The end?

With over 50 original postings and proving to be the premier destination for information on bathing in hot springs in Southeast Asia, it seems the posting below will possibly be the last original posting for the time-being.

Since a couple of months I have relocated to Europe and seem to have less and less time to pursue my own pursuits and passions, let's hope it won't last for that long ...

This site will remain and will constantly be updated, but let's say less regularly than before. Because as the soaking family has expanded way beyond what I had originally intended, keeping the blogs updated and interested will be very challenging. Even now avid follows are hoping I will chase down more natural soaks in Europe. Alas Europe has done it's best to tame nature such that soaking it the real sense can only take place in more remoter parts of the continent. Let's see!

Maybe it's also time to organize soakers and present to the policy makers and the development elite that hot springs are best enjoyed pristine. Considering the amounts of money poured into the geothermal advocacy, a small cash line to proponents of keeping the soaks as they were could lead to win-win situations.

Anyway that's just my thoughts, let's shift our focus to Thailand, to one of the best hot springs I have visited:

The town, néé the province of Ranong, is synonymous with hot springs. However this link is entirely focused on the existence of Raksawarin hot spring, located not far from downtown Ranong. Developed and overdeveloped, this hot spring is ....

Read more in Soaking in Siam to see whether or not Porn Rang can be rated as one of Southeast Asia's best hot springs!

Slurpy

The lesser developed
With the differing levels of to-be-expected development concerning hot springs in Thailand, there seems to be no rule, bar one: the more remote, the less developed. But even this rule will have to thrown out of the window.

Chaiya district's (Surat Thani province) distant claim to fame is the Suan Mokkh temple. Established just 50 years ago (or earlier) this forest temple was home to Ajahn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, one of Thailand's most famous monks (source).

But besides the attraction of the road side temple complex, just a one km walk away is a hot spring; delitefully ...

Read the full entry on Soaking in Siam.

Royalties ...

Royal reverberation

Rated as one of Thailand's most popular hot springs (source), Raksawarin hot spring has become the province of Ranong's no. 1 natural attraction. Such that the hot spring is often referred to as Ranong hot spring.

But the real name is Raksawarin. It's claim to fame ....

See Soaking in Siam for more.

Not so Samui?

Provincial bliss?

Surat Thani is a well established province for tourism, though the fact that all this tourism is concentrated on the boutique island resort of Samui and the full-moon party island of Phangan means that the mainland part of the province is often by-passed, neglected even.

Surat Thani town itself is ....

See Soaking in Siam for more.