The most efficient holiday in Asia for an Indian passport - visa-free, three hours away, with temples, islands and street food priced for anyone.
City and island in one week without the trip feeling rushed.
Pick the cities you want and how many nights each one gets. We sequence it so you are not repacking every morning.
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Tell me when there is one →Thailand is the easiest big holiday in Asia to get right. Bangkok gives you the gilded Grand Palace and the reclining Buddha at Wat Pho in the morning, a river boat at sunset and the best street food on earth after dark in Chinatown. Three hours south are the limestone islands - Phi Phi, Phang Nga Bay, the cliffs at Railay - reached by speedboat from Phuket or Krabi. North in Chiang Mai the pace drops to temples on foot, cookery classes and elephant sanctuaries where the animals are left alone. Indian passport holders enter visa-free, there are nonstop flights from seven Indian cities, and vegetarian and Indian food is genuinely everywhere. Six to seven nights covers a city and a coast comfortably.
Thailand is a country of 70 million people running 1,650 km down the Malay peninsula, with a fertile central plain around Bangkok and the Chao Phraya, forested mountains in the north around Chiang Mai, a dry north-eastern plateau, and two entirely different coastlines - the Andaman Sea on the west with Phuket, Krabi and Phi Phi, and the Gulf of Thailand on the east with Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. It was never colonised, which shows in the continuity of its monarchy, its Theravada Buddhist temple culture and a national confidence that is quite distinct from its neighbours. Bangkok is one of the great Asian cities: chaotic at street level, efficient above it on the Skytrain, and the best-value food city in the world at any price point.
For Indian travellers Thailand is the default first international trip and has been for twenty years. It is three to four and a half hours away, served nonstop from seven Indian cities, visa-free, and cheap enough that a family of four can do a week comfortably for what a Europe trip costs one person. The big change this year is that the visa-free stay was cut from 60 days to 30 days on 15 September 2026, which does not affect a normal week-long holiday at all but does invalidate every long-stay product built on the old rule. Indian food is everywhere, particularly in Bangkok's Phahurat and Sukhumvit, vegetarian requests are understood, and the whole country is set up for exactly this traveller.
| Entry | Visa-free (visa exemption) - 30 days from 15 September 2026 · up to 30 days |
| Best months | November, December, January, February |
| Currency | Thai Baht (THB) |
| Time zone | UTC+7 (IST +1:30) |
| Main gateway | BKK |
| Typical trip | 6-7 nights |
| Good for | couples, families with young kids, families with older children, solo, seniors, small groups, honeymoon, first-timers |
The Thai state traces itself to Sukhothai in the thirteenth century, where the Thai script was devised and a distinctive walking Buddha sculpture emerged, and then to Ayutthaya, founded in 1351, which became one of the largest and richest cities in the world - a river port trading with Portugal, the Dutch, France, China and Japan, with a court that received foreign ambassadors on its own terms. Burmese armies sacked Ayutthaya in 1767 and the ruins, 80 km north of Bangkok, are still the best day trip in the country. The capital moved south, and in 1782 Rama I founded the Chakri dynasty and built Bangkok on the east bank of the Chao Phraya, with the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew at its centre.
Siam was the only Southeast Asian state never colonised, a feat of diplomacy by Rama IV and Rama V, who ceded territory to Britain and France and modernised the administration, the army and the schools to keep the core intact. Absolute monarchy ended in a 1932 coup and the country was renamed Thailand in 1939. The second half of the twentieth century brought a long sequence of military coups, the American airbases of the Vietnam War, which built the first tourist infrastructure at Pattaya, and rapid industrial growth followed by the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which started here. King Bhumibol reigned from 1946 to 2016, the longest in Thai history, and is still deeply revered; his son Rama X succeeded him. The monarchy is protected by strict lese-majeste laws and is not a subject for casual comment by visitors.
Thailand covers 513,000 square kilometres, roughly the size of Spain, and divides into four regions that feel like different countries. The central plain around Bangkok is flat, wet, densely farmed and carries the Chao Phraya river. The north around Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai is mountainous, cool in winter, and culturally distinct, with the country's highest point at Doi Inthanon (2,565 m) and the hill communities of the former Golden Triangle. The north-east, Isaan, is a dry plateau bordering Laos along the Mekong, and is rarely sold to Indian clients. The south is the long peninsular tail, with the Andaman coast on the west and the Gulf on the east, separated by a spine of limestone karst that produces the cliffs at Railay and Phang Nga Bay.
Distances are longer than clients assume and internal flying is the norm. Bangkok to Chiang Mai is 700 km, a 70-minute flight or an 11-hour overnight train. Bangkok to Phuket is 840 km and a 90-minute flight. Bangkok to Pattaya is 150 km, 2 to 2.5 hours by road on the motorway, and to Ayutthaya 80 km or 90 minutes. In the south, Phuket to Krabi is 170 km and about 3 hours by road round the bay, or 2 hours by ferry across it. Phuket to Phi Phi is 45 minutes by speedboat and 90 minutes by big ferry. Koh Samui is reached by air from Bangkok on Bangkok Airways, which owns the airport, or by ferry from Surat Thani. Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai is 190 km and 3 hours on a good road.
Cool dry season (November to February)
November to February is the window worth paying for across the whole country except the Gulf islands: 25-32C, low humidity, clear skies, calm Andaman seas for Phi Phi and Phang Nga, and comfortable temple days in Bangkok and Ayutthaya. It is also peak pricing, with Christmas, New Year and Chinese New Year at two to three times normal rates in Phuket and Krabi, so book four months ahead for those dates. March to May is the hot season at 33-40C with punishing humidity, when Bangkok sightseeing is unpleasant after 10am and the north suffers serious agricultural burning haze in March and April - avoid Chiang Mai entirely in those two months, which is the strongest seasonal warning in the Thailand file. June to October is the south-west monsoon: short violent afternoon storms rather than all-day rain, rates 30-40% lower, and the landscape at its best, but the Andaman coast gets rough seas and some island boats stop. The coasts are opposite: if a client must travel in June to September, send them to Koh Samui on the Gulf side, not Phuket, and in October to December do the reverse.
