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Thailand lies in the heart of mainland Southeast Asia. The mountainous north rises to Doi Inthanon, the northeast is a wide, dry plateau, the fertile plain of the Chao Phraya River runs through the middle, and a long, narrow strip of land stretches south down the Malay Peninsula, between the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea.
For more than 700 years Thai kingdoms rose and fell here, from Sukhothai and Ayutthaya to today's Bangkok. The country was known internationally as Siam until 1939, and it is the only country in Southeast Asia that was never colonised by a Western power.
Today Thailand is a constitutional monarchy of about 66 million people, most of them Buddhist. Millions of visitors come every year for its temples and royal palaces, its beaches and islands, its lively markets and one of the most loved cuisines in the world.
People have lived in what is now Thailand for tens of thousands of years, and Mon and Khmer kingdoms ruled much of it before the Thai. Thai historians count Sukhothai, founded in the 1200s, as the first Thai kingdom. It was followed by Ayutthaya, then by Bangkok and the Chakri dynasty, which still reigns today.
A Thai leader, Bang Klang Hao, with the help of his ally Pha Mueang, took Sukhothai from Khmer control and became its king as Si Inthrathit. Its most famous ruler, Ram Khamhaeng, is traditionally credited with creating the Thai script.
King Uthong founded Ayutthaya on an island where three rivers meet. It grew into one of the largest and richest cities in Asia and the capital of a powerful kingdom for more than 400 years.
While the Portuguese were capturing Malacca, they sent an envoy, Duarte Fernandes, to Ayutthaya. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to deal with Siam, and the French, Dutch and English followed in the 1600s.
After a siege of 14 months, a Burmese army captured Ayutthaya and burned it. Within months a general named Taksin drove the Burmese out and made Thonburi, on the west bank of the Chao Phraya and now part of Bangkok, his capital.
General Chakri took power, became King Rama I and founded the Chakri dynasty. He moved the capital across the Chao Phraya River to Bangkok and began building the Grand Palace.
King Mongkut signed a trade treaty with Britain, negotiated by Sir John Bowring. It was an unequal treaty, but it opened Siam to world trade and was followed by similar treaties with other Western countries.
Chulalongkorn, Rama V, came to the throne at the age of 15 and reigned for 42 years. He modernised the country with railways, schools and a new government, while skilfully keeping Siam independent.
After a short conflict, France forced Siam to give up its lands east of the Mekong River, most of today's Laos. Siam stayed independent, partly because Britain and France found it useful as a buffer between their colonies.
King Chulalongkorn ended slavery step by step, starting with an edict in 1874. The Slave Abolition Act of 1905 freed the remaining slaves' children and set the rest on a path to freedom, and slavery had legally ended by 1915, without the bloodshed seen in other countries.
Siam joined the First World War on the Allied side, and on 28 September 1917 King Vajiravudh adopted the red, white and blue striped flag still used today. A red flag with a white elephant had been the national flag for most of the 1800s, before a short-lived red and white striped design.
On 24 June 1932 a group of officials and officers called the People's Party staged a bloodless revolution in Bangkok. King Prajadhipok accepted a constitution, and Siam became a constitutional monarchy.
Under Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram the country's name in English was changed from Siam to Thailand on 24 June 1939. The Thai people had long called their country Mueang Thai.
Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama IX, came to the throne on 9 June 1946. He reigned for 70 years, until his death in 2016, the longest reign of any Thai monarch.
On 8 August 1967 Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore signed the Bangkok Declaration, creating the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
On 26 December 2004 a huge earthquake off Sumatra sent a tsunami across the Indian Ocean. It struck Thailand's Andaman coast, including Khao Lak, Phuket and the Phi Phi Islands, and thousands of people died.
After the death of King Bhumibol on 13 October 2016, his son Vajiralongkorn became king as Rama X. His coronation took place in May 2019.
Thai food is famous for balancing sweet, sour, salty and spicy flavours, with fresh herbs such as lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves and holy basil. A Thai meal has no separate courses: rice comes with several dishes that everyone shares, and they are all served at the same time, soup included. Each region has its own style, from the sticky rice and salads of the northeast to the rich curries of the south.
Stir-fried rice noodles with egg, tofu or prawns, bean sprouts and spring onions, seasoned with tamarind, fish sauce and a little sugar, and served with crushed peanuts and a wedge of lime.
Pad thai is younger than many people think. It was promoted around the Second World War, when the government of Prime Minister Phibunsongkhram encouraged people to eat rice noodles.
A hot and sour prawn soup flavoured with lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, chillies, lime juice and fish sauce. It comes in a clear version, tom yum nam sai, and a creamy one, tom yum nam khon.
In 2024 UNESCO added tom yum kung to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
A coconut milk curry made with a paste of fresh green chillies, usually with chicken or fish balls, Thai aubergines and sweet basil. It is often hotter than red curry.
The Thai name, kaeng khiao wan, means 'sweet green curry'. The 'sweet' describes the soft green colour, not the taste.
A rich, mild curry of coconut milk with warm spices such as cardamom, cinnamon and cloves, usually made with chicken or beef, potatoes, onions and peanuts.
