Renting a car in Thailand is a great opportunity to mix up your leisurely beach vacation with action-packed and comfortable trips around the kingdom. Travelling by car you can visit the most authentic Thai villages, explore the most beautiful national parks, and see majestic palaces. And you won't have to adjust to public transport schedules or travel with the crowds of tourists by tour buses. Just enter your places of interest into the navigation system and go on your journey.
You’ll need the following documents:
Make sure you have an IDP together with your regular national driving license. Otherwise, you will pay a fine of 1,000 baht ($30) for driving without your IDP in Thailand.
Your passport is only needed for the rental agreement. You will not have to leave any of your personal documents as a deposit.
Age and driving experience requirements are different for different cars. They are listed on each car’s booking page. You can use filters to find the car that suit you best.
The most important feature of traffic regulations in Thailand is the left-hand traffic. Usually, it’s not difficult to get used to it. Just be careful when taking turns and take your time. It usually takes a few hours to adjust to the local traffic.
If this is your first time driving a right-hand drive car, we recommend renting a car with an automatic transmission (AT).
The locals often ignore the traffic rules but it doesn’t you should follow suit. The police issue fines for traffic offences rather eagerly.
In major cities, the police strictly enforce proper parking, so don’t park your car in the wrong places.
No parking is allowed:
Even you can’t even stop on yellow boxes with criss-cross yellow lines.
In Thailand, petrol stations offer petrol and diesel. You can also fill up with gasohol — a mixture of petrol and ethanol. It is cheaper than “regular” petrol by 15% but the distance you can drive on it is also shorter.
Some tourists save money by refuelling their rental cars at small private shops where locals are happy to sell petrol in plastic bottles. Such petrol is cheaper that at a petrol station but the quality leaves much to be desired. And the volume of those plastic bottles is unknown. The potential savings are not worth the risk of stalling somewhere in a deserted area at night.
In Thailand, like everywhere else, you can save money on fuel quality but it’s not worth it.
If you are coming to Thailand for a week or two and plan to make a lot of phone calls, it will be more cost-effective to buy a local SIM card.
Three major providers operate in the country: Dtac, AIS, and TrueMove H. They all have roughly the same coverage area, good call quality, and convenient plans for tourists.
Hello! Can I rent a car with 2 child safety seats?
Hello! No problem, you can select the necessary number of child safety seats on the car page. You will see the cost of the equipment for the entire rental period near this option. Make sure to indicate the age and weight of your kids in the comment to your booking.
Hi! Are there any mileage limits?
Hello! It’s different for each car, there are cars with mileage limits and with unlimited mileage. You will see this information when you open the car’s booking page. If your car has a mileage limit, it is the total for the entire rental period, i.e. you can drive more on some days and less on others. Just don’t exceed the total limit.
Can I rent a car for 7 people?
Hello! Of course, you can choose the one you need in the “Minivans” section. To rent a 7-seater, you will need a category B driving licence.
Can I pay for rent with a card?
Hello! In the profile of each car, you will find the information on how you can pay the deposit and the remaining amount. When you arrive, you can choose a car with a suitable payment method.