Thailand is tropical and hot all year; the variable is rain and humidity, and the two coasts run on opposite monsoon calendars, which is the single most useful climate fact for a consultant.
Cool dry (November-February): 20-32C nationally, cooler in Chiang Mai where nights drop to 14-16C and the mountains to single digits. Low humidity, little rain, calm Andaman seas. The best conditions and the highest prices.
Hot (March-May): 33-40C with humidity over 70%, peaking in April. Bangkok is genuinely difficult by mid-morning. The north is worse than the numbers suggest because of crop-burning haze in March and April, with air quality in Chiang Mai regularly reaching hazardous levels - we do not sell Chiang Mai in those months. Sea temperatures are bath-warm and the islands are still good.
South-west monsoon (June-October): 26-33C, humid, with rain concentrated in intense afternoon and evening bursts and a general wet spell in September. The Andaman coast - Phuket, Krabi, Phi Phi - has rough seas, red-flag beaches and cancelled boats, worst in September. Bangkok floods locally in September and October. Rates drop 30-40% and the countryside is at its greenest.
Gulf coast exception: Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao run on the north-east monsoon and are at their wettest from October to December, which is exactly the Andaman's best window. February to August is the Gulf islands' good season.
The royal compound built from 1782, and Wat Phra Kaew inside it, which holds the Emerald Buddha - a 66 cm jade figure that is the most revered object in Thailand and whose robes are changed by the King three times a year. Gilded chedis, mirrored mosaic, and a mural gallery telling the Ramakien, the Thai Ramayana, which Indian clients read instantly. Go at 8.30am opening; by 10am it is a crush in 35C. Strict dress code, THB 500, allow two hours.
Wat Pho holds the 46 m gold-leafed reclining Buddha and is also the birthplace of Thai massage, with a school on site where an hour costs THB 480 and is the best massage in the city. Cross the river by the THB 5 ferry to Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn, whose 82 m prang is encrusted with broken Chinese porcelain and can be climbed partway for the view. Do Wat Pho in the morning after the palace and Wat Arun in late afternoon for the light.
Limestone islands 45 minutes by speedboat from Phuket or Krabi, with Maya Bay - the beach from the film - reopened after a four-year closure under strict caps, a no-swimming rule inside the bay and a THB 400 national park fee. Also on the circuit: Pileh Lagoon, Viking Cave, Monkey Beach and snorkelling at Bamboo Island. Book a small-boat operator rather than a 200-seat ferry, leave at 7am to beat the crowd, and expect rough water from June to October.
A bay of vertical limestone karsts north-east of Phuket, including the needle of Ko Tapu made famous by The Man with the Golden Gun, and the Muslim stilt village of Koh Panyee built out over the water. The right way to do it is by sea kayak into the collapsed cave lagoons, the hongs, which the big boats cannot enter. Half-day and full-day options from both Phuket and Krabi; the James Bond rock itself is crowded and the hongs are the actual experience.
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep sits at 1,073 m above Chiang Mai, reached by a winding 30-minute drive and then 306 naga-flanked steps or a funicular, with a gold chedi said to hold a Buddha relic and a terrace looking down over the whole valley. Go early for haze-free views. In the city below, Wat Chedi Luang's ruined 15th-century stupa and Wat Phra Singh are both inside the moat and walkable. Entry THB 30-50 each.
The Siamese capital from 1351 until the Burmese sacked it in 1767, 80 km north of Bangkok - brick prangs, rows of headless Buddhas and the famous sandstone Buddha head grown into a banyan root at Wat Mahathat. A UNESCO site and a serious half day. Go by car in the morning while it is under 33C, hire a licensed guide because the ruins explain nothing by themselves, and consider returning to Bangkok by river cruise on the Chao Phraya.
Fifteen thousand stalls across 27 sections covering clothing, ceramics, plants, antiques, art, pets and food - the largest market in Southeast Asia and an experience rather than just shopping. Saturdays and Sundays, 9am to 6pm, with a Friday night wholesale session. Take the MRT to Kamphaeng Phet, go at opening before the heat builds, agree a meeting point because groups always separate, and bring cash. Bargain politely at about 60-80% of the asking price.
Elephant Nature Park and a small number of genuinely observation-only projects in the Mae Taeng valley take rescued animals from the logging and riding industries and let visitors watch and, at some, prepare food - but not ride, and not bathe. Half day THB 2,500-3,000, full day more. Insist on the no-riding, no-bathing standard: the bathing experiences marketed as ethical rest on the same coercive training as the riding camps, and we do not sell them.
A quiet Muslim fishing island sitting between Phuket and Krabi in the middle of the karst bay, reached in 30 minutes by boat from either, with rubber plantations, buffalo in the paddy, no nightlife and a handful of good small resorts. The views back across the bay are better than from anywhere on Phuket. A genuinely calm two or three nights for a client who has decided Phuket is too much, and an easy stop between the two coasts.
The first Thai capital, founded in the thirteenth century and abandoned for Ayutthaya, now a UNESCO park of lotus-bud chedis and serene walking Buddhas spread across gardens and moats 60 km from Sukhothai airport. It is quieter, greener and better preserved than Ayutthaya, and best explored by bicycle at 7am. Bangkok Airways flies in from Bangkok, or it works as a stop on the road north to Chiang Mai. Almost no Indian itinerary includes it and it deserves to.
