Ayutthaya

Ayutthaya sits inland on the flat central plain, where three rivers meet, and has no beaches. The nearest sea is the upper Gulf of Thailand, more than two hours away, and the rivers here are working waterways, not places to swim. If you want to swim, use the hotel pool, or add a few beach days somewhere else on the trip.

Eating here means provincial Thai cooking, cheap and full of flavour, without a big-city range. Ayutthaya is known for boat noodles, small bowls of dark, rich broth eaten several at a time, and for grilled giant river prawns at the open-sided restaurants along the water. Its own sweet is roti sai mai, thin pancakes rolled around threads of spun sugar, sold from stalls near the hospital and the old Muslim quarter.

The night markets on the island and the Chao Phrom market near the eastern ferry handle the rest: curries, grilled pork, fresh fruit and iced coffee. There is little fine dining and almost nothing international, so serious eaters go to Bangkok.

For more than four centuries this island was the capital of Siam and one of the largest cities in Asia, until the Burmese sacked it in 1767. What remains is a UNESCO-listed field of brick prangs, chedis and headless Buddhas spread across the island and its banks. Wat Phra Si Sanphet's three bell-shaped chedis, the stone Buddha head held in tree roots at Wat Mahathat and the crypt of Wat Ratchaburana are the best known. Wat Chaiwatthanaram, on the west bank, is at its best at sunset.

The Chao Sam Phraya National Museum keeps the gold treasures found in the crypts. The foreign settlements left traces too, notably the Portuguese and Japanese quarters south of the island. Almost everything here is ruin and temple, and the variety is narrow, but the scale is remarkable.

Evenings are quiet. A short strip of backpacker bars near the guesthouse area plays music and serves cheap beer, and a few riverside restaurants stay open for drinks with a view of the lit-up temples. Most people are back at their guesthouse well before midnight. If you want a real night out, Bangkok is the place for it.

The landscape is flat river plain: rice fields, canals, and the Chao Phraya, Pa Sak and Lopburi rivers ringing the old city. The pleasures are gentle ones. You can cycle between ruins under big trees, take a long-tail boat around the island at dusk, and watch storks and egrets over the paddies. There are no hills to walk and the heat cuts the day short. The forests and waterfalls of Khao Yai National Park, about two hours by road, are the nearest wild landscape.

The best day out is Bangkok, about an hour and a half south by train or road, with its Grand Palace, temples and markets. Much closer, about twenty minutes away, is the Bang Pa-In summer palace, a strange and pretty mix of Thai, Chinese and European royal buildings around ornamental ponds.

Lopburi, about an hour and a half north by train, has Khmer-era temples and the ruined palace of King Narai, along with the macaque troops that live among the stones of Phra Prang Sam Yot. The Bang Sai crafts centre and the giant seated Buddha at Wat Muang in Ang Thong fill out a shorter list. Beyond these, the central plain has little else for a day out.

Children usually enjoy the ruins for a morning. The stone Buddha head caught in tree roots at Wat Mahathat makes an impression, and the big temple grounds give space to run about. Climbing is not allowed on many of the prangs and chedis, so the ruins are for looking at rather than scrambling over. Elephant rides past the temples are offered, and many visitors avoid them on welfare grounds.

A tuk-tuk circuit or a boat trip around the island goes down well, but almost nothing here is designed for children. The open ruins have little shade, and the midday heat is hard on small ones. The town itself is relaxed and friendly towards families, but it is a place for a day or two of sights, not for keeping children entertained.

The old city sits on an island a few kilometres across, with the main ruins spread over it and a few important temples across the water. A bicycle is the classic way to get around: the land is flat and the back lanes are quiet, though the main roads carry fast traffic. Tuk-tuks wait outside the station and the major sites and can be hired for a half-day circuit, and small ferries cross the rivers. There is no useful bus or rail network inside the town, and walking all day in the heat wears most people out.

Shopping is mostly market stalls: clothes, snacks and Buddha amulets at the night markets, and souvenir stands outside the big temples. The floating markets on the edge of town are staged for visitors and lean towards trinkets and food. The nearest thing to a local speciality is the woven goods and traditional crafts of the royal crafts centre at Bang Sai, downstream on the Chao Phraya towards Bangkok. Beyond these there is little to look for.

This is a very cheap place to stay. Riverside guesthouses and simple hotels cost little even by Thai standards, and comfortable rooms with a pool are within reach of a modest budget. Noodles, market food and iced coffee cost very little, and bicycle hire is close to free.

The main expenses are the entrance fees at the major ruins, charged separately at each site, and a tuk-tuk hired for a full circuit. Even these hardly dent a careful budget.

There is almost no regular performance life. The main exception is the town's annual World Heritage fair, when light-and-sound shows retell the history of the old capital among the ruins and traditional dance and music are staged for visitors. At other times you might hear folk music at a temple fair or see a short dance at a dinner venue, and little more.

Wellness here means Thai massage: simple shophouse parlours near the guesthouses and the main temples give foot and full-body massages at local prices, and they are welcome after a day of cycling. Upmarket spas are few, and there is no bathing tradition. What the town does offer is pace. Once the tour buses leave in the late afternoon it turns slow and quiet, and an evening on a riverside terrace watching the boats go by is easy rest.