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Voykit pocket guide · Thailand
Ranong
ระนอง
Come for 1–2 nights only if you want a Myanmar visa run, hot springs or the ferry to Ko Phayam; otherwise skip it and stay on the Andaman islands.
Ranong is a small, working Thai border town on the Northern Andaman Coast, 568 km from Bangkok, with the country's longest rainy season — about eight months a year. It is not a beach resort. People come for three concrete reasons: the boat crossing to Kawthoung in Myanmar (a visa run), the Raksawarin hot springs, and the ferry to the quiet islands of Ko Phayam and Ko Chang. Everything else is a stopover.
- Country
- Thailand
- Local name
- ระนอง
- Best months
- Nov–Apr (driest window; still expect rain)
- Avoid
- May–Oct (southwest monsoon; heaviest Jun–Sep)
- Stay
- 1–2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- THB
- Money
- Currency is the Thai baht (THB, ฿). Cards work in malls, hotels and many restaurants; street food, markets, boats and small taxis are cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ฿800–1,500 excl. bed · Mid ฿1,500–3,000 excl. bed · High ฿3,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AIS and TrueMove H sell tourist SIMs at airport arrivals; passport registration is required.
- Emergency
- Police 191 · Ambulance and rescue 1669 · Tourist police (English) 1155
- Plugs
- Types A, B, C, O · 220 V · 50 Hz · Most sockets take flat US pins and round European pins; type O is the Thai three-pin standard. UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Street food: Nothing.; Sit-down restaurant: Leave ฿20–100 or the coins; skip it if a 10% service charge is on the bill.; Taxi / Grab: Round up to the next ฿10 or ฿20.; Massage: ฿50–100 per hour to the therapist, in hand.; Guide / driver day: ฿300–500 for the guide, ฿200–300 for the driver.; Hotel porter / housekeeping: ฿20–50.
- Water
- Not drinkable from the tap. Street refill machines charge about ฿1 a litre; bottled water everywhere.
- Toilets
- Western toilets in malls and hotels; squat toilets with a water bucket in rural stops. The hose ('bum gun') replaces paper; paper goes in the bin in older buildings. Some public toilets cost ฿3–5.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or iced drink | ฿40–80 |
| Noodle soup or rice plate | ฿50–120 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a shop | ฿80–120 / ฿35–60 |
| Songthaew ride | ฿15–30 |
| Minibus to Chumphon | ฿180 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | ฿300–500 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- UNN · Ranong Airport
- About two flights a day from Bangkok Don Mueang (Thai AirAsia); no public transport from the airport, so share a ride or book a transfer.
Typical fares
- Songthaew in town
- about ฿15
- Longtail Ranong → Kawthoung, return
- about ฿300, agree before boarding
- Minibus Ranong → Chumphon
- about ฿180, roughly 3 h
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Songthaews run numbered routes in town (฿15 a ride) and stop around 21:00, so plan to walk or take a motorcycle taxi later. The ferry terminal for Ko Phayam and Ko Chang is about 4 km (2.5 mi) west of the centre; songthaew 3 from the market goes there. There is no train station — the nearest is Chumphon.Songthaews run numbered routes in town (฿15 a ride) and stop around 9:00 PM, so plan to walk or take a motorcycle taxi later. The ferry terminal for Ko Phayam and Ko Chang is about 4 km (2.5 mi) west of the centre; songthaew 3 from the market goes there. There is no train station — the nearest is Chumphon.Songthaews run numbered routes in town (฿15 a ride) and stop around 21:00, so plan to walk or take a motorcycle taxi later. The ferry terminal for Ko Phayam and Ko Chang is about 2.5 mi (4 km) west of the centre; songthaew 3 from the market goes there. There is no train station — the nearest is Chumphon.Songthaews run numbered routes in town (฿15 a ride) and stop around 9:00 PM, so plan to walk or take a motorcycle taxi later. The ferry terminal for Ko Phayam and Ko Chang is about 2.5 mi (4 km) west of the centre; songthaew 3 from the market goes there. There is no train station — the nearest is Chumphon.