Rainforest older than the Amazon, three hours from either Phuket or Surat Thani, with limestone cliffs rising straight out of the Cheow Lan reservoir and floating raft-house accommodation on the lake. Nights are spent on the water with gibbons calling at dawn, and days on longtail boats and jungle walks. Two nights turns a standard Phuket beach week into something clients actually talk about afterwards. Basic facilities, and worth checking access in the September and October rains.
Most clients never leave the beaches, but Phuket Town's Thalang, Dibuk and Soi Romanee streets hold the best-preserved Sino-Portuguese shophouses in Thailand, painted in ice-cream colours, with tin-mining mansions, Hokkien Chinese shrines, serious local coffee and a Sunday walking street. An easy half day from any Phuket beach, free, and the only part of the island with any history on show.
The long commercial spine east of the centre, strung along the BTS Skytrain, with the widest hotel choice in the city, the EmQuartier and Terminal 21 malls, the best restaurant scene in Thong Lor and Ekkamai, and a large Indian and expatriate presence. Convenient rather than atmospheric, and the safest default for a first-time family or a repeat visitor who wants to move around easily.
The Chao Phraya waterfront and the old royal island around the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Wat Arun. The grand hotels are here - Mandarin Oriental, Shangri-La, Millennium Hilton - and the express boat is both transport and sightseeing. Further from the BTS and the malls, but the right choice for a first visit built around the temples and the river.
A long sweep of sand on Phuket's quieter north-west coast, roughly 20 minutes from the airport, with the Laguna resort complex and a string of villa properties. Wide beach, calm in season, good dining at Boat Avenue, and none of Patong's noise. This is where we put honeymooners and families who want a resort holiday rather than a nightlife one.
Ao Nang is the mainland base - a walkable strip of restaurants, dive shops and boat piers, with every island tour leaving from Nopparat Thara or the Ao Nang pier. Railay, ten minutes away by longtail and reachable only by boat, is a beach enclosed by limestone cliffs and is the best half day in the region. Cheaper and more relaxed than Phuket, and better for boat trips.
Inside the square moat sit more than thirty temples including Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Phra Singh, plus the Sunday Walking Street market, all flat and walkable. Nimmanhaemin, ten minutes west, is the cafe, design and university quarter with the best coffee in Thailand. Cool in winter, hazy and to be avoided in March and April.
The Thai new year and the largest festival of the year, marked by temple merit-making in the morning and a nationwide water fight in the streets for three days. Banks, offices and many shops close, domestic transport is booked out weeks ahead, and Bangkok's Silom, Khao San and Chiang Mai's moat become impassable. Either sell it deliberately as the experience it is, with a hotel booked four months out and a warning that nobody stays dry, or keep clients away from those dates. It also falls in the hottest fortnight of the year.
The most beautiful night in the Thai calendar - decorated banana-leaf floats with candles released onto rivers and lakes across the country, and in Chiang Mai the simultaneous Yi Peng festival of thousands of paper lanterns rising into the sky. Chiang Mai hotel rates triple and sell out six months ahead, and the ticketed mass lantern releases are separate paid events. Flights in and out of Chiang Mai are restricted on the night for safety. Book very early or not at all.
Bangkok's Yaowarat Chinatown is the centre of it, with lion dances, street food and red lanterns for several days, and Phuket also marks it heavily. Not a Thai public holiday, but it brings a large influx of Chinese visitors that pushes hotel rates in Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai to their annual peak alongside the Indian and Western winter season. Check the dates before quoting any late-January or February trip.
A Chinese-Thai Taoist observance strongest in Phuket, where participants follow a strict vegan diet for nine days and the street processions include famously extreme self-mortification with body piercing. Operationally it is a gift for vegetarian clients - yellow jay flags appear on thousands of stalls nationwide and vegan food becomes the easiest it ever is - and a warning for anyone squeamish about the Phuket processions.
Buddhist holy days close government offices and, importantly, ban alcohol sales nationwide for 24 hours - bars and restaurants will not serve, including in hotels, and clients are routinely surprised. Royal ceremonial days can close the Grand Palace at short notice, sometimes for a full day. Check the calendar before finalising a Bangkok sightseeing day and keep a flexible alternative in the itinerary.
Rice noodles stir-fried at high heat with tamarind, palm sugar, fish sauce, egg, tofu, bean sprouts and crushed peanuts, finished with lime and chilli flakes at the table. THB 50-80 from a street cart and better there than in any restaurant. Order it 'jay' or ask for 'mai sai nam pla, mai sai kai' for a vegetarian version without fish sauce or egg - most carts will do it.
The famous hot and sour prawn soup, built on lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, lime juice, fish sauce and bird's-eye chilli, in a clear version (nam sai) or a creamy one with evaporated milk (nam khon). Sharp, aggressive and nothing like an Indian soup. A mushroom version, tom yum het, is common and the vegetarian order to ask for. THB 120-250.
Green curry (gaeng keow wan) is coconut, green chilli, Thai basil and apple aubergine, sweeter and looser than an Indian curry. Massaman is the Muslim-influenced southern curry with cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, potato and peanut - the closest thing to a familiar Indian flavour profile and the safest first order for a cautious client. Both come with jasmine rice; both usually contain shrimp paste unless you ask.
Green papaya pounded in a clay mortar with lime, palm sugar, fish sauce, dried shrimp, tomato, long bean and a great many chillies - the national salad, from Isaan, and genuinely fiery. Order 'som tam jay' for the vegan version or ask for it 'mai phet' and accept that it will still be hot. Eaten with sticky rice and grilled chicken. THB 60-100 from a street stall.
Northern Thailand's signature dish and the reason to eat in Chiang Mai - egg noodles in a coconut and yellow curry broth with a Burmese-Chinese lineage, topped with crisp fried noodles, pickled mustard greens, shallot and lime. Usually chicken or beef, with vegetarian versions widely available in Chiang Mai. THB 60-120 at Khao Soi Khun Yai or any Nimman shop, and the single best-value bowl in the country.
