Thailand Travel Guide

Thailand Facts

  • Location: center of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by four countries. Myanmar to the north; Laos to the north and east, Cambodia to the east, and Malaysia to the south. It shares its maritime borders with Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand in Southeast; and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea in the Southwest.
  • Official Language: Thai
  • Capital: Bangkok (Krung Thep)
  • Population: 69.63million(2019)
  • Currency: Thai Baht 1 US Dollar =33.75 Thai Baht(2022)
  • Time Zone: UTC +7

Why you should visit Thailand

Thailand has everything from beautiful beaches to lush jungle to majestic historic sights. Tourism ranks as the No. 1 industry in the country, and more than 39.8 million international tourists visited Thailand in 2019 because of its:

Friendly people: Thailand is known as the Land of Smiles. Thai people are warm, kind, hospitable and modest.

Majestic natural beauty: multiple islands that are worth seeing along with unparalleled beautiful sand beaches (more than 3000 kilometers).

Colorful culture: you’ll find stunning religious art and architecture. You can also join in their distinctive festivals like water and lantern festival.

Gorgeous food: The delicacy of Thai dishes results in a blend of freshness and fragrance, and irrespective of your reasons for visiting, an indulgence in the traditional foods in Thailand is something you must never resist.

Affordable tours :

The Best Time to Travel in Thailand

The best time to visit Thailand is from January to March, just before the monsoon. The pleasant weather at that time makes for a great reason to visit Thailand.

Thailand has three major seasons, all of which are suitable for vacationers to travel during and enjoy. The country is busiest during the dry season, when temperatures do not normally reach over 32C (90F). During the hot season, tourists flock to the many dreamy beaches found along Thailand’s immense coast.

Bangkok and northern Thailand are popular destinations during the monsoon season, as the islands are prone to flooding during this time.

Though there are pros and cons to each season, visitors are never likely to get cold and can usually enjoy plenty of the country’s sunshine during their visit.

Top Things to do in Thailand

Spending few days in Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and cultural center of Thailand. As a visitor, you can visit the Grand Palace, floating market and its beautiful temples. You can also have a taste of Thai street food. Bangkok has infinite choices when it comes to shopping .Bangkok is paradise for bargain hunters! Bangkok has just about everything you want and need. From high-end luxury shops to miles of stalls side-by-side at the night markets.

Don’t miss Chiang Mai
A visit to Thailand isn’t complete until you’ve experienced the mountainous region of Northern Thailand. Chiang Mai is the most popular city for visitors and those wanting to immerse themselves in Thai culture. You’ll find temples beautifully built and generally decorated with golden monuments. If you’re someone who loves nature, the mountains and the greenery, you can visit one of the elephant Sanctuaries there, read more top things to do in Chiang Mai.

Have a taste of nightlife
Thailand is famous for its exotic nightlife all over the globe. So, getting a first-hand experience of the nightlife here is a must during your trip. And to ensure an amazing experience, here we have the best places to enjoy Thailand’s nightlife. Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Koh Samui.

Get a Traditional Thai Massage
After a day of discovering, there is nothing better than a Thai massage. An hour-long traditional Thai massage is priced from 200 – 500 THB (6 – 15 USD), depending on where you get it. Northern Thailand or Bangkok is much cheaper than the Thailand islands and beaches.

Visit an island
With excellent weather, warm ocean water, and palm-fringed beaches, Thailand is island living at its very best. There are more than 1400 island you can choose from!
Of course, you can choose to just relax, soak up the sun and work on the tan or you can go island-hopping and explore! The islands are so popular because of the amazing things to do on Thailand islands. It’s quite easy to take a ferry between more popular islands such as Ko Samui, Koh Tao and Ko Phangan.

Visa to Thailand

The VISA EXEMPTION RULE allows tourists from 64 countries to enter Thailand without a visa. They are granted to stay a maximum of 30 days if they are entering Thailand via an international airport or entering through a land border checkpoint from neighboring countries. The traveler must apply for the Certificate of Entry (under Quarantine or Sandbox Program) from the Thai Embassy or Consulate prior to coming to Thailand.
All travellers must have the following documents for entering Thailand:

A Thailand Pass (via https://tp.consular.go.th/) for arrivals by air and land; or a Certificate of Entry (via a Royal Thai Embassy/Consulate-General) for arrivals by water.

An insurance policy with coverage no less than US$20,000. Thais and foreign expatriates under Thailand’s national healthcare coverage are exempt from this requirement.

