🇹🇭Bangkok
Chaotic, friendly, and outrageously good value. Street food that outclasses most restaurants, a skytrain gliding over legendary traffic, and golden temples around every corner.
Mid-range figures, per person
Per person, no flights — those are just below. The mid-range figure is researched; budget and comfort scale it, so treat the two as rough. The trip calculator and hotels below break the day down properly.
Fares are into Bangkok. Islands and the north add a domestic hop, usually $30–80 each way on AirAsia, Nok or Thai Vietjet. Ranges are typical fares booked 1–3 months out, checked mid-2026 — school-holiday peaks run higher, and patient shoppers beat the bottom end.
Prices checked · how we work these out
Is Bangkok expensive to visit?
Not especially: a mid-range day in Bangkok costs $40–80 per person, and its $60 midpoint is 33% below the $90 median across all 127 cities here. Within Thailand it runs 40% above the $43 average of our 11 Thailand guides. That makes it pricier than 29 of the 127 cities, with a cheap meal at $1.50–3 and a mid-range hotel at $50–100 a night.
How much does a trip to Bangkok cost?
| Trip length | Budget | Mid-range | Comfort |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 days | $75–150 | $120–240 | $210–420 |
| 5 days | $125–250 | $200–400 | $350–700 |
| 7 days | $175–350 | $280–560 | $490–980 |
| 14 days | $350–700 | $560–1,120 | $980–1,960 |
Per person and before flights, 3 days in Bangkok costs $120–240 mid-range, five days $200–400, a week $280–560 and two weeks $560–1,120; a week costs about $175–350 on a budget and $490–980 travelling in comfort.
Per person in US dollars, flights not included. Each total is a daily range from the band above multiplied out: mid-range is the guide's researched figure and already includes a mid-range room; budget and comfort scale it by 0.6 and 1.8, so treat those two as rough. The trip calculator lets you set your own days and group size.
Entry & visa
Most Western passports currently get 60 days visa-exempt on arrival. Rules shift — check the official Thai immigration site before booking.
Visa rules turn on your nationality and change often — always confirm the current requirement for your own passport with an official government source before you book.
Quick facts
Money & what things cost
Cash still rules the street: food stalls, markets, taxis, and small shops want baht. Cards work in malls, hotels, and chain restaurants. Thai ATMs charge a flat ฿220 (~$6) per foreign withdrawal — take out large amounts infrequently, and always choose to be charged in baht, never your home currency.
What locals earn
| Earnings | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Average monthly salary (Bangkok) | ≈ ฿25,000–30,000 ($720–860) | office/service work; many earn less |
| Minimum wage | ≈ ฿370/day ($10.60) | raised periodically |
Food & drink
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| Street-food plate (pad kra pao, noodle soup) | ฿50–80 | $1.40–2.30 |
| Mall food-court meal | ฿60–120 | $1.70–3.40 |
| Casual air-con restaurant, per person | ฿150–300 | $4.30–8.60 |
| Upscale or rooftop dinner, per person | ฿1,200+ | $34+ |
| Street Thai iced tea/coffee | ฿40–60 | $1.10–1.70 |
| Local beer (Chang, Singha) at a bar | ฿90–150 | $2.60–4.30 |
Transport
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| BTS Skytrain / MRT metro ride | ฿17–62 | $0.50–1.80 |
| Metered taxi flag fare | ฿35 | $1 |
| Grab ride across town | ฿100–250 | $3–7 |
| Tuk-tuk short hop (agree price first) | ฿60–150 | $1.70–4.30 |
| Airport Rail Link, BKK → Phaya Thai | ฿45 | $1.30 |
| Metered taxi from BKK airport (tolls + ฿50 fee incl.) | ฿400–550 | $11–16 |
Where to sleep & what it costs
| Tier | Per night | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hostel dorm | ฿300–500 ($9–14) | Modern, social, often excellent |
| Guesthouse / budget hotel | ฿800–1,500 ($23–43) | Private room with a/c |
| Mid-range hotel | ฿1,800–3,500 ($50–100) | Rooftop pools are standard at this tier |
| Luxury riverside | ฿7,000+ ($200+) | Five-star here costs what three-star costs in Europe |
Been recently? Check our prices
One tap per figure. Check-ins reset whenever this guide is re-priced, so they only ever vouch for the numbers you see here.
Trip cost calculator
$60 per person per day · 4 nights of lodging (Mid-range hotel)
A rough estimate, not a quote. The daily budget already includes a room, so one traveler pays exactly days × that budget; lodging is the room’s part of it, priced from the hotels below but never more than 45% of the trip. Extra travelers share the room and add only their own spending. Flights use the midpoint of the Getting there ranges above.
Getting around
- From the airport
- From Suvarnabhumi (BKK): Airport Rail Link to Phaya Thai (~26 min, ฿45), then BTS onward — or the official metered-taxi queue on the ground floor (฿400–550 all-in). From Don Mueang (DMK): A1 express bus to Mo Chit BTS, or a Grab.
- BTS & MRT
- Elevated Skytrain and underground metro: fast, icy air-con, and they laugh at the traffic below. Get a stored-value Rabbit card for BTS. Both close around midnight.
- Grab / Bolt
- The default for visitors — cheap, fixed price up front, no meter arguments. Motorbike-taxi option is thrillingly fast for short solo hops (helmets provided, mostly).
