Thailand Discovery Guide

Thailand handles visitors better than almost anywhere at its price level: the transport works, the food is excellent at every budget, and the gap between a hostel and a resort is smaller here than in most countries.

The friction is the monsoon, and it is not one season. The Andaman coast — Phuket, Krabi, Ko Lanta — is driest from November to April. The Gulf coast — Ko Samui, Ko Pha Ngan, Ko Tao — runs roughly opposite, with its heaviest rain in October and November. Booking the wrong side for the month is the single most common Thailand planning error.

Pick the coast by the month rather than the month by the coast. Fly internally rather than taking the long overnight buses, book Bangkok accommodation near a BTS or MRT station, and treat the temples as early-morning visits — by ten the heat and the tour groups have both arrived.

If you travel slowly

Base in Chiang Mai for a few weeks. It is cheap, cool by Thai standards, walkable inside the old moat, and the surrounding hills are a day trip rather than an expedition.

If you want to see the essentials

Bangkok for three days, Ayutthaya as a day trip by train, and one island chosen for the season. Ten days, flying between the ends.

If you seek local character

A morning market anywhere, a night train in second-class sleeper, and Isan food in the northeast — som tam and grilled chicken, the country's least touristed regional cuisine.

If you want to go beyond the obvious

Sukhothai's ruins, quieter and better preserved than Ayutthaya's, and the far south around Trang and Satun, where the limestone islands look like Krabi did thirty years ago.

• Central Thailand
• Eastern Thailand
• Isaan - Northeast Thailand
• Northern Thailand
• Southern Thailand

Elephant tourism is the decision that matters most here. Riding, bathing and performance all depend on a training process that breaks the animal. Genuine sanctuaries do not let visitors ride or wash elephants and do not breed them; if a camp offers either, it is not one, whatever it calls itself.

Temples are working religious buildings. Cover shoulders and knees, remove shoes where indicated, never point your feet at a Buddha image, and do not climb on or pose with statues. Women should not touch or hand anything directly to a monk.

Buddha images are protected: taking one out of the country requires a permit, and tattoos of the Buddha are considered offensive enough that people have been refused entry over them.

Coral damage is severe at the popular dive and snorkel sites; several, including Maya Bay, have been closed for recovery. Use reef-safe sunscreen and never stand on coral.

November to February is the cool season and the best overall window: dry, less humid, and comfortable across most of the country. It is also the busiest and dearest.

March to May is the hot season, reaching the high thirties with heavy humidity. Songkran, the Thai new year water festival, falls in mid-April and effectively closes the country for several days.

June to October is the rainy season on most of the mainland — usually heavy afternoon downpours rather than all-day rain, with lower prices and greener landscapes.

The coasts diverge. The Andaman side is best November to April; the Gulf side is best February to September and is at its wettest in October and November, when the Andaman is coming good.

The north is coldest and clearest in December and January, and hazy from agricultural burning in March and April.

What a day costs, by how you travel

Relative cost index vs country average