Chris Schalkx – Travel writer and Photographer in Bangkok and Taiwan

Chris Schalkx – Travel writer and photographer in Bangkok and Taiwan

I’m a freelance travel writer in Bangkok and Taiwan with work (both writing and photography) published in A-tier travel and design publications around the globe. I have a penchant for digging up local cool in lesser-known destinations and approaching the well-trodden paths from a new angle. Particularly interested in the sweet spot between travel and design.

Get in touch via hello@ricepotato.co.

Conde Nast Traveller (UK/US/international editions)

Conde Nast Traveller Mar 2018

Foodie face off: Bangkok vs. Taipei
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Conde Nast Traveller May 2018

Shopping in Mumbai (photography only)

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Conde Nast Traveller Jul 2018

Hot Neighborhoods: Soi Nana, Bangkok (synced in Conde Nast Traveler Middle East)
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Conde Nast Traveller Oct 2018
Eat the Street: Kuala Lumpur (synced in Conde Nast Traveler India)
+ Hot List: Asia Today
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Conde Nast Traveller (digital)
5 New boutique hotels in Bangkok

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Conde Nast Traveller TehranConde Nast Traveller Nov 2018
The Next Design Hub: Tehran, Iran
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller March 2019
The Neighborhood Redux: Chinatowns
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller April 2019
Lifting roots: Chiang Mai (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller (digital)
Best time to visit Vietnam
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller (digital)
10 Amazing things to do in Bangkok
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Sept 2019
Style File: Shopping in Taipei (text and photography) + Kagurazuka (photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Oct 2019
Table to Book: FV, Bangkok (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Nov 2019
Second Nature: Shu Shu House, Taiwan (text and photography) + Style File: Tokyo (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Dec 2019
Buzz Hubs: Old Town, Bangkok (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Jan 2020
Spa report: Chiva Som (photography) + Hoshinoya Tokyo (photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller (digital)
The best hotels in Tokyo
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller (digital)
The best hotels in Phuket
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler China Jan 2020
Moonstruck Penang (photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler US Mar 2020
FEATURE: Little Wonder - Taiwan
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Mar 2020
Style File: Shopping in Canggu (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Apr 2020
Into the groove: Havana (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller May 2020
Call to arms: Sri Lanka (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller (digital)
How to travel Thailand from home
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Jun 2020
Hot List 2020: Rongros, Bangkok + Kimpton Da An, Taipei
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler (digital)
Post-Lockdown Bangkok: Empty Temples, Nightclubs, and Hotels
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Sep 2020
Aces of Base: Thai creatives going local
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Travel journalist BangkokConde Nast Traveler (digital)
How to Be a Mindful Hotel Guest During a Pandemic
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Nov 2020
The Roundup: Thai boutique hotels (syndicated in VOGUE Taiwan)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Dec 2020
COVER PHOTO: Sri Lanka + Hotel review Abode Ahangama (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler China Dec 2020
First look: Four Seasons Bangkok (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Jan 2021
Gold List: Raya Heritage, Mandarin Oriental Tokyo + Shopping guide to Hong Kong
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Mar 2021
FEATURE: In the Loop - Northern Thailand (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler Mar 2021
FEATURE: Bangkok Creatives (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Apr 2021
RAKxa, Bangkok (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Jun 2021
Hot List: Capella Bangkok, Four Seasons Bangkok, Roukh Khiri, Aksorn
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Sep 2021
FEATURE: Trang, Thailand (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveler Sep/Oct 2021
Walk This Block: Ari, Bangkok (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Oct 2021
Eat The Street: Talad Noi (text and photography)
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Travel Writer BangkokConde Nast Traveller Mar 2022
Shopping in Chiang Mai (text and photography)
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Hotel review: Amanpuri, Phuket – see online →
Hotel review: Six Senses Yao Noi, Phuket – see online →
Hotel review: Kimpton Da An, Taipei – see online →

Travel + Leisure Asia

Travel + Leisure Asia Mar 2018

Taipei's New Old Town (text and photography)
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Travel + Leisure Asia Jul 2018

