AsiaThailandThailand
Thailand gives you a different trip every week you stay. Noodles from a stall that has made one dish for decades, limestone islands at their clearest from November, a raft house on a lake with no wifi, temples and cool nights up north, and some of the cheapest diving anywhere. No country on this site is planned more often.
ThailandThailand in a nutshell
Where to go in Thailand
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TownTurn these stops into a Thailand route
Pick your favourites and Stippl orders them, adds travel times and builds the day-by-day.
ROUTES THAT WORK
Thailand itineraries, one week to three
Thailand is loved by culture seekers and backpackers alike. We recommend several routes through this country, here they are in full!
7 nights1 week, classic sampler
Bangkok · Chiang Mai · Phuket
Cool north weather suits Chiang Mai temples; Andaman islands peak; Bangkok heat manageable.
7 nights1 week, south only
Phuket · Khao Sok National Park · Ao Nang
Andaman coast at its clearest; Phuket, Khao Sok, and Phi Phi offer reliable dry weather and calm seas.
8 nights3–4 weeks, Thailand + Cambodia
Chiang Mai · Chiang Rai · Koh Chang
Cool northern temples (Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai) and Mae Wang; Koh Chang clear water; avoids Cambodia's rainy season.
9 nights2 weeks, south-focused with a choice block
Bangkok · Kanchanaburi · Railay Beach
Railay and Phi Phi or Lanta remain dry; Kanchanaburi's temperate; flexible island choice based on preferred coast.
10 nights2.5 weeks, best-of with domestic flights
Bangkok · Chiang Mai · Ao Nang
Chiang Mai's cool season; Tonsai climbing and Andaman islands in peak condition; Bangkok heat tolerable.
12 nights3 weeks: north to south, Bangkok last
Chiang Mai · Pai · Khao Sok National Park
Chiang Mai and Pai comfortable; Khao Sok and Ao Nang dry; Bangkok visited last avoids peak heat.
13 nights2 weeks, classic first-timer
Bangkok · Chiang Mai · Pai
Comfortable temperatures across all regions from Bangkok through Chiang Mai to southern islands without heat or rain.
13 nights2 weeks: Isan, the northeast nobody routes
Bangkok · Nakhon Ratchasima · Ubon Ratchathani
Cool, dry weather across Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon, and Nong Khai; follows the Central region's cool-season window.
13 nights2 weeks, north and Andaman
Bangkok · Chiang Mai · Chiang Rai
Cool nights in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai; Andaman at its best; minimal rain across the full north-to-coast span.
16 nights3 weeks, central and north road trip
Kanchanaburi · Ayutthaya · Sukhothai
Cool season suits the long northern road through Sukhothai, Mae Wang, and Chiang Mai; Kanchanaburi and Ayutthaya pleasant.
19 nights3–4 weeks, Gulf island hop
Bangkok · Hua Hin · Koh Tao
Gulf islands (Tao, Samui, Phangan) thrive while Andaman coasts are wet; cheapest rates; fewer crowds than peak season.
19 nights3 weeks, islands only
Krabi · Koh Lanta · Koh Phi Phi
Extended Andaman and Gulf island chain; Lanta, Phi Phi, and Samui all dry; Tao and Phangan water clear and warm.
Updated August 2026 · 14 min read · Written by the Stippl editorsWe looked at 1,756,000+ planned stops in Thailand on Stippl to write this.
Thailand is built as a northern leg and a southern one, and with under two weeks you pick one rather than rushing both. The north is mountains, temples and trekking out of Chiang Mai and Pai. The centre is Bangkok with the old capitals at Ayutthaya and Sukhothai, both best seen by bicycle early in the morning. The south is two coasts with opposite weather, the Andaman on the west and the Gulf on the east. A Thailand trip runs 21 days on Stippl.
More than half the people planning Thailand are not only planning Thailand. 55.5% of Thailand trips on Stippl carry at least one other country, and Vietnam is the one they pick most often. Overland into Cambodia and Laos is the other common shape, which is why the eastern islands of Koh Chang, Koh Mak and Koh Kood turn up on routes that never touch the Andaman.
Two weeks covers one half of the country properly and three to four weeks covers both. Sleep on the water at Khao Sok, which is the one stop people say they would repeat, learn to dive on Koh Tao, and eat at night markets rather than in restaurants. Build the coasts around their opposite monsoons so you can switch from the Andaman to the Gulf mid-route and keep beach weather the whole way. If you want the country at roughly half the price and a fraction of the crowds, Isan in the northeast is where almost nobody goes.
