When is it cheapest to visit Bangkok?

Bangkok is cheapest to visit in May, June, July, August, and September.

Peak season is January, February, November, and December, when rooms cost the most.

Bangkok seasons and room prices

Bangkok is most expensive in the cool dry season from November to February, when weather is at its best and the New Year and Lunar New Year holidays fill central hotels. Songkran in mid April brings a short spike around the water festival. The rainy season from May to October is the reliable low: rain usually arrives as a late afternoon downpour and clears, and the same hotel can sit well below its winter rate. March and April are hot rather than wet and fall in between on price. Weekend nights carry a modest premium because so many visitors arrive from elsewhere in Asia for a short stay.

Bangkok local costs and payment

The currency is the Thai baht. Hotels, malls and chain restaurants take cards without fuss, but street food, markets, tuk tuks and motorbike taxis are cash only, so keep small notes on you. At checkout pay in baht rather than accepting the site's conversion to your home currency, which hides a margin. Thai hotels commonly list rooms before a 7 percent VAT and a 10 percent service charge, and some sites show that base rate while others show the total, so compare on the all in figure. There is no separate city tourist tax on hotel stays at present.