A photograph of Thailand

Country guide

Thailand

Thailand is 513,120 km² and 76 provinces, plus Bangkok, which is not a province at all but a special administrative area with an elected governor of its own. Th...

Photograph · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0

9,526 Places
3Cities

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

Thailand is 513,120 km² and 76 provinces, plus Bangkok, which is not a province at all but a special administrative area with an elected governor of its own. The 65,975,198 people counted in 2024 spread across four regions that behave like four separate trips: the central plain along the Chao Phraya, the north around Chiang Mai and the old Lan Na kingdom, the Khorat Plateau in the northeast, and the long strip of the Malay Peninsula in the south. Most itineraries take two of the four. Taking all four is largely a schedule of internal flights.

Checked 2026-08-25

Cities

Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.

Practical information

Language spoken
Thai
National practical orientation; regional and minority languages may also be used
Dialling code
+66
International calling code; local area and mobile prefixes still apply
Currency
Thai baht (THB)
Use the official local currency; card acceptance varies by place
Emergency number
191 police · 1669 medical
Use only for an emergency; tourist assistance may use a separate number
Plug type
Type A, B, C and O · 220 V
Check that chargers support the recorded voltage before using an adapter
Tap water
Not recorded
No verified nationwide drinking-water statement was recorded

Planning a visit

Seasonal closures come from recorded opening hours.

  1. January: no seasonality data recorded
  2. February: no seasonality data recorded
  3. March: no seasonality data recorded
  4. April: no seasonality data recorded
  5. May: seasonal closure recorded
  6. June: seasonal closure recorded
  7. July: seasonal closure recorded
  8. August: seasonal closure recorded
  9. September: seasonal closure recorded — this month
  10. October: seasonal closure recorded
  11. November: seasonal closure recorded
  12. December: seasonal closure recorded

Top things to see

Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.

  1. Wat Benchamabophit Wat Benchamabophit
    07 40 min

    Wat Benchamabophit

    วัดเบญจมบพิตรดุสิตวนารามราชวรวิหาร

    Wat Benchamabophit is Rama V's marble temple, built in 1900 as part of the Dusit district he laid out for himself, and the clearest surviving statement of what the Thai monarchy meant by modernisation.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  2. Chatuchak Weekend Market Chatuchak Weekend Market
    08 3 hours

    Chatuchak Weekend Market

    ตลาดนัดจตุจักร

    Chatuchak is the weekend market that the Thai government's own Bangkok page calls the largest in the world, and it is large enough that the claim is hard to argue with: Wikivoyage records roughly 8,000 vendors on 35 acres and…

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  3. Dusit Palace Dusit Palace
    09 45 min

    Dusit Palace

    พระราชวังดุสิต

    Dusit Palace is not a palace to tour but a royal quarter of Bangkok, roughly 64,749 square metres bounded by Ratchwithi Road to the north, Si Ayutthaya Road to the south, Ratchasima Road to the west and U-Thong Nai Road…

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  4. Democracy Monument Democracy Monument
    10 20 min

    Democracy Monument

    อนุสาวรีย์ประชาธิปไตย

    The Democracy Monument stands on a traffic circle where Ratchadamnoen Avenue crosses Dinso Road, in Phra Nakhon district, roughly halfway between Sanam Luang and the Golden Mount.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  5. Hua Lamphong railway station Hua Lamphong railway station
    11 45 min

    Hua Lamphong railway station

    สถานีรถไฟกรุงเทพ

    Bangkok (Hua Lamphong) railway station is the former central passenger terminal of Thailand, a domed Italian neo-Renaissance building in Pathum Wan operated by the State Railway of Thailand.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  6. Wat Ratchabophit Wat Ratchabophit
    12 45 min

    Wat Ratchabophit

    วัดราชบพิธสถิตมหาสีมารามราชวรวิหาร

    Wat Ratchabophit Sathit Maha Simaram is Rama V's own foundation of 1869 and the most formally peculiar of Bangkok's royal temples, which is exactly why it is worth seeing after the canonical ones rather than before them.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  7. Victory Monument Victory Monument
    13 20 min

    Victory Monument

    อนุสาวรีย์ชัยสมรภูมิ

    Victory Monument, in Thai Anusawari Chai Samoraphum, is a military memorial at the centre of a large traffic circle in Ratchathewi district, where Phahonyothin, Phaya Thai and Ratchawithi roads meet northeast of central Bangkok.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  8. Wat Mahathat Yuwaratrangsarit Wat Mahathat Yuwaratrangsarit
    14 40 min

    Wat Mahathat Yuwaratrangsarit

    วัดมหาธาตุยุวราชรังสฤษฎิ์ราชวรมหาวิหาร

    Wat Mahathat Yuwaratrangsarit is a first-class royal temple of the highest grade — one of only six ratchaworamahawihan temples in Thailand — with an Ayutthaya-period foundation and a position that is itself a statement: it stands on Maha Rat Road…

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  9. Rama VIII Bridge Rama VIII Bridge
    15 45 min

    Rama VIII Bridge

    สะพานพระราม 8

    The Rama VIII Bridge is an asymmetric cable-stayed crossing of the Chao Phraya River, 475 metres long with a 300-metre main span, hung from a single inverted-Y pylon 160 metres tall that stands on the Thonburi bank.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  10. Yaowarat Road Yaowarat Road
    16 2 hours