Glutinous rice steamed in sweetened coconut milk with ripe nam dok mai mango and a salted coconut cream poured over, plus toasted mung beans. Seasonal at its best from March to June when the mangoes are right, available year-round from stalls and 7-Elevens. THB 60-150. Naturally vegan, universally loved, and the dessert every client comes home talking about.
Better than most of Southeast Asia but it needs the right words. Fish sauce (nam pla), oyster sauce, shrimp paste (kapi) and dried shrimp are default seasonings in almost everything including the vegetable dishes and the curry pastes, so 'no meat' is not enough. Teach clients two phrases: 'mangsawirat' for vegetarian and, more usefully, 'jay' (pronounced jair), which is the Thai Buddhist vegan standard excluding meat, fish sauce, egg, dairy and pungent vegetables - a yellow and red 'jay' flag outside a stall means the food is safe, and these are common. Say 'mai sai nam pla' for no fish sauce. Bangkok has a large and well-established Indian community: Phahurat, the Sukhumvit corridor and the Sikh gurdwara on Chakraphet Road all serve reliable Indian vegetarian food, and there are dedicated Jain-friendly kitchens in Phahurat worth pre-booking. Chiang Mai has an excellent vegetarian and vegan scene. Halal is straightforward - Thailand has a large Muslim population in the south, halal certification is common and visible, and Phuket, Krabi and the Bangkok Nana area all have plentiful halal options. Pure Jain requirements outside Bangkok need advance arrangement.
Thailand is the best-value food country we sell and the price bands are wide. Street stalls and markets: THB 50-80 a dish (INR 145-230), and this is where the best food in the country is - Yaowarat in Bangkok, the Chiang Mai night markets, Phuket's Old Town. Shopping-mall food courts, which use a card system and are air-conditioned and very clean: THB 80-150 a meal and the easiest entry point for a nervous first-timer. Casual sit-down restaurants THB 150-350 a head. Mid-range and tourist-area restaurants THB 300-700. The serious end - Nahm, Bo.lan, Le Du, Sorn, Gaggan Anand's room in Bangkok - runs THB 2,500-6,000 a head and Bangkok now holds a substantial Michelin list. Hotel buffets THB 900-1,800. Indian restaurants are everywhere: Phahurat, Bangkok's Little India near Chinatown, plus Indus, Gaggan and dozens of mid-range places on Sukhumvit; Phuket and Krabi both have several. Thais eat early and often - lunch from 11am, dinner from 6pm, and street food from dusk to well past midnight in Bangkok.
Do not drink tap water anywhere in Thailand, including Bangkok. Bottled water is THB 10-20 and hotels provide it. Ice is generally safe - commercial ice in Thailand is factory-made from treated water and comes in the standard cylinder shape with a hole through it, which is a reliable indicator; irregular crushed ice at a rural stall is less certain. Street food is safe and is the best food in the country - the rule is to eat where there is a queue of locals, where the cooking happens in front of you, and where the turnover is high. Avoid pre-cut fruit sitting unrefrigerated, shellfish in the hot months, and anything lukewarm on a buffet. Chilli levels are higher than most Indian clients expect in a different way - Thai heat is sharp and immediate - so ask for 'mai phet' (not spicy) and expect it still to be warm. Carry oral rehydration salts: heat and humidity dehydrate clients faster than they notice, and a lot of what gets reported as food poisoning in April is heat exhaustion.
Not traditionally Thai and never obligatory, but now normal from visitors in tourist areas. Restaurants: round up, or leave THB 20-50 at a casual place; at mid-range and upmarket restaurants a 10% service charge is usually already on the bill, in which case nothing more is needed. Street stalls and food courts: no tip. Taxi or Grab: round up to the nearest THB 10-20. Hotel porter THB 20-50 a bag; housekeeping THB 20-50 a day. Spa and massage therapist THB 50-100 for an hour, which is genuinely expected and appreciated. Private driver THB 200-300 a day; licensed guide THB 300-500 a day. Boat crew on a day trip THB 50-100 per person. Tip in cash and in baht, never in foreign coins, which cannot be exchanged.
Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK) is the primary gateway and takes nonstops from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad on Thai Airways, IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express and Vietjet Thailand. Don Mueang (DMK), the old airport 25 km north, handles most low-cost traffic including Thai AirAsia X, Thai Lion and some IndiGo services - the two airports are 50 km apart and are not interchangeable, so check the code on every ticket. Phuket (HKT) has nonstops from Delhi and Mumbai on IndiGo and Thai AirAsia, plus seasonal services. Krabi (KBV), Chiang Mai (CNX) and Koh Samui (USM) connect through Bangkok. Flight times from India: Kolkata 2 hours 30 minutes, Chennai 3 hours 30, Delhi 4 hours 15, Mumbai 4 hours 30, Bengaluru 3 hours 45. Suvarnabhumi immigration queues in the December to February peak run 45 to 90 minutes; the Digital Arrival Card being filed in advance speeds this up materially.
From Suvarnabhumi, the Airport Rail Link runs to Phaya Thai and connects to the BTS in 26 minutes for THB 45 (about INR 130) - fast, but awkward with luggage. A metered taxi from the public rank costs THB 300-500 plus THB 50 airport surcharge and tolls, so THB 400-600 total (INR 1,150-1,730), and takes 45-70 minutes depending on traffic; insist the driver uses the meter, and walk away if he offers a fixed price. Grab from the airport runs THB 450-700 and is the easier option. A prebooked private car is THB 900-1,400 (INR 2,600-4,000) and is what we book for families and late arrivals. Don Mueang to central Bangkok is THB 300-500 by taxi, 40-60 minutes. Phuket airport to Patong is 45 minutes and THB 800-1,200 by prebooked car; the airport taxi desk and the local minibus mafia are best avoided. Krabi airport to Ao Nang is 30 minutes, THB 600-900.