Six Dishes: Tainan (text and photography)
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Travel + Leisure Asia Jul 2019

New capital of cool: Taipei (text and photography)
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Travel + Leisure Asia Aug 2019

City Savvy: Bangkok Neighborhood Guide (text and photography)
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Travel + Leisure Asia Nov 2019

Hoshinoya Guguan feature + How to travel with Instagram
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Travel + Leisure Asia Dec 2019

Best of 2019: Japan
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Travel + Leisure Asia Jun 2020

Experiences feature: Ahangama, Sri Lanka
See PDF →

DestinAsian Magazine

DestinAsian Oct/Nov 2017

Luxe List 2017: Bangkok Publishing Residence, Park Hyatt Bangkok, Villa Mahabhirom
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DestinAsian Feb/March 2018

The Guide: Mumbai (text and photography)
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Jun/Jul 2018

Tucking into Taipei
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Aug/Sep 2018

Mad for Manila (text and photography)
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Oct/Nov 2018

Transforming Tainan (text and photography) + Thai Craft + Luxe List 2018: Waldorf Astoria, Bangkok
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Dec 2018/Jan 2019

Sweet Surrender: artisanal chocolate in Asia
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Apr/May 2019

About Town: Rotterdam
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Oct/Nov 2019

Luxe List: Rosewood Bangkok, Hoshinoya Guguan, Trunk (House) Tokyo
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Dec 2019/Jan 2020

Nahm's New Course
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian Dec 2020/Feb 2021

Style file: In with the Old
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Taipei travel writerDestinAsian China Edition

Taste for Thai + Bangkok's Best Shops (text and photography)
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The Telegraph

  • “It’s time to clear away the junk” – Hotel designer Bill Bensley on working from home, wildlife conservation and post-pandemic hospitality – see online →
  • How new and independent hoteliers are dealing with the pandemic, from Greece to Cuba (print + online) – see online →
  • Inside the luxury hotels of the Maldives, where the rich are riding out the pandemic in paradise – see online →
  • ‘Hand sanitiser in crystal bottles and plenty of space around the pool’ – a post-lockdown trip to Bangkok’s best hotel – see online →
  • The hotels turning face masks into works of art (print, Aug 29 2020) – see pdf →
  • Creative tales from Thailand (print, Sep 5 2020) – see pdf →
  • I’ve seen the grim reality of Thailand without tourists – and it isn’t pretty – see online →
  • What will happen to travel influencers now that they can’t travel? – see online →
  • Opinion: You Brits should stop complaining – at least you can leave your country – see online →
  • ‘Locals were scared of us’ – meet the backpackers who went on gap years during the pandemic – see online →
  • Bill Bensley’s Jewels of the Jungle (print, Sep 24 2020) – see pdf →
  • What will happen to travel influencers now that they can’t travel? – see online →
  • The dog-friendliest hotels in the UK (print, Oct 3 2020) – see pdf →
  • Soviet style in North Korea (print, Oct 10 2020) – see pdf →
  • New fabrics from Ethiopia (print, Oct 17 2020) – see pdf →
  • Accidentally Wes Anderson: Life Imitates Art (print, Oct 24 2020) – see pdf →
  • Online shopping at the world’s best markets (print, Dec 5 2020) – see pdf →
  • Spa review: RAKxa, Bangkok (print, Jan 22 2021) – see pdf →
  • Aman’s New Spa Candles (print, Feb 6 2021) – see pdf →
  • Why Thailand is the ultimate Christmas escape – and where to stay (print, Dec 10 2021) – see pdf →

Hotel review: Raya Heritage, Chiang Mai – see online →
Hotel review: Banyan Tree, Krabi – see online →
Hotel review: The Mustang Blu, Bangkok – see online →
Hotel review: Capella, Bangkok – see online →
Hotel review: Four Seasons at Chao Phraya River, Bangkok – see online →
Hotel review: Baan Pomphet, Ayutthaya – see online →
Hotel review: The Fleming, Hong Kong – see online →
Hotel review: The Peninsula, Manila – see online →
Hotel review: Shangri-La Makati, Manila – see online →
Hotel review: The Manila Hotel, Manila – see online →
Hotel review: Raffles Makati, Manila – see online →
Hotel review: Amanpulo, Palawan – see online →
Hotel review: Hotel de l’Opera, Hanoi – see online →
Hotel review: Amanoi, Vĩnh Hy – see online →
Hotel review: Humble House, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: Play Design Hotel, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: W Taipei, Taipei, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: Hotel Proverbs, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: Grand Hyatt, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: Kimpton Da’an, Taipei – see online →
Hotel review: The Lalu, Sun Moon Lake – see online →
Hotel review: Gardens, Havana – see online →

