Thailand: Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Samui, best time to travel, getting there and costs in 2026

Thailand suits you if you want to combine temples and old royal cities with beaches. Bangkok and Ayutthaya are in central Thailand, Chiang Mai and Sukhothai in the north, and Phuket, Krabi and Koh Samui in the south. UNESCO lists nine World Heritage Sites in the country (as of September 2026).

New since July 2026 is the ninth of them, Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan in Nakhon Si Thammarat. Since 29 May 2026, alcohol may as a rule be sold from 11:00 to 24:00. The ban from 14:00 to 17:00 had been suspended only on a trial basis since the end of 2025. According to ADAC, an entry fee of 300 baht is planned for the end of 2026 (as of 2 September 2026).

Thailand suits you less in September. Then Bangkok gets an average of 335.9 mm of rain and Phuket airport 399.2 mm (normals 1991–2020). At the end of September 2026, flooding in and around Bangkok came on top (as of 27 September 2026).

Getting there from Germany

In 2025, 1,060,164 passengers whose last known destination was Thailand boarded at the 22 main German airports. That was 21st place among 211 destination countries (our own analysis of Destatis table 46421-09, excluding transfers abroad). 74.1 per cent flew to Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi and 19.6 per cent to Phuket, followed by Koh Samui, Krabi and Chiang Mai. Most departed from Frankfurt (488,778) and Munich (312,669).

The strongest month was December with 130,073 passengers, the weakest May with 44,838 (our own analysis). According to the tourist office, there are direct flights to Suvarnabhumi from Frankfurt and Munich (as of September 2026).

Suvarnabhumi (BKK): train, bus or taxi

According to the tourist office, the City Line of the Airport Rail Link takes half an hour to Phaya Thai, where you change to the Skytrain (BTS). Since 8 November 2025 you pay at all stations contactless by credit or debit card directly at the gate.

City bus S1 runs from 6:00 to 20:00 via Khao San to Sanam Luang, for about 60 baht. For a taxi, a surcharge of 50 baht is added to the meter price, and you pay the toll extra (as of September 2026).

Phuket (HKT): Smart Bus to the beaches

The Phuket Smart Bus runs from the airport via Surin, Kamala, Patong, Karon and Kata to Rawai. According to the timetable from 16 January 2026, the first one leaves at 8:15, then every half hour from 9:00 to 22:00, with the last at 23:30. The journey to Patong takes 80 to 95 minutes (our own reading). On the bus you can pay in cash, by QR code or with a contactless card (Visa, Mastercard, JCB); children under 6 travel free with a paying adult.

To Phuket Town, the orange Airport Bus on Line 8411 runs from 8:00 to 21:00, departing from Exit 3 (as of September 2026).

Regions and destinations at a glance

Where “—” appears, the sources name no drawback. The distances come from the Thai weather service.

Bangkok was founded in 1782 and, according to the tourist office, has around 10 million inhabitants. Since its founding the Grand Palace has been the official seat of the kings. The 500 baht for foreign visitors also applies to Wat Phra Kaeo; Thais pay nothing (as of September 2026). Wat Pho has a gilded Buddha 46 m long, and the main prang of Wat Arun measures 79 m.

From 1350 Ayutthaya was the capital, first under King U-Thong. Until Burmese troops conquered and destroyed the city in 1767, 33 kings from five dynasties sat on the throne there. The best known are the three chedis of Wat Phra Si Sanphet. To Sukhothai you can get by train only as far as Phitsanulok; for the last roughly 60 km you take the bus.

To Chiang Mai there are direct flights from Bangkok, Phuket and Koh Samui, and long-distance buses from the Northern Bus Terminal in Bangkok usually take about ten hours (as of September 2026). After the flooding, trains have been running again on the northern line since 9:30 on 27 September 2026. In March 2019 the tourism authority warned of weeks of air harmful to health around Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai; the main causes were considered to be forest fires, the burning of scrub and car exhaust.

From Phuket, the tourist office names trips to Phang-nga Bay, to Khao Lak and to the Similan Islands. In the 155 national parks, single-use plastic and polystyrene containers are banned, with fines of up to 100,000 baht threatened (as of July 2023). According to the tourism authority (overview from July 2023), the Similan and Surin Islands close from 16 May to 14 October, and Maya Bay on Phi Phi from 1 August to 30 September.

Best time to travel

Normals for 1991–2020 from the World Meteorological Organization, reported by the Thai weather service: Bangkok Metropolis (3 m above sea level) and Phuket airport (5.9 m).

