My First Solo Trip Abroad: Seven Nights and Nine Days in Thailand as a First-Year University Student
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My First Solo Trip Abroad: Seven Nights and Nine Days in Thailand as a First-Year University Student
In the summer of my first year at university, I chose Thailand for my first trip abroad. This is a record of traveling alone through Bangkok and the surrounding area—picking the wrong hotel, walking for three hours, and spending five hours on a train with rock-hard seats.
Contents
- What I Spent on Seven Nights and Nine Days
- Day 1 — A Cheap Flight to Thailand
- From Narita Airport to Suvarnabhumi Airport
- Day 2 — "Three Hours Round Trip? I Can Walk That"
- A Weekend Market That Never Seems to End
- Day 3 — Joining a Local Tour on a Solo Trip
- Seeing the Floating Market from the Water
- Maeklong Railway Market Changes Shape Whenever a Train Arrives
- Ayutthaya Was Quieter Than It Looked in Photographs
- Day 4 — Bangkok from Above, and a Hulk at Street Level
- King Power Mahanakhon
- Khaosan Road
- Day 5 — Five Hours on a Hard Seat to a Hotel on the River
- Leaving Bangkok for a Riverside Hotel
- The Thai–Burma Railway Was More Than a Place to Enjoy
- Day 6 — Bangkok's Three Major Temples and Asiatique
- Wat Arun Looks Different from Every Distance
- Asiatique The Riverfront
- The End of the Trip — From Thailand Back to Japan
In the summer of my first year at university, I took my first trip abroad. I chose Thailand, and I went alone.
It was my father who suggested traveling by myself. The thought of going overseas alone was a little frightening, but the freedom to travel at my own pace without having to coordinate plans with anyone was even more appealing.
I picked the wrong hotel on the first night. The next day, I walked for three hours round trip to reach a tourist spot. Later in the trip, I spent about five hours on a train with rock-hard seats. Even so, whenever something went wrong, I decided what to do next and kept the journey going.
The trip took place in September 2024. It has already been about a year and a half, but with the help of the photos and notes I kept, I want to look back on my first solo trip.
What I Spent on Seven Nights and Nine Days
The trip cost ¥146,000 in total. Looking back, it was fairly extravagant for a first-year university student's first solo trip.
In September 2024, the exchange rate was around ¥4.2 per Thai baht (THB). Accommodation was cheaper than in Japan, and with some searching, rooms could be found from around ¥3,000 per night. To get around the city, I used Grab taxis and trains such as the BTS.
I spent quite a lot on hotels and sightseeing this time, but I think I could have traveled for much less if I had stayed in dormitories and planned my transportation in advance.
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transportation | ¥53,000 |
| Accommodation | ¥36,000 |
| Sightseeing | ¥24,000 |
| Food | ¥13,000 |
| Other (souvenirs, etc.) | ¥20,000 |
| Total | ¥146,000 |
Day 1 — A Cheap Flight to Thailand
From Narita Airport to Suvarnabhumi Airport
I flew with AirJapan from Narita Airport to Suvarnabhumi International Airport.
If my notes are correct, the round-trip ticket cost ¥24,400. Even looking back now, it was remarkably cheap. That fare made my first trip abroad feel much more achievable.
I picked the wrong hotel on my first night
The bathroom facilities at the first hotel were not particularly clean, and there were several stray dogs outside. When I made the reservation, I had focused almost entirely on the price. I should also have checked the location, the interior, the reviews, and the safety of the surrounding area.
I was happy to find a cheap flight, but a hotel should not be chosen on price alone. On the very first day of the trip, I learned how important it is to have somewhere you feel safe returning to.
Day 2 — "Three Hours Round Trip? I Can Walk That"
I walked from the P18 Hotel, where I was staying, to Chatuchak Weekend Market. At the time, I was confident in my stamina and thought a three-hour round trip would be manageable.
I did manage to walk it. The problem was that I saved money on transportation at the cost of using up the energy I was supposed to spend at the destination. If I went now, I would simply take the train.
A Weekend Market That Never Seems to End
It is an enormous market that opens only on weekends, with one shop after another no matter how far you walk. I spent about three hours exploring it, but I did not feel as though I had come close to seeing everything.
The crowds and sounds of the market come across better in video than in photographs.
Chatuchak Weekend Market (Instagram highlight)
https://www.instagram.com/s/aGlnaGxpZ2h0OjE3OTcwODU4NjkyNjM5MDQz?story_media_id=3457010112085386696&igsh=MXJtNnkxcnp2emFvNg==
There were traditional Thai massage shops inside the market too. I had created all that exhaustion myself, then had it taken care of with a massage right there.
Day 3 — Joining a Local Tour on a Solo Trip
On the third day, I joined a local tour that visited a floating market, Maeklong Railway Market, a coconut sugar factory, and the ruins of Ayutthaya in a single day.
Traveling alone does not mean arranging absolutely everything by yourself. The tour allowed me to visit several distant attractions together while avoiding the burden of researching every route on my own. For places where transportation seemed difficult, relying on a tour was a perfectly good option.
