Are you planning a trip to Thailand? Then it is time to learn the Thai airport vocabulary! Even though you can speak English fluently, I think it is smart to learn these essential and useful phrases before you land in Thailand. It is always better to know some basic and common phrases in the native language of the destination country.
So, in today’s blog post, we will focus on the common Thai words relevant to airports, and we will end the post by talking about the 3 biggest airports that amaze tourists in Thailand.
If you are ready, let’s get started!
Thai Airport Vocabulary
This list consists of the most frequently used Thai words and phrases at the airport. You will probably need at least some of them once you enter a Thai airport. I believe these words will help you out during your ticket purchasing and passport control process.
- A fine – ค่าปรับ kâa bpràp
- Abroad – ต่างประเทศ dtàang bprà-têt
- Airline – สายการบิน săai gaan bin
- Airline Counter – เคาน์เตอร์สายการบิน kao-dtêr săai gaan bin
- Airport – สนามบิน sà-năam bin
- Aisle seat – ที่นั่งริมทางเดิน têe nâng rim taang dern
- Announcement – ประกาศ bprà-gàat
- Arrival – ขาเข้า kăa kâo
- Baggage/luggage – สัมภาระ săm-paa-rá
- Baggage car – รถขนส่งสัมภาระ rót kŏn sòng săm-paa-rá
- Baggage claim point – จุดรับสัมภาระ jùt ráp săm-paa-rá
- Bag compartment – ตู้เก็บกระเป๋า dtôo gèp grà-bpăo
- Bag screening area – จุดตรวจกระเป๋า jùt dtrùuat grà-bpăo
- Board plane – ขึ้นเครื่อง kêun krêuuang
- Business-class – ชั้นธุรกิจ chán tú-rá gìt
- Carry-on luggage – สัมภาระติดตัว săm-paa-rá dtìt dtuua
- Currency exchange – แลกเงิน lâek ngern
- Departure – ขาออก kăa òk
- Destination – จุดหมายปลายทาง jud măai Plăi thaang
- Duty free shop – ร้านขายสินค้าปลอดภาษี ráan kăai sĭn káa bplòt paa-sĕe
- Elevator – ลิฟต์ lif
- Excess Baggage – น้ำหนักกระเป๋าเกิน náam nàk gra bpao gern
- Exchange – แลกเปลี่ยน lâek
- Flight attendant – แอร์โฮสเตส ae hoh sà-dtèt
- Flight number – หมายเลขเที่ยวบิน măai lêk tîieow bin
- Food court – ศูนย์อาหาร sŏon aa-hăan
- Gate/door – ประตู bprà-dtoo
- Get off the plain – ลงจากเครื่องบิน long jàak krêuuang bin
- Immigration checkpoint – จุดตรวจคนเข้าเมือง jùt dtrùuat kon kâo meuuang
- Luggage cart – รถเข็นสัมภาระ rót kĕn săm-paa-rá
- Middle seat – ที่นั่งตรงกลาง têe nâng dtrong glaang
- Overweight – น้ำหนักเกิน náam nàk gern
- Passenger – ผู้โดยสาร pôo doi săan
- Passport – พาสปอร์ต/หนังสือเดินทาง paa sà-bpòt/năng-sĕu dern taang
- Plane ticket – ตั๋วเครื่องบิน dtŭua krêuuang bin
- Passport Control – ด่านตรวจหนังสือเดินทาง daan dtrùuat năng-sĕu dern taang
- Seat – ที่นั่ง têe nâng
- Seat belt – เข็มขัดนิรภัย kĕm kàt ní-rá-pai
- Scale – เครื่องชั่ง khreuuang chang
- Schedule – ตารางเวลา dtaa-raang way-laa
- Suitcase กระเป๋าเดินทาง gra bpao deern thaang
- The lounge – ห้องรับรอง hông ráp rong
- To fly – บิน bin
- To land – ลงจอด long jòt
- To register – ลงทะเบียน long tá-biian
- To transport luggage – ขนส่งสัมภาระ kŏn sòng săm-paa-rá
- To travel – เดินทาง dern taang
- Transfer flight – ต่อเครื่อง dtòr krêuuang
- Turbulence – การสั่นสะเทือน gaan sàn sà-teuuan
- Visa – วีซ่า wee sâa
- Wait in line – ต่อคิว dtòr kiw
- Window seat – ที่นั่งริมหน้าต่าง têe nâng rim nâa dtàang
The Parts Of The Airplane
This list includes some Thai vocabulary for plane parts. You may need them as well since you are traveling by plane. At least, you should be able to define the main parts of the plane in the Thai language.
