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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Travel
Joel Porter

Where to go to escape the crowds in Thailand

Perhaps owing to the much discussed ‘White Lotus effect’, Thailand welcomed one million tourists from Britain in 2025 — our contribution to a record-breaking 10 million long-haul visitors to the country. So, while the lure of Thailand’s white sand beaches is clearly proving irresistible for many, the resulting crowds could put a serious dampener on your dream trip.

Thailand is a huge country, however, and a lot of tourists are still hoovered up by the headline destinations — Phuket, Koh Samui (where The White Lotus was filmed), Chiang Mai, and the Phi Phi islands, to name a few. Fortunately, if you know where to look, there are so many other places to discover — delve a little deeper and you can be sure to find a little corner of the country away from the crowds.

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