Travel & safety — Thailand

Thailand, officially the Royal Kingdom of Thailand and formerly known as Siam, is a Southeast Asian nation at the center of the Indochina peninsula with a population of nearly 70 million.

Bangkok is the capital city and Chiang Mai is an important educational and cultural center in northern Thailand.

Thailand is a constitutional monarchy with the King as head of state and the prime minister as head of government.

The monarchy is an integral and respected part of Thai society and is protected by a vigorously enforced lèse majesté law, which makes it a crime to commit any offense or insult against the royal family.

Thailand is a popular travel destination with tourist facilities available throughout much of the country.

Political and civil unrest has at times been a problem affecting travel to Thailand, and political demonstrations take place with some frequency.

The State Department is concerned that there is a continued risk of terrorism in Southeast Asia, including in Thailand.

In January 2012, Thai police discovered a large number of explosive materials linked to suspected Hizballah operatives.

On February 14, 2012, an explosion occurred at a house on a busy street in central Bangkok.

A few minutes later a man leaving the house threw an improvised explosive device at a taxi.

The subsequent investigation attributed the incident to individuals from Iran who may have been plotting a terrorist attack against foreign interests in Thailand but whose bombs exploded prematurely.

While traveling in Thailand you should exercise caution, especially in locations where expatriates congregate, such as clubs, discos, bars, restaurants, hotels, places of worship, schools, outdoor recreation venues, tourist areas, beach resorts, and other places frequented by foreigners.

You should remain vigilant with regard to your personal security and avoid crowds and demonstrations.

The political environment in Thailand remains beset by deep political divisions.

Protesters hold political rallies frequently to voice their opinions.

Between March and May 2010, political protests throughout Thailand resulted in the deaths of at least 91 people and injuries to over 260 people, including two U.S. citizens.

For a period of several months after the protests ended in May, there were numerous explosive attacks, including several isolated grenade and arson attacks in and around Bangkok and, on occasion, Chiang Mai.

Some of the explosive devices were discovered in public places in Bangkok, including near a major shopping center, a school, a bus stop, and government buildings.

These incidents appear to have been motivated by domestic politics and to have no apparent link to international terrorism.

The Department of State advises all U.S. citizens residing in or traveling to Thailand to monitor events closely, avoid any large public gatherings, and exercise discretion when traveling within the country.

Political demonstrations are frequent in Thailand.

Many are scheduled on the anniversary of political events, and others happen with little warning.

Demonstrations can attract tens of thousands of participants and often cause severe traffic disruptions, especially if they include processions from one site to another.

If a demonstration is expected to pass near the U.S.

Embassy or Consulate facilities, Embassy and Consulate entrances and functions may be restricted.

Demonstrations are unpredictable and can turn violent without warning.

For this reason, we encourage you to monitor local media for information about possible demonstrations and to avoid the vicinity of demonstrations.

Violence in Southern Thailand - Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat, and Songkhla: The far south of Thailand has been experiencing almost daily incidents of criminally and politically motivated violence for several years, including incidents attributed to armed local separatist groups.

Although the separatist groups have focused primarily on Thai government interests in the southern provinces, they sometimes target public and commercial areas, including areas where foreigners may congregate.

On March 31, 2012, almost simultaneous bombings in one of Hat Yai’s largest hotels and in a Yala commercial district killed at least 13 people and injured more than 500, including a number of Malaysian tourists.

On September 16, 2011, three coordinated bombs exploded in Narathiwat’s business and entertainment district, killing five people, including four Malaysian tourists, and injuring over 110 others.

On April 18, 2011, a car bomb exploded in Yala’s business district, killing one person and injuring 23 others.

On February 19, 2011, gunmen fired on a karaoke restaurant in Narathiwat municipality, injuring two; half an hour later, a car bomb went off nearby, injuring more than a dozen people.

On February 13, 2011, a car bomb exploded in Yala municipality’s business distr

Although the crime threat in Bangkok and other Thai cities remains lower than that in many U.S. cities, crimes of opportunity such as pick-pocketing, purse-snatching, and burglary are not unusual.

You should be especially wary when walking in crowded markets, tourist sites, and bus or train stations.

Many U.S. citizens have had passports, wallets, and other valuables stolen in Bangkok's Chatuchak Weekend Market, in the area of Khao San Road, and other areas, usually by pickpockets and thieves who cut into purses or bags with a razor and remove items surreptitiously.