    Yaowarat Road

    ถนนเยาวราช

    Yaowarat Road is the mile and a half of Chinatown that records the commercial history of Bangkok, as against the royal history a few streets north.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  11. Vimanmek Mansion Vimanmek Mansion
    17 45 min

    Vimanmek Mansion

    พระที่นั่งวิมานเมฆ

    Vimanmek Mansion is a former royal villa in the Dusit Palace complex in Dusit district, and it cannot currently be visited.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  12. Wat Ratchanatdaram Wat Ratchanatdaram
    18 45 min

    Wat Ratchanatdaram

    วัดราชนัดดารามวรวิหาร

    Wat Ratchanatdaram Worawihan stands where Ratchadamnoen Klang meets Maha Chai Road in Phra Nakhon, and it is on itineraries for one building inside it: Loha Prasat, the metal-spired monastery.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  13. Assumption Cathedral Assumption Cathedral
    19 30 min

    Assumption Cathedral

    อาสนวิหารอัสสัมชัญ

    Assumption Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bangkok, standing in Soi Oriental off Charoen Krung 40 in Bang Rak, a short walk back from the Chao Phraya river.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  14. Sao Chingcha Sao Chingcha
    20 15 min

    Sao Chingcha

    เสาชิงช้า

    The Giant Swing, Sao Chingcha in Thai, is a 21.15-metre red teak frame standing on an open island in front of Wat Suthat in Phra Nakhon, and it is the last physical trace of a Brahmin ceremony that Bangkok stopped…

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  15. Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall
    21 20 min

    Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall

    พระที่นั่งอนันตสมาคม

    Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall is the domed marble building at the head of the Royal Plaza in Dusit, and it is the one entry on this list that cannot be entered.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  16. Phaya Thai Palace Phaya Thai Palace
    22 1 hr 30 min

    Phaya Thai Palace

    พระราชวังพญาไท

    Phaya Thai Palace is a group of early twentieth-century royal halls at 315 Ratchawithi Road in Ratchathewi, standing inside the walls of a working army hospital rather than behind a ticket office.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  17. Wang Lang Market Wang Lang Market
    23 1 hour

    Wang Lang Market

    ตลาดวังหลัง

    Wang Lang Market is a daily market in Bangkok Noi district, on the Thonburi bank of the Chao Phraya beside Siriraj Hospital, and it runs for 300 metres along a narrow lane between the Siriraj pier and Arun Amarin road.

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  18. Saranrom Park Saranrom Park
    24 1 hour

    Saranrom Park

    สวนสราญรมย์

    Saranrom Park, or Saranrom Royal Park, is a 23-rai public park directly east of the Grand Palace, run by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, and one of the few green spaces in Rattanakosin that a visitor can simply walk into and…

    • Must see
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  19. Old Phuket Town Old Phuket Town
    25 45 min

    Old Phuket Town

    เมืองเก่าภูเก็ต

    Old Phuket Town is Phuket's historic commercial quarter, where streets of Sino-European row houses show the island's trading and tin-mining past.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Phuket
  20. Sampeng market Sampeng market
    26 45 min

    Sampeng market

    ตลาดสำเพ็ง

    Sampeng Market is a historic wholesale and retail market in Bangkok’s Chinatown, running through a narrow lane parallel to Yaowarat Road.

    • High
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  21. Chang Chui Market
    27 45 min

    Chang Chui Market

    ช่างชุ่ย

    Chang Chui Market, known locally as ช่างชุ่ย, is a creative market and lifestyle destination in Bangkok. The name translates to "meticulous craftsman," reflecting its artistic ethos.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok
  22. Channel 7 Boxing Stadium Channel 7 Boxing Stadium
    28 45 min

    Channel 7 Boxing Stadium

    สนามมวยเวทีสถานีโทรทัศน์สีกองทัพบกช่อง 7

    Channel 7 Boxing Stadium is a televised Muay Thai venue operated by the Royal Thai Army's Channel 7 television station in Bangkok.

    • Notable
    • Historic monument
    • Bangkok

Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·

Common questions

How long should a first trip to Thailand be?

Ten to fourteen days allows three or four days in Bangkok, about three in Chiang Mai, and a separate southern base. If an island follows an international arrival, keep a spare transfer day because the last road or ferry connection may not align with the flight.

What entry documents are needed for Thailand?

Thailand's entry permission depends on the traveller's passport, purpose, and stay length. Use the linked Thai immigration guidance to confirm the applicable visa route and whether a Thailand Digital Arrival Card is required for the arrival date.

What is the best way to travel around Thailand?

Bangkok anchors Thailand's transport network. The Tourism Authority of Thailand lists buses, trains, urban rail, vans and songthaews for land journeys, alongside domestic aviation and boat services. Check any island's final sea or road connection separately before booking the inbound leg.

When is a practical time to visit Thailand?

November through February is the broad starting point for this route, not a nationwide weather guarantee. Northern conditions and the monsoon timing on each coast differ, so choose dates around the island or ferry leg rather than Bangkok alone.

What money and payment basics apply in Thailand?

Thailand uses the Thai baht (THB). Cards may work in larger hotels and businesses, but market purchases and some island transport can require cash, so retain a modest baht reserve without assuming a particular exchange fee.

What practical safety details should I save for Thailand?

Record 191 for police and 1669 for medical emergencies in Thailand. Power is 220 V with Type A, B, C, and O sockets; tap-water safety is not recorded here, so ask the accommodation rather than treating the missing entry as approval.