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The Ultimate Thailand Packing List | The Trading Travelers
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Packing List for 2 Weeks in Thailand

I can’t even count the times I’ve packed and unpacked our bags over the past year, whether it was for another year in Thailand, 3 weeks in Europe or even 24 hours in Chiang Rai. Yet, I still dread it. Every. Time. That being said, we are getting much better at packing lightly. As you probably remember, we first left the US on our initial move to Thailand with 4 large suitcases!

thailand packing list

We would read other travel bloggers’ packing lists – so short and sweet – and think “now why can’t we do that?” If we had shared our packing list, it would have been more along the lines of a novel than a blog post. But after much practice, we’ve managed to downsize and now we almost always travel with carry-on’s only, especially since we have Chiang Mai as a base.

And on our most recent trip, for the first time EVER, we actually felt like we finally mastered The Packing List. Well…sort of anyways. Let me put it this way. For the first time in our travels, our shoulders weren’t aching from too much weight. We weren’t miserably dragging our bags from the bus stop to the hotel dripping in sweat. And it didn’t take us forever to re-pack our bags just perfectly every time we moved to a new destination because, for once, they weren’t overpacked! #WINNING

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So…what exactly did we pack for our 2 weeks traveling in Thailand? Keep in mind our trip was in February, which is hot and dry but can be chilly at night, especially if riding on a motorbike and/or up in the mountains. We were primarily keeping it casual in shorts and tanks, but we had to bring at least one nice outfit for a night at the Red Sky Rooftop Bar in Bangkok that had a fairly relaxed dress code. We also knew we would be visiting a few temples and religious sites here and there so I had to be prepared to cover my legs and shoulders (although they often will rent cover-ups at the temples). For more info on Thailand weather, check out our post on the Best Time to Visit Thailand.

 Brittany’s Bag:

  • (4) shorts
  • (4) shirts – a variety of casual tanks I could throw over a bathing suit, nicer tops I could dress up and at least one to cover my shoulders for temples
  • (1) black dress  – for rooftop bar in Bangkok
  • (1) beach dress/cover up
  • (1) Yoga pants – for temples (would suggest any sort of lightweight pants or maxi skirts/dress to cover legs)
  • (1) light sweater – for chilly nights/mornings
  • (5) underwear
  • (2) bras (1 nude; 1 black)
  • (2) bathing suits
  • (2) sleep outfits
  • Ipanema sandals – these are my every day shoes for strolling around town or a day at the beach because they are rubber so you can get them wet. I LOVE them because you can pair them with a sun dress or just keep them casual.
  • Teva sandals – I keep my Teva’s on hand for days when I know we will be doing a lot of walking, trekking, climbing, etc. I’m so glad I had them for Erawan Falls. I don’t think my Ipanema’s would have cut it.

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Charlie’s Bag:

  • (3) shorts
  • (2) gym shorts/bathing suits
  • (4) t-shirts
  • (2) collared shirts – for rooftop bar in Bangkok
  • (1) jeans – for rooftop bar
  • (1) light jacket – for chilly nights/mornings on the motorbike
  • (5) underwear
  • (3) socks
  • (1) flip flops
  • (1) tennis shoes
  • (1) Sperry’s shoes – for rooftop bar (any type of dress shoes would do)

Our Gear:

  • (1) Charlie’s Macbook Pro – we tried to leave most of the work behind, including Brittany’s MacBook Air.
  • (1) DSLR Camera – couldn’t leave that behind could we?
  • (1) GoPro camera and accessories
  • (1) selfie stick – not just for selfies! Great for video too 🙂
  • (1) iPad
  • (1) Power bank – always handy to have extra charge on you
  • All necessary chargers…which is a lot.

Toiletries & More:

  • Travel size shampoo, conditioner, body soap
  • Deodorant
  • Razors
  • Toothbrush/paste and floss
  • Contacts/solution
  • Makeup
  • Hairbrush/straightener – I called ahead to confirm all hotels would be equipped with hair dryer so I could leave it at home
  • 1 Beach towel
  • Sunscreen – this is expensive in Thailand and especially on the islands so stock up beforehand!
  • Mosquito repellent – a necessity in Thailand

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And last but not least…our passports and Thai drivers license. While technically we don’t need both, we feel better keeping our passport on us with our visa in the event any issues arise. Additionally, since the Thai drivers license often saves us on park admission fees (like at Erawan National Park) we always keep it on hand.

