They say it is the land of smiles, and for the millions of tourists, as well as hopeful expats who come yearly to Thailand, making it one of the most traveled destinations on the planet, that moniker definitely seems to have more weight behind it then you might think. In a near paradisaical place in this corner of Southeast Asia once called Siam, Thailand definitely makes most foreigners smile at its unbelievable beauty, indecipherable culture, awesome food, and unending nightlife.
However, the smiles being returned to you from the people of Thailand may not be always filled with good-wishes, as this travel-centric country has started showing signs of its weariness and even a growing hostility towards foreigners in some parts. It’s been a very long time since Thailand was a completely unknown travel destination, and with its increasing popularity, has risen its notoriety as well, for better and for worse.
Helping to try and really formulate what is still good and what has gone bad in this Southeast Asian mecca, here are our top 5 pros and cons to living in Thailand, for those who are still considering moving to the ‘land of smiles’, hoping that they will soon have one of their own in their new home.
PROS: Plenty of Immigration Options to Choose From
The good news is that for the expat who is determined to move to Thailand, the long-ruling military junta has clarified the formerly vague and questionable options you once had to go through to obtain residency, which has in turn made it easier to understand what procedures you really have to go through in order to legally move to the country.
For many, the best option will end up still being getting a job from a company based in Thailand, or enrolling in a Thai language school, while for others with a little bit of money to invest ($30,000 USD and up), you can consider obtaining the Thai Elite Visa, which gives you 10 year residency off the bat, is renewable, and comes with all sorts of additional perks, like discounts on associated businesses, attractions, special service lines at Thai airports, and more.
It is also still possible to purchase property in Thailand (albeit in association with a trusted Thai local), as well as gain immigration status through marriage to a Thai citizen. All in all, though immigration loopholes that expats and tourists may have once exploited are now well and truly gone, there are still plenty of legitimate options for expats looking to make their move to Thailand.
PROS: Amazing Food
Of course, Thailand’s reputation as being a food heaven is now known the world over, with Thai cuisine being known for it’s amazingly intricate, sophisticated flavors, as well a great place for those who like to turn up the heat with all the spice you can imagine!
The list of great (and affordable!) cuisine in this country could go on and on, but with pad thai, red curry, and khao pad being only a few of the staples of food culture in this tasteful nation, it’s basically guaranteed that you’re never going to be unhappy with the prospect of another delicious Thai meal.
And for those who are wondering if Thailand has additional options for good food from other regional delicacies, then know you are in luck – one of the positives of the vast tourism influx of the past decades has been the exposure to diverse and far-reaching world cultures, and as a result, fantastic food from countries as far flung as America, Nigeria, Lebanon, and Mexico can all be found here in this food capital of Southeast Asia.
PROS: Incredible Scenery
Perhaps the most striking thing about Thailand however has to be its natural beauty – when most people first think of this country, an idyllic setting of alien rock formations set amongst the backdrop of crystal clear blue waters, and soft, white sand, takes up footing in the mind, and they wouldn’t be half wrong!
Part of what first inspired me to move to Southeast Asia in the first place was the visions I had of places like Ko Samui and Koh Lipe, just as many others first fell in love with Thailand through the Leonardo DiCaprio movie The Beach, which was filmed near Krabi.
But soft sand and lovely shores are not the only thing going for Thailand, as the peaceful jungles of Thailand’s north near Udon Thani, and the legendary road to Pai, all provide an incredible treasure trove of sights to see in this truly beautiful country.
PROS: Variety of Climate and Culture
In fact, it is the fact that the different regions of Thailand can feel so unique to one another, that gives the nation a special kind of charm, and one that never gets old at that.
One day you could be living it large in the big city, in the modern, bustling capital of Bangkok, while the next day you could be sitting in a cafe while relaxing in a mountainous jungle set town like Chiang Mai, enjoying a cup of refreshing Thai Iced Tea.
And all that goes without speaking about Thailand’s aforementioned southern region, which has its own kind of culture, people, and traditions, all set against the lovely tropical island backdrop that people the world over have come to love this country for. Pretty much, wherever you go in this fantastically diverse country, great views are definitely a given!
PROS: A Single Man’s Paradise
And of course, for my male readers out there, what you’ve may have heard about Thailand is mostly true – Thai women definitely enjoy the company of foreign men, and their reputation as great partners is quite accurate.
Traditional gender roles are still very much the norm here in Thailand, and women still often stay at home to take care of children and the household, while men are expected to work and provide. And while the adage ‘no money, no honey’ does hold some truth in this part of the world, in perhaps an even more transparent way than most, in a country where most are still not making what their Western counterparts are, it does make things a bit easier to understand when it comes to overall mentality of the people, and the women.
With all that said, every kind of relationship is possible in Thailand, whether finding yourself a girlfriend, wife, or for the particularly adventurous, a fling here and there with the local bar girls. It does take money, but once you get over that gynocentric hump, single men can definitely enjoy Thailand for what it is, as well as for its many ladies, who for the most part bring far more of a fair share to a relationship, then what can be usually found these days in the West.
CONS: Scams, Scams Galore
However, the constant exposure to western money has left the Thai people themselves on the whole seemingly determined to do their best to separate the ignorant expat or tourist from their hard earned capital as frequently as possible, whether it be through dating scams, street scams, or many, many others.