- Boats
- The Chao Phraya Express (฿16–30) is transport and sightseeing — it stops near the Grand Palace and Wat Arun. The khlong (canal) boats are the locals' rush-hour cheat code.
- Taxis
- Plentiful and cheap if the meter is on. If the driver quotes a flat price or 'meter broken', smile, close the door, take the next one or a Grab.
Map
Drag to look around, or open Google Maps ↗ · Apple Maps ↗
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Neighborhoods to stay in
- Sukhumvit (Asok–Thong Lo)
- Malls, nightlife, endless restaurants, BTS at your door. The convenient default.
- Riverside
- The romantic option — old Bangkok, five-star hotels, boat piers.
- Ari
- Leafy, café-filled local neighborhood on the BTS — where expats actually live.
- Banglamphu / Old City
- Near the Grand Palace and Khao San backpacker strip; character over convenience (no rail nearby).
- Silom / Sathorn
- Business district with Lumpini Park, good mid-range hotels, both BTS and MRT.
Things to do
Nightlife
Restaurants
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Theater & shows
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Tipping & etiquette
- Dress for temples: shoulders and knees covered, shoes off inside. Sarongs are usually rentable at the gate.
- Never disrespect the monarchy — it's a serious crime (lèse-majesté), not a cultural suggestion. Stand for the royal anthem in cinemas.
- The head is sacred, feet are lowly: don't touch anyone's head, don't point your feet at people or Buddha images.
- Keep your cool. Raising your voice loses face for everyone and achieves precisely nothing.
- Return a wai (palms-together bow) with a smile; you're not expected to initiate one.
How to spend a trip to Bangkok
The Old City has no skytrain, so the temple day is really a boat day — the Chao Phraya Express stops near the Grand Palace and Wat Arun, and the BTS and MRT handle everything else while the traffic sits still underneath them.
One day is enough for the Old City temples and one night out, provided you start at opening time. It's the heat that defeats people here, not the distances.
- MorningThe Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew as the gates open, then Wat Pho a short walk away while there's still some shade.
- MiddayThe cross-river ferry to Wat Arun, then lunch somewhere with air-con rather than a view.
- AfternoonRetreat to the BTS and the malls around Siam through the worst of the heat. Nobody sightsees well at 2pm in Bangkok.
- EveningYaowarat Road in Chinatown, the best eating in the city after dark, with a gin at Teens of Thailand afterwards.
Three days is this guide's own minimum and it holds up: one day for the old riverside city, one for the modern one, one for the markets and the food.
- Day 1The Old City by boat: Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, finishing on the river at sunset.
- Day 2Modern Bangkok: Lumpini Park early, the Siam and Sukhumvit malls through the heat, then a rooftop — Sky Bar if you want the view you've already seen in photographs.
- Day 3Chatuchak market if your trip covers a weekend; otherwise a slow morning in Ari, where the city actually lives, and Thipsamai or Krua Apsorn for dinner.
Bangkok is a three-to-four-day city for most people and a hub after that. Five days works well, but only if you let the last day leave town.
- Days 1–3The three-day plan above: the Old City, modern Bangkok, and the market-and-food day.
- Day 4The parts you rushed past: Chinatown in daylight, the riverside, and Asiatique in the evening for the Calypso cabaret if that appeals.
- Day 5Ayutthaya is the obvious day trip, an easy train ride north to the ruins of the old capital. Go early — it's flat, shadeless and brutal by midday.
Safety & common scams
Very safe for violent crime — solo travelers thrive here. The actual risks are traffic (look both ways twice, sidewalks included), scams aimed at obvious newcomers, and overdoing the nightlife. Petty theft happens in crowds; keep bags zipped and in front.
Scams to know
- 'The Grand Palace is closed today' — the classic. A friendly stranger redirects you to a tuk-tuk 'tour' ending at a gem shop. The palace is open; walk to the entrance and see for yourself.
- ฿20 tuk-tuk 'city tours' — you'll spend the day at commission shops.
- Taxi meter 'broken' or wild flat quotes at tourist spots — take a Grab.
- Jet-ski and scooter damage claims (more common at beach towns) — photograph everything before renting.
- Ping-pong show touts on Khao San / Patpong — ends with an extortionate bill and large men blocking the door.
Emergency numbers: 1155 tourist police (English-speaking, used to handling exactly these situations) · 191 police · 1669 ambulance
Phone & internet
Grab an AIS or TrueMove tourist SIM at the airport (~฿300–450 for 8–15 days of effectively unlimited data) or install an eSIM before flying. 5G is fast and everywhere. You'll want data constantly — for Grab, maps, and translating menus.
First-timer FAQs
Is the street food safe to eat?
Broadly yes, and skipping it would be the real mistake. Pick busy stalls with high turnover where food is cooked to order in front of you. Ease in over a couple of days, peel fruit yourself, and be choosy about raw dishes.
Cash or card?
Both, deliberately: cards for malls and hotels, cash for everything street-level. Withdraw big to amortize the ฿220 ATM fee, and always pay in baht when the machine offers a choice.
Grab or taxis?
Grab, until you're comfortable spotting the honest meters. It removes every negotiation and language barrier for a dollar or two more.
How many days — and then where?
Three to four days covers Bangkok's classics (Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, Chatuchak market on a weekend, Chinatown at night). Most trips then continue north to Chiang Mai or south to the islands — both an hour's cheap flight away.
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