Thailand
QR codes everywhere, and a metered taxi is a negotiation.
Most asked
Do you tip in Thailand?
Optional, and never expected at street level. Leaving the coins from your change is the usual gesture.
Read the answerAt a glance
- Tipping
- Small amounts, widely appreciated
- Cards
- Malls yes, street vendors QR or cash
- Tap water
- Bangkok supply certified; buildings vary
- Haggling
- Expected at markets
Arriving
Bangkok has two airports 46km apart — the first question is which one you are in.
Does it matter which Bangkok airport I fly into?
Yes. Full-service airlines use Suvarnabhumi; low-cost carriers mostly use Don Mueang, 46km away with no rail link of its own.
How do I get from the airport into Bangkok?
From Suvarnabhumi, the Airport Rail Link on floor B1 — or a metered taxi, which adds a THB 50 airport surcharge on top of the meter.
How much alcohol and tobacco can I bring in?
Two hundred cigarettes or 250 grams of tobacco, and under one litre of alcohol. Personal effects are duty-free up to 20,000 baht. Anything above that goes into the box customs puts before the channels — the word the department uses for the alternative is prosecution.
How do I get between Bangkok's two airports?
There is a free shuttle between Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang, but it is not a public bus. It carries only passengers with a connecting flight at the other airport the same day, and staff check the boarding pass and passport before you board. One bus per hour, 5am to midnight, and the journey time the government publishes is one to two hours.
Getting around
Two rail systems, two operators — and a card that only works on one of them.
Do I need to buy a ticket for every ride?
On the BTS, a Rabbit card ends the queueing. But Bangkok's rail is two separate systems, and the underground MRT is not covered by it.
How do you get a taxi, and what about tuk-tuks?
Insist on the meter — switching it off for a fixed price is illegal, and 1584 is the government hotline for reporting it. Tuk-tuks have no meter, so that price is negotiated before you get in.
Can I rent a scooter with the licence I already have?
Not on its own. Thailand recognises an International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention, or a licence from another ASEAN country, and you carry it together with your passport and your home licence. A shop handing over the keys is not the body that decides this.
Which river boat do I get on?
Look at the flag, not the boat. Four flag colours run the Chao Phraya on different sets of stops, each with its own flat fare, and the piers are numbered N1 upriver — so the flag tells you the route and the number tells you where you are.
Money
PromptPay QR, ATM fees, and what to carry for a day out.
Do you need cash in Thailand?
Some. Malls and hotels take cards, but stalls, markets and shared vans want cash — and locals mostly pay each other by QR.
Can you get a tax refund on shopping?
Yes — 2,000 baht per day per store, a P.P.10 form issued at the till against your passport, and customs inspection at the airport before you check in.
Can you haggle over prices?
At markets and stalls, yes. Where a price is displayed it is not a starting point — displaying it is a legal duty, and the government's own advice draws the line in the same place: prices run higher for foreigners "outside of regular shops that have fixed prices".
Why is the price for foreigners different?
Because it is the published rate, not something decided at the window. A national park charges a foreign adult 200 baht against a Thai adult's 20; the Grand Palace is 500 baht for foreign visitors and free for Thai nationals. It is printed, it is set nationally, and there is nothing to negotiate.
Is there a limit on how much cash I can carry in or out?
Bringing baht in is unlimited. Taking it out is capped — 50,000 baht per person for most destinations, two million for Thailand's immediate neighbours. Foreign banknotes move freely both ways, but anything above USD 15,000 has to be declared. You will still see 20,000 printed in older official guidance; the central bank's figure is the one that governs.
At restaurants
Ordering at street stalls, spice levels, and paying at the end.
Do you tip in Thailand?
Optional, and never expected at street level. Leaving the coins from your change is the usual gesture.
Is the street food safe, and is there any way to tell?
There is an actual certification to look for — Clean Food Good Taste, run by the Ministry of Public Health. It puts a checkable mark on what is otherwise a judgement call.
Do I eat Thai food with chopsticks?
No — spoon and fork, and the spoon is the one that goes in your mouth. Reaching for chopsticks is the most common visitor misfire in the region.
Why is the bill more than the menu price?
Two lines get added wherever there is table service: 7% tax and a service charge that should not exceed 10%. The restaurant has to show both before you order — and where it did not, the Consumer Protection Board's stated position is that you do not have to pay the service charge.
Phone and internet
Getting online is cheap and easy — the paperwork is the only step.
Everyday basics
The numbers that matter here are not the ones from home.
Can you drink the tap water?
The Bangkok utility certifies its supply as safe and drinkable. What that certification cannot cover is the building you are standing in — or anywhere outside its three provinces.
What number do I call in an emergency?
191 is the general emergency line and 1669 gets an ambulance. As a visitor, the number to actually memorise is 1155 — the Tourist Police.
Do I need a plug adapter here?
Your plug probably fits — Thai sockets take flat American pins and round European ones alike. That is the trap, because the supply is 220 volts: fitting and working are two different questions.
What do I wear to visit temples and the Grand Palace?
Shoulders and knees covered, nothing sheer or tight. The Grand Palace publishes its banned list and enforces it at the gate.
Can I bring my vape to Thailand?
No. E-cigarettes have been illegal here since 2014 — importing one can mean up to ten years' imprisonment, and using one can mean arrest. Leave it at home entirely.
What should I be careful not to do?
Three things carry real weight: never insult nation, religion or monarchy; the head is high and sacred; the feet are low and rude. Most of the rest follows from those.
How other countries compare
For a trip that crosses borders — the same question, answered country by country.
- Do I need to buy a ticket for every ride?
- Can you get a tax refund on shopping?
- Do you need cash in Thailand?
- Do you tip in Thailand?
- Can I use my own phone, and where do I get a SIM?
- How do I get from the airport into Bangkok?
- Does it matter which Bangkok airport I fly into?
- How do you get a taxi, and what about tuk-tuks?
- Can you haggle over prices?
- Can you drink the tap water?
- What number do I call in an emergency?
- Do I need a plug adapter here?
