A two-week Thailand honeymoon itinerary, priced

The couple I planned this for knew exactly what they wanted, and I loved the brief from the first call. They wanted to see the temples with a guide, so they’d actually know what they were looking at. The elephants were the part they were most excited about. And they both love food, so a cooking class and a street-food tour went in from the start.

Then they wanted to stop moving and just be by the water for a while. No rushing, either. That meant two cities and a beach, at least two or three nights in each city, and at least five nights by the water. I get it. I can do about four hours of touring before I need a break, so one planned thing in the morning and a free afternoon is my kind of pace too.

They also knew where the money should go. A room with its own private pool at the beach mattered more than anything in the cities, so the city hotels could step down a level if that paid for an extra tour. And one dinner had to feel like the celebration, so there’s one in Phuket.

The last wish went right to the top of my brief. They wanted to hold hands or give each other a kiss on the cheek without thinking about it first. That’s exactly what I want to know before I go anywhere with my wife.

I think so. Same-sex marriage has been legal in Thailand since January 23, 2025, when the Equal Marriage Law took effect, according to the Thai government’s Public Relations Department.

Holding hands and kissing in public is a separate question. When I researched it across Asia, what I kept finding is that it comes down to everyday norms, not to who you love. In a lot of places, people just don’t do much of it, whoever they’re with.

The operator I work with in Bangkok told me the same about Thailand. Thai culture is fairly discreet about affection in public generally, and same-sex couples can travel together comfortably and hold hands in public without much concern. They also told me they choose the hotels, guides and experiences with that in mind, so the couple feels at ease.

I check every destination in that order: the law first, then what people who live and work there can tell me. My honeymoon page walks through how I check a destination, with what I found for Europe and Fiji.

The route runs Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Koh Yao Noi, with private transfers between every stop and an English-speaking guide on the touring days. Most days have one planned thing in the morning, and the afternoon is yours.

Bangkok, days 1 to 4

Where you stay: SO/ Bangkok, three nights in an SO Club Room, breakfast included.

• Day 1: Land at Suvarnabhumi Airport, go through VIP fast track and take a private transfer to the hotel.
• Day 2: The Grand Palace, the Emerald Buddha and Wat Pho with a guide, 8 a.m. to noon. The afternoon is free.
• Day 3: The railway market and the Damnoen Saduak floating market by longtail boat in the morning. In the evening, a street-food tour through Chinatown by tuk tuk, dinner included.
• Day 4: A morning flight north to Chiang Mai.

Chiang Mai, days 4 to 7

Where you stay: Aleenta Retreat Chiang Mai, three nights in a one-bedroom residence with its own pool, outside the city center, breakfast included.

• Day 5: A morning at ChangChill, an observation-only elephant sanctuary that World Animal Protection has written about. You walk into the forest to watch the elephants graze and socialize, meet the mahouts, help fill their feeding tubes and stay for a vegetarian Thai lunch. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included.
• Day 6: A Thai cooking class that starts with a market visit, lunch included.
• Day 7: An afternoon flight to Phuket.

A quick note on the elephants. Other sanctuaries around Chiang Mai let you feed, walk with and bathe them. World Animal Protection’s advice is to visit only places where you can look and not touch, and it treats riding, bathing and touching as signs that the elephants were cruelly trained (World Animal Protection). So an observation-only morning is the one I’d book, and you still get the whole morning with them.

Phuket, days 7 to 12

Where you stay: The Slate, five nights in a One Bedroom Pearl Shell Suite, breakfast included. It isn’t directly on the beach.

• Day 9: A private half-day outing on a longtail boat.
• Days 8, 10 and 11: Free.
• One free evening: the celebration dinner at PRU, which holds a Michelin star, with a transfer there and back.

The dinner and its transfer sit outside the operator’s quote, and the figures are under What it comes out to, below. If you’d rather stay put that night, The Slate’s own restaurant, Black Ginger, sits over a lagoon right on the property.

Koh Yao Noi, days 12 to 15

Where you stay: TreeHouse Villas, three nights in a villa with its own plunge pool, breakfast included.

• Day 12: A private speedboat across from Phuket.
• Days 13 and 14: Free.
• Day 15: The speedboat back and a transfer to Phuket airport for the flight home.

My wife could sit on a beach for a week and be perfectly happy. I’m good for about a day before I’m asking what we’re doing next! So I love that the operator split the beach time in two.

Phuket gets five nights, and it has the beaches, the restaurants, the shopping and plenty to do. That’s where the boat day and the celebration dinner fit. Koh Yao Noi gets the last three. It sits in Phang Nga Bay among the limestone islands, and it’s quiet, private and close to nature, with nothing on the schedule at all.

Ending there saves a step, too. The speedboat drops you back in Phuket and you fly home from there, so there’s no flight back to Bangkok first.

Timing matters a lot on this one, because of the burning season, when haze settles over northern Thailand, Chiang Mai included. That’s why this route was planned for late January.

The operator told me the haze usually starts in February, and that late January is generally clearer in Chiang Mai than mid to late February. They were also clear that it doesn’t start on a set date. It depends on the weather that year, so going in late January lowers the odds of haze rather than ruling it out.

Two other things affect the timing. Chinese New Year moves every year (in 2027 it falls on February 6), and the operator suggested avoiding it if you can, because flights and hotels get tight. January and February are also peak months in Thailand, so it’s worth locking in your dates early.

One more thing before you land. Every non-Thai national has to fill out the Thailand Digital Arrival Card online, within the three days before arrival. The official site doesn’t charge a fee.

I haven’t been to Thailand myself, and I’ll always tell you that up front. I have a network of contacts and suppliers around the world who help me plan the places I haven’t been myself, and for Thailand that’s the operator I work with in Bangkok.

For this route, I sent them a brief with everything the couple wanted, including the private pool at the beach and being able to hold hands without thinking about it. They came back with a route, hotel options with the trade-offs between them, and their advice on timing.

Having someone in Bangkok matters once you’re there, too. They’re your local contact in Thailand, so if a transfer runs late or a day needs to move, someone right there can sort it out. You’re not waiting for me to wake up back home in Everett.

How much does a two-week Thailand honeymoon cost?

The route in this post was quoted in October 2026 at about $15,200 for two, for travel from January 20 to February 3, 2027. That covers 14 nights of hotels with breakfast, private transfers, a guide and the tours listed, plus two flights inside Thailand. International flights, most meals and drinks are extra, and rates change with dates and availability.

When is the best time for a Thailand honeymoon?

If the route includes Chiang Mai, late January is the window the operator I work with in Bangkok recommended, because the haze from the north’s burning season usually starts in February. It doesn’t start on a set date. It depends on the weather that year. January and February are also peak months, so lock in dates early and avoid Chinese New Year if you can.

What do we need to do before landing in Thailand?

Every non-Thai national has to fill out the Thailand Digital Arrival Card online within the three days before arrival. The official site doesn’t charge a fee.

If Thailand’s on your list, I’d love to hear about it! The first step is a free fifteen-minute call, and you don’t need to have anything figured out yet. If you want to see how I check a honeymoon destination first, it’s all on my honeymoon page. If you’d rather write first, send me your trip and I’ll start looking.