Massaman curry is praised in a poem from the late 1700s attributed to the prince who later became King Rama II.
A creamy chicken soup made with coconut milk and galangal, flavoured with lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, mushrooms, fish sauce and lime juice. It is milder and sweeter than tom yum.
The name simply means 'chicken galangal soup'. The first recorded version, from around 1890, was made with duck.
Minced pork or chicken stir-fried with garlic, chillies and holy basil, served over rice and often topped with a crispy fried egg. It is one of the most popular everyday dishes in the country.
Many Thais order it as their quick lunch. If you cannot decide what to eat in Thailand, pad kaphrao with a fried egg is a safe choice.
Jasmine rice fried with egg, onion, garlic and chicken, prawns, pork or crab, seasoned with fish sauce and soy sauce, and served with cucumber, lime and a small bowl of chillies in fish sauce.
Shredded unripe papaya pounded in a mortar with chillies, garlic, lime juice, fish sauce, palm sugar, tomatoes, long beans and peanuts. It is sour, spicy, salty and sweet all at once.
Some versions include raw pickled crab or fermented fish sauce. If you are pregnant, older or have a weak immune system, ask for the simple Thai style without them.
A salad of minced chicken, pork or duck, seasoned with lime juice, fish sauce, chilli, roasted ground rice and fresh mint, usually eaten with sticky rice.
Some traditional versions use raw meat. Ask for it cooked (it is on most menus), which is the safe choice.
Egg noodles in a curry soup with coconut milk and chicken or beef, topped with a nest of crispy fried noodles and served with pickled mustard greens, shallots and lime.
The dish is believed to have come with Chinese Muslim traders who travelled the caravan routes through the north.
Poached chicken sliced over rice that has been cooked in the chicken's stock and fat, served with cucumber and a spicy dipping sauce. The Thai name means 'chicken fat rice'.
Small skewers of marinated chicken or pork grilled over charcoal and served with a peanut sauce and a sweet and sour cucumber relish.
Sweet, sticky glutinous rice soaked in salted coconut milk, served with slices of ripe yellow mango and more coconut sauce poured over the top.
Strong black tea sweetened with sugar and condensed milk and poured over ice, often with a splash of evaporated milk on top. Its Thai name, cha yen, simply means 'cold tea'.
Bangkok is by far the largest city, and most of the country's history was made in the central plain around it. The mountainous north has Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, the northeast (Isan) has big market towns such as Korat, and the long southern peninsula has beach resorts and islands on two different seas.
The capital since 1782 and home to about 9 million people, on the Chao Phraya River. Thais call it Krung Thep, the City of Angels. Glittering temples and palaces stand side by side with street food stalls, canals, markets and skyscrapers.
The royal capital for more than 400 years, on an island where the Chao Phraya, Lopburi and Pa Sak rivers meet, about an hour north of Bangkok. Its ruined temples and brick towers recall one of the great cities of Asia.
The first capital of a Thai kingdom, in the 1200s and 1300s. Its ruins lie in a peaceful historical park of lotus ponds and Buddha statues; the modern provincial town, Sukhothai Thani, lies nearby.
The largest city of the north, about 700 km from Bangkok, founded in the 1290s by King Mangrai as the capital of the Lan Na kingdom. Its old centre is a square surrounded by a moat and the remains of red brick walls, filled with temples.
The northernmost major city of Thailand, founded by King Mangrai in 1262, near the borders with Myanmar and Laos. It is a gateway to hill villages and the Golden Triangle.
The largest city of the northeast, about 250 km from Bangkok, usually called Korat. It is the gateway to Isan, the northeastern region known for its sticky rice and spicy salads.
A riverside town about 120 km west of Bangkok, where the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai rivers meet. During the Second World War prisoners of war and Asian labourers were forced to build a railway through here.
A busy seaside city on the Gulf of Thailand, about 150 km southeast of Bangkok. A fishing village until the 1960s, it is now one of the country's biggest beach resorts.
A relaxed beach town about 200 km by road south of Bangkok. It became a royal seaside retreat in the 1920s, and King Bhumibol lived here full time from 2004 to 2006.
A small provincial town on a river estuary, surrounded by dramatic limestone cliffs, mangroves and beaches. Boats leave from here for the Phi Phi Islands.
The main town of Phuket, Thailand's largest island, about 860 km south of Bangkok. Its old town of colourful 'Sino-Portuguese' shophouses was built in the days of tin mining.
The largest city of the south, near the border with Malaysia. It grew from a small village into a busy trading city after the southern railway arrived in the 1920s.
The official residence of the kings of Siam and Thailand since 1782, a walled complex of golden spires and throne halls by the Chao Phraya River. Inside is Wat Phra Kaew, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred Buddha image in the country. The king no longer lives here, but it is still used for royal ceremonies.
A temple on the west bank of the Chao Phraya, named after Aruna, the Hindu god of the dawn. Its great central tower, built in the early 1800s, is covered in pieces of coloured porcelain that sparkle in the sun.