- Airplane wings – ปีกเครื่องบิน bpèek krêuuang bin
- Airplane body – ตัวเครื่อง dtuua krêuuang
- Cockpit – ห้องนักบิน hông nák bin
- Engine – เครื่องยนต์ krêuuang yon
- Jet fuel – น้ำมันเครื่องบิน náam man krêuuang bin
- Landing gear – เกียร์ลงจอด giia long jòt
- Nose of plane – จมูกเครื่องบิน jà-mòok krêuuang bin
Useful Phrases At The Airport
Here are some useful Thai phrases in case you need to talk to a local or the officer cannot speak English. You can express your possible requests at the airport with these simple sentences.
English: I am looking for terminal A.
Thai: ผมกำลังหาอาคารผู้โดยสาร A ครับ
English: Terminal B is for international flights.
Thai: อาคารผู้โดยสาร B เป็นของเที่ยวบินระหว่างประเทศ
English: Why has the plane been delayed?
English: I would like a window seat.
Thai: ผมต้องการที่นั่งริมหน้าต่างครับ
3 Most Popular Airports In Thailand
Although most tourists are only familiar with Bangkok’s modern international airport, Suvarnabhumi, Thailand, has more airports all around the country. We can say that they offer a cheap and convenient way to travel around Thailand.
Thailand is a pretty large country, and journeys by bus can take more than 12 hours; you can find out yourself that you can fly and save yourself a lot of time and money for the same cost as a bus ticket.
Haven’t you arranged your trip schedule yet? Explore all the provinces of Thailand beforehand to avoid unexpected situations.
Suvarnabhumi Airport
Bangkok’s modern airport was built in 2006 and had all the features you could expect from an airport. Suvarnabhumi Airport is located about 30km east of central Bangkok. Around the airport, you will find numerous shops and restaurants serving everything from local Thai food to Western fast food.
There is a taxi rank on the entrance floor where you can grab a taxi into the city center for around $20, or you could go down to the basement to get on the airport rail, which costs only $1.50.
Phuket Airport
Phuket Airport is the third busiest in the whole country. You will notice that it has many transport options to get you to your accommodation, including car services. Unfortunately, the taxi and tuk-tuk prices are inflated, but you can get the Phuket Smart Bus to save some money.
Phuket airport is perfect for tourists who want to hit the beach and avoid the congestion of Bangkok. Expect to pay a bit more for direct flights to Phuket than Bangkok, but it is worth it if you have limited travel time.
Koh Samui Airport
Koh Samui airport is small and basic compared to the others. Still, it offers a convenient way of getting to the island with minimal fuss. However, prices for flights to the island are about three times what you’d expect, as Bangkok Airways holds a monopoly on this airport.
Ready To Learn The Thai Language?
If you are keen on exploring even more about the Thai Language, improving your abilities and knowledge of the most basic words and phrases will make a huge difference during your trip to the Land of Smiles.
The Ling app offers you a free ebook to learn the Thai language if you need more lessons. We strongly advise you to use this language learning app to improve your abilities before traveling!
The Ling app is an online, fun, and engaging language learning app that guarantees to help you improve your Thai skills from beginner to advanced effectively. Start talking with natives, and sound like one during your most awaited trip! But for that, you will need to study for at least 15 minutes a day. Interested? Then try the first lessons for free!
Get the Ling app from the Play Store or App Store today.