Thailand Packing Guide – What to Wear for Traveling in Thailand

Packing for Thailand means making some hard choices on what to bring and what to leave behind. There’s also a lot of bad or outdated advice out there floating around from people who passed through a decade ago.

We’ve been traveling in Thailand for 15 years and have optimized packing down to a science.

Every trip is different and every traveler is unique. Different seasons and regions call for different items. Most toiletry items can be found locally, but not all.

This guide tries to tell you what you probably will and won’t need to bring, but also provides the info to allow you to make the judgment calls to get your bag packed perfectly for you and your trip.

Luckily, most things are easy to find in Thailand so if you forget something or need to pick it up halfway through your trip, it’s easy to find. Check out our post on the things to buy before your trip to Thailand for a few of the things that are harder to find here.

Backpack, suitcase, or duffel bag

If you’re a more luxury traveler then a nice four-wheeled rolling suitcase is your best bet for traveling Thailand. For pretty much anyone else we recommend a solid rolling duffel bag and NOT a rucksack-style backpack.

95% of the time while moving between destinations in Thailand you can roll your bag, but that might involve uneven ground or broken pavement. Wearing a heavy backpack just makes you sweat a lot. Being able to roll your back saves a lot of energy and sweat, and for the occasional flight of stairs, it’s not so hard to just carry the bag up or down (and if it is you’re probably overpacked).

We recommend a rolling duffel (with big, sturdy wheels) over a suitcase since the wheels on a roller are usually too small or flimsy to handle uneven ground. Even if you’re traveling as a budget backpacker, this is usually much easier and more convenient, but if you really want that backpacker look, go for it.

Whatever bag you use, you’ll also want a carry-on bag that can also be used as a daypack.

Packing for Thailand’s seasons and regions

Thailand has some variability in weather, but most of the time the weather is just hot. In Bangkok and anywhere north of there, brief cold spells are possible in December and January. Nighttime temperatures can get down to around 15° C (59° F) during these times.

Higher in the mountains, this can be even lower. We don’t recommend packing for ultra cold though, it’s easy to buy extra warm clothing if you need it, and you’ll be supporting the local economy in regions where it’s needed.

Bangkok and all areas north, east and west of there have a three-season monsoon cycle:

• Rainy season runs roughly from late April through early November. Some days can be quite rainy, some have no rain at all. Usually, there are a few hours of on-and-off rain.
• Cool season is from December through January, but days are still hot and nights often are.
• Hot season is pretty dry and runs from February into April.

Southern Thailand is similiar to the above, but without a cool season. It’s roughly

• Rainy and hot late April through early November.
• Dry and hot November into April.

Check out our post on the best time to travel in Thailand for more weather information including average temperatures and rainfall by month.

Shorts or trousers

When you’re out and about at midday in the tropics, obviously shorts are slightly more comfortable than long pants. Wearing them is fine, especially when you have a stylish pair. For a night out, a pair of nice jeans is much preferred. Shorts are pretty common in most bars catering to Westerners, and they’re fine in many casual Thai nightspots too. For nightclubs in Bangkok and some other areas, men won’t be allowed in without long pants. Women can pretty much wear the right pair of shorts anywhere but in temples.

Thailand packing list

Here is our recommendation for what you’ll need in Thailand. Adjust the numbers based on how often you plan on doing laundry. Laundry is cheap and easy but gets expensive in nicer hotels. It’s not hard to get your clothes washed every few days, but a bit more convenient if you don’t always need to.

Clothing

Toiletries

Toiletries and cosmetics are pretty up to the individual. We will note that replacements for most things are readily available in Thailand. Feminine hygiene products are available but somewhat limited outside of cities. The same goes for nicer moisturizing creams, cosmetics, and women’s shaving razors.

Bring your own reef-safe mineral sunscreen. The big name-brand sun creams are everywhere here, but the nicer stuff is hard to find.

Electronics

• Your phone
• Charging cables
• Power bank
• eReader if you’re into that
• Laptop or tablet if you like
• Camera or action camera if you want more than phone shots
• See our Thailand drone registration guide if you’re considering bringing one
• A voltage converter — only if you have 110-volt electronics (mainly US & Canada), and only if they aren’t dual voltage which most things are. Mainly this is for electric razors and hair dryers.
• A socket adapter — but only for electronics from certain countries. Most Thai wall outlets can accept US flat prong and European round prong plugs. If you have American plugs with the third ground prong, it’s 50/50 on whether you’ll need an adapter. EU, Indian, Japanese, Israeli, Australian, and most of the other random international plug types will need adapters.

Miscellaneous

• An insulated water bottle
• A good quality travel umbrella if traveling during the rainy season
• A knife (for cutting fruit etc.)
• Sunglasses
• A lightweight sarong (for covering up at temples, and it can double as a beach towel. You can also tie up your dirty laundry in it)
• A travel towel as an alternative to a sarong (better for the beach or gym, not as good for temples)
• A thin-walled drybag

General guidelines

Shoes or flip-flops

Nightclubs away from beach areas usually require shoes but flip-flops (thongs) are okay in most other areas. I wear flip-flops pretty often, but for me the difference in temperature between them and shoes is minimal. If I’m out and about in a city, I usually opt for shoes just to keep my feet from getting filthy.

Tank tops, singlets, vests, or whatever else you want to call them

Nobody should wear tank tops to temples, and men won’t get into nightclubs in them. I know they’re comfortable, but please don’t be that foreigner who wears nothing else. They’re fine for the islands, and around Bangkok, you’ll see plenty of Thais rocking them too. But for nights out, guys will do much better keeping the guns away (Khao San Road excepted).

Not being offensive

Wearing highly revealing clothing is not really okay in most places. Nude sunbathing is illegal everywhere. Sunbathing is fine at the beach and hotel pools, but not in parks or anywhere else really. Very skimpy swimwear you can get away with on touristy islands, but at waterfalls and beaches where the majority are Thai families, you should cover up more.

Away from the beach, even just in shops or restaurants across the road, you should cover with a sarong if you’re only wearing your swimwear.

A common backpacker thing is attaching extra shoes to the outside of their bag. This is rude in Thailand where the feet are considered the lowest part of the body. If you need to do this, make sure to keep your shoes in a shoebag.

Clothing and accessories featuring images of the Buddha are inappropriate (and even illegal).

Check out our full guide to Thai culture and etiquette to learn more.