Bloomberg

The Guardian

  • Instagram journey: Cafe culture, colour and caves: an Instagram journey through Vietnam – see online →
  • Instagram snapshots: Cafes, courtyards and cha in Bangkok’s Chinatown – see online →
  • Instagram snapshots: Coffee houses, Kali and palaces in India – in pictures – see online →
  • A local’s guide to Bangkok: 10 top tips (print + online) – see online →

National Geographic Traveller

On the Trail: An Architecture Tour of Rotterdam (Sep 2021) – see pdf →

AFAR

  • The one thing you’ve probably forgotten to disinfect while traveling – see online →
  • All the Tech and Gear You Need to Become a Digital Nomad – see online →
  • Finding Bliss on a Bangkok Motorcycle Taxi – see online →
  • Why the Insta360 GO 2 Is the Best Action Camera for Spur-of-the-Moment Travel Videos
    see online →

Departures

Small Wonder: Aboard Loy Pela Song, Thailand (Jan/Feb 2021) – see pdf →

Architectural Digest

  • Designers Are Turning Plastic Waste Into Swoon-Worthy Terrazzo – see online →
  • One Person’s Trash Is Another Person’s Coffee Table – see online →
  • How to Balance Your Design Sensibilities With the Realities of Living With Kids – see online →
  • How to Use Fashion and Jewelry As Home Decor – see online →
  • Is Marble Sustainable? It’s Complicated – see online →
  • How the Pandemic Changed Our Relationship With Paint – see online →
  • This Preloved Caravan Was Transformed Into a Slice of 1970s Palm Springs – see online →
  • A Dated Victorian Town House in West London Turns into a Designers’ Family Den – see online →

Wallpaper*

  • Potato Head Beach club has extended into a fully-fledged creative village (print + online) – see online →
  • Introducing Sri Lanka’s up-and-coming surfer hideout – see online →
  • The design hotels pushing towards a more eco-friendly future – see online →
  • Sweet spot: Drop by Dough, Bangkok (print + online) – see online →
  • Capella Bangkok interprets the city’s rich history – see online →

Design Anthology

CNN Travel

A tour of Bangkok’s spookiest sites – see online →

New York Magazine

This $40 Doodad Backs Up My Phone’s Photos Whenever I Charge It – see online →

Travel + Leisure

This Luxury Estate in Thailand Is a Quarantine Facility – see online →

SUITCASE

City Guide: Rotterdam, Netherlands – see online →

Fathom

Photo tour: From Hanoi to Saigon and Everywhere in Between – see online →
Photo tour: For Bangkok’s Answer to Brooklyn, Head to Chinatown– see online →

Brand publications

Waldorf Astoria Magazine: Insider’s Guide: Bangkok – see PDF →
Preferred Travel: 72 Hours in Taipei – see PDF →
Qantas Travel Insider: Hotel review: Oriental Residence Bangkok – see online →
SilverKris: The SQ: Hotels – Rosewood Bangkok – see PDF →
Halifax UK: Saving money in the Thai capital’s ‘alt.’ neighbourhoods – see online →
Porter & Sail: Destination Guide: Sumba, Indonesia (text and photography) – see online →

Photography

My travel- and food photography has appeared in Conde Nast Traveller (UK, US, Chinese, Indian, and Middle East edtions), DestinAsian, Harper’s Bazaar (Germany), GQ (China), L’Officiel (Thailand), MR Porter, Travel + Leisure Asia, The Guardian, Suitcase Magazine, Passion Passport and Tiny Atlas Quarterly. Find my portfolio here.