Grab is the default and works in Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Krabi and every city we sell, covering cars, taxis, motorbike taxis and food delivery with fares shown up front. A typical Bangkok car hop is THB 80-200 (INR 230-580). Bolt operates in Bangkok and is usually 10-20% cheaper. InDrive also works. These apps solve the two problems visitors have here - meter refusal and language - so we should push clients to install Grab before departure and link a card. Coverage is good in all tourist centres but thin on the smaller islands, where transport is songthaew or longtail and negotiated. Do not use motorbike-taxi options in the app for clients with luggage or children.
Good value and the right call for families, seniors and anyone doing Ayutthaya, the Bridge over the River Kwai or a multi-stop Phuket day. A private car with an English-speaking driver runs THB 2,500-3,500 a day (INR 7,200-10,100), a minivan THB 3,500-4,500, typically for 8-10 hours within a defined area. The driver is not a guide - Thai law restricts guiding to licensed guides and it is enforced at major sites, so a licensed English-speaking guide is a separate THB 2,500-3,500 a day and is genuinely needed at the Grand Palace and Ayutthaya. Drivers will suggest gem shops, tailors and 'special' stops on commission; instruct in advance that there are to be no unscheduled stops, and the problem disappears. In Bangkok itself a car is slower than the BTS at peak hours and we should not sell one for city sightseeing.
Do not. This is the single biggest cause of serious injury to visitors in Thailand and the statistics are grim - Thailand has one of the highest road fatality rates in the world and motorbikes account for most of it. An Indian licence alone is not valid; an International Driving Permit with a motorcycle endorsement is required, and without it the travel insurance is void, which turns a broken collarbone on Koh Phi Phi into a bill of several lakhs. Police checkpoints in Phuket, Samui and Chiang Mai stop foreign riders routinely and fine on the spot. Rental shops also run damage-claim scams against the passport they demand as deposit - never leave a passport as security. Use Grab, songthaews and private cars instead, all of which are cheap.
Bangkok is not a walking city at ground level - the heat, the broken pavements, the motorbikes on the footpath and the stray dogs make it hard work - but the elevated BTS walkways around Siam, Asok and Chit Lom are covered, air-conditioned in parts, and genuinely good. The Rattanakosin temple island around the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Wat Arun is best done on foot with a boat between, and that is a 3-4 km day in full sun. Chiang Mai's Old City inside the moat is small, flat and the most walkable place in the country. Phuket's Old Town Sino-Portuguese quarter is a pleasant hour; Patong and Ao Nang are walkable along their single strips. On the islands, expect sand and steep paths rather than pavements. Budget 4-7 km on a normal sightseeing day and plan the middle of the day indoors from March to May.
Google Maps is reliable for Bangkok including BTS and MRT routing and live traffic, and works well for the islands. Grab has its own mapping that drivers trust more. Download offline maps for the islands and the north, where signal drops in the karst valleys. Street signage in Bangkok is bilingual on main roads but Thai-only in the sois, and addresses use a soi number system - Sukhumvit Soi 11 means the eleventh lane off Sukhumvit - which is easy once explained and confusing until it is. Odd-numbered sois run off one side, even off the other. For rail, the BTS and MRT have their own apps with fare calculators. Keep the hotel's name and address in Thai script on the phone, because taxi drivers outside the tourist core often cannot read Roman script.
Thailand borders Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia, and the practical position in 2026 is mixed. The Cambodian land crossings, including Aranyaprathet-Poipet, have been closed since the 2025 border conflict, and the Indian mission has advised avoiding the Thai-Cambodian border districts of Sa Kaeo, Surin, Si Sa Ket, Buriram and Trat - never sell an overland Bangkok to Siem Reap transfer, and note that Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi and Chiang Mai are entirely unaffected. The Laos crossing at Nong Khai over the Friendship Bridge to Vientiane is open and easy, as is Chiang Khong to Huay Xai for the Mekong slow boat to Luang Prabang, and we do sell these. The Malaysian crossings at Padang Besar and Sadao are open and there is a through train to Butterworth and Kuala Lumpur. Myanmar crossings should be treated as closed to tourism. Note that visa-exempt entries by land are capped at roughly two per calendar year.
The currency is the Thai baht (THB). THB 1 is about INR 2.88 and USD 1 is about THB 33.4. Indian rupees are not usefully exchangeable in Thailand and the few places that will take them offer a poor rate, so do not carry INR cash. The best rates in the country are at the SuperRich chain in Bangkok, particularly the green and orange branches near Chit Lom and Ratchathewi, and at Vasu Exchange - they beat banks, hotels and airports by a clear margin, so change a small amount at the airport and the rest in the city. Carrying USD and changing to baht in Bangkok is a genuinely good strategy and often beats a card withdrawal. ATMs are everywhere and all charge a fixed THB 220 foreign-card fee per withdrawal regardless of amount, on top of the Indian bank's charges, so withdraw larger sums less often. A zero-markup forex card loaded in THB is the cleanest option. Always decline dynamic currency conversion when a machine offers to bill you in rupees.
Cards work in hotels, malls, chain restaurants and larger shops, with Visa and Mastercard universal and Amex patchy; some smaller places add a 3% surcharge. Everything else is cash: street food, markets, songthaews, longtail boats, temple donations, small massage shops and the islands. Thailand's PromptPay QR system is near-universal among locals but needs a Thai bank account or a linked international wallet, so most visitors cannot use it, although some inbound wallets now interoperate - do not rely on it. Grab can be paid by linked card, which is the easiest way to avoid cash for transport. Carry THB 3,000-5,000 per person per day in cash for a normal day of markets and street food, and keep small notes: nobody at a street stall can change a THB 1,000 note at 8am. 7-Eleven is on every corner and takes cards for anything over THB 100.