Who Thailand is for
First-time Asia travellers
the traveller trail is worn, transport is organised and cheap, and English carries you through the tourist corridor
Food-led travellers
regional cuisines that differ genuinely between north, Isan, centre and south, with street stalls that have made one dish for decades
Beach and island people
two coasts with opposite monsoons, so somewhere in Thailand has beach season nearly every month
Long-trip budget travellers
€20–30 a day is genuinely liveable, and the country stretches a budget further than most of its neighbours except Laos and Cambodia
Divers and beginners underwater
Koh Tao is among the cheapest certification spots in the world, with the Andaman offering manta and whale-shark season Feb–Apr
Solo travellers, including solo women
consistently described as one of the safest and easiest countries to travel alone
Families
short flights between stops, cheap private transfers, and sanctuaries/parks that work for kids; one family source travelled with three children aged 8–10 without special arrangements
Maybe not for you: Maybe not for you: anyone hoping to avoid crowds in high season, anyone set on riding elephants, and anyone who wants one coast to work all year. It does not.
The best time to visit Thailand
Cool season
Nov–Feb
dry, 25–30°C, comfortable everywhere including the north; also the busiest and priciest window
Hot season
Mar–May
33–40°C, April the hottest (Chiang Mai approaching 40°); good for beaches, punishing for temple days
Rainy season
Jun–Oct
short intense afternoon showers rather than all-day rain, Aug–Oct wettest; cheapest rooms and thinnest crowds
- The single most useful planning fact: the coasts have opposite monsoons. The Andaman side is dry roughly Nov–Apr, the Gulf dry roughly Jan–Sep. In the rainy season you don't cancel Thailand, you switch coasts
- Northern burning season (crop fires, serious smog) runs somewhere between mid-February and early May depending on the year; the consensus worst window is Feb–Apr, when the coasts are the better bet
- Price and crowd peaks: Dec–Mar overall, extreme around Christmas and New Year (rooms sell out months ahead and can double), with a second spike in Jul–Aug from European holidays
- Value windows: Oct–Nov (post-rain, pre-peak) and May–Sep for the lowest prices
- Northern altitude gets genuinely cold on Dec–Mar nights, Pai and the mountains drop to single digits
- Similan and Surin marine parks close annually for roughly five months, mid-May to mid-October (2025 season: 16 May – 14 Oct, reopened 15 Oct with e-tickets; 2026 closure began 15 May). The exact reopening date is announced 1–2 weeks ahead by the Department of National Parks, link the announcement, never a fixed date.
Add your Thailand dates and we'll flag the weather per stop
Stippl shows the season, crowds and prices for every place on your route.
Festivals, and when to avoid them
Songkran
Thai New Year water fight; biggest in Chiang Mai, Bangkok (Khao San, Silom) and Khon Kaen; Pattaya runs to ~20 April. Expect an off-season price spike
Loy Krathong
floating light offerings countrywide, coinciding with Yi Peng lanterns in the north, biggest in Chiang Mai; transport and hotels tighten
Full Moon Party
Haad Rin on Koh Phangan, around 20,000 people; nearby accommodation often imposes multi-night minimums
Chinese New Year
most visible in Bangkok's Chinatown
Vegetarian (Kin Jay) Festival
strongest in Phuket
Chonburi Buffalo Races
a 140-year-old event an hour from Bangkok
Describe your trip, get a Thailand itinerary in seconds
Everything in this guide is already in Stippl. Tell the planner how long you have and what you like: it builds the route, the days and the travel times, and you edit whatever you want.
Things to do in Thailand
Photo by Peter Borter via Unsplash
Photo by Ted McDonnell via Pexels
Photo by Craig McKay via UnsplashSleep on the water at Khao Sok
a raft house on Cheow Lan Lake with no wifi, jungle noise at dusk and a kayak on your porch; the one stop sources consistently say they would repeat
Eat dinner at a night market
not a restaurant but a market: order from three stalls, sit on a plastic stool, eat better than at home for a few euros
Meet elephants ethically
observation and feeding at a vetted sanctuary, never riding; the good ones explain their no-contact policy before you ask
Learn to dive on Koh Tao
among the cheapest certifications in the world, on an island small enough to walk
Ride the coasts' opposite seasons
plan a trip that switches from the Andaman to the Gulf mid-route and keep beach weather the whole way
Cycle the old capitals
Ayutthaya and Sukhothai are both best seen by bicycle between the ruins, early in the morning
What to eat in Thailand
wok-fried rice noodles with tamarind, egg and peanuts
northern coconut curry noodle soup with crisp noodles on top
green papaya salad pounded to order: sour, salty, fierce
mild southern curry with Persian-Indian roots
sweet coconut sticky rice with ripe mango
northern herb sausage
hot-and-sour prawn soup with lemongrass, galangal and lime leaf
Discover food spots in Stippl
Find restaurants and markets on the map, save them to your itinerary, works offline too.
