You Know You’ve Been to Thailand When…

Known as the ‘land of smiles’ and famed for its pristine beaches, Thailand is a pocket-friendly holiday destination with a lot to offer.

People travel from all over the world to experience the incredible food and fascinating culture that a trip to Thailand boasts, and you won’t forget your adventures in this sun-soaked country in a hurry. Here are a few things you’ll definitely relate to if you’ve been on holiday to Thailand.

Spending more than £3 on a meal feels like daylight robbery

Not only is the food in Thailand packed with flavour, it’s also incredibly cheap compared to eating out at home.

If you find yourself exclaiming ‘how much?!’ when asked to pay £10 for a restaurant meal in the UK, it might be the fault of all those incredible 50BHT pad thais and massuman curries. £1 is a pretty good price for a freshly cooked meal, and we’re hoping it catches on at home.

You’ve lost your shoes… and they turn up outside your front door

It can take a while to pick up new customs, but the respectful act of leaving your shoes at the door comes quickly. Kicking off the flip flops has become second nature, and now your friends and family are giving you strange looks for leaving your trainers on the doorstep when you get in.

Mystery menu items are your first pick instead of your last

The fear of staring down a badly-translated menu is long gone, now you know that it’s the items you can’t read at all that usually turn out to be the best. Gone are the days of ordering the same thing from your local takeaway – now you’re playing menu roulette, and finding all kinds of new favourites as a result.

You try to order drinks by the bucket

Who needs glasses anyway? After visiting a few Thai bars, getting drinks in ordinary sizes feels like it isn’t enough. Buying a round for your mates is just a lot easier when it comes in a bucket, not to mention it really enforces those holiday vibes.

You know the date of the next full moon

And the half moon, and the black moon… unfortunately there isn’t an app that tells you when the next ‘jungle moon’ is, but keeping up to date with when all the best parties are happening is easy to do from afar.

Needless to say, when you’re planning your inevitable return to Thailand, knowing when the next full moon party is stays high on the planning list.

You find yourself adding hot sauce to pretty much everything

After you’ve been caught out by spicy Thai ketchup more than once, hot sauce really starts to grow on you. Noodles? Hot sauce. Rice? Hot sauce. Pizza? Hot sauce. Cheese toasties? Definitely hot sauce.

Nobody has to know you’re picking the sauce with the least amount of chilli there is – you’ve been to Southeast Asia and now you’re a connoisseur of all things spice.

The best end-of-night takeaway is a cheese and ham toastie

And you’re always pining after those 7/11s. Shops that should more accurately be called the 24/7s, even the smallest villages in Thailand seem to offer all-night access to cutesy mini-microwave meals and a variety of toasties for the discerning holiday diner.

For less than £1 there are all kinds of instant hot snacks to absorb the Chang beer, and no late-night cheesy chips or kebabs from home will ever compare to the world-famous 7/11 cheese and ham toastie.

You can’t visit a beach without saying ‘this is nothing compared to Thailand!’

The beaches in Thailand are unparalleled. No instagram photo has quite done them justice, and you’ve raved to everyone who’ll listen about how beautiful the white sands of the southern islands are.

Now, it’s common knowledge that you’ve been holidaying in this part of the world – because every trip to another beach is another ‘you should have seen Thailand’ moment.

If you haven’t been on your dream holiday to Thailand yet, let us know what you’re most looking forward to in the comments!