Smoking cigarettes is legal for adults in Thailand, but it is banned in a long list of places: all public transport including boats, temples, bars and clubs (inside and outside), air-conditioned restaurants and markets, including walking-street markets. Smoking in a no-smoking place can cost a fine of up to 5,000 baht (as of October 2026).
The rules come from the Tobacco Products Control Act 2017, which took effect on Tuesday 4 July 2017, and a Ministry of Public Health notification from 2018 that lists the smoke-free places. Many websites still quote the Non-Smokers' Health Protection Act of 1992. That law no longer exists: the 2017 Act repealed it.
The short version for a visitor is this. Assume you cannot smoke anywhere indoors, on any vehicle or boat, or anywhere that sells food under air conditioning, and look for the marked smoking area. Where there is no marked area, walk away from doors, bus stops and piers before you light up.
Cigarette rules at a glance (October 2026)
- Main law
- Tobacco Products Control Act 2017 (in force 4 July 2017)
- Fine for smoking in a smoke-free place
- Up to 5,000 baht
- Beach ban
- 24 named beaches since 1 February 2018; up to 100,000 baht and/or 1 year
- Minimum age to buy
- 20, and the seller may ask for ID
- Pack size
- At least 20 cigarettes; selling single cigarettes is illegal
- Online, vending machine and pharmacy sales
- Banned
- Duty-free allowance on arrival
- 200 cigarettes or 250 g of tobacco
- Vapes and heated tobacco
- Illegal to possess or use
Places where smoking is banned on the whole site
The 2018 notification sorts places into groups. The strictest group bans smoking on the entire premises, indoors and outdoors, with no smoking area allowed. These are the ones a traveler meets most often:
- Temples and all other places of worship, including the courtyards. Our guide to temple etiquette covers the other rules inside the walls.
- Pubs, bars, clubs and karaoke venues, both inside and outside the building.
- Air-conditioned restaurants and bars.
- Markets, including floating markets and walking-street markets such as the night markets in Chiang Mai and Hua Hin.
- Thai massage shops, spas and saunas.
- Shops, pharmacies, cinemas, banks and ATMs, and petrol stations.
- Museums, sports grounds, gyms, swimming pools, water parks, zoos, amusement parks and public parks.
- Public toilets and lifts.
Hospitals, clinics, schools, child-care centers and playgrounds go one step further: the ban also covers 5 meters from every entrance and exit.
Buses, taxis, boats and piers
Every form of public transport is smoke-free. The list in the notification is long on purpose: buses, vans, taxis, motorcycle taxis, tuk-tuks, trains, the BTS and MRT, cable cars, planes, and passenger boats, ferries and cruise ships. A longtail boat to the beach or the deck of an island ferry is no exception.
The ban also reaches the places where you wait. Piers are smoke-free, as are taxi, van and motorcycle-taxi stands, and the area within 3 meters of a bus stop pole. Smokers on a long ferry trip should plan for that: our overview of ferries in Thailand covers crossing times, and some of them run for several hours.
A ferry deck counts as public transport. The open air does not change the rule: passenger boats, ferries and cruise ships are on the smoke-free list, and so are the piers you board from.
Where a marked smoking area is allowed
The other groups in the notification allow a smoking area, but only one that has been set up and marked. Outside it, the place is smoke-free.
| Place | Rule (2018 notification) |
|---|---|
| Airports, government offices, universities | Smoke-free inside; a smoking area may be set up outside the building |
| Shopping malls, private offices, factories | Smoking only in the marked area, at least 5 m from doors, windows and air vents |
| Hotel and resort lobbies and corridors, condos, homestays | Smoking only in the marked area |
| Train, BTS and MRT stations, bus terminals, piers (under the roof) | Smoking only in the marked area |
| Restaurants without air conditioning | The eating area is smoke-free; smoking only in a marked area |
| National parks, historical parks, archaeological sites, botanical gardens, monuments | Smoking only in the marked area |
| Golf courses | Smoking only in the marked area |
At the airport, that means no smoking anywhere in the terminal unless a marked area exists. Ask staff where the outdoor smoking area is before you check in, rather than hunting for one after security. Our guide to Thailand's airports covers the terminals themselves.
Bars, restaurants and your hotel room
The most common mistake is to think an open-air bar is fine. It is not. Places of entertainment, which in Thai law means pubs, bars, clubs and karaoke venues, are smoke-free inside and outside. The looser "eating area plus marked smoking area" wording applies only to restaurants without air conditioning. A beach bar may still put out ashtrays, but the law does not change because the owner does.
Venue owners carry their own risk. A business that fails to mark smoke-free areas or leaves ashtrays where smoking is banned can be fined up to 50,000 baht, which is why staff in many places will ask you to put out a cigarette.
Hotel rooms are not named in the notification, which covers lobbies and corridors. Whether you may smoke in your room is up to the hotel, so read the house rules when you book. If you want a smoking room, ask before you arrive rather than at check-in.