Constant scams on the tourist weary streets of Thailand are unfortunately very common and often quite sophisticated – price gouging in certain areas is the least of the worries to deal with for instance, especially as its known that scammers often work in packs, trying to trick unaware foreigners into helping them with a myriad of tasks, all while they are being pick-pocketed without them knowing.
Even if you aren’t straight up scammed, common theft is still quite a problem – as in all of my travels, the only place I’ve ever had something stolen from me was in Thailand, when I left my phone lying out in the open at a ticket seller (not my brightest moment)! If you come to Thailand to live or to visit, remember to keep your eyes peeled – as this country more than many others in the region suffers from people looking to make dishonest gains off of unfortunately gullible foreigners.
CONS: Not the Friendliest People
This also plays into the adage of what actually is lurking behind the ‘land of smiles’, and unfortunately it’s my personal opinion that the smile so often referred to in Thailand, is actually a smirk of contempt, malice, and deceit.
It’s a hot take, I know – but in all the countries I’ve been to in Southeast Asia, Thailand stood out to me for having some of the shadiest, most shallow, and unfortunately fake people on average, that I’ve come across. It was impossible to get to know them on a truly personal level, which in many neighboring countries is still a possibility (Malaysia and Cambodia being a few examples) as to Thai people, being a westerner is simply an indication you are a walking dollar or euro sign – nothing more or less.
Now not everyone may have this impression of Thailand, as after all it continues to drive home tons of tourism dollars yearly into the nation’s coffers, but it’s often the tourists and certain kind of expats who are more interested in debauchery and sin than anything else who happen to frequent Thailand anyway, so it may just be that contempt is breeding contempt. Either way, it’s an unfortunately sad state of affairs for the nation’s people skills – if you’re a true introvert then this country may still be fine for expats looking to move here, but I truly hope that one day things can change for the better, so authentic, human connection across cultures and borders can be found again in Thailand.
CONS: Immigration Laws Getting Tighter
In fact, the anti-foreign sentiment is also becoming more evident even with the government, as the military junta that has run the country since the 2006 coup against reigning Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has decided to try and clean house in a land that they feared was becoming a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah.
Though their immigration restrictions on visa-runners and the like had the beneficial effect of clearing house of many of the foreigners who were bringing crime and scams of their own to the country, this also had the unfortunate add-on effect of impacting legitimate expats who were looking to become digital nomads in the country, who now had to jump through more hoops and loopholes in order to extend their stay in Thailand.
As a result, though the options are still many for those looking for opportunities to immigrate to Thailand, the choices that still exist are now being geared towards a specific demographic (read: wealthy), whom the Thai government wish to cater more to going forward. This is also evident in the current procedures for gaining access to the country during the COVID-19 pandemic, where tourism is still open, but only for those who can afford expensive quarantine procedures for example.
CONS: Becoming More Expensive
These higher expenses are being seen just about everywhere in the country as well, as with the explosion of foreign investment, immigration, and tourism, has seen Thailand slowly but surely raise the prices on everything from food to electronics, to housing and more.
What used to be a nation where one could easily live the life of a proverbial king or queen when relying on a steady, western-style salary, has now become that much harder to truly live well – as prices continue to climb ever higher, even as neighboring countries like its southern neighbor of Malaysia has continued to remain very affordable for expats and tourists alike, offering a much greater value for ones money.
While Thailand is still on the whole far cheaper than most countries in the western world, the kinds of insanely cheap deals on real estate and investment opportunities are well and truly gone, and as a result people from the West can still live decently in Thailand, but not nearly as good as they once did.
CONS: Becoming More Crime-Ridden
Sadly, another scourge affecting daily life in Thailand, for locals and foreigners alike, is the growing crime rates in certain parts of the country. While the ruling military junta has taken great care to try and clean up the streets, the truth remains that crime is on the rise in places like Bangkok and Chiang Mai, while corruption at all levels of private and public life never really went away.
To add to the list of scams and petty thefts expats and tourists, myself included, have been impacted by, the government themselves often try to get in on the action with trying to get bribe money from unsuspecting foreigners, not to mention the ever present threat of violence at night in certain sections where the aforementioned nightclubs and ‘lady bars’ are.
Unfortunately, Thais themselves are also impacted by the rising crime rates, but as foreigners, already being looked at as walking ATM machines, the impact can be felt that much higher in a nation already hit by sharply decreasing tourist numbers due to the pandemic, let alone government policies which have for better or worse driven a great deal of income out of the country. As a result, this has left the people to fend for themselves, by whatever means necessary, nefarious or otherwise.
Destination: Thailand, An Enigmatic Land of Beauty and Awe
Though old Siam may not be the ‘land of smiles’ it’s all cracked up to be, Thailand remains a great option to move to for expats who happen to find themselves on the wealthier side of the spectrum, retirees looking for a last rodeo in an exotic land, or digital nomads willing to weather the bureaucratic storm it takes to make their dream of living in this Southeast Asian staple a reality.
Even as Thailand may not be personal favorite choice for potential expats looking to move to the region, despite the nation’s shortcomings and quirks, this nation remains a popular place for many looking to make their home in Southeast Asia – and there’s no reason why you can’t be one of them!
So there you have it – the top 5 pros and cons to living in Thailand! Have you ever lived in or been to Thailand before? What were your experiences with moving and living there? What about your opinions about the people, the culture, the government, the food, or just about anything else? Let us know in the comments section below!