There are two ways to obtain a Thailand tourist visa for Indian nationals.
Visa On Arrival (VOA) – 2,000 THB, Validity – 15 days
Apply for a tourist visa at the nearest Thai Embassy in your Indian state – 1,000 THB
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Method 1: VOA
Visa on arrival means upon arrival, you can directly fill an application form and apply for a tourist visa at the visa counter. This method is generally a little expensive than the normal method of applying for a tourist visa in India.
Just before our visit, Thailand’s tourism revenue took a dip due to a boat accident in Phuket. So the VOA fee of 2,000 THB was waved off to welcome more Tourists. On hearing this news, we opted for this method.
VOA – List of documents
Passport (Valid for at least 30 days)
Air ticket (both ways)
Passport size photo (4 * 6 cm )
Filled in Visa Application form (available at the airport)
Filled in Thailand arrival card (available at the airport)
2,000 THB visa fee
Address of your booking (Hotel or hostel)
Proof of sufficient funds – 10,000 THB/person or 20,000 THB/family. This can be shown in any currency.
Boarding ✈️
VOA for groups
We arrived at Don Mueang International Airport, Thailand was by far the most crowdest airport we ever saw. Almost every 10 -15 min a flight landed flooded with tourists. The queue for the VOA counter was never-ending. I am sure it would take at least 2 hours to complete the whole process. There is one more section ‘VOA for groups’. This costs an additional 200 THB/person and the visa process is very fast (20 min). If you want to save some time and energy, just look for the VOA group section.
Cheap flight deal (Roundtrip at 11,250 ₹/person)
Method 2: Apply at the nearest Thai Embassy
If you can spare some time, I recommend getting a Tourist visa earlier using this method. This spares some bucks and also helps you skip long waiting lines at the airport. Earlier we tried applying for Visa at the Thai Embassy in Chennai, but the officials during a phone inquiry were not responsive. After hearing the news of free VOA, we opted for the first method. The official website contains all the necessary information.
Follow any one of the above two methods to obtain a Thai tourist visa. Avoid going to tourist agents for a visa. You may end up paying double the amount.
Currency exchange in India
The official currency in Thailand is That Baht (THB) and 1 THB ~ 2.3 Indian Rupee (₹), 1 Euro (€) ~ 34 THB.
Upon arrival in Thailand, you are generally not asked for proof of sufficient funds. But Indian nationals have a bad reputation in Thailand, so it was advised to carry enough money. We exchanged Indians Rupees to Thai Baht (THB) Dhoshi Forex at T Nagar, Chennai. Their exchange rates were quite good and even better for huge amounts.