The wai - palms together, a slight bow, held higher for monks and elders - is the greeting, and Indian clients find it immediately familiar. Return a wai, but do not initiate one to a child or service staff. The monarchy is protected by strict lese-majeste laws with real prison sentences; do not comment on, joke about or post anything about the royal family, and stand when the royal anthem plays in cinemas and at 8am and 6pm in public spaces. Buddha images are sacred objects, not decor - do not pose with them, do not turn your back to one for a photograph, and do not buy a Buddha head. The head is the highest part of the body and the feet the lowest: never touch anyone's head, never point your feet at a person or an image, and never step over someone or over food. Remove shoes before entering a temple building and any home. Women must not touch a monk or hand anything to him directly. Public anger and raised voices cause serious loss of face and get nothing done - the Thai response to a problem is a calm smile, and shouting at hotel staff is the fastest way to be ignored.
Thailand is relaxed in general and strict at temples, and the strictness is enforced. The Grand Palace turns away hundreds of people a day: shoulders and knees covered for both men and women, no sleeveless tops, no shorts, no ripped jeans, no see-through fabric, no flip-flops at the palace itself. Sarongs are rented at the gate for THB 200 with a deposit, but arriving dressed correctly is faster and cheaper. Wat Pho, Wat Arun and Doi Suthep apply the same rules more casually. Elsewhere, light cotton and linen, and dress for 33C and high humidity. Beachwear belongs on the beach - walking through a Phuket or Krabi town in a bikini or shirtless is offensive and is increasingly fined. Topless sunbathing is illegal. Rooftop bars in Bangkok enforce smart-casual dress codes and turn away shorts and sandals. Bring a light scarf, a hat and shoes that come off easily.
Expected at markets, street stalls, with tuk-tuks and at tourist-area souvenir shops; not done in malls, supermarkets, convenience stores, restaurants, chain outlets or anywhere with a printed price. At Chatuchak or a night market, open at about 60% of the asking price and settle at 70-80% - the margin is narrower than Indian clients expect and much narrower than in Vietnam or Egypt. Two things Indian clients get wrong here. First, aggression: haggling in Thailand is done smiling and quietly, and a hard confrontational negotiation causes loss of face and the vendor will simply refuse to sell rather than lose face by conceding. Second, scale: arguing over THB 20 with a stallholder is rude and the amount is INR 58. For transport, use Grab and the meter rather than negotiating with tuk-tuks, which will always be more expensive. Prices at temples, national parks and government sites are fixed, and a foreigner rate genuinely exists at some national parks - it is official, not a scam.
| Sawasdee krap / Sawasdee ka | Hello (said by a man / by a woman) |
| Khop khun krap / Khop khun ka | Thank you (man / woman) |
| Chai | Yes |
| Mai chai | No |
| Kor thot | Sorry / excuse me |
| Karuna | Please |
| Tao rai? | How much is it? |
| Paeng pai | Too expensive |
| Hong nam yu tee nai? | Where is the toilet? |
| Aroi mak | Very delicious |
| Mangsawirat | Vegetarian |
| Jay | Strict Buddhist vegan (look for the yellow and red jay flag) |
Visa-free (visa exemption) - 30 days from 15 September 2026 · up to 30 days
Passport valid for at least six months beyond the date of arrival, with at least two blank pages. Immigration officers can and sometimes do ask for proof of onward or return travel within 30 days and evidence of funds of THB 10,000 per person or THB 20,000 per family, and they enforce this more at Don Mueang and on low-cost arrivals - carry a printed return ticket and hotel confirmation. Damaged passports are refused. Children need their own passports. Overstaying carries a THB 500 per day fine up to THB 20,000, payable at the airport, and longer overstays bring re-entry bans, so the 30-day limit matters.
Cash over USD 15,000 or equivalent must be declared. Duty-free allowance is 200 cigarettes and one litre of alcohol per adult - this is strictly enforced and Bangkok airport customs run targeted checks on arriving Indian passengers for excess cigarettes and alcohol, with fines that can run to ten times the duty. E-cigarettes and vaping devices are completely illegal in Thailand, including for personal use, and possession leads to confiscation, a heavy fine or arrest; this catches Indian travellers out constantly and must be briefed. Cannabis rules have tightened again since 2025 and recreational use is restricted, so treat it as off-limits. Drones require registration with the NBTC and CAAT and are banned over palaces, temples and airports. Buddha images above a certain size require an export licence, and antiques need Fine Arts Department clearance - the Buddha head souvenir is illegal to take out. Bringing meat, dairy and fresh produce from India is prohibited.
Not mandatory for visa-free entry, but we insist on it and should not issue documents without it. Thai private hospitals - Bumrungrad, Samitivej, Bangkok Hospital - are excellent and expensive, and they require payment guarantees up front; an appendix operation runs THB 200,000-400,000 and an island evacuation by speedboat and ambulance to Phuket adds more. Check three exclusions specifically: motorbike riding without the correct licence, which voids most policies and is the commonest claim rejection in Thailand; adventure activities including diving, zip-lining and jet skis; and pre-existing conditions. Clients diving beyond 18 m or doing a certification course need a policy that names diving.
