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Thailand: Temples, Islands, and the Best Street Food on Earth

From Bangkok's golden spires to the Andaman's turquoise coast. Here's everything you need to plan the trip properly.

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Golden temple spires catching the light in Thailand
Thailand
Temple view in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand
Chiang Mai
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Start Here

Why Thailand, Why Now

Thailand is one of those places that quietly ruins you for everywhere else. The food alone would be enough. Pad thai from a street cart at 2am, cooked in front of you, costing less than a coffee back home and tasting better than most restaurant meals you've had. But then you add the temples, and there are over 40,000 of them, each somehow more ridiculous than the last. Islands that look edited. And a culture that's genuinely warm rather than just politely tolerant of tourists.

Bangkok is controlled chaos in the best possible way. Chiang Mai feels like somebody designed a city specifically for people who like good food and cheap massages. Head south and you get the Andaman coast, all limestone cliffs and water the colour of a swimming pool. Head east and you get the Gulf islands. Head northeast into Isaan and you get the Thailand most visitors never bother with, which is exactly why it's worth going. Pick any of it. You won't be disappointed.

11-12 hrsFrom the UK
Nov to FebBest time
ThaiMain language
Baht / THB (฿)Currency
Visa-free for manyRules changing
Seasons

Best Time To Visit

Thailand runs on three seasons rather than four, and the two coasts don't share a weather pattern. Get the timing right and it changes the whole trip.

Hot Season (Mar to May)

30C to 35C, sticky

Properly hot. April brings Songkran, the water fight that takes over the entire country, and it's brilliant. One catch: burning season in the north runs roughly February to April, so Chiang Mai and Pai can get hazy.

Green Season (Jun to Aug)

Warm, wet, much cheaper

Rainy season, but not the way people imagine. You get a heavy downpour for an hour, then sunshine. Prices drop, crowds thin, and the Gulf islands like Koh Samui and Koh Tao are at their best right now.

Late Rains (Sep to Nov)

Wettest, then it flips

September and October are the soggiest months, especially on the Andaman side around Phuket and Krabi. Then November arrives, the rain stops, everything is stupidly green, and the crowds haven't shown up yet. Sneaky good window.

Cool Season (Dec to Feb)

Peak season, 20C to 30C

The driest, coolest, most comfortable stretch of the year, and everybody knows it. Best all round for Bangkok, Chiang Mai and the Andaman islands. Book flights and rooms early, because prices climb hard over Christmas and New Year.

Want the full month by month version? Read our Best Time to Visit Thailand climate guide.

Watch First

See Thailand in 60 Seconds

A minute of temple gold, long-tail boats and night market steam. Then read on for the full story.

Thailand is a country where tropical islands, bustling cities, ancient temples, lush jungles, and incredible food come together to create one of Southeast Asia’s most unforgettable destinations. In just 60 seconds, we’ll explore the vibrant streets of Bangkok, the temples of Chiang Mai, the limestone cliffs and turquoise waters of the south, and the spectacular islands scattered across the Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand. Whether you’re travelling for beaches, culture, adventure, or world-famous Thai cuisine, Thailand has something to keep you coming back for more.

Thailand - majestic
Plan In Minutes

Book The Essentials

The exact booking sites we use ourselves. Nothing here we wouldn't personally recommend.

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Good To Know

What To Expect

The practical stuff, minus the waffle.

Capital

Bangkok is loud, hot, and completely addictive. Golden temples, rooftop bars, and a night market on what feels like every other corner.

Language

Thai, and it's tonal, so the same word said four ways means four different things. English is widely spoken in Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai, less so once you're off the tourist trail. Learn three things: "sawasdee khrap" or "sawasdee kha" (hello), "khop khun" (thank you), "tao rai" (how much). Locals notice, every time.

Currency

The Thai Baht (THB, written ฿). Rough guide at the time of writing: ฿1,000 is about £22, €26, or $30. Rates move, so check XE before you go and again before you change money.

Cards & ATMs

Cards work fine in hotels, malls and mid-range restaurants. Street food, markets, songthaews and small guesthouses are cash only. Fair warning: Thai ATMs charge a foreign card fee of around 220 baht per withdrawal, so take out larger amounts less often.

