Safe(r) Environment Thailand

[NotReallyHere]

This is my first time in Thailand and my fourth day in Bangkok.  I have a 90 day visa. I originally intended to stay the full 90 days. I've got a hotel room in the Riverside area near Saphan Taksin. I spent the first three days looking for an inexpensive long-term apartment.  I found a decent place near Victory Monument.  I should be happy, but I'm not. I'm hesitant to commit to a three month lease because I'm so turned off by the pollution I've encountered.  It's having a negative impact on my enjoying this place.  I can't find a P2.5 or N95 face mask anywhere.  Last night I enjoyed my meal less because I was thinking about the polluted water the fish was raised in.  I've been making detours to avoid heavy traffic areas.  When I blow my nose, I'm expecting black snot.  The prospect of enjoying Bangkok long term is looking pretty slim.  Just for reference, I'm not overly sensitive when it comes to cleanliness.  I'm a retired nurse who has spent years dealing with other people's puke, puss, piss, shit and blood.  I'm not phased by having to take normal precautions and I'm not easily disgusted.  I feel the situation here in Bangkok is extreme and requires more precautions than I'm willing to take on a day-to-day basis. 

 

My question for the forum:  What regions are the least polluted and yet still have things to offer a tourist.  I'm not looking for a grass hut on a mountain in the middle of nowhere. Maybe some quiet little semi-remote beach town away from the boozing/prostitution nonsense at the usual tourist destinations? 

 

Thanks in advance.... 

Edited January 26, 2019 by NotReallyHere
"Monument" instead of "Memorial".

[Puchaiyank]

There are no beaches in the NE town Udon Thani.  It is a relaxed city with more retirees than tourists.  A 1 hour train ride to Nong Khai and the Mekong River cost about $1.  Short hop across Friendship Bridge to Laos and visit Vientiane...a great old colonial city with many photo ops.   

Inexpensive with a real Thai culture experience, foods, and Thai history.

When you get tired of the tourist traps, give NE Thailand a try. 

[Kwasaki]

5 hours ago, NotReallyHere said:

What regions are the least polluted and yet still have things to offer a tourist.  I'm not looking for a grass hut on a mountain in the middle of nowhere. Maybe some quiet little semi-remote beach town

People on here are all over Thailand and they will say it is the best place, I have been all over Thailand and many of the islands and I live in the best place for me but it's not for everybody.

Worst place to stay IMO is Bkk a couple of days is enough.

You best google places Thailand and have a good read up.

[aonangkrabi]

Try the South. It is not polluted except parts of Phuket. You don't need totravel far south: Pracuap Khiri Khan is OK already. Avoid the far south of course.

[geisha]

If you like the beach, there’s Koh Chang, an island off TRat. This is a lovely island, you can explore all over with a scooter, or even the cheap,island bus on the west side. Beautiful beaches and other islands to visit near by. Take a bus there. Then , for the historical,part, you,must visit Sukkhothai and Ayyuthaya, all easy from Bangkok with a bus. Unfortunately, Bangkok at the moment is in the midst of ampollution scare. It’s not always this bad.But for three months, why would you want to stay in Bangkok anyway ???

if you,want somewhere central, there’s Hua Hin and Cha Am. But the beaches are not great, but you could rent something there for three months, use it as a base and travel round. With prices for bus so cheap , there’s loads of places to see, and not polluted., Enjoy.

[Stocky]

Head south.

 

Prachuap Khiri Khan

Chumphon,

Khanom (Nakhon Si Thammarat)

Songkhla

 

All good.

[millymoopoo]

Although I've never been there Krabi comes highly recommended.

The north is good too but no ocean beeches.

Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Chiang rai, Mae sai, Udon Thani, Nongbaulampu, Nong Khai, probably anywhere out of BKK would be OK with the exception of Phuket and Pattaya.

Doi Tung and Doi Inthanon are lovely when it's stinking hot on the plains.

[PerkinsCuthbert]

Ironic really, when the Chinese come here for the clean air.

[joecoolfrog]

Apart from the Deep South I would struggle to find any area in Thailand that doesn't have prostitution and its fair share of drunks .

[Thomas J]

44 minutes ago, joecoolfrog said:

Apart from the Deep South I would struggle to find any area in Thailand that doesn't have prostitution and its fair share of drunks .

I am residing outside of Pattaya which has of course a bad reputation.  However there are many areas here that don't have a prostitution or alcohol problem.  I am sure you could go to almost any area in the world and if you searched you can find alcohol and prostitutes. 

[elgenon]

I just arrived in Bangkok. Looks normal to me. And masks are readily available though few people are wearing them.

[elgenon]

That's N95 masks and the cheaper ones.

[joecoolfrog]

5 hours ago, Thomas J said:

I am residing outside of Pattaya which has of course a bad reputation.  However there are many areas here that don't have a prostitution or alcohol problem.  I am sure you could go to almost any area in the world and if you searched you can find alcohol and prostitutes. 

The OP refered to drunkeness and prostitution in the ' tourist areas'. My post was simply pointing out that the vast majority of those acts occur within a non tourist environment and the customers/ perpetrators are local people.

[smotherb]

NotReallyHere, maybe you should live-up to your name. Your apparent newness to developing countries, particularly Thailand, is showing. Thailand, although more advanced than some other countries in the region, is still developing and pollution is rampant. I had to chuckle at some of the other posters' suggestions of going to Chiang Mai or Phuket, or even Songkhla--where I lived for eleven years--to avoid pollution.   

 

I suggest you take whatever precautions you think necessary and try to enjoy your stay. It seems rather futile to think you could stay three months in Bangkok, which is so disturbing to you. I would suggest traveling about. Public transportation is cheap, but I would shy away from vans--because of their safety record--and fly or take buses or trains. 