Seeing the Floating Market from the Water
I rode a boat along the canals and looked at the shops lining the water. It certainly felt like a tourist destination, but it was a scene I would rarely, if ever, encounter in Japan. Simply riding through the market by boat was enjoyable.
Maeklong Railway Market Changes Shape Whenever a Train Arrives
The shops and their goods extend right up to the railway tracks. The market is famous for the way vendors quickly move everything aside whenever a train arrives, but even just walking along the tracks and browsing the market was interesting enough on its own.
Ayutthaya Was Quieter Than It Looked in Photographs
At the ruins of Ayutthaya, I saw the Buddha head surrounded by the roots of a tree. I had seen it in photographs several times before, but standing in front of it, I felt a strange sense of stillness.
Day 4 — Bangkok from Above, and a Hulk at Street Level
King Power Mahanakhon
I visited a high-rise observation deck with a panoramic view of Bangkok. On the rooftop, there was a glass floor that made my legs feel weak whenever I looked down.
The most beautiful time was the transition from evening into night. The outlines of the daytime city slowly faded, while the lights of the roads and buildings brought the city into view again.
Khaosan Road
After leaving the observation deck, I headed to Khaosan Road, which is known as a famous backpacker haven. It was completely different from the orderly lines of light I had seen from above. At street level, the area was filled with music, crowds, and energy.
I also ate the cheapest—and one of the tastiest—plates of pad kra pao from the entire trip there. In front of what appeared to be a cannabis shop, for some reason, stood a giant Hulk.
Whenever I remember Thailand at night, that Hulk still appears alongside the beautiful skyline.
Day 5 — Five Hours on a Hard Seat to a Hotel on the River
Leaving Bangkok for a Riverside Hotel
On the fifth day, I left the noise of Bangkok and headed for a hotel beside the river. The train journey took about five hours each way. The seats were hard enough to leave me sore, making the journey itself feel like a test of endurance.
Part of me wanted to arrive as quickly as possible, but I did not dislike the time I spent looking at the countryside through the window. Five hours is a long time if the only goal is to reach a destination efficiently. Still, watching the scenery gradually change was part of the journey too.
When I arrived at the hotel, all I could hear was the river. I have only a few photographs left from my stay, but compared with the Bangkok I had been in the day before, even time seemed to move at a different pace.
Nam Tok Line timetable as of September 2024
When I traveled, there were two trains per day from Thonburi Station to Nam Tok Station.
| Train | Dep. Thonburi | Arr. Nam Tok | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary 257 | 07:45 | 12:05 | Used for checking in that day |
| Ordinary 259 | 13:55 | 18:30 | Too late for the final hotel boat |
The 13:55 departure did not arrive in time for the hotel boat, whose final departure was at 18:00 at the time. Timetables and services may change, so check the latest information from the railway and your hotel before traveling.
Reference: How to Get to The FloatHouse River Kwai Resort (in Japanese)
The Thai–Burma Railway Was More Than a Place to Enjoy
The Thai–Burma Railway was constructed during the Second World War under the Imperial Japanese military. There are places where visitors can walk along the tracks. Knowing the history behind them, however, I could not see the railway as just another tourist attraction. Standing there left me with complicated feelings.
Day 6 — Bangkok's Three Major Temples and Asiatique
Wat Arun Looks Different from Every Distance
In the morning, I took a ferry and visited the temples. What impressed me most was the decoration of Wat Arun. From a distance, it looks like one large pattern. Up close, however, you can see countless small pieces of porcelain covering its surface.
Seeing the building as a whole in a photograph and examining its details in person felt almost like looking at two different buildings.
Asiatique The Riverfront
In the evening, I went to Asiatique. Shops line the riverfront, and the area is easy to walk around and convenient for shopping. Since the end of the trip was approaching, I bought most of my souvenirs there.
The End of the Trip — From Thailand Back to Japan
Once the trip began, seven nights and nine days passed surprisingly quickly.
Before leaving Japan, I was worried about whether I would really be all right on my own in another country. I did, in fact, choose the wrong hotel, walk distances I did not need to walk, and tire myself out on long journeys.
What I learned, however, was that traveling alone did not mean doing everything by myself. I could take a tour to distant attractions, use Grab and the trains in the city, and get a massage when I was tired. Choosing the next step for myself each time—that was what traveling alone really meant.
Old houses stood close to high-rise buildings, and the people and noise did not disappear even after nightfall. Being able to walk through a city like that on my own, while continuing the journey through decisions I made for myself, was an experience I do not think I would have had if I had chosen anywhere other than Thailand for my first trip abroad.
My one regret is that I recorded most of the trip as video. When I later decided to write this article, I discovered that I had surprisingly few usable photographs. Apparently, keeping a record is not simply about capturing as much as possible. You also need to think about how you may want to preserve and use those memories later.
Next time I travel abroad, I will bring a DSLR. I would also like to carry a little less luggage and try traveling more like a backpacker.