plan your visit to Thailand with small kids
The Ultimate Travel Guide
plan your visit to Thailand with small kids: The Ultimate Travel Guide
Excited about taking the family on a trip to Thailand? Excellent choice!
Now is the perfect time to start planning your trip to Thailand with the kids.
To make sure you’re all set for this adventure, here’s a step-by-step guide covering everything from initial planning to diving into those unforgettable adventures with your kids.
Advance Preparation
Passports
PassportsBefore anything else, check the bureaucracy box. Ensure everyone has a valid passport. Remember, for entry into Thailand, the passport needs at least six months of validity. Considering a round-trip? It’s a good idea to have a bit more.
Visa
Next up, visa considerations. If you plan to stay in Thailand with the kids 30 days or less, you’re in luck—no visa stress. Most countries get a permit automatically on entering Thailand. Check the list here. If you plan on staying longer than 30 days, you’ve got options:
Get a 60-day visa in advance. Plan a side trip to neighbouring countries like Laos, Cambodia, or Vietnam. Upon your return to Thailand, you’ll snag an additional 30 days. If you’re feeling adventurous, visa renewal during your trip is an option. Visit the immigration offices, brace yourself for a wait, a fee of 1900 baht, and an eclectic mix of fellow travellers.
Additional information about visa extensions can be found here.
Vaccinations
Health matters! Head to a travel clinic and get recommendations regarding vaccinations. Schedule this at least a month in advance to ensure the vaccinations take effect by the time of your trip.
Medicine
While you’re at it, gather prescriptions and purchase recommended medicines for common issues like diarrhea and infections. Won’t hurt to add some Polidine and antibiotic ointment.
Useful Info
Money
The local currency is the Thai baht. It’s not the strongest, so get ready to go find yourself with stacks of bills. Some folks might even take your dollars (especially foreigners). Cash is very common in Thailand, but credit works too, and so are local payment apps. Keep in mind that PayPal is a no-go in the country.
Language
While the dominant language is Thai, don’t worry—English is spoken, especially in tourist centres. Equip your little adventurers with some Thai phrases:
“Swadi-Cap” for hellos from the boys and “Swadi-ka” for hellos from the girls.
“Capon-cap” is the boy’s thank-you, and “kapon-ka” is for the girls.
Timing is Everything
Consider the when – of course there are factors like when you can take time off, when the kids are on break, and more. But here are some additional essential considerations:
Weather Conditions
Thailand, like its East Asian neighbours, has two main seasons—the dry season (November-April) and the rainy season (July-October). Opting for the dry season is advisable, as it’s hot and humid but less prone to monsoons. Consider aiming for May to June, a sweet spot between the seasons.
Tourist Season
Yes, the dry season, November-April, is more touristy. Prices rise, but sites are more active and bustling. In the less touristy season, some places may close due to a lack of tourism, but what’s open will be significantly cheaper, and local businesses will welcome you warmly. We recommend to plan your visit to Thailand with the kids somewhere between the seasons, like May to June.
Air Quality in the North
December-April months can experience air pollution in the north due to agricultural burning, until the first rains come and clear the air. Keep an eye on this if you’re planning to explore that region during these months.
Box Jellyfish Alert
The deadly box jellyfish usually arrives on Thailand’s shores during the rainy season, from June to October. However, it’s wise to monitor and ensure your beach vacation aligns with a jellyfish-free period. Check here for updates.
Planning the Adventure
Destination Dilemmas
Thailand is a vast country with diverse regions. If your vacation is relatively short, it’s recommended to focus on one or two areas to avoid constant packing and transitions. Need recommendations? Check here.
For longer vacations, wandering between regions is an option, depending on your preferred travel style. Learn more about travel styles in Thailand, considering your preferences and budget.
Airports and Landings
While most flights land in Bangkok, we recommend saving the bustling city experience for later, and continue with a connecting flight to a kid-friendlier destination.
Pay attention – Bangkok has two airports— Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) for international flights Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) for domestic and neighbouring countries
Make sure your flight takes off from the right airport.
Getting Around
It’s time to decide how you want to get around on your trip.
Public Transportation
For longer distances, flights and island ferries are the fast and secure options. There’s also a train system in Thailand, but it’s not recommended (even the locals advise against it). For shorter distances, you can rely on buses.
This website is the most reliable for public transportation. Here, you can figure out the cheapest and quickest options.
Within cities and islands, relying solely on public transportation can be more complicated. Safety-wise, not all buses are safe, there might not always be a place to sit, and some areas have public transport that is essentially a closed tender with wooden benches and no seat belts, so not the safest option, to put it mildly.
Two additional options:
Renting a Car
a somewhat adventurous option in Thailand and not recommended in every city or region (for example, traveling in Bangkok can be quite challenging). On the other hand, there are places where it would be difficult without a rented car (for example, in the island of Koh Phangan, where public transportation is scarce). If you value independence and are a confident driver, perhaps car rental is an option for you. Just keep in mind that driving is on the left side and not always the easiest (after all, the road accident rate is very high in Thailand…), and make sure to rent the car from a reliable company and ensure child safety seats in advance.