We managed to fit all of our clothes and shoes into our rolling carry-on suitcase without bursting the seams. We packed the computer, iPad and all of our toiletries in Charlie’s laptop backpack. The remaining items went into our Osprey day pack, including the DSLR, GoPro and accessories, selfie stick, and power bank.

And that’s how we successfully packed for our 2 weeks in Thailand trip! How do you think we did? 

About the Author Charlie and Brittany

We are Brittany and Charlie - we traded the 9 to 5 and the so-called "American dream" to live our own dream and see the world. We sold all of our belongings and left the US in August 2013. For 5 years, we lived primarily in Thailand and built our online business and location independent lifestyle while we traveled to over 30 countries. We’ve had house sitting gigs on 3 different continents and we’ve even appeared on HGTV’s House Hunters International.

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Leave a Comment:

14 comments
ian stevenson says March 22, 2015

Hi guy’s Ian again from Si Chiang Mai I remember from an older post you do house sitting! I would like to go to Sing about July if things work out well and am wondering if you could do the same for me about 4 days. Regards Ian

Reply
Brooke of Passport Couture says September 11, 2015

Packing can be such a headache! Most recently I found packing for my latest temporary move to Chicago I forgot so many things! Your list would definitely help me decide how to organize and decide easier.

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says September 12, 2015

    Thanks, Brooke! Packing really can be a headache! I’m currently going through it packing for NZ and so grateful for the abundance of bloggers and their NZ packing lists! Its so helpful!

    Reply
Joann Weber says October 9, 2015

Amazing list! Thailand is fantastic country. I visited it last year. It was spectacular. I forget to take mosquito repellent. You should take one. Best regards!

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says October 9, 2015

    Yes mosquito repellent a must! Good thing you can get it pretty cheap if you don’t want to haul it in your luggage. But you don’t want to be without it!!

    Reply
Andy E mann says March 17, 2016

Hi there. THANKS for the packing tips…I’m headed to Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Koh Lanta for a 2 week time period (leaving on Saturday morning) for spring break. Did my first ’round the world month last summer and just got back from RIO for T Giving…I like your site! Cheers mates…Andy from Cathedral City, California (next door to Palm Springs)

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    Charlie and Brittany says April 27, 2016

    Sorry for the delayed response but hope you had a fantastic time in Thailand!

    Reply
linda says August 27, 2016

Hey All,
One comment on the packing list is, you don’t need to bring any toiletries. You can always buy them when you get to the other side. As for hair dryers, if you are not staying at hotels that provide them. then air dry 🙂
Linda

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says August 28, 2016

    Yes you’re exactly right! You can pick up toiletries very easily when you are there and I often went with the air dry method simply because my hair was going in a motorbike helmet anyways!! Thanks for the tips, Linda!

    Reply
Lauren says February 26, 2017

Awesome blog! I am heading to Thailand this December with my boyfriend. I am currently debating between getting a backpack vs a rolling carry on. Did you find that having the rolling carry on was difficult??

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says March 9, 2017

    Now I travel with a rolling bag and my husband has a backpack. It really depends on how much you are moving around, taking public transportation, etc. In Thailand, I think you will be fine with either option. However, when we were in Europe and taking trains often, a backpack would have been much nicer! Now that we tend to travel slower, I prefer the rolling.

    Reply
Bill says November 6, 2017

Thanks for this! Since guy’s clothes tend to be bulkier than girls’ clothes, how does Charlie pack so small for two weeks? Or do you pack for a week and just do laundry somewhere for the second week?

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    Charlie and Brittany says January 7, 2018

    Laundry is definitely the way to go! Its so cheap in Thailand – you can have your clothes washed, dried and folded for just a few dollars in 24 hrs. And there are always laundry places on every corner. Also, its usually much cheaper to go find a laundry lady yourself rather than go through the hotel.

    Reply
Bill says November 7, 2017

Thanks for this! Did you guys pack clothes for a full 2 weeks? Or did you find a place to do laundry out there?

Reply
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