How to Get the Cheapest Day Trips and Tours in Bangkok, Thailand

One of the things I love about living in Bangkok, Thailand are the many day trips and tours available. During my nine years living here, I've taken most of them, either with friends or family, and have become quite an expert on how to get the cheapest day trips and tours in the city. If you plan on taking a number of day trips on your next visit to Bangkok, follow these quick tips before you do. You could save yourself a lot of money.

Khoa San Road Day Trips and Tours - One of the best places to book a cheap day trip in Bangkok is through a small travel agent in the Khao San Road area of the city. Popular with budget travelers and backpackers, travel agents in this area cater to those who don't have a lot of disposable income to spend so day trips tend to be cheap.

Visit several travel agents and find out how much they're charging. Although most will charge similar fees you will find a couple that undercut their competition to still offer the same trip. Book with one of them. I've booked several tours through Khao San Road travel agents and never had a problem. They always speak excellent English, are knowledgeable about their services and the tours I've been on have been excellent.

To get to Khao San Road, either take a taxi from National Stadium sky train station or take the sky train to Saphan Taksin station, take the boat up the Chao Praya River to Tha Chang pier, and it's a five minute walk from here.

Internet Bookings - Before you arrive in Bangkok, do a search online for cheap Bangkok day trips and make a note of the companies and prices. Don't book anything until you've had a chance to compare prices within Thailand (don't worry, these places never book up), but as internet companies often have lower overheads, they do sometimes offer cheaper options. If you find one is cheaper than similar places in Bangkok, you can always book via telephone or internet from your hotel room the day before you plan on taking a tour.

Go in a Larger Group - If you arrive in Bangkok by yourself or with one other person it's more expensive to book a tour as you'll pay a standard single rate. But, if you can find other people in your hotel, guest house or hostel who might like to take the same trip, most companies offer discounted prices for groups of six people or more.

Check Bangkok's Tourist Offices - Tour companies always have specials running and some of them advertise them through the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). Look at their website for their latest Travel Deals (see link below) or stop off at a local Bangkok tourist office, check their brochures and ask the attendant there if she knows of any current discounted tours.

You'll find TAT's main tourist office at 202 Ratchadaphisek Road and one at Siam BTS sky train station. There are numerous other tourist offices around Bangkok but TAT is absolutely terrible about listing them and promoting them, so they're difficult to find. Call them at Tel. +66 (0) 2694 1222 if you want to find an office close to you.

Be aware though, the Tourism Authority of Thailand is not a governmental body, so what they have as 'cheap deals' are not always the cheapest. Shop around before making a commitment.

More Information:

Tourism Authority of Thailand Travel Deals on Tours