 

You may even consider spending some of those three months in other countries in Southeast Asia--just to get a better idea of the benefits of Thailand.

[BobLowe]

14 hours ago, Thomas J said:

I am residing outside of Pattaya which has of course a bad reputation.  However there are many areas here that don't have a prostitution or alcohol problem.  I am sure you could go to almost any area in the world and if you searched you can find alcohol and prostitutes. 

Yes, those things are never a problem! So some people tell me...... ????????????????

[Longcut]

16 hours ago, millymoopoo said:

Although I've never been there Krabi comes highly recommended.

The north is good too but no ocean beeches.

Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Chiang rai, Mae sai, Udon Thani, Nongbaulampu, Nong Khai, probably anywhere out of BKK would be OK with the exception of Phuket and Pattaya.

Doi Tung and Doi Inthanon are lovely when it's stinking hot on the plains.

Khon Kaen can be very bad too.  The air quality can be as bad or worse than Bangkok sometimes.

[Stocky]

10 hours ago, smotherb said:

I had to chuckle at some of the other posters' suggestions of going to Chiang Mai or Phuket, or even Songkhla--where I lived for eleven years--to avoid pollution.

You're surely not suggesting the air quality in Songkhla isn't a considerable improvement on Bangkok!

[smotherb]

6 hours ago, Stocky said:

You're surely not suggesting the air quality in Songkhla isn't a considerable improvement on Bangkok!

Songkhla's air pollution is not good. And, I believe the OP is concerned with other forms of pollution.  Songkhla is moderate at best. See the chart below from Numbeo:

 

Pollution in Songkhla, Thailand

Air Pollution		66.67	High
Drinking Water Pollution and Inaccessibility		50.00	Moderate
Dissatisfaction with Garbage Disposal		50.00	Moderate
Dirty and Untidy		50.00	Moderate
Noise and Light Pollution		50.00	Moderate
Water Pollution		50.00	Moderate
Dissatisfaction to Spend Time in the City		66.67	High
Dissatisfaction with Green and Parks in the City		50.00	Moderate

Purity and Cleanliness in Songkhla, Thailand

Air quality		33.33	Low
Drinking Water Quality and Accessibility		50.00	Moderate
Garbage Disposal Satisfaction		50.00	Moderate
Clean and Tidy		50.00	Moderate
Quiet and No Problem with Night Lights		50.00	Moderate
Water Quality		50.00	Moderate
Comfortable to Spend Time in the City		33.33	Low
Quality of Green and Parks		50.00	Moderate

 

 

https://www.numbeo.com/pollution/in/Songkhla-Thailand

[Stocky]

Songkhla air quality is whole lot better than Bangkok, and it was air quality that had him all a quiver. As for Numbeo, please, "These data are based on perceptions of visitors of this website in the past 3 years." Highly scientific.

[PoorSucker]

Thung Wua Laen Beach, Chumpon. 

One of my favourite places in Thailand. 

[smotherb]

5 hours ago, Stocky said:

Songkhla air quality is whole lot better than Bangkok, and it was air quality that had him all a quiver. As for Numbeo, please, "These data are based on perceptions of visitors of this website in the past 3 years." Highly scientific.

Please? The OP is a visitor and it is her perception which we are discussing. However, as I said, Songkhla is moderate at best.

 

See other sources on air and other pollution; https://aqicn.org/city/thailand/songkhla/hat-yai-municipality/ for example. Songkhla is moderate at best. 

 

If you thought I was saying Songkhla is as bad as Bangkok, you are confused. It appears you are simply offering a place with better air quality than Bangkok--which is pretty easy to do; Chiang Mai is better than Bangkok, but not much http://livingasean.com/explore/air-quality-asean-air-pollution-bangkok-hanoi-jakarta/  

 

My point is that Songkhla is hardly a pristine paradise and that the OP should try some more remote areas--as was stated, "Maybe some quiet little semi-remote beach town away from the boozing/prostitution nonsense at the usual tourist destinations? "  Now, Songkhla is not the usual farang  tourist destination; although, it is quite popular with the Malaysians and Singaporeans. However, Songkhla does have the "boozing/prostitution nonsense" Granted, the decline of the O&G industry has somewhat curtailed the farang trade, but going to Songkhla will not avoid the "boozing/prostitution nonsense"  

 

 

 

 

[Stocky]

15 hours ago, smotherb said:

My point is that Songkhla is hardly a pristine paradise and that the OP should try some more remote areas

The OP wasn't asking for a pristine paradise, I don't think they exist anymore anyway, the question the OP posed was:

"What regions are the least polluted and yet still have things to offer a tourist.  I'm not looking for a grass hut on a mountain in the middle of nowhere. Maybe some quiet little semi-remote beach town away from the boozing/prostitution nonsense at the usual tourist destinations?"

 

I don't think my suggestion of Songkhla as a option is too far away from that brief. I mean you really have to go looking for "the boozing/prostitution nonsense" in Songkhla Town, it's certainly there, but that's the same for any Thai town, it's just not in your face.

 

Anyway, I suspect we'll have to beg to differ, the OP doesn't seem to have returned to the thread, so who knows what they wanted, but they've certainly been given several good suggestions.

[55Jay]

Visiting/living in a 3rd/Developing world country comes with trade offs.  30 Baht street vendor noodles are a part of the tourist "cultural experience" - lunch for under a Dollar!  Amaaaaazing, innit?

 

As long as you can overlook inhaling unchecked vehicle exhaust whilst visiting said noodle cart, which is parked over a putrid sewer drain next to a pile of rotting rubbish which is called home by a soi dog with a broken leg and a severe case of mange.

 

As the Millennial and Hipsters say these days, "It is what it is".