Common permits
Visa exemption · Visa on arrival · Tourist visa (single entry) · Non-immigrant visa
Most visitors enter Thailand visa-free for 60 days (extendable once by 30 at an immigration office) or on a 60-day tourist visa. When that runs out — and land-border 'bounces' are now limited to two per year — you fly out and back in to start a fresh stay. Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket are the usual departure points.
Closest and cheapest first, from Thailand. Entry rules below are for a strong passport — open a destination to check yours exactly, or plan the whole run.
“All-in” = round-trip airfare + any entry fee + a few nights’ mid-range hotel. Live fares show once you plan the run.
If you're living on the 60-day visa-exempt entry and extending it once, that's ~90 days per cycle. Without the extension, every 60 days. There's no hard annual cap on flights in, but repeated back-to-back tourist entries can draw questions at the border.
A short hop to Kuala Lumpur, Phnom Penh, Vientiane or Ho Chi Minh City is usually the cheapest — often under $120 return from Bangkok, and all give a generous visa-free or e-visa stay so you're not forced straight back.
Yes, but visa-exempt land entries are limited to two per calendar year since 2016–2024 rule tightening. Air arrivals aren't capped the same way. If you've used your two land bounces, fly.
No. A same-day turnaround is legal — fly out in the morning, come back in the evening on a new entry. Whether it's worth the airfare vs. a couple of nights somewhere is the real question.
Your passport and exact dates, ranked by entry ease, timing and cost — with live flight prices.
Rules are curated from public sources and change without notice — always confirm with the destination’s own immigration authority. Not legal or immigration advice.