Plugs

Types A, B, C and O all show up, and most Thai sockets are hybrids that take all four. Standard voltage is 220V at 50Hz. Grab a universal adapter and stop worrying about it.

Safety

One of the safest countries in Southeast Asia for travellers, and violent crime against tourists is rare. The real risks are dull ones: scooter accidents, tuk-tuk and gem scams, and drinks left unattended at full moon parties. Use the meter in Bangkok taxis or just use Grab.

Random Useful Tip

Everyone entering Thailand now has to fill in the Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC). It's free, it's online, and the window only opens 72 hours before you land. Do it at tdac.immigration.go.th and screenshot the QR code, because airport wifi is not your friend.

Never Ever

Never get on a scooter without a helmet and an International Driving Permit, since without both your travel insurance almost certainly won't pay out. And never say anything disrespectful about the Thai royal family or treat Buddha images as decoration. That's a criminal offence here, not a social slip.

Right Now

Live Weather in Bangkok

Straight from the source, updated as you read this.

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Detailed weather
The Guides

Thailand Travel Guides

The essential six. Start with these, then work through everything else below.

Fresh Off The Keyboard

Latest Thailand Articles

Every Thailand guide we publish lands here automatically.

City Guides (coming soon)

Itineraries + Maps (coming soon)

Best Places to Visit & Things to Do

Best Time to Visit

Travel Tips

Everything Else

View All Thailand Articles
Budgets

How Much Does Thailand Cost?

Thailand is still one of the best value countries you'll ever visit. Here's a realistic daily breakdown, in pounds with euros and dollars alongside.

Backpacker

£25 / €29 / $34per day, roughly
  • Hostel dorms from £5 a night
  • Street food and 7-Eleven runs
  • Songthaews, local buses, night trains
  • Free temples, beaches and markets
See Money-Saving Tips
Most Popular

Mid-Range

£55-75 / €64-88 / $74-101per day, roughly
  • Private rooms and boutique hotels
  • Mix of street food and proper restaurants
  • Domestic flights between regions
  • Island tours, cooking classes, day trips
Plan Your Budget

Upscale

£130+ / €152+ / $175+per day
  • Pool villas and five star island resorts
  • Fine dining and rooftop bars
  • Private boat charters and spa days
  • Private guides, no compromises
Find Accommodation
The Numbers

Detailed Cost Breakdown

Real prices in pounds, with euros and dollars alongside. Pick a category.

Budget

Hostel dorm£5-9 / €6-10 / $7-12
Budget guesthouse£11-22 / €13-26 / $15-30
Beach bungalow£7-18 / €8-21 / $9-24

Mid to Luxury

Boutique hotel£33-70 / €39-82 / $45-95
Island resort£65-130 / €76-152 / $88-175
Luxury pool villa£130+ / €152+ / $175+
Spend Less

Tips for Saving Money in Thailand

Ten easy ways to keep a Thailand trip cheap without missing anything worth doing.

Carry a filter bottle

Tap water isn't drinkable here, but a filter bottle beats buying plastic three times a day.

Eat where the queue is

A busy street cart does pad thai for about £1.30 / €1.50 / $1.75, and it'll be better than the restaurant next door.

Use BTS, MRT and songthaews

Bangkok traffic is a punishment. The skytrain costs pennies and never sits still.

Travel overnight

Sleeper trains and VIP night buses move you and cover a night's accommodation at the same time.

Rent a scooter on the islands

About £5-7 / €6-8 / $7-9 a day. Bring your IDP and wear the helmet, no exceptions.

Use Grab, not the haggle

Fixed price on screen, no meter argument, no 300 baht opening offer for a 60 baht ride.

Most temples are free

The big-hitters charge, but the vast majority cost nothing at all. Budget for a handful, not all of them.

Go May to October

Green season means real discounts on rooms and flights, and rain that mostly turns up for an hour then clears.

Book direct with guesthouses

Small family places often knock 10 to 20 percent off if you message them rather than booking through a platform.