See and do
Known for
- Thai–Myanmar border crossing at Kawthoung
- Raksawarin hot springs
- Ko Phayam and Ko Chang ferries
- Mangrove forests and the Kra Isthmus
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Kawthoung, Myanmar | Songthaew to Saphan Pla, stamp out at Thai immigration, then a longtail across (about 20 min) | About 1 h plus immigration queues |
| Ko Phayam | Songthaew 3 from the market to the ferry terminal, then ferry or longtail (several a day in high season) | About 1.5–2 h |
| Raksawarin hot springs | Songthaew 2 from the market, or a short motorcycle-taxi ride | About 20 min |
| Laem Son National Park | Bus or minibus south, then a local songthaew to Hat Bang Ben | About 2 h |
Sleep
- Ruangrat Road (town centre)
- Guesthouses, market, songthaew lines and the night market; walkable and best for one night.
- Saphan Pla / fishing port
- Near the immigration office and boats to Kawthoung; practical for an early crossing.
- Ko Phayam
- Long white-sand beaches and cashew farms; basic bungalows, no cars. Sleep here, not in town, if beaches are the point.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | สวัสดีsawatdee |
| Thank you | ขอบคุณkhop khun |
| How much is it? | เท่าไหร่tao rai |
| Too expensive | แพงไปphaeng pai |
| Where is the immigration office? | ตม. อยู่ที่ไหนtamruat khon khao yoo tee nai |
| Where is the toilet? | ห้องน้ำอยู่ที่ไหนhong nam yoo tee nai |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A wai (palms together, slight bow) to return a greeting; a smile and nod for shop staff; avoid: Waiing children or service staff first — it confuses; hugging strangers
- Head and feet: Keep feet on the floor, sit with legs folded to the side in temples; avoid: Touching heads (even children's), pointing feet, stepping over people or food
- Temples: Covered shoulders and knees, shoes off, sit lower than monks; avoid: Women touching monks or handing them things directly; climbing Buddha images
- Monarchy: Stand for the royal anthem in cinemas and at 08:00 and 18:00 in public places; avoid: Any joke or comment about the royal family; stepping on a banknote
- Keeping calm: Stay polite and smiling when things go wrong ('jai yen' — cool heart); avoid: Raising your voice; public anger loses the argument
- Names: Khun plus first name ('Khun Somchai'); nicknames are normal; avoid: Using the family name alone
- Home visit: Shoes off; bring fruit or sweets; step over the threshold, not on it; avoid: Sitting with feet towards the family shrine
- Beckoning and pointing: Palm down, fingers waved towards you; point with the whole hand or chin; avoid: Pointing at people with a finger or with your foot
Scams and watch-outs
- The Thai–Myanmar border at Kawthoung can be restricted for tourism because of the civil war in Myanmar: check official Thai government sources before you attempt the crossing.
- Do not board a longtail to Myanmar before you have been stamped out at the Thai immigration office at Saphan Pla — otherwise you leave the country illegally.
- Agree the boat price before you get in. A longtail return is around ฿300; reports exist of tourists being charged up to ฿1,000.
- The Ngao Mangrove Forest Research Centre is temporarily closed as of 2026: check before travelling out.
- Rain is the norm for much of the year; pack for wet days even in the dry season.
Ranong is a low-crime provincial town and generally safe by day and night. The real risks are the border crossing (check its status), unlicensed boat touts at Saphan Pla, and wet-season roads and boat cancellations.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Ranong yet. Suggested stay: 1–2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Thai–Myanmar border crossing at Kawthoung
- Raksawarin hot springs
- Ko Phayam and Ko Chang ferries
- Mangrove forests and the Kra Isthmus
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Tourism Authority of Thailand — Ranong attractions: www.tourismthailand.org/Attraction/raksawarin-hot-springs-and-public-park
- Wikivoyage: Ranong, revision 5278537 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5278537
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Ranongระนอง
ไปที่อยู่นี้ครับ/ค่ะ
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
Thailand has no embassies in Ranong; the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand missions are in Bangkok. For urgent help, call the tourist police on 1155.
Carry your passport for the border area; immigration may ask to see it.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/ranong). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.