Taxis
a good and common option, but ultimately more limiting and expensive (well, depending on the amount of travel). On the other hand, traveling by taxi in most areas is very easy, there are simple apps for ordering taxis, drivers are friendly, and large cars and vans are very common in Thailand, suitable for families with multiple children.
Well, that was really brief, but there’s a lot more to know about getting around in Thailand – here you can get a lot of very useful information about transportation and mobility in Thailand.
A Moment Before You Go
Home Sweet Home
Secure your hotel or apartment in advance. If you’re not entirely sure where you want to nest during the entire trip—totally fine, but at least have a base for the first few days.
In Thailand, you can scout for apartments and hotels on Booking, Airbnb, and Agoda. Also, Google Maps is an excellent spot to hunt for apartments (not everyone advertises on websites…) and check out local Facebook groups and pages—worth searching to see if the island or area you’re eyeing has such a group (especially for longer-term rentals).
Here’s a treasure trove of tips on searching and finding kid-friendly accommodations!
Pack Up!
Packing is not always a walk in the park. It’s essential to come prepared on one hand, and on the other, leave room in your suitcase for surprises and souvenirs.
Here’s all the intel on packing for a trip with kids, including some unexpectedly effective tips!
And here, we’ve prepared specific information and recommendations for packing for a trip to Thailand with kids.
Travel Insurance
Safety first: Don’t forget insurance. You might not need the extras, but diseases and infections are quite common here…
First Steps in Paradise
You’ve navigated the flight successfully, landed, welcome to Thailand! Here are a few things to sort out right at the airport:
Local SIM Card
Unless you’ve got an international plan back home, it’s highly recommended to grab a local SIM card right at the airport. At every departure airport, various cellular companies await you—no significant difference in price or reception. You can choose a comprehensive package upfront or a minimal one with an option to top up at 7-11 stores (found everywhere in Thailand).
Withdrawing or Exchanging Local Currency
While dollars can be handy in Thailand, and you can pay for some things through apps or credit cards, a significant portion of your spending will likely be in cash. So, it’s advisable to withdraw or exchange money at the airport. There’s a fixed fee of about 220 Baht for cash withdrawals at ATMs, so it’s better to take out more in each transaction. Most ATMs have a maximum withdrawal limit of 20,000 Baht, with a few companies allowing up to 30,000 Baht.
Traveling to Your Accommodation
You’ve left the airport—now it’s time to get to your hotel/apartment! In cities like Bangkok, there are convenient and fast airport buses that can be a safe and affordable solution. But in other areas like Chiang Mai, Samui, or Phuket- The quick and comfortable (though not the cheapest) option is to pre-book transportation. Most hotels and apartments you’re in contact with will be happy to offer such a service. If you go for this, make sure they understand how many people you are, how many seats you need, and that there are safety belts. Another option is to use the airport taxi services. Not the cheapest, especially since taxis authorized to enter the airport charge a fee for that. The least convenient but the most economical option is to walk outside the airport, to the main road, and flag a taxi there or order one through one of the popular apps in Thailand.
If you’re traveling with little ones and need child seats, relying on taxi companies to provide them may not be secure. Two fantastic solutions that worked for us excellently in Thailand:
Get ready for this: An inflatable car safety seat that folds compactly and inflates to full size, meeting European standards! Perfect if you plan to rent several cars, take taxis, or haven’t found a reliable and affordable rental company that provides car seats. Bonus—it’s also a standard chair for airplanes! So, if you have a 2-3 year old who can no longer sit on your lap, and you want them securely belted, this is a fantastic solution. Just make sure to check with the airlines that accept it and where exactly to place it to avoid inconveniences (from our experience, not all airlines are familiar with the concept).
For more tips on flying with children click here
Another brilliant idea—foldable safety travel vests designed to seat older children in the car (instead of boosters). Very light and compact, excellent for traveling in taxis and rental cars (again, if there are no safety seats).
For more tips on getting around with children click here
Feeding the Family
You’ve arrived and started to settle in, and now everyone is surely hungry and thirsty. In most hotels, you’ll probably get complimentary bottled water to start with (tap water in Thailand is not suitable for drinking!)
For food and water — if your place is near a 7-11 or other stores, you can run and buy a few things. But still, it’s recommended to use the food delivery apps that are very popular in most parts of Thailand—to order food straight to your apartment with a courier (anything from a full supermarket cart to a shake or a bottle of water).
The most common app is Grab, and another useful one is for the large supermarket known to have a lot of imported food—Tops.
Here you can get a lot of information and recommendations about food in Thailand.
And there you have it! All went according to plan – You’re in Thailand with the kids, you’re settled, you’ve eaten —
now it’s time to dive into the family Thai adventure!
Continuing to plan your visit to Thailand with the kids? You could also be interested in
Everything you should know before you go!
Didn’t find what you were looking for?
Have a question about how to plan a visit to Thailand with the kids?
We’d love to hear
from you!
Affiliate Links Disclaimer: In this page, you’ll find affiliate links, including Amazon Associates, leading to products and services we genuinely believe enhance your adventures. Clicking on these links may earn us a small commission at no extra cost to you, supporting the continuous flow of our travel insights. Rest assured, we only recommend what aligns with our values and what we would genuinely endorse. Your trust is invaluable, and we’re here for any questions or clarifications.
Please see our full disclaimer for more information.
Happy travels!