These Tips to save money in Thailand will let you enjoy the most of this amazing country by spending minimum!
When you are in Thailand I know what spirits you are in. But, it is good to know some ways to save your money and put it to good use. Feel free to interpret ‘good use’ as you wish, but, wasting money on unnecessary things might upset your budget. Here, I have listed 7 tips to save money in Thailand. Out of these tips to save money in Thailand, I failed to follow some of them. But, I do realize that if I had followed all these tips to save money in Thailand, I would have saved much more!
1) Get the best exchange rate: This one tops all the tips to save money in Thailand. Everything starts with getting the best exchange conversion rates. Converting local currency directly in Baht (Thailand currency) might cause currency loss. Hence, get your local currency converted in U.S Dollars. Choose denomination of $100 or $50 because they provide the best exchange rate in Thailand. Lesser denomination will provide you a poor exchange rate.
Thai baht (Tips to save money in Thailand)
2) Convert only when needed: When you reach Thailand, you will have to convert dollars in bahts. Now, consider how much Baht will you need to reach your Hotel. For one person, you will need 1000/1200 Baht to get Visa on Arrival. Considering transport from Airport to city, you might require maximum 300-400 Baht per person. So, according to your requirement, get around 1500 Baht and save the rest of dollars till you reach the city. The exchange rate at Airport is costlier. Any Thailand city will offer you better exchange rate than airport. This one is also important among all the tips to save money in Thailand.
My post on tips before travelling to Thailand discusses about Thailand currency. You might find this post helpful.
3) Take the metro: When you go to a new country, you might travel by public transport to see the real country. The same applies to Bangkok. From the Airport, choose to go by the interlinked Metro trains which are way cheaper that a cab and also you will get to know the efficiency of the Bangkok trains.
In addition, while traversing through different metro stations, you will realize why Bangkok is the fashion capital when the variety of skirts you see, will be more than variety in faces. In Thailand, The other transport options like tuk tuks, cabs and jacketed bikers are obviously costlier than trains.
Saving up on transportation will surely be a crucial part of the tips to save money in Thailand.
Take the metro ( Tips to save money in Thailand)
4) Pre-book your Baggage: If you are taking a domestic flight with-in Thailand, check the baggage rules. It is advisable to pre-book the baggage while booking tickets. If your luggage is heavier at the time of check in, you might have to pay extra. We ended up paying 1200 Baht extra because we did not pre-book the baggage.
Air Asia & Tiger Air are notorious for charging extra buck for extra baggage.
5) Be Careful in Hotels: When you check in the hotel, look around if there is a list of things along with price tag. If there is, please refrain from using any of these things. No, they are not dangerous, but can burn a hole in your pocket.
In Phuket, we discovered one such list pasted on our hotel room’s wall. One fine evening, the care taker found a tiny pink mark on two bathing towels and charged us 1000 Baht according to the list! We ended up paying 500 Baht which was still a complete waste. Thailand attracts many tourists every year. Hence, the hotels have their own strategies to dupe customers
6) Compare before booking trips:If you are going to Pattaya or Phuket, you have the options of taking Island trips. Now, there is a lot of competition in these tour operators who provide island trips. Compare with at-least 10 places which sell these island trip tickets and get the best deal. We compared at-least 20 ticket selling agents and saved 1500 Baht per person. When we boarded our Phuket en-route flight, we were offered 2 days island trip in 3600 Baht per person in Bangkok. But, finally, we got the same trip for 2100 Bahts per person when we finalized it in Patong. Same applies when you are shopping or taking some local transport apart from metro.
7) Don’t be over excited:Now, this is especially for the guys reading this. When you go to those notorious areas, its okay to spot a nice looking girl and offer a drink. But, don’t offer drinks to strippers or bar tenders as their job is to burn a hole in your pockets. Don’t misunderstand me. I am talking about money here. They will come at your table, and ask you to buy them a drink. Mind it, they will not be satisfied with a pint of beer or a free shot of vodka. So, decide what do you want before entering a pub and spend accordingly.
So, these are the 7 tips to save money in Thailand which I compiled from my personal trip. Along with this, please note that I totally support spending money for shopping, island trips, drinking, getting massages (wink), exotic dances and all other fun things. But, just spending money to pay for some stupid pink mark on your towel, which you are not even responsible for, is utter waste of money.
If you are planning for Thailand, do consider these 7 tips to save money in Thailand and you will be saving up a lot!
On a final note, when travelling on a budget, it’s just as important to avoid losing money as it is to save money. While Thailand is generally a safe place to travel, it isn’t without its problems, and like anywhere in the world tourists are targets for petty crime. From accommodation scams to money draining tour packages as well as Faux Pas in Thailand which can get you in serious trouble, this guide details it all. ‘It is better to be safe than sorry!’
Visited 9 times, 1 visit(s) today
Excellent writeup. One more way to save money is ask locals wherever possible about the shortest route of transport.. you can combine your transport at someplace either by taking the Boat Transport or trains instead of cab/AC mini bus when you go out side Bangkok.
Yep, that’s another way. Thanks for your input 🙂
Wow ! Informative. Its really helps those who want to exchange. I read your all 7 points and I agreed with them. Useful!
Omg, That’s a nice post!
Like you, Thanks!
Thanks for the appreciation 🙂
Hey! I am glad you found it useful 🙂
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Keep up the great writing.
Hey! Thank you for reading it 🙂
hi,nicely covered
I just returned from Thailand tour… Phi phi Island tour we completed in just 2500 bhat for 3 person and 1 infant.. Hotels booking done using agoda at 50%discount just 5000 inr for 3 nights at excellent location. Near to banzan fresh market and bigC, jungceylon mall… Super cheap stores… Yes in Bangkok it is smart if you book your hotel near Indian restaurant and near BTS station. I was staying near si phraya pier.. I town residence. Bus stop is besides my hotel, pier is 250 m away while saphan Taksin BTS just 1 km from hotel.. I booked safari World and marine Park ticket together at just 830 bhat at amujamu.com while counter ticket is 1500 bhat for these two.. I searched all information and kept all details of map in my screenshot.. It helped me a lot.. I stayed for 9 days with my family 3+1 infant.. Total cost came 16000bhat
[…] mode will show you how to save money. The great factor right here is that buses depart steadily from Phuket to Krabi. You should buy […]
Very Very useful ideas .
Hope you will also write about Europe tour MAINLY FOR A LEISURE TRIP PREFERABLY CONDUCTED SMALL GROUP OR
SELF TRIP FROM BOOKING AIRLINES AND ACCOMADATION AND SIGHTSEEING .
Hope I am not asking you too much .
Thanks for the tips to Thailand
Duration of Europe trip 15 to 20 days