Across Thailand, U.S. citizens have been robbed of their valuables and other possessions after soliciting the services of commercial sex workers.

Thieves also victimize travelers on long-distance bus routes.

Police may refuse to issue police reports for foreign victims of theft, requiring them instead to travel several miles to a central Tourist Police station.

You may request a police report, but police may ask you to pay a small fee, approximately 50 baht in some instances.

Violent Crimes: Violent crimes against foreigners are relatively rare.

However, murders, rapes, and assaults do occur.

These crimes happen most often at night.

Frequently, victims, both male and female, have been drinking and are often alone or separated from traveling companions.

These crimes have occurred all over Thailand but are most common in Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and tourist areas in southern Thailand, including Phuket, Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, and Krabi.

If you are traveling alone, you should exercise caution, stay near other travelers and ensure that friends or family know how to contact you.

Sexually motivated violent incidents, committed by both Thai citizens and visitors, are most likely to occur at parties at discos or beaches, such as the full moon party on Phangan Island.

Some victims find that Thai authorities do not handle their cases with as much sensitivity or consideration for privacy as they would expect in the United States.

You should maintain awareness of your surroundings and travel with trusted friends or relatives to reduce your chances of falling victim to crimes of this nature.

Minor and major incidents of crimes involving taxis or "tuk-tuks" (three-wheeled taxis) can occur, especially in some tourist areas.

Drivers may attempt to charge excessive fares at airports and near major tourist attractions.

Before entering a for-hire vehicle, you should either request that the driver use the meter or reach an agreement on the fare for your trip.

Taxis in Bangkok and other major cities have meters, and their drivers usually use them.

Taxis in tourist areas often do not have meters; negotiate the fare before you get into these taxis.

Taxi drivers often refuse fares, especially during rush hour or to places they do not know well.

You should be aware that raising your voice and using aggressive body language could be seen as a threat to the driver.

Do not hesitate to ask to be let out of a taxi immediately if the driver is acting suspiciously or driving erratically.

Registered taxicab drivers have a yellow placard with their name in English and their photograph on the passenger’s side dashboard of the vehicle.

If this photograph does not match the driver, you should be wary of entering the vehicle.

Police will seldom intervene in incidents involving taxi drivers.

In Phuket, drivers routinely charge fares that are much higher than those in Bangkok for comparable distances.

Threats of violence may accompany excessive charges.

Tuk-tuk and taxi drivers in Phuket are frequently described in media reports as being a “mafia.” In 2012, a German citizen was hospitalized after a severe beating by a group of tuk-tuk drivers following an argument about the fare.

The local government officials in Phuket have attempted with limited success to introduce standard fares.

Drivers have organized against attempts to provide alternative services.

For instance, they have blockaded van and bu

While you are in Thailand, you are subject to Thai laws and penalties, even if you are a U.S. citizen.

If you violate Thai laws, even unknowingly, you may be fined, arrested, imprisoned, or deported.

Foreign laws and legal systems can be vastly different than our own.

For example, Thais hold the King and the royal family in the highest regard, and it is a serious criminal offense in Thailand to make critical or defamatory comments about them.

This particular crime, called lese majeste, is punishable by a prison sentence of three to fifteen years.

The offenses include actions that in the United States would be sanctioned as the exercise of free speech.

If you use the Internet when committing this crime, you may be subject to additional criminal sanctions of up to seven additional years in prison.

Thai authorities actively search for and investigate Internet postings, including blog entries and links to other sites, for lese majeste content.

They have arrested and charged U.S. citizens and others with lèse majesté offenses for actions that occurred outside of Thailand.

You can also be charged if you do not remove a potentially offensive item fast enough from an Internet site you control.

Purposely tearing or destroying Thai bank notes, which carry an image of the King, may also be considered a lese majeste offense, as can spitting on or otherwise defiling an official uniform bearing the royal insignia.

The Thai government has publicly stated that it will not tolerate the use of Thai territory as a base by groups trying to overthrow or destabilize the governments of nearby countries.

Several U.S. citizens have been arrested or detained under suspicion of carrying out such activities.

Sometimes military authorities carry out these detentions, and we do not learn of them until many days after the fact.

Many U.S. citizens suspected of advocating the armed overthrow of other governments have been "blacklisted" from entering the country.