Withdraw big, withdraw rarely

Thai ATMs charge roughly 220 baht per foreign card withdrawal. Four small trips to the machine is a wasted meal out.

Transport

Getting Around Thailand

Cheap, cheerful, and occasionally chaotic. Here's how to pick the right option for each leg of the trip.

Domestic Flights

Best for covering serious distance fast. Bangkok to Chiang Mai in an hour instead of twelve on a bus.

  • Budget carriers from about £22 / €26 / $30
  • Turns a two week trip into three destinations
  • Adds up quickly if you're hopping between five places
Find Cheap Flights

Scooter & Car Rental

Best for islands, Pai, and anywhere the buses can't be bothered going. Total freedom for less than the price of lunch.

  • Scooters from about £5 / €6 / $7 a day
  • Perfect for Koh Lanta, Pai and the Mae Hong Son loop
  • You need an IDP, and no helmet means no insurance payout
Compare Rentals

BTS, MRT & City Transit

Best for Bangkok. Air-conditioned, elevated above the gridlock, and absurdly cheap for what it is.

  • Rides from about £0.40 / €0.47 / $0.55
  • Beats Bangkok traffic every single time
  • Coverage stops well short of the outer suburbs
Travel Tips

Sleeper Trains

Best for the scenic overnight run. The Bangkok to Chiang Mai sleeper is a backpacker rite of passage for good reason.

  • Berths from about £18 / €21 / $24
  • You go to sleep in one city and wake up in another
  • Slow. Genuinely slow. That's sort of the point.
Search Train Routes

Intercity Bus

Best for budget travel between cities. The VIP coaches are genuinely comfortable, with reclining seats and a blanket.

  • Bangkok to Chiang Mai from about £11 / €13 / $15
  • Overnight services save you a hotel night
  • Bangkok to Phuket is 12 to 14 hours. Bring snacks.
Find Bus Routes

Ferries & Long-tails

Best for island hopping, and the only realistic way to reach most of the Andaman and Gulf islands.

  • Phuket to Phi Phi runs about £9-22 / €10-26 / $12-30
  • A long-tail boat is an experience on its own
  • Seas get rough in monsoon months, sailings can be pulled
Recommended Tours
Cheat Sheet

Which Is Right For You?

Exploring one city

BTS and MRT in Bangkok, songthaew in Chiang Mai.

Hitting several cities

Fly the long legs, overnight bus the short ones.

Island hopping

Ferry to get there, long-tail once you're there.

Tight budget, long distance

Night bus or sleeper train, scooter for day trips.

Before You Go

Quick Tips

Use Grab

Fixed fare, no meter argument, no wildly optimistic tuk-tuk opening price.

Get an IDP Before You Fly

Required for any scooter or car hire. Police do fine tourists without one, and insurers do refuse claims.

Travel Overnight

A sleeper bus or train covers the journey and the accommodation in one go.

Fill In Your TDAC

Free, official, and the window opens 72 hours before you land. Screenshot the QR code.

Experiences

Book Tours & Tickets

Handpicked Thailand experiences, powered by GetYourGuide.

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Questions

Thailand Travel FAQs

The questions we get asked most, answered honestly.