The Temple of the Reclining Buddha, just south of the Grand Palace. Its golden Buddha is 46 m long. The temple holds the largest collection of Buddha images in Thailand and is known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage, which is still taught there.
The ruins of the old royal capital, destroyed by a Burmese army in 1767: brick towers, rows of Buddha statues and temple foundations spread across the island city. At Wat Mahathat, a stone Buddha head is held in the roots of a tree.
UNESCO World Heritage
The walled ruins of the first Thai capital, with about 190 ruins of temples and the royal palace set among lotus ponds. The largest temple, Wat Mahathat, has rows of seated Buddhas and towers shaped like lotus buds.
UNESCO World Heritage
A sacred temple on the mountain of Doi Suthep, about 15 km from the centre of Chiang Mai and more than 1,000 m above sea level. Visitors climb a long stairway lined with serpent-shaped balustrades, or take a tram, to a golden stupa and wide views over the city.
A dazzling white temple just outside Chiang Rai, designed by the Thai artist Chalermchai Kositpipat and opened to visitors in 1997. Its white plaster is set with small pieces of mirror glass, and work on the site is planned to continue for decades.
The steel bridge of the 'Death Railway' between Thailand and Burma, built in 1943 under Japanese control by prisoners of war and forced Asian labourers. About 12,000 Allied prisoners and more than 90,000 Asian labourers died building the railway. The 1957 film made its name famous.
A group of six islands of limestone cliffs, white beaches and clear water in Krabi province, reached by boat from Krabi or Phuket. Maya Bay on Phi Phi Le became famous through the film The Beach in 2000.
Thailand's first national park, opened in 1962, a large area of forest, grassland and waterfalls between Bangkok and Korat. Wild Asian elephants, gibbons and sambar deer live here, and it is part of the Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex World Heritage Site.
UNESCO World HeritageBangkok's full ceremonial name, which begins 'Krung Thep Maha Nakhon', is listed by Guinness World Records as the longest place name in the world, at 168 letters.
Thailand is the only country in Southeast Asia that was never colonised by a Western power.
Thailand counts its years from the Buddhist Era, 543 years ahead of the Western calendar. The year 2026 is 2569 in Thailand.
The Thai alphabet has 44 consonant letters, and Thai has five tones, so the same syllable can have five different meanings depending on how it is said.
The energy drink Red Bull grew out of a Thai drink, Krating Daeng, created in 1976. Its name means 'red gaur', a kind of wild bull. An Austrian businessman discovered it on a visit to Thailand in 1982.
Siamese cats come from Thailand. Old Thai 'cat-book poems', thought to date from the Ayutthaya kingdom, describe them.
The famous 'Siamese twins', Chang and Eng Bunker, were born in Siam in 1811. They later settled in the United States.
Kitti's hog-nosed bat, found in western Thailand and neighbouring Myanmar, is the smallest bat in the world and is often called the bumblebee bat.
At Songkran, the Thai New Year in mid-April, people pour and splash water on each other for good luck. UNESCO added the festival to its intangible heritage list in 2023.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej reigned for 70 years, from 1946 to 2016, the longest reign of any Thai monarch.
Muay Thai, Thai boxing, is called the 'art of eight limbs' because fighters strike with fists, elbows, knees and shins.
The Thai elephant is Thailand's official national animal. In the mid-1800s the country had about 100,000 working elephants; today about 4,000 elephants live in the wild and a similar number in captivity.
As of 2026, Thailand has nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the old capitals of Sukhothai and Ayutthaya and the prehistoric site of Ban Chiang.
Pronunciation is written the way it sounds; the capital letters show where the stress goes. Audio is coming soon.
Cover your shoulders and knees: a shirt with sleeves, and long trousers or a skirt below the knee. The Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew in Bangkok have a strict dress code at the entrance.
Take your shoes off before entering a temple hall or a Thai home; there are racks outside. Step over the raised threshold of a temple door rather than on it, and take off hats and sunglasses inside.
When you sit in front of a Buddha image, tuck your feet behind you so they never point towards it. Walk around Buddha images and other sacred objects clockwise, and do not turn your back to them.
Monks may not be touched by women, not even their robes. A woman who wants to give a monk something can place it down for him to pick up, or hand it to a man to pass on.
Always speak respectfully about the King and the royal family, and treat their images with respect, including on banknotes and coins. Insulting, defaming or threatening the King, the Queen, the heir or the regent is a crime under Thai law, with prison sentences of three to fifteen years for each offence.
In cinemas the royal anthem is played before the film, and audiences are expected to stand; visitors should do the same. The national anthem is broadcast every day at 8:00 and 18:00, when flags are raised and lowered in public places; stop and stand still if you hear it.
The head is seen as the highest part of the body and the feet as the lowest. Do not touch anyone's head, not even a child's, and do not point at people or things with your feet or put your feet up on furniture.
The traditional greeting is the wai: palms pressed together with a slight bow. Return a wai offered by someone older or of similar standing, but do not start one with someone younger than you. When a shop cashier gives you a wai, a smile or a nod is the usual reply.
Myanmar
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