Solo traveler reveals her most OVERRATED experiences in Thailand

Thailand is an extremely popular destination for solo travelers, with more than a million backpackers from Britain and Ireland visiting the country every year.

With its beautiful beaches, active nightlife and rich culture, it’s easy to see why so many people make the longer trip there.

However, as its popularity has grown, the places and experiences on offer have become increasingly talked about on social media, and not all of them live up to the hype.

One solo traveler shared the four things she thinks are overrated in Thailand.

The video of Chloewho goes by the name @chloeroams on the app has been seen by more than 12,000 people – read on to find out what she believes has been unfairly hyped.

7-Eleven sandwiches with ham and cheese

First, there is something that is not exclusive to Thailand, but has become extremely popular with influencers: it is 7-Eleven’s ham and cheese toasties.

The travel professional told viewers: ‘Number one, I feel like I’m going to get s*** for this, but 7-Eleven ham and cheese toasties.

“They’re gross, they’re not good at all, they got so overhyped on TikTok with people saying ‘you’ll live on them’ and ‘they’ll become a staple of your diet’, ‘you’re not even a real traveler if you don’t eat toasted sandwiches with ham and cheese’.

She repeated, “They are dirty.” No one I knew liked them.”

Another content creator admitted in the comments: “I post about the sandwiches, but I don’t eat them myself.”

Maya Bay

Chloe continued: “Number two is Maya Bay – honestly, so overrated.

“I mean, if you just type ‘Maya Bay overcrowded’ on TikTok, you’ll see what I mean.

‘It’s literally just a beach and because you can’t swim in the water, it’s just a beach you lie on.

“But then you’re surrounded by people because it’s so overcrowded.”

The iconic location was made famous by the 2000 film ‘The Beach’ starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Despite being small, it attracts crowds of tourists every day.

Before it reopened last year, it was flooded with 5,000 tourists a day and had to close for four months to allow the coral to grow.

Under the new measures, boats are not allowed to enter the bay, drivers must drop off passengers at a nearby pier and only eight speedboats are allowed to dock at a time.

Only one visit per hour is allowed and numbers are limited to 300 people per ’round’, from 10am to 4pm.

The commenters agreed, writing ‘100% agree with Maya Bay, don’t get me wrong it was beautiful but I couldn’t bring myself to pay almost a tenner just to walk on a beach’ and ‘I thought I was the only one ‘one esp maya bay, it was full!!’.

Pai

Third on the TikToker list is Pai, a small town in Mae Hong Soon province in northern Thailand.

She said, “The next overrated thing is Pai. I feel like I’m going to offend some people because some people love Pai so much.

‘I haven’t reviewed it, none of the activities apart from Tipsy Tubing really stood out to me and let’s be honest, Tipsy Tubing isn’t the most cultural activity.

‘We also thought Pai was quite cliquey. I think because people stay there for months, they kind of form their own groups and stick to them.”

She concluded, “It’s just not really my vibe,” which some commenters agreed with.

One traveler wrote: ‘FINALLY someone else who hated Pai!!!! I haven’t rated it either.”

Another said: ‘Pai is overrated, just got back from Pai and I have to say it depends on the hostel/people you meet,’ while someone else wrote: ‘I hated pai!! I thought I was the only one, 0 culture in that city, it was like being in a backpacker resort in Europe’.

Someone else agreed: ‘Totally agree with your thoughts on Pai! I’m not sure if I went with high expectations but it was so disappointing because people seem to love it’.

The Full Moon Festival

Finally, Chloe wasn’t a big fan of the Full Moon Party – another experience that is very popular among tourists.

It is one of the world’s biggest parties, which started in the 1980s, and is attended by more than 30,000 people – revelers dance to electronic music, while DJs from all over the world perform.

The festival-style extravaganza takes place on the island of Koh Phangan and is notable for its buckets of booze and neon theme.

However, Chloe advises: ‘Don’t get me wrong, it was good, I don’t know, I’ve just had better nights in Thailand.

‘Everything was just so expensive: the accommodation, the drinks, the food prices, there are definitely better nights out in Thailand.’

She also warned: ‘I know that spikes are also very common at the Full Moon festival, so also from a safety point of view it’s just not that good.’

The solo traveler concluded the segment by asking: “Let me know if you agree or disagree with any of these points and are there any other experiences in Thailand that you find overhyped?”

Viewers chimed in with ‘Full Moon party needs to be on the list’ and ‘yeah, I think I won’t spend too much time in Pai, and skip the full moon parties, it just doesn’t seem like my thing’ .

However, some people disagreed, adding: ‘I love the toasted sandwiches…’ and ‘We left for Maya Bay at 5.50am for the sunrise and were the first ones there’.