Indian passport holders enter Thailand visa-free under the visa exemption scheme, at no cost. The critical change: the exemption was cut from 60 days to 30 days with effect from 15 September 2026, confirmed by the Royal Thai Embassy in New Delhi. Every product, brochure and quote built on the old 60-day rule is now wrong and must be rewritten. The 30 days can be extended once by up to 30 more days at a Thai immigration office for a THB 1,900 fee, but this is at the officer's discretion and must never be promised or planned around. There is no visa on arrival for Indian nationals - VoA in Thailand is limited to a short list of other nationalities, so any agent or website quoting a 2,000 THB visa on arrival for an Indian passport is simply wrong, and this is the most persistent myth in the market. Separately and in addition, the Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) is mandatory for all foreign arrivals, is completely free, and is filed online at tdac.immigration.go.th within the three days before arrival; dozens of third-party sites charge INR 1,000-3,000 for it and are scams. For any stay beyond 30 days, or for non-tourist purposes, apply for the e-Visa at thaievisa.go.th before departure rather than relying on an in-country extension. Note also that visa-exempt entries by land border are capped at roughly two per calendar year, which matters only for repeat regional travellers. Immigration may ask for a return ticket within 30 days, a hotel booking and proof of THB 10,000 per person. Rules here have moved three times in two years; reconfirm with the Royal Thai Embassy or thaievisa.go.th before quoting.
AI ESCAPES CLIENT PRICE: INR 418 per traveller for filing the Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) - service fee INR 354 + 18% GST INR 64. There is no visa fee. (Rate card as of 21 Sep 2026.)
Visa rules change. Our desk confirms the current requirements for your passport before you book.
220V, 50Hz. Sockets are Type A, B and C, and most modern Thai sockets are hybrid units that accept both flat American pins and round European pins. An Indian Type D three-round-pin plug will not fit, but the common Indian two-pin round chargers usually do. A universal adapter is the safe answer and costs almost nothing at any 7-Eleven if forgotten. Voltage matches India so no converter is needed. Power is stable in cities; the smaller islands run on generators with occasional cuts.
Excellent and cheap. 4G and 5G coverage is strong across Bangkok, the tourist south and the north, with gaps only on remote islands and in the mountains. AIS, TrueMove H and dtac all sell tourist SIMs at the airport and at any 7-Eleven for THB 300-600 covering 8 to 15 days with large or unlimited data - the airport counters are convenient but cost more than a phone shop in town. eSIMs from the same operators and from international providers work well and are the easier option for most clients. Free wifi is in every hotel, cafe, mall and 7-Eleven and is generally fast. Coverage on Koh Phi Phi, Koh Lipe and the smaller Similan and Surin islands is limited, and boat trips are effectively offline.
Shops and malls 10am to 9 or 10pm, seven days a week, including public holidays - Thailand does not do a weekly closing day. 7-Elevens are 24 hours and there is one every few hundred metres. Banks 8.30am to 3.30pm on weekdays, with branches inside malls open later and at weekends. Temples 8am to 5pm, with the Grand Palace 8.30am to 3.30pm and last entry strictly enforced; Wat Arun to 6pm. Government offices 8.30am to 4.30pm with a noon to 1pm lunch break. Restaurants serve from 11am to 10pm, street food from dusk to past midnight in Bangkok. Markets: Chatuchak is weekends only, 9am to 6pm; night markets run 5pm to midnight. Alcohol sales in shops are legally restricted to 11am-2pm and 5pm-midnight, which surprises clients at 3pm in a 7-Eleven, and alcohol sales are banned entirely on Buddhist holy days such as Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha and Asanha Bucha - warn clients whose dates fall on one.
Thailand has one of the highest road death rates in the world and motorbikes account for the overwhelming majority. Do not let clients rent a scooter - an Indian licence alone is not valid, an International Driving Permit with a motorcycle endorsement is required, and riding without it voids the travel insurance entirely, which is the commonest claim rejection on Thailand files. Police stop foreign riders routinely in Phuket, Samui and Chiang Mai. Use Grab, songthaews and prebooked cars. Also insist on seatbelts in the back of taxis, which are often buried under the seat.
Four recur. The gem shop: a friendly stranger or tuk-tuk driver says the Grand Palace is closed for a ceremony and offers a cheap tour that ends at a gem or tailor shop - the palace is not closed, walk on. The jet ski: an operator in Patong or Pattaya claims pre-existing damage and demands THB 20,000-50,000, sometimes with intimidation - do not rent jet skis. The taxi meter: refusal to use the meter and a fixed price three times the fare - use Grab. And the TDAC clone sites charging for the free arrival card. Also note that scooter rental shops demanding your passport as deposit is a leverage tactic; never hand it over.
The real medical issues are heat exhaustion, dehydration and sunburn rather than disease. Carry two litres of water per person on a sightseeing day, use oral rehydration salts, and plan the middle of the day indoors from March to May. Never drink tap water; commercial cylinder ice is fine. Dengue is present year-round and peaks in the monsoon, so use DEET repellent at dawn and dusk. Thai private hospitals are excellent but require payment guarantees, so insurance is essential. For diving, check the insurance names diving, and leave 24 hours between the last dive and a flight.
E-cigarettes and vapes are completely illegal in Thailand, including for personal use, and possession has led to fines and arrests of Indian tourists at Bangkok airport - leave them at home. Do not comment on or post about the monarchy, which carries genuine prison sentences under lese-majeste law. Drug penalties are severe. Buddha images and antiques need export permits. Geographically, the Thai-Cambodian border districts of Sa Kaeo, Surin, Si Sa Ket, Buriram and Trat are subject to live Indian advisories and the land crossings are closed, and the deep south provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat have a long-running insurgency and are off-limits. Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi, Samui and Chiang Mai are unaffected.
Refuse single-use plastic where you can; Thailand is one of the largest ocean plastic contributors and 7-Eleven will give you a bag for a single bottle unless you say no. Carry a refillable bottle - most good hotels have filtered refill stations. Use reef-safe sunscreen: oxybenzone and octinoxate sunscreens have been banned in Thai marine national parks since 2021 and the fine is real. Do not touch, stand on or collect coral, and do not let a boat operator anchor on reef. Maya Bay on Phi Phi was closed for four years to let the reef recover and now runs strict visitor caps and a no-swimming rule in the bay - respect it rather than looking for the operator who ignores it. Choose smaller boats over the 200-passenger ferries for island trips. Avoid the elephant-camp industry entirely in favour of observation-only sanctuaries.
