania Bangkok.

Grab some savings when you book your travel itinerary through Klook.

Use coupon code BetterOnApp for a 5% discount on your first booking on Klook mobile app.

Day 7: Bangkok/Singapore

Home Sweet Home

Next, I will share a couple of my favourites from this trip.

By the way, never travel without travel insurance.

Starr TraveLead Travel Insurance Plan will put your mind at ease.

With COVID-19 coverage included, you get up to S$100,000 of medical expenses covered (Gold-tier) if you contract COVID-19. If you’re hospitalised for other ailments aside from COVID-19, there is a cash benefit of up to S$15,000.

If your trip is cancelled due to the diagnosis of COVID-19, you’ll also get coverage of up to S$1,000 for the Gold tier and up to S$600 for the Silver tier.

☂️Get up to S$48 Cash via PayNow and a 35% discount PLUS an exclusive Agoda promo code when you apply using the promo code SSVTL35.

☂️Promotion Period: Valid till 30 November 2022

Read for more details here

Don’t want to miss my posts? Subscribe here to get updates from me.

Khao Yai & Bangkok with kids – 7D6N – June 2019