Temples, shoes and what not to do
Temples are working buildings
Buddhism structures daily life and the calendar; temples are living places of worship rather than monuments
The monarchy is a legal line
The monarchy is protected by law and by genuine reverence; disrespect is a criminal matter, not a faux pas
Composure is currency
Composure is the social currency: raising your voice or visibly losing your temper costs you standing immediately
Nobody will tell you no
Thai politeness avoids the flat "no", so you may get a wrong answer rather than an admission of not knowing, ask twice, differently
The wai, not the handshake
The wai (palms together, slight bow) replaces the handshake; returning one from someone older or in service is always right
A few words change the price
A few Thai words visibly change how you are treated, and prices with it
Do
- Cover shoulders and knees at temples and take your shoes off; carry a sarong as an all-purpose cover
- Return a wai, and use the polite ending (kha for women, khrap for men)
- Accept an invitation to eat, hosts consider it an honour
- Stand still for the royal anthem in cinemas and public spaces
Don't
- Point your feet at people or at a Buddha image, and never step over someone
- Touch anyone's head, including children's
- Touch a monk or stand above one (this applies specifically to women)
- Ride elephants or visit venues offering shows
What a Thailand trip costs
Budget
€20–30
dorm or fan room, street food, buses and ferries, occasional day trip
Mid-range
€55–90
private room with pool, restaurant meals, domestic flights, guided activities
High-end
€180+
resorts and boutique hotels, private transfers, diving and premium tours
Track what you actually spend
Set a daily budget per country and log expenses in any currency while you travel.
Visas, SIM cards and getting around
Alcohol & licensing
Retail alcohol sales run 11:00–24:00.
The 14:00–17:00 afternoon ban is abolished, introduced in 1972 to stop civil servants drinking on the job, scrapped by the National Alcohol Policy Committee on 13 November 2025, trialled for 180 days from December 2025, and made permanent by May 2026.
Entry & visa
In transition, the 60-day exemption is being scrapped.
Health
Jabs are advised, not required
No vaccinations are mandatory for a standard trip; DTP, hepatitis A and typhoid are the usual recommendations, with hepatitis B and rabies added for longer stays.
Money
Cards stop at the city limits
Cash leads outside the cities: street food, markets, islands and rural areas are cash-only in practice, while cards and contactless spread in urban Thailand.
Connectivity
An eSIM skips the queue
Coverage is good almost everywhere and local SIMs are cheap and sold in convenience stores; an eSIM removes the airport queue entirely.
Water
Bring a filter bottle
Do not drink the tap water; bottled water is cheap and refill stations cost around a baht per litre, bring a filter bottle.
Tipping
Round up and leave it there
Tipping is not expected: rounding up a fare and leaving roughly 10% in nicer restaurants when service is not included covers it.
Power & practicalities
No adapter for a EU plug
Sockets are type A, B and C at 230V; most take European two-pin plugs without an adapter.
Language
English stops at the trail's end
Thai is tonal with five tones; English is common along the tourist trail and thin in Isan and small villages.
Thai worth knowing
Nobody expects you to speak the language, which is exactly why a handful of words goes so far.
sa-wat-dee (khrap/kha)
Hello · สวัสดี
khop khun (khrap/kha)
Thank you · ขอบคุณ
mai pen rai
No worries / it's fine · ไม่เป็นไร
tao rai?
How much? · เท่าไหร่
a-roi
Delicious · อร่อย
mai phet
Not spicy, please · ไม่เผ็ด
hong nam yoo nai?
Where is the toilet? · ห้องน้ำอยู่ไหน
khor bin
The bill, please · ขอบิล
Thailand questions, answered
Count the nights per stop rather than the places. Most stops on a Thailand trip planned on Stippl get 3 nights, and a single night means one of your two days goes to moving. Lay the route out in Stippl and check it against that. Then show it to people who have been, in subreddits like r/ThailandTourism.
You can see one half of it properly. Two weeks covers Bangkok plus either the north or the islands, and three to four weeks is what doing both without living on buses actually takes. 22.2% of Thai stops planned on Stippl are a single night, which is what a compressed route looks like from the inside.
Less than for most long-haul destinations. Travellers leave 82 days between planning a Thailand stop on Stippl and arriving, and buses, boats and trains are bookable a day ahead almost everywhere. What does need settling early is the cool season on the islands and anything with a fixed date, like a festival.
Whichever one is dry while you are there, because they take turns. The Andaman side runs November to April and the Gulf islands run roughly January to September, so a route that crosses between them mid-trip keeps beach weather the whole way through. That crossing is the most useful single thing to build into a Thailand itinerary.
With three weeks or more, yes. Isan in the northeast is the least touristed part of the country, with Khmer ruins, a cuisine of its own and roughly half the prices of the south. It is also the region where English thins out fastest, which is part of why so few travellers get there.
It is the standard one, for practical reasons rather than sentimental ones. Buses, boats and trains are bookable a day ahead, the tourist trail carries English signage, and the whole country runs perfectly well without a tour operator. That is why so many Southeast Asia trips open in Bangkok and fan out from there.
Every guide is written by the Stippl editors and checked against the trips our travellers actually plan. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.
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