Buy from the maker - the Chiang Mai craft villages at Bo Sang and San Kamphaeng, the hill-community weaving cooperatives, the Sunday Walking Street artisans - rather than from souvenir chains selling imported goods. Do not photograph hill communities as exhibits, and avoid the 'long-neck' Kayan villages near Chiang Rai, which are widely criticised as human zoos where refugee women are paid a fraction of the gate. Do not give money or sweets to begging children, which sustains the trafficking that puts them there; support a registered organisation instead. Thailand has a serious child-protection problem in some tourist areas and any suspicion should go to the Thailand Tourist Police on 1155. Learn a few words of Thai, wai back when greeted, and never raise your voice in a dispute. Tip massage therapists, boat crew and drivers, who earn very little.
No elephant riding, and no elephant bathing or washing either - the bathing-as-ethical-alternative marketing is a rebrand of the same captive industry, and the training that makes an elephant tolerate tourists is brutal. Book only observation-only sanctuaries such as Elephant Nature Park near Chiang Mai, where the animals are not made to interact. Avoid Tiger Kingdom and every big-cat photo attraction, the crocodile and monkey shows, and the Phuket and Pattaya animal theatres. Do not pay to have a photo taken with a slow loris, gibbon or iguana on a beach or a bar street - those animals are taken from the wild and usually mutilated. Do not feed monkeys anywhere, particularly at Lopburi and on the Phi Phi boat stops, where they bite. Do not buy ivory, turtle shell, coral, shells or anything made from wildlife. On the reef, look and do not touch, and never chase or ride a turtle or a whale shark.
No visa is needed for tourism, but the rules changed this year. Indian passport holders enter visa-free, and from 15 September 2026 the permitted stay was cut from 60 days to 30 days. There is no visa on arrival for Indian nationals, so ignore any website quoting a 2,000 baht arrival fee. Separately, everyone must complete the free Thailand Digital Arrival Card at tdac.immigration.go.th within three days before arrival - it is mandatory, it takes five minutes, and the card itself is free, and any site presenting a charge as a government fee for it is a scam. For stays over 30 days, apply for an e-Visa before departure. If you would like us to file it for you, the all-in charge is INR 418 per traveller including GST.
Six to seven nights is the right length for a first trip: three nights in Bangkok for the Grand Palace, Wat Pho, the river and the markets, then three or four on a beach at Phuket or Krabi. Five nights is the honest minimum. Eight to ten nights lets you add Chiang Mai in the north, with its temples, cookery classes and elephant sanctuaries. Do not try to fit both an island and Chiang Mai into six nights - it means two internal flights and you will lose a day to airports.
November to February is the best window nationally - 25 to 32C, dry, low humidity and calm seas on the Andaman side for Phi Phi and Phang Nga. It is also the priciest, so book four months ahead for Christmas and New Year. March to May is very hot at 33 to 40C, and Chiang Mai should be avoided in March and April because of agricultural burning haze. June to October is cheaper and greener with heavy afternoon showers. Note the coasts differ: Koh Samui on the Gulf is at its wettest October to December, when Phuket is at its best.
Yes, more than to almost anywhere else. Bangkok has nonstop flights from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad on Thai Airways, IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express and Vietjet Thailand. Kolkata to Bangkok is just 2 hours 30 minutes and Delhi about 4 hours 15. Phuket has nonstops from Delhi and Mumbai. Watch the airport code: Bangkok has two airports, Suvarnabhumi (BKK) and Don Mueang (DMK), which are 50 kilometres apart, so check which one your ticket says.
It is the best-value international holiday available to Indian travellers. Return flights run INR 18,000 to 40,000 depending on your city and the season, and a comfortable six-night four-star trip costs about INR 45,000 to 75,000 per person twin sharing on land, excluding flights. Street food is 50 to 80 baht a dish, which is under INR 250, a mid-range restaurant meal is 300 to 700 baht, and a Grab across Bangkok is 80 to 200 baht. December and January in Phuket cost 30 to 50 per cent more than the rest of the year.
Yes, with the right words. Fish sauce and shrimp paste are default seasonings even in vegetable dishes, so asking for no meat is not enough. Use 'jay', the Thai Buddhist vegan standard - look for the yellow and red jay flag on stalls, which are common - or say 'mangsawirat' and 'mai sai nam pla' for no fish sauce. Bangkok's Phahurat district is a full Little India with Indian vegetarian and Jain-friendly kitchens, and there are Indian restaurants across Sukhumvit, Phuket and Krabi. Chiang Mai has an excellent vegetarian scene. Halal food is widely certified and easy to find.
Yes. Violent crime against visitors is rare and Thailand handles family tourism extremely well. The real risks are road traffic, so do not rent a scooter under any circumstances, and heat exhaustion, so carry water and plan the middle of the day indoors. Watch for the gem-shop and jet-ski scams and use Grab rather than negotiating with tuk-tuks. Two legal points matter: e-cigarettes and vapes are completely illegal and have led to arrests, and any comment about the Thai monarchy is a serious offence.
Only by air. The Thailand-Cambodia land borders, including the Aranyaprathet to Poipet crossing that used to carry the overland Bangkok to Siem Reap route, have been closed since the 2025 border conflict, and the Indian mission has advised avoiding the Thai-Cambodian border provinces. Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai are entirely unaffected and completely normal. If you want to combine the two countries, fly Bangkok to Siem Reap, which takes about an hour, and we will build it that way.
Message our travel desk and describe the trip — a real person picks it up, usually within the hour on Indian working days.
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