Planning a Trip to Thailand (2025)

Thailand is one of our favourite countries to visit and as of 2025, we’ve been around 30 times. That’s why we want to help you with planning your trip to Thailand, be it for a 1 week vacation or a 3 month tour. This page is here to help you!

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Planning Your Trip to Thailand

We never get bored of Thailand and there is always more to see and do, don’t stop at the beaches, the whole country has beautiful, historic, natural, cultural and wondrous things to see and do. It’s a beautiful country with much to offer holidaymakers, travellers and tourists. Thailand can be extremely budget-friendly with small guesthouses from under $50 US per night , or you can splurge on fancy hotels.

Thailand has stunning beaches, ancient temples, delicious food, and a fascinating rich culture. You can take a trip to Thailand to relax on a beach from the comfort of a beautiful resort, or tour the sites of Thailand. This page will tell you exactly how to plan your trip to Thailand, or we can be your trip planner.

Independent travellers can take a self-guided tour of Thailand using buses, trains, tuk tuks and internal flights. We normally travel around Thailand this way, for up to 3 months. We once extended our 3 month visa in Chiang Mai and spent a full 6 months in Thailand, it’s easy to do

Less confident travellers can book a tour of Thailand with a group travel company or bundle flights and hotels together as a package holiday. It’s easy to do online and you don’t need a travel agent. We last used a travel agent in 2001! There are endless possibilities for your trip to Thailand.

You should not need a guide for any part of your trip, but if you’d like to take guided tours at historic attractions, there are many options to book them. This is something we can help you with.

Planning Flights To Thailand

To book your flights to Thailand, maybe read our tips on finding a great deal using Skyscanner, these will really help you cut costs if you are taking a long international flight from the US, UK, Australia or Europe. Tools like Syscanner can give you a good idea of which routes and dates are cheapest and easiest.

Most travellers will arrive in Thailand at one of the two international airports outside Bangkok, but several beach destinations (Pattaya, Koh Samui, Phuket, Krabi etc.) do have their own airports. It may be a good idea for you to arrive in Bangkok, spend a few days exploring there, and then travel on to a beach vacation using a cheap, fast, domestic flight. We’d also strongly suggest you visit Chiang Mai, in the north, if time allows. You can take the overnight sleeper train, which is a fun trip, or fly.

We have a full post on the train journey between Bangkok and Chiang Mai here. We last took this trip in 2024 and there is a new train station, so do read up on that.

Flights within Asia are cheap and easy using budget airlines (Air Asia, Viet Jet etc.), but if you’re arriving in Thailand from Europe, the US, Australia or the UK, these long international flights may mean you need a connecting flight via Singapore or The Middle East. For us, flying from Cairns Australia, we often fly to Bangkok via Bali, taking the chance to spend a couple of days in Bali on the way.

We think Thai Air is an excellent full-service airline, we often fly London to Bangkok on Thai and it’s normally pretty affordable. Budget airlines also serve Thailand. We have never had any issues with budget airlines, but make sure you check their luggage allowances.

Small Thai holiday islands generally do not have airports, you will need to take a ferry.

Another way to book flights, or any internal transport in Thailand is to use 12Go Asia. This tool lets you book buses, trains, minibuses and flights, you can see costs and times side-by-side. Open 12Go Asia here. We use 12Go often, ourselves, it’s always been good for us.

Planning a Holiday Package To Thailand

Here’s an easy way to plan and book a simple holiday package to Thailand.

• Step 1, Open this site and select “packages” from the menu above the selection boxes. If you’d rather use the Australia site, select this option, top left.
• Step 2. Enter your airport or city of departure, and enter Bangkok, or Phuket etc. Add your dates and the number of people travelling.
• Step 3. Select your accommodation.
• Step 4. Select your departure flight.
• Step 5. Select your return flight.
• Stap6. Review, confirm, add passport details, names, and pay.
• Step 7. You may add insurance or trip protection as part of the package, or you may have your own holiday insurance.
• Step 8. Organise your transport from your arrival airport to your hotel in advance, or simply take a Grab car or taxi. You may choose to self-drive and hire a car. We have done this in Phuket and Northern Thailand. I wouldn’t drive around Bangkok. Book a rental vehicle here.
• Step 9. Book your activities. During busy periods, particularly October and November, book in advance.
• Don’t forget to take care of visa requirements for Thailand, you can do that here.

Planning Transport in Thailand

Getting a taxi or tuk tuk in Thailand is very easy, and both are cheap. Flag them down or use a taxi rank. Always check that the diver will use his meter. If he says “broken” agree on a price before getting in. Of course today, Grab (like Uber) makes travel very easy. We used Grab constantly in Bangkok in 2024, even for longer distance tourist sites like The Erawan Museum and Ancient City.

If you need a longer-distance bus, car, minibus, shuttle, ferry boat, or even internal flight, you can book those here, all in one spot. I’ve set this to Bangkok to Phuket, just change this to your destinations.

At the major Thai airports there are easy-to-use taxi ranks, you take a number and wait your turn. The lady on the desk will take your details and send you to a cab. The Bangkok airports also have train access, but taking a taxi is easier. Some airports may have a different system, but on our last arrival in Bangkok, this was how it was done.

