11-Nights Best of Southern Thailand: Beaches, Jungle & Coastline from $2,932

Known as the "Pearl of Thailand," Phuket offers pristine beaches, lush vegetation, traditional villages and seascapes of huge limestone pillars that rise above the turquoise waters of Phang-Nga Bay. With a culture all its own, it combines Chinese and Portuguese influences with that of indigenous ocean-going people. Phuket Town is the island’s capital located in the southeast. The architecture features the attractive Sino-Portuguese style which is reflected in the spacious residences built by wealthy Chinese tin barons as testimony to their success. Visitors come because of the glorious beaches, especially those on the west coast. Patong Beach is about a 45-minute drive from the port and offers a wide selection of watersports. Phuket still casts its spell on all who come to its shores.

Phi Phi Island (Koh Phi Phi) is a diver's paradise, with marvelous beaches, clear emerald seas and many underwater caves to explore. Don't miss Laem Tong, a sea gypsy village renowned for its underwater natural beauty.

Krabi is a southern province on Thailand's Andaman seaboard with perhaps the country's oldest history of continued settlement. During the present reign, the corps of civil servants, the merchants, and the population generally of Krabi and nearby provinces have together organized construction of a royal residence at Laem Hang Nak Cape for presentation to His Majesty the King. This lies thirty kilometers to the west of Krabi Town on the Andaman coast.