As the end of 2023 hurtles towards me, I am frantically typing up the 13th edition of my annual specialty coffee and food awards, in which I share my favourite coffee shops, eateries, bars and individual dishes from among those I visited for the first time in 2023 — in London and on my travels around the world.
The last major stop on my Thailand trip was the Andaman Sea island of Ko Lanta (also spelled Koh Lanta), located off Thailand's southwestern shores near Krabi. I thought long and hard about which island(s) to base myself on and decided Ko Lanta would be best for me in terms of weather, beaches, things to do, nightlife (lack of it in my case!) and easy access to the mainland and other beautiful islands.
From Bangkok, I flew to Chiang Mai and spent four days exploring the former capital of the Lanna kingdom. With a wider urban population of close to 1.2 million, Chiang Mai is the largest city in northern Thailand but the Old City and central area are relatively compact and it's easy to get around on foot or by hopping into a songthaew (shared van) or tuk tuk.
After Bangkok, my next step was Chiang Mai, the largest city in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai province and its neighbour, Chiang Rai, are also some of Thailand's biggest Arabica coffee growing regions so I was looking forward to enjoying even more Thai-grown coffee than in Bangkok.
The city also has a very well established specialty coffee scene and I knew I wouldn't have much need for my Aeropress while I was in town. During my stay, I visited excellent eight coffee shops — some of which were already on my list, others I spotted during my wanderings — but I spotted many more that I'd have loved to have visited if I had more time.
During my two-week stay in Thailand I spent four days in the capital, Bangkok: three at the start of my trip and an evening and full day at the end. Bangkok is a large, sprawling city with so many things to do and places to eat, drink and shop.
My main holiday this year was a very long-awaited trip to Thailand. I spent two wonderful weeks in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Ko Lanta. First up is my specialty coffee guide to Bangkok, a city that has some seriously impressive, and beautiful, coffee spots.
