A Travel Guide to Thailand

Visas – Thailand offers many countries entrance without the need for a visa, only for a certain amount of time. Some nationalities such as Brazil and Argentina can stay for up to 90 days while many others like most European countries are eligible for 30 day stays.

One thing that any traveller, regardless of where they are from, should be aware of is that you may be asked to show proof of onward travel out of the country. While it is not largely pursued by the Thai immigration, it is not unheard of to get stopped at the passport checks and refused entry due to having no proof of departure. If you have overstayed your visa in Thailand on your trip then expect to pay 500 baht per day past the end of your visa. Overstaying can be easily avoided however, by simply doing a visa run to one of the bordering countries.

Costs – Thailand was once known as a cheap destination, but annoyingly this has changed in recent years, especially in Bangkok which was named the second most expensive city in Southeast Asia, just behind Singapore. If you are hoping to backpack around the country on a budget, you can do so fairly adequately with around 1,000 Baht a day. This will afford you a dorm bed or a cheap no frills room, three meals a day and enough money for transport, partying and sightseeing. Save yourself some money before you leave by looking online to find your cheap flights to Thailand. Heading to the areas that are popular with tourists will also be more expensive, such as Phuket and Koh Samui. It is quite common for tourists to be charged several times the actual price of the item than a local person would pay.

Etiquette – When travelling around Thailand, there is certain etiquette that you should keep in mind. Thai people view the head as the holiest part of the body, while the foot is considered to be the dirtiest meaning that if you were to touch someone’s head and fail to apologise, you will be considered to be very rude. Likewise, if you are travelling around on a train and you need to pass someone lying on the floor, it is better to go round them or ask them to move rather than step over.