*TAT recommends that travellers make sure to check the small print of any COVID-19 insurance policy before purchasing. Ultimately, the policy should cover the cost of treatment and other medical expenses associated with being infected with COVID-19, including in-patient hospitalization, hospital isolation, hotel isolation, or related quarantine. The insurance policy should also cover the whole duration that travellers are planning to stay in Thailand, plus at least 10 extra days as a precautionary measure in the event that the traveller’s second test result returns as positive.

A proof of prepayment for 1 night of accommodation at government-approved hotel/s; such as, SHA Extra Plus (SHA++) on Day 1, which should also include the expenses for 2 COVID-19 tests: an RT-PCR test upon arrival (Day 0-1) and an antigen self-test on Day 5.

A Certificate of COVID-19 Vaccination
Everyone 18 years of age and older must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 with an approved vaccine at least 14 days before travelling to Thailand.

Travellers 12-17 years of age travelling to Thailand unaccompanied must get vaccinated with at least 1 dose of an approved vaccine at least 14 days before travelling to Thailand.

Those travelling with parents are exempt from this requirement.

Travellers under 12 years of age, travelling with parents, are exempt from this requirement.

For arrivals by water, everyone on board must be fully vaccinated. This is except for travellers under 18 years of age, travelling with parents or guardians.

Travellers with a history of COVID-19 infection who have received at least 1 dose of an approved vaccine post-infection must have a medical certificate of COVID-19 recovery.

A Certificate of COVID-19 Recovery

Travellers with a history of COVID-19 infection within a period of 14 days to 3 months and has yet to receive any vaccine post-infection must have a medical certificate of COVID-19 recovery.

Thailand COVID-19 Travel Restrictions

From 1 April, 2022, international arrivals under any of the current three entry schemes – TEST & GO, Sandbox, and Alternative Quarantine (AQ) – will be allowed to enter Thailand without the need to show proof of a negative RT-PCR test within 72 hours of travel. There are three different pathways to entry: two for vaccinated travelers and one for those who are unvaccinated. You're still required to take some tests on arrival, but the number of tests varies depending on the type of entry scheme you've applied for.

Depending on your vaccination status, here's what you need to know about your options.

Test-and-Go program for vaccinated travelers
Fully vaccinated tourists from any country can avail of the Test-and-Go program. It allows you to bypass seven-day quarantine and travel to any part of Thailand, provided you take a negative COVID-19 test on the first and fifth day of your visit.

To qualify for the quarantine-free Test-and-Go plan, you are also required to have an insurance policy with coverage no less than US$20,000. Thais and foreign expatriates under Thailand’s national healthcare coverage are exempt from this requirement.

Visitors under the program are required to take a COVID test on arrival and spend the night in their hotel room while awaiting results, which usually take about 24 hours to process. But once the result is negative, they will be free to move and travel around Thailand much in the same way that any Thai citizen can.

Travelers are also required to download the MorChana app, a tracking app where they will be reminded to take another antigen test on day five and record the results.

They must also have proof of vaccination (more than 14 days before the travelling), and apply for a Thailand Pass prior to travel. Travelers under the age of 12 are exempt from vaccination requirements but they will have to be tested.

List of approved COVID-19 vaccines in Thailand

  • CoronaVac (Sinovac) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 2-4 weeks;
  • AstraZeneca (Vaxzevria, Covishield) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 4-12 weeks;
  • Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty, Tozinameran (INN)) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 3 week;
  • Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) – 1 dose needed;
  • Moderna (Spikevax) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 4 weeks);
  • COVILO (Sinopharm) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 3-4 weeks);
  • Sputnik V – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 3 weeks);
  • Covaxin – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 4 weeks;
  • Novavax (Nuvaxovid) / Covovax – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 3 weeks);
  • Medigen – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 4 weeks;
  • Sputnik Light (For Sandbox only) – 1 dose needed.

Sandbox Program for vaccinated travelers
You can also visit Thailand under the Sandbox program. It's slightly more restrictive and allows fully vaccinated visitors from any country to travel to Thailand, provided they stay in approved locations such as Phuket, Krabi and Ko Pha-ngan for five days before travelling to the rest of the country.

Mandatory Quarantine of 5 days for unvaccinated travelers in Thailand
People who are not vaccinated can also visit Thailand under the country's Alternative Quarantine program. They must apply for a Thailand Pass, take out an insurance policy with at least US$50,000 coverage and pay for their quarantine accommodation before traveling to Thailand, as well as their PCR tests.

They must quarantine for five days and take PCR tests on day four and five. When they quarantine period is over, travelers will be free to travel around Thailand.