Thai Beach Vocabulary You’ll Need For Your Seaside Holiday

There really is a lot to like about the beaches in Thailand. They are often a lot cooler than in the city thanks to the sea breeze and offer a bit of relaxation. If you can find a more secluded spot, then you can have peace and quiet to yourself with a book or a nice drink. If you enjoy a day by the seaside, then some Thai beach vocabulary will help get you talking about your trip and make your city-dwelling friends jealous. It is a great way to learn Thai, too.

 

 

How To Say Beach In Thai

This is likely the first question you will have when learning Thai beach vocabulary. How do you actually say beach in Thai? Well, if you have spent any time looking at a map of Thailand in search of the best beaches, then you will probably already know the answer to that (or at least partially). 

This is because the word for beach in Thailand is ‘chai hat’ (ชายหาด). Therefore, you will often find that beaches are usually some sort of name or word, followed by the word ‘hat’ (หาด) which is a shorter way to say beach. Not the most inventive perhaps, but I guess that is a common trend worldwide.

While we are at it, we should also look at the word for sea in Thai too. The sea is called ‘talay’ (ทะเล) and is a popular name for places on the seafront. 

As a side note, some of the best beaches are found on the Thai islands. This makes sense as they are literally surrounded by the sea. If you read our article on that topic, you would know that the word for island is ‘koh’ (เกาะ). 

Beach Activities

What would an article about Thai beach vocabulary be without mention of some popular beach activities?

One of the more common activities to do at the beach in Thailand is swim, especially as the sun is so hot. To say swimming in Thai, you use the word ‘wai nam’ (ว่ายน้ำ). On some islands like Koh Tao, diving, known as ‘dam nam’ (ดำน้ำ) in Thai, is popular. That counts as a beach activity, right?

With such great weather, you are bound to see plenty of people sunbathing. In Thai, this is called ‘ab daed’ (อาบแดด). Hopefully, you remembered to put on your sunblock, or ‘krim kandaed’ (ครีมกันแดด). By the way, sunblock can be expensive in the country, so it may be better to pack some and bring your own from home.

Otherwise, you may just have chosen the beach to get some R&R. To tell people how relaxed you are, you can use the word ‘pon klai’ (ผ่อนคลาย). You may just discover the true meaning behind the phrase sabai sabai. Just make sure you get your self a ‘kruang duum’ (เครื่องดื่ม), which is the word for drink/beverage in Thai.

What To Wear At The Beach In Thailand

Ok, so imagine this: you have just stepped onto the sand, or ‘saai’ (ทราย) as it is known in Thai. What would you be wearing? Well, to protect your feet from the burning sand, you are likely wearing sandals, which are called ‘roong tao dte’ (รองเท้าแตะ).

Swimsuits are referred to as ‘chud wai nam’ (ชุดว่ายน้ำ). Bikinis are pronounced the same, though perhaps with a little bit of an accent (บิกินี่). If you want to look cool (and see better in the sun, I guess), sunglasses are a must. They are known as ‘wen gan det’ (แว่นกันแดด) in Thai.

A hat is another good thing to have at hand on those sunny days by the beachside. If you forgot to bring one with you, you can easily buy one nearby. Just ask for a ‘muuak’ (หมวก) and they should know what you need.

Other Thai Beach Vocabulary 

Now for some of the more random words that I wasn’t too sure how to categorize. For example, one food you definitely need to try when visiting the beach in Thailand is seafood. Thankfully, you just need to take the word for the sea and add the word for food before it. So seafood is called ‘ahaan talay’ (อาหารทะเล).

Now, how about some phrases? There are a couple of Thai phrases I can think of that will prove useful. Want to build a sandcastle? Let people know by saying ‘gor gong saai’ (ก่อ กองทราย). 

To ask the important question of ‘where is the most beautiful beach?’, say ‘chai hat tii suai tii sut yuu tii nai’ (ชายหาด ที่ สวย ที่สุด อยู่ ที่ไหน).

Finally, to let the driver know that your hotel is close to the beach in Thai, you can say ‘roong rem kong puak rao yuu glai gap chaai hat (โรงแรม ของพวกเรา อยู่ ใกล้ กับ ชายหาด).

Not in the mood for reading? Here is a table with all the necessary Thai beach vocabulary you should know for your next trip.

Thai Transliteration English
ชายหาด chai hat Beach
ทะเล talay Sea
เกาะ koh Island
ว่ายน้ำ wai nam Swimming
ดำน้ำ dam nam Diving
อาบแดด ab daed Sunbathing
ครีมกันแดด krim kamdaed Sunblock
ผ่อนคลาย pon klai Relax
เครื่องดื่ม kruang duum Drink/Beverage
ทราย saai Sand
รองเท้าแตะ roong tao dte Sandals
ชุดว่ายน้ำ chuud wai nam Swimsuit
บิกินี่ bi ki ni Bikini
แว่นกันแดด wen gan det Sunglasses
หมวก muuak Hat
อาหารทะเล ahaan talay Seafood
ก่อ กองทราย go gong saai Building a sandcastle
ชายหาด ที่ สวย ที่สุด อยู่ ที่ไหน chai hat tii suai tii sut yuu tii nai Where is the most beautiful beach?
โรงแรม ของพวกเรา อยู่ ใกล้ กับ ชายหาด roong rem kong puak rao yuu glai gap chaai hat’ My hotel is close to the beach

Fancy A Beach Holiday?

I think we could all do with a nice beach holiday right now. While many people aren’t the biggest fans of beaches because of the sand or smell, it makes for a great way to cool down. Find a place in the shade and settle down for a few hours. You could even catch up on some more Thai beach vocabulary if you are really interested in learning Thai.

Speaking of which, the Ling Thai app is the perfect option. From your smartphone, you can build up and test your Thai knowledge. Give it just a few minutes a day, and I am sure you will see improvement, however little it may be.

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