Do I need a visa to visit Thailand?
For most short holidays, no. Thailand runs a visa exemption scheme covering the UK, US, Australia, Canada and the whole of the EU, so you get stamped in on arrival with no application and no fee. Here's the important bit though: the rules are actively changing. In May 2026 the Thai Cabinet approved scrapping the 60 day exemption and replacing it with a 30 day allowance for a shorter list of countries. That change takes legal effect 15 days after it appears in the Royal Gazette, and as of writing it hadn't been published yet. So check your nationality on the official Thai e-visa site before you book anything, and plan around 30 days rather than 60 to be safe. Your passport needs at least six months validity either way.
What is the TDAC and do I really need one?
Yes, everyone needs one. The Thailand Digital Arrival Card replaced the old paper TM6 form back in May 2025, and it's now required for every foreign traveller entering by air, land or sea, whatever your visa status. It's completely free at tdac.immigration.go.th, takes about five minutes, and you'll get a QR code by email to show at immigration. Two things that catch people out: the window only opens 72 hours before you arrive, so you can't do it a week early, and the clock runs from your landing time in Thailand, not your departure from home. Screenshot the QR code rather than relying on airport wifi. You need a new one for every single entry, so if you're popping over to Laos and back, that's two.
Is Thailand safe for tourists?
Very. Millions of people visit every year without incident, and violent crime against travellers is genuinely rare. The risks that actually hurt people are much more boring: scooter accidents are the single most common cause of tourist injury, followed by drownings during monsoon swell and scams in the busiest tourist areas. Wear a helmet, respect red flags on beaches, use the meter in Bangkok taxis or just use Grab, and don't leave your drink unattended at a party. Do that and Thailand is one of the easier countries in Asia to travel around.
How long do I need in Thailand?
Two weeks is the sweet spot for a first trip. That gets you Bangkok for three or four days, Chiang Mai for three or four, and a proper stretch on a beach in Krabi or Koh Samui. With ten days you'll want to cut one of those rather than rush all three. Three weeks or more and you can add Pai, Ayutthaya, Koh Phangan, or head northeast into Isaan, which almost no tourists bother with and which is all the better for it. Don't try to do the whole country in a fortnight. Thailand is roughly the size of France and the travel days will eat your trip.
When is the best time to visit Thailand?
November to February is peak season for good reason: it's the driest and coolest window across most of the country. But Thailand works all year if you time it by region. The green season from May to October isn't the wash-out people imagine, you get a heavy hour of rain then sunshine, and prices drop noticeably. For the Andaman coast (Phuket, Krabi, Phi Phi) aim for November to April. For the Gulf islands (Koh Samui, Koh Tao, Koh Phangan) it's roughly February to September, since they run on an opposite pattern. One to watch: burning season in the north runs about February to April and Chiang Mai's air quality takes a real hit.
Is Thailand expensive?
No, and that's a big part of the appeal. A street food meal runs about £1.30 / €1.50 / $1.75. A hostel dorm starts around £5 / €6 / $7 a night. Even travelling mid-range with private rooms and restaurant meals, you're looking at roughly £55 to £75 / €64 to €88 / $74 to $101 a day. The things that quietly blow the budget are domestic flights booked late, island boat transfers, and diving. Sort those early and Thailand stays cheap.
Do I need travel insurance for Thailand?
Yes, and this is not one to skip. Thai private hospitals are excellent, some of the best in Asia, and they charge accordingly. A straightforward scooter accident can run into thousands of pounds before you've even left the ward. Given that scooter accidents are the most common tourist injury in the country, that's not a hypothetical risk. Read the small print on motorbike cover too, because most policies require a valid licence for the engine size and an International Driving Permit. Compare policies in our travel insurance section.
Is Thai street food safe to eat?
Mostly yes, and it's often safer than a mid-range restaurant because you can watch the whole thing being cooked in front of you. The rule of thumb is turnover. A long queue means fast rotation and fresh ingredients. Look for a cook making things to order over high heat, avoid anything that's been sitting lukewarm in a tray for hours, and if a stall is busy with locals rather than tourists, you're almost certainly fine. Give it a day or two to let your stomach settle in before you go hunting the really adventurous stuff.
Can I drink the tap water in Thailand?
No. Thai tap water isn't safe to drink and locals don't drink it either. Bottled water is cheap and available literally everywhere, but a filter bottle saves you money and a mountain of plastic. Ice in restaurants, hotels and tourist areas is generally fine because it's made commercially from purified water, and you can spot it by the neat cylindrical shape with a hole through the middle. At very local roadside spots, use your judgement.
What should I wear at Thai temples?
Shoulders and knees covered, for everyone. That means no vests, no shorts above the knee, and no see-through fabric. Some of the bigger sites like the Grand Palace enforce it strictly and will turn you away or make you rent a cover-up at the gate. You'll take your shoes off before going inside, so slip-ons make life easier. Never point your feet at a Buddha image or climb on one for a photo, and women shouldn't touch or hand things directly to a monk. A light scarf in your daybag covers most situations.
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