In Bangkok, according to the weather service, the cool season runs from mid-October to mid-February, April is the hottest month, and the rainy season lasts from mid-May to mid-October. On Phuket the monsoon rain eases only from December. Tropical storms are most likely to threaten the island from the second half of October to December.

Getting around the country

Rail and bus

All five main lines of the state railway SRT begin in Bangkok, and sleeper cars run on long overnight routes. You book express, rapid and excursion trains online in D-Ticket no earlier than 180 days and no later than 3 hours before departure. For this you need the name, passport number and telephone number of each traveller. Rebooking costs 50 per cent of the fare one day before, and 20 per cent three days before (as of September 2026).

On the eastern line, trains were still cancelled or ran shortened after the flooding on 27 September 2026. The SRT hotline 1690 will tell you around the clock whether your train is running (as of 27 September 2026).

Long-distance buses start from three major bus stations in Bangkok. Besides the state-owned BKS, private operators run services, mostly in several classes up to the VIP bus. To Phuket and Surat Thani they take around 14 hours according to the tourist office (as of September 2026). To Koh Samui there are several ferries a day from Surat Thani.

Domestic flights

According to the tourist office, Thai Airways, Bangkok Airways, Air Asia and Nok Air fly between the country's more than 30 airports, with flights to Krabi from Bangkok every day (as of September 2026).

Car and roads

In Thailand people drive on the left. According to the tourism authority, foreigners need an International Driving Permit or a Thai or ASEAN driving licence. If you hire a car without suitable papers, the insurance may not pay after an accident. Seat belts are compulsory, and on motorcycles helmets are compulsory, including for passengers (as of November 2024). According to ADAC, petrol cost an average of 49.16 baht per litre over the week, and diesel 40.69 baht (as of 25 September 2026).

Money and costs

You pay in baht (THB).

According to the tourist office, most hotels, restaurants and shops accept Visa and Mastercard. You can withdraw cash with a credit card or a bank card with the Maestro logo at almost any ATM, and some charge their own fee for it (as of September 2026).

You get the 7 per cent VAT back only in shops with the “VAT Refund for Tourists” sign. You need at least 2,000 baht spent in one day in the same shop and 5,000 baht over the whole trip. You ask for the P.P.10 form at the time of purchase, and the shop needs your passport for it; at departure, customs checks the goods and the form before check-in (as of December 2022).

Practical information

Thailand is six hours ahead of German time, and five during German summer time. According to the tourist office, you can get by well with English in Bangkok, Phuket and on Koh Samui, but often not in the countryside. The power grid supplies 220 V at 50 Hz, and you need an adapter for German plugs. The EU rule “Roam like at home” does not apply in Thailand (as of September 2026).

Emergency numbers: police 191, ambulance 1669, fire brigade 199 (as of September 2026). According to the tourism authority, the tourist police on 1155 can be reached around the clock and in several languages (as of December 2025).

Songkran, the Thai New Year, falls on 13 to 15 April every year, with water fights in Patong on Phuket. Fixed public holidays include, according to the tourist office, 6 April (Chakri Day), the King's birthday on 28 July and 5 and 10 December (as of September 2026).

You may drink alcohol from age 20, and restrictions apply in temples, public parks and on public transport, for example (as of 29 May 2026). Smoking on beaches has been banned since November 2017, and e-cigarettes and e-shishas are banned altogether (as of February 2023). Anyone wanting to fly a drone registers it with the NBTC and CAAT, insures it with liability cover of at least 1 million baht and applies for each flight at the latest three days beforehand (as of 29 June 2026).

What applies before the trip regarding entry, safety and health is on the German Foreign Office's country page.

Who Thailand is not for

• Anyone looking for dry weather in September: Bangkok then has an average of 18 days with at least 1 mm of rain, and at Phuket airport 399.2 mm falls (normals 1991–2020).
• Anyone who tolerates heat poorly: In April Bangkok reaches an average of 35.7 °C and cools down only to 27.2 °C (1991–2020).
• Anyone who wants to drive themselves: For 2021 the WHO estimated 25.4 road deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in Thailand, compared with 3.3 in Germany.
• Anyone who expects the same prices for everyone: At the Grand Palace foreign visitors pay 500 baht, Thais nothing (as of September 2026).
• Anyone who wants to travel overland: The bus to Phuket takes around 14 hours, and Krabi has no rail connection.
• Anyone travelling with an e-cigarette: They are banned in Thailand, and according to the tourism authority, travellers have already been fined or arrested for them. It is also best to leave liquids at home.