About Thailand
Thailand is the best choice for those who want to enjoy and explore an exotic tropical country with comfort. Friendly Buddhist population, well-maintained road network & easy-to-use public transport, low prices and traditions that just blow your mind (especially if you come from North).
The first trip to Thailand seems to be breathtaking (attracting and disattracting at one time) and you’ll never know until you arrive back home, how deep your soul is already lost in Thailand. When my first trip was over, I was sure that I won’t return back: I’d seen «all», the flight is too exhausting and Thai climate suits better plants than people. For 2 months I was the same as before, simply doing my job and living in my home city. And than I faced a breach in my conscience – pictures from my last trip began to chase me. I had to confess to myself – I’m addicted to Thailand. So I went back to tour agency and bought another tour to Thailand.
Since then I’ve changed the way I travel – I need to see more, deeper & closer – that’s why I travel on my own and I highly recommend this way of travelling.
General information
If you haven’t found the information you need below, check this category, it can be there.
Visa
Check if you need it in Thai consulate of your country. There’s a list of countries, which citizens need just a visa or a stamp on arrival (covering a trip of 15-30 days).
Unusual limitations
E-cigarettes and other devices of that kind (there’s a Thai law forbidding the use of e-cigarettes in the kingdom).
Electricity
220 V / 50 Hz. Most of electrical sockets in Thailand are of combined type – type A (flat pins) + type C (round pins). That’s why there are usually no problems with charging. Rarely you may meet electrical sockets of just Type A (flat pins) or Type B (flat pins + grounding). If you need an adapter, you will find it in 7-Eleven.
Time
Due to Thailand’s proximity to equator there’s almost no twilight – darkness comes very quickly in 15-20 minutes. Be ready for it. Dawn breaks in Thailand around 6 a.m. and around 18 p.m. the sun is down.
Language
Thai. Unreadable for those who know only Latin or Cyrillic alphabet. The article about Thai language is here.
ภาษาไทย
Religion
Theravada Buddhism (>94%).
Currency
THB, Thai baht (subdivided into 100 satangs). You need to show passport for exchange. Rate for January 2020: 1 USD = 30,3 THB; 1 EUR = 33,8 THB.
Population
~69 million people.
Kingdom
Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
Driving in Thailand
Drive on the left (like in England or Japan).
Speed limits: urban – 80 km/h, rural – 90 km/h, motorways – 120 km/h.
Vaccination
No specific vaccinations are required.
Tips
Tips in Thailand are not a must. Nevertheless there are a few restaurants that include tips in the bill.
South
Provinces next to Malaysia border are a bit unsafe.
Important information
Save a phone number of the embassy (consulate) of your country. It can be useful in the case of emergency.
Toilets
You will find toilets in Thailand:
– In restaurants & cafes (that are located in a building) + hotels & guesthouses (it depends on the owner, will you use it, if you haven’t bought anything, or no; usually in non-touristic places you’ll be allowed to use, in touristic places staff will make a hint that you need to buy something cheap first. Usually they don’t ask to pay directly for using toilet).
– In any shopping centers (sometimes they are not free of charge, ~3-10 THB)
– In hypermarkets (supercenters like Big C, Tesco Lotus etc.) – free of charge.
– At gas stations that are located outside of cities and on highways (usually free of charge).
– On public transport stations (bus, railway etc., usually ~5-10 THB).
