Beachmeter
Two longtail boats lying on a beach in Thailand with limestone cliffs in the background

Heading to a Thai beach?

After you have mastered the most important Thai words like “thank you” (khòp khun), “hello” (sàwàddee), “(I) don´t want (that)” (mâi ao), and of course our Thai Beach Vocabulary vol. I and vol. II, it´s time to put together a few Thai beach phrases to help you make your beachlife in Thailand a breeze.

Survival Thai Beach Phrases

You may not understand the entire answer you receive, but perhaps some articulation, pointing and language hacks will get you there. At a minimum, you will impress local residents with your efforts, and you will be able to order one, two, or three beers. Remember to click the sound icon to hear how each phrase is pronounced, and see if you can parrot the sounds and tones.

PHRASE PRONUNCIATION AND TONE THAI SPELLING SOUND
Let’s go to the sea! bpai (mid) thá-leh (high-mid) gan (mid) thùh (low) ไปทะเลกันเถอะ  
Which beach is most … ? hàat (low) năi (rising) … thîi-sùt (falling-low) หาดไหน … ที่สุด
popular / quiet / beautiful / romantic yôrd (falling) ní-am (high-mid) / ngîap (falling) / sŭai-ngaam (rising-mid) / roe-maen-dtìc (mid-mid-low) ยอดนิยม / เงียบ/ สวยงาม / โรแมนติก
Does this beach have …? hàat (low) níi (high) mii (mid) … măi?  หาดนี้มี … ไหม?
shade / sunbeds / restaurants / hotels rôhm-ngao (falling-mid)/ dtiang (mid) àap (low) dàed (low) / ráan aa-hăan (mid-rising) / rohng-raem (mid-mid) ร่มเงา / เตียงอาบแดด / ร้านอาหาร / โรงแรม
one / two / three beers, please kŏr (rising) bia (mid) nèung (low) / sŏong (rising) / săam (rising) kùat (low) ขอเบียร์ หนึ่ง / สอง / สาม ขวด
Is it safe to swim? wâai-náam (falling-high) bplòrd-pai (low-mid) măi (rising)? ว่ายน้ำปลอดภัยไหม?
Where can I buy … séu (high) … dâai (falling) thîi-năi (falling-rising)? ซื้อ … ได้ที่ไหน?
sun lotion / flip-flops / water cream (mid) gan (mid) dàet (low) / rong (mid) táo (high) dtàe (low) / náam (high) bplào (low) ครีมกันแดด / รองเท้าแตะ / น้ำเปล่า

At the end of each sentence you can add a little polite khâ (female) or khráp (male) to soften the sentences. If you want to print out, save on your computer or share these Thai beach phrases, you can find a printable version of the phrases here.

Animation of two men at a Thai beach with sun chairs and sun umbrellas.We hope you will find these phrases useful. For more Thai beach phrases, Thai-Language.com has a good list of useful words and phrases and even a little illustrated Thai language beach story with a conversation between two men at the beach.

Good luck!

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