You could also book a car and driver for an airport pick up, you can do this here.

If you need more help with getting around Thailand, there’s this post about internal transport. I’ll also put all of this useful information in the related posts at the bottom of the page. If you find this post useful, please bookmark it using Grow, bottom left, or give it a like in your preferred way, thanks, it helps us.

Planning Accommodation in Thailand

Thailand has fabulous accommodation at every price point, and most htels, guest houses, hostels and apartments will be a lot cheaper than in Western Countries. We think Thailand is possibly THE cheapest destination. But we haven’t been everywhere yet!

A guest house in Thailand is a simple hotel, some may have dorms, we normally take family rooms. Some may provide breakfast.

How should you book your hotel? Which booking platform do you use regularly and feel comfortable with? Booking.com, Expedia, Trivago, Hotels.com, these all work fine for Thailand. Agoda are the Asia specialists, they’re based in Singapore and sometimes you’ll find more choice and slightly better deals. We always use Booking.com or Agoda in Thailand, never Airbnb. Open either of those using those links, I’ve set them to open for Bangkok, you can change that.

Should you pre-book your accommodation for every night or just book a few days on arrival? Both are fine, it’s up to you and your travel style. It’s usually no problem to book last minute in Thailand unless you’re travelling over a holiday or festival, or going to busy places like Phuket.

Thailand Trip Planning Service

Here on the world travel family website we know Thailand well. If you’d like help planning your trip to Thailand (Or a Southeast Asia tour), get in touch at [email protected] and tell us your dreams for your trip.

We can send you a form, you can tick off which places in Thailand you’d like to visit or those you need more information about.

This document has a basic outline of the Thailand trip planning process, it’s free. You can use it to help yourself plan, or you can use it to help our team plan your trip. Just email us at the address above and we can give you full access and further detailed information.

We can organise your itinerary, hotels, tours, classes, and transport for you.

Thailand trip planning for our readers is something we love to do, be it for a short vacation or for a longer travel itinerary. Our flat fee is for trips of 1-2 weeks, longer trips and tours we charge more.

Alternatively, use the posts on our website to plan your own trip to Thailand. You do not need a travel agent to plan a trip to Thailand, let us show you how to take control of your own travel planning.

We would suggest you read our posts about Bangkok and Northern Thailand to get you started in putting your trip itinerary together.

Tips To Help You Plan Your Trip to Thailand

Here are some brief tips to help you plan your trip to Thailand.

1. Best time to visit Thailand: Thailand has a mostly tropical climate and is in the northern hemisphere, close to the equator. It’s generally hot and humid year-round. However, the best time to visit most of Thailand is from October to February, which is the cooler season when temperatures are more comfortable and rainfall is lower.
2. Visa requirements: Depending on your nationality, you may need a visa to enter Thailand. You can check the visa requirements on the website of the Thai embassy or consulate in your country.
3. Flights: Thailand has several international airports, including Bangkok (BKK), Phuket (HKT), and Chiang Mai (CNX). You can search for flights on websites like Expedia, Kayak, or Skyscanner. You may need proof of onward travel (ie. a flight exiting Thailand already booked) to be allowed to board you flight to Thailand.
4. Accommodation: Thailand has a wide range of accommodation options to suit all budgets, from hostels and guesthouses to luxury 5 star resorts. You can search for accommodation on websites like Booking.com, Agoda, or Airbnb. You can pay under $20 per night for accommodation in Thailand, for a family, expect to pay from $50 per night in less expensive parts of Thailand.
5. Transportation: Thailand has a good network of buses, trains, and domestic flights that can take you to most parts of the country. This makes getting around Thailand very easy. You can also hire a car in Thailand, or a scooter if you want to explore on your own. Be certain to have the correct insurance and license for any vehicle.
6. Places to visit: Thailand has many beautiful places to visit, depending on your interests. Some of the most popular destinations include Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pai, Phuket, Krabi, Koh Samui, and Pattaya. You can also visit cultural attractions like the ancient cities of Ayutthaya and Sukhothai or the temples of Chiang Rai.
7. Food: Thailand is famous for delicious Thai food, from spicy creamy curries and stir-fries to fresh seafood and tropical fruits. You can try street food or visit local restaurants to sample the local cuisine.
8. Culture and etiquette: Thailand has a rich culture, and it’s important to respect local customs and etiquette. For example, it’s polite to remove your shoes when entering a temple or someone’s home, and it’s considered impolite to touch someone’s head. Visitors should dress respectfully in towns, cities and places or religious significance. Swimwear is fine at the beach, of course.
9. Safety: Thailand is generally a safe country to visit, but it’s important to take precautions to avoid scams and stay safe. For example, be wary of tuk-tuk drivers who offer tours or deals that seem too good to be true, and keep an eye on your belongings in crowded areas. You will have to haggle over prices in some markets and with taxi and tuk tuk drivers if they are not using their meters.

I hope these tips help you plan a wonderful trip to Thailand!

If you'd like to hire a car during your stay, use this car rental comparison tool to find the best deal!

We also suggest you take a look at this company to get a quote for all kinds of the more tricky adventure or extended travel insurance.

Try Stayz / VRBO for an alternative way to find rentals on homes/apartments/condos in any country!