Bangkok: cheap if you do it right
Bangkok is one of the great value-for-money cities in Asia โ if you avoid tourist traps and use the right payment mix. A street-food meal that would cost $15 in a Western city runs 80-120 THB (~$3). A 1-hour Thai massage is 300-500 THB. A decent BTS hotel night: 1,500-2,500 THB. The same trip spent exclusively at hotel restaurants and airport taxis costs 3-4x more.
The money playbook: get cash at Super-Rich, spend cash at street level, use card at cafes/restaurants with Wi-Fi, use Grab app for most transport.
Getting THB on arrival
Suvarnabhumi (BKK) has ATMs and exchange counters past customs. Strategy: pull 20,000 THB from a bank ATM (220 baht fee applies), then do a bigger conversion at Super-Rich once you're in the city if you need more. Avoid the airport exchange counters โ spreads are 4-7% worse.
If you arrive at Don Mueang (DMK), same story: ATMs inside after customs, skip the counters.
Super-Rich: Bangkok's exchange weapon
Two competitor chains share the "Super-Rich" brand confusingly: Super Rich 1965 (orange logo) and Super Rich Thailand (green logo). Both offer rates 0.2-0.5% from mid-market โ better than any ATM or hotel. Bangkok branches near Nana, Pratunam, Ratchada, Siam BTS, and inside Central World. Bring USD cash and passport.
Math check: exchanging $1,000 USD at Super-Rich saves roughly $25-40 vs airport or hotel exchange. For anyone staying more than a weekend, it's worth 20 minutes of subway travel.
Cards in Bangkok
Visa and Mastercard work at mid-range and upscale restaurants, hotels, chains (Starbucks, 7-Eleven, Family Mart, Central, Siam Paragon, Terminal 21), pharmacies, and most coffee shops. Amex acceptance is spotty โ stick to Visa/Mastercard as primary.
Contactless terminals are standard at chain retailers. Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay all work. When the terminal asks "pay in USD or THB?", always pick THB to avoid DCC markup.
Transport: Grab app dominates
- Grab: Thai Uber equivalent. Card-based, upfront pricing, English-friendly. Covers cars, taxis, motorbikes, food delivery. The default.
- Bolt: Grab competitor, often 10-20% cheaper for same route
- Street taxi: Insist on the meter ("meter" or "mitee please") โ drivers often try to quote flat fares 2-3x the metered rate. Cash.
- BTS Skytrain / MRT: clean, fast, air-conditioned. 16-62 THB per ride. Rabbit card for BTS; separate card for MRT. Single tickets available.
- Tuk-tuk: tourist-priced. Fun for a photo ride; overpriced for transport. Negotiate hard, expect 150-300 THB for short rides.
- Motorbike taxi: fastest through traffic, 50-150 THB for short hops. Orange vests = official.
Daily cost ranges by tier
- Backpacker (hostel, street food, public transport): 800-1,500 THB/day
- Budget traveler (3-star hotel, mix of street and casual sit-down, BTS + occasional Grab): 1,800-3,000 THB/day
- Mid-range (4-star hotel, mid-range restaurants, Grab, occasional bar): 3,500-6,500 THB/day
- Upscale (5-star hotel, fine dining, rooftop bars, massages and spa): 8,000-20,000+ THB/day
Tourist traps to skip
- Temple tours with tuk-tuks: "free day" tours usually end at gem or tailor shops where drivers get commission for bringing you in
- Grand Palace scam: strangers saying "it's closed today, try this other temple" โ always walk up and check yourself
- Ping pong show touts: Patpong/Nana area. Don't engage, don't follow.
- Airport taxi touts: use the official taxi line or Grab app. Tourists who follow a "special rate" tout pay 3-4x the metered fare.
- Tailor shops claiming 48-hour delivery: quality rarely matches the promise; go through a reviewed Sukhumvit tailor with a multi-fitting process