What should you pack for a trip to Thailand?

The short list

• A small dry bag (5 to 10 litres) for longtail boats and island tours.

• Reef-safe sunscreen, free of the four chemicals banned in marine national parks (below).

• Prescription medicine in original packaging with a doctor's letter or prescription.

• A universal plug adapter if your plugs aren't two-pin; many sockets take both flat and round pins, but not all.

• Insect repellent with DEET or picaridin, especially for Khao Sok and the north.

• Sandals that can get wet plus one pair of closed shoes for hikes and city walking.

• A light rain layer or compact umbrella from May to October.

Leave behind: vapes and e-cigarettes, drones unless you're prepared to register them, and anything heavy you can buy at 7-Eleven.

Rules that catch travellers: vapes, medicine, drones

Vapes are illegal. Thailand has banned importing, selling and possessing e-cigarettes since 2014, and the Thai embassy's own warnings say foreigners can be fined several times the device's value or jailed. Enforcement stepped up in 2025, and tourists have paid heavy fines after being caught vaping on beaches. Leave the device and refills at home, and don't buy one in Thailand either.

Medicine: Thai embassies say ordinary prescription medicine for personal use is allowed up to 30 days' supply, in original labelled containers with a prescription or doctor's letter. Medicines containing narcotics or psychotropic substances (some strong painkillers, ADHD medication, sleeping pills, some anxiety medication) need a permit from Thailand's Food and Drug Administration, applied for online at least 15 days before travel. Quantities and schedules have changed recently and sources disagree, so check your specific medicine on the Thai FDA traveller permit portal or with the Thai embassy before you fly.

Drones: flying legally means registering with both the NBTC and the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand, with third-party insurance, and much of that can only be done after you arrive. For a short holiday, most people decide it isn't worth carrying one.

Island hopping and the beach bag

Longtail boats from Ao Nang to Railay usually land on the beach, so you step off into knee-deep water with your bag held up. Speedboat tours to Hong Island, Phi Phi and the Four Islands are similar: spray and wet landings are normal. A roll-top dry bag for your phone, cash and camera is the single most useful thing to pack for the Andaman coast. Our Ao Nang to Railay longtail guide describes the boats and tours.

Sunscreen: Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation bans sunscreens containing oxybenzone, octinoxate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4MBC) or butylparaben in marine national parks, with fines of up to 100,000 baht. Rangers may hold banned products until you leave the park. Many of the most visited islands, including the Phi Phi islands, Hong Island and the Similans, are inside marine national parks, so buy a mineral (zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) sunscreen and read the ingredients rather than trusting a "reef safe" label. A long-sleeved rash guard cuts how much sunscreen you need.

Add a microfibre towel, water shoes if you plan to swim off rocky beaches, and a waterproof phone pouch if you want photos from the boat. Snorkel masks are supplied on most tours, but if you care about fit, bring your own.

Rainy season and the north

Thailand's two coasts have different wet seasons. On the Andaman side (Phuket, Krabi, Ao Nang, Phi Phi) the southwest monsoon brings the most rain roughly from May to October, and some boat routes run less often in rough seas. The Gulf islands (Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, Koh Tao) get their heaviest rain later, roughly October to December. Our best time to visit Thailand breaks this down by month.

For a wet-season trip pack a packable rain jacket, quick-dry clothes, a dry bag doubling as a rain cover for your daypack, and sandals rather than trainers that never dry. In the cool season (roughly November to February) mornings and evenings in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son are noticeably cooler than Bangkok, so bring one warm layer for the north and for overnight buses and trains, which run the air conditioning hard.

Khao Sok means jungle walks and river or lake trips: closed shoes, repellent and a headtorch are worth having. Leech socks are sold locally if you hike in the wet season.

Power, money and paperwork

Thailand runs at 220 volts, 50Hz. Sockets in newer buildings often accept both flat two-pin (US-style) and round two-pin plugs, but older rooms vary, so a universal adapter is safer than counting on a fit. Check chargers say 100-240V; US-only appliances such as some hair straighteners need a converter or should stay at home.

Cash still matters at markets, street stalls and songthaews, though QR payments are widespread for locals and cards work in malls and hotels. A card without foreign transaction fees and a habit of declining dynamic currency conversion at ATMs saves money; Thai ATMs charge their own fixed fee per withdrawal, so take out larger amounts less often. See cash or card when travelling.

Paperwork to have on your phone and in print: your passport, return or onward ticket, accommodation details and the Thailand Digital Arrival Card, which must be completed online before arrival. Visa rules are in do I need a visa to visit Thailand.

What to buy in Thailand instead

Toiletries, mosquito repellent, after-sun gel, rehydration salts and basic medicine are all easy to find in pharmacies and convenience stores. Light cotton trousers and sarongs sell cheaply at markets in Bangkok and Chiang Mai, which is useful if you arrive without temple-appropriate clothing; our temple dress code guide explains what the Grand Palace and Wat Pho expect.

Laundry is cheap and usually charged by the kilo, so a week of clothes covers a month. For our own route, see the 6-week Thailand itinerary and the Bangkok guide. The general kit for a longer trip is in our long-trip packing list.

Frequently asked questions