Attempts to overthrow foreign governments by force may violate U.S. law as well as Thai law.

Penalties for possessing, using, or trafficking illegal drugs in Thailand are severe, and convicted offenders can expect long jail sentences under harsh conditions and often heavy fines as well.

Thailand has a death penalty for serious drug offenses and has executed convicted traffickers.

We frequently do not learn of the arrest of U.S. citizens for minor drug offenses, particularly in southern Thailand, until several days after the incident.

If you are arrested for a minor drug offense, you may be jailed for several weeks while lab testing is done on the drugs seized with you.

Pre-trial jail conditions may be more severe than prison conditions.

If you are able to post bail during this period, the Royal Thai government will place your name on a watch list for Thai Immigration officials because you are not supposed to leave Thailand until the legal proceedings are complete.

Some trekking tour companies, particularly in northern Thailand, make drugs available to trekkers.

Drug-related crimes and arrests are also common in Bangkok, Pattaya, and at some beach resorts in southern Thailand.

Police in beach resort areas are especially on the lookout for drugs during and after “full moon parties.” You should not accept drugs of any kind, as the drugs may be altered and harmful, and the use or sale of narcotic drugs is illegal in Thailand.

Thai police occasionally raid discos, bars, or nightclubs looking for underage patrons and drug users.

During the raids, they typically check the identification of all customers in the establishment and make each person provide a urine sample to be checked for narcotics.

The police do not excuse foreigners from these checks, and they arrest and charge anyone whose urine tests positive for drugs.

Customers can be jailed if they do not cooperate, and we are unaware of any successful challenge to the practice.

Shoplifting is strictly prosecuted.

Arrests for shoplifting even low-value it

Medical treatment is generally adequate in Thailand’s urban areas.

In Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Pattaya good facilities exist for routine, long-term, and emergency health care.

Basic medical care is available in rural areas, but English-speaking providers are rare.

Alcoholic beverages, medications, and drugs you purchase in Thailand may be more potent or of a different composition than similar ones in the United States.

Several U.S. citizen tourists die in Thailand each year of apparent premature heart attacks after having consumed alcohol or drugs.

Many pharmacies in Thailand do not require a prescription.

Counterfeit medications have entered the wholesale distribution network in South East Asia.

If you must buy medication locally, we recommend that you purchase it from an international chain pharmacy.

If you have a chronic medical problem, you should bring enough of your maintenance medicine (up to a 30-day supply) and not rely on purchasing your medication from the local economy.

Please see Special Circumstances, above for restrictions on importing medication for personal use.

For tourists, the most common serious medical complications result from motor vehicle accidents.

If you ride a motorcycle or scooter including motorcycle taxis, you could prevent a serious and disabling head injury by using a helmet.

Dengue and Chikungunya are viral infections transmitted via mosquitoes.

These infections are endemic in Thailand, including urban areas, and can make patients feel very ill, and in a small percentage of individuals, they can be deadly.

Although these cases are more prevalent during the rainy season, they occur throughout the year.

Using a mosquito repellent with DEET at least twice a day is effective for mosquito bite prevention.

Please see the CDC website for additional information.

Thailand has been experiencing an epidemic of HIV infection and AIDS.

Heterosexual transmission accounts for most HIV infections.

HIV is common among prostitutes of both sexes, as well as among injection drug users.

HIV infections among men who have sex with other men appear to be on the rise.

The CDC, WHO, and Thai authorities have confirmed human cases of the H1N1 (commonly known as "swine flu") and the H5N1 (commonly known as the "bird flu") strains of influenza in Thailand.

Tuberculosis is an increasingly serious health concern in Thailand.

In Chiang Mai and other areas of northern Thailand, poor air quality might pose a health threat during the dry season, from March until June.

Smoke and particulate matter from agricultural burning can irritate eyes and respiratory systems and worsen heart and respiratory diseases.

While in Thailand, you may encounter road conditions that differ significantly from those in the United States.

In Thailand, traffic moves on the left, although motorcycles and motorized carts often drive (illegally) against the traffic flow.

The city of Bangkok has heavy traffic composed of motorcycles, bicycles, cars, trucks, buses, and three-wheeled tuk-tuks.

For safety, if you are walking, use overhead walkways whenever possible and look carefully in both directions before crossing streets, even if using a marked crosswalk with a green "walk" light illuminated.

This is particularly true in front of the U.S.