The beach smoking ban
Beaches are not in the 2018 notification. They have their own rule, made by the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources: since Thursday 1 February 2018, 24 named beaches in 15 provinces are non-smoking. The penalty is much heavier than the ordinary fine, up to 100,000 baht and/or up to one year in prison. Smokers use areas set back from the sand.
The named beaches include Patong in Phuket, Bo Phut on Koh Samui, Pattaya Beach, Hua Hin and Cha-am. Our page on the vaping ban prints the full list and the reason behind it. We could not confirm whether new beaches have been added since 2018, and the Danish foreign ministry's 2026 travel advice still warns of beach smoking bans in several tourist areas. Treat any beach with no-smoking signs as covered, and if you are choosing where to stay, our comparison of Phuket's beaches may help.
Fines, and how they are settled
Smoking in a smoke-free place carries a fine of up to 5,000 baht under Section 67 of the 2017 Act. The UK Foreign Office repeats the same maximum in its travel advice. For offenses that carry only a fine, the Act allows the case to be settled by paying it, which closes the matter.
If an officer asks you to pay, ask for an official receipt. Our list of common scams in Thailand explains why a cash payment with no paperwork deserves a second look.
Buying cigarettes in Thailand
Buying cigarettes works differently from many countries, because the law hides them from view.
- You must be 20. No one may sell tobacco to anyone under 20, and the seller should ask for ID if in doubt. Bring a copy of your passport photo page.
- Nothing on display. Shops may not show tobacco at the point of sale, so you will not see a wall of packs. Ask the cashier for your brand.
- Packs of 20 only. A pack must hold at least 20 cigarettes, and splitting packs to sell single cigarettes is illegal, even if a street vendor offers it.
- Not everywhere. Tobacco may not be sold in temples, pharmacies, hospitals, schools, public parks, zoos or amusement parks, from vending machines, by street hawking, or online.
Prices change with excise tax, so we do not print current ones. For context, the World Health Organization recorded a 20-pack of the most-sold brand at 66 baht in July 2022, with taxes making up about 81 percent of the price. Check the price in the shop.
Bringing cigarettes in and taking them home
Thai Customs allows 200 cigarettes or 250 grams of tobacco per person, duty-free. Anything above that must go in the box Customs provides, or you risk prosecution, and the UK Foreign Office warns that fines can reach 10 times the value. Our guide to Thai customs allowances covers the rest of the list, and duty-free shopping at Thai airports explains the arrival shops.
On the way home, your own country's allowance applies, and some are far smaller than Thailand's. Our page on taking alcohol and cigarettes home lists the limits by country.
Vapes, heated tobacco, shisha and other nicotine
Ordinary cigarettes are the legal option. Vapes and e-cigarettes are illegal to possess or use, with no exception for tourists, and the UK Foreign Office names heat-not-burn devices such as IQOS in the same ban. Hookah is banned too; see shisha in Thailand.
Smokeless products sit in a different place. Tobacco-free nicotine pouches are sold under the tobacco law, and our page on snus explains the separate position of Swedish-style tobacco snus. If you want to cut down during the trip, nicotine gum and patches are sold in pharmacies; see quitting aids in Thai pharmacies.
Frequently asked questions
Can you smoke on the beach in Thailand?
Not on the 24 beaches covered by the 2018 beach ban, which include Patong, Bo Phut, Pattaya Beach and Hua Hin. There the penalty is up to 100,000 baht and/or a year in prison. On other beaches no national ban has been confirmed, but follow any local no-smoking signs.
Can I smoke in an open-air bar in Thailand?
No. Pubs, bars, clubs and karaoke venues are smoke-free inside and outside under the 2018 notification. Only restaurants without air conditioning may have a marked smoking area, and even there the eating area itself is smoke-free.
What is the fine for smoking in a no-smoking area in Thailand?
Up to 5,000 baht under the Tobacco Products Control Act 2017. Paying the fine settles the case. The beach ban is separate and much heavier, with fines of up to 100,000 baht and/or up to one year in prison.
How old do you have to be to buy cigarettes in Thailand?
You must be 20 or older. Sellers should ask for ID if they are unsure of your age, so carry a copy of your passport photo page. Cigarettes are kept out of sight, so you need to ask the cashier for them.
Can you smoke at Thai airports?
Only in a marked smoking area outside the terminal building. Airports are on the list of places that are smoke-free inside, with smoking allowed only in a designated outdoor area. Ask airport staff where it is before you pass security.
Sources
- Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids – Tobacco Products Control Act 2017 (unofficial translation) (checked October 2026)
- Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids – Ministry of Public Health notification on non-smoking areas, 2018 (unofficial translation) (checked October 2026)
- Tobacco Control Laws – Thailand: smoke-free places (checked October 2026)
- UK FCDO – Thailand travel advice: safety and security (checked October 2026)
- Bangkok Post – Smoking ban at 24 beaches in force from Thursday (2018) (checked October 2026)
- Tourism Authority of Thailand – Smoking ban on Thai beaches (October 2017) (checked October 2026)
- Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Rejsevejledning Thailand (checked October 2026)
- World Health Organization – Report on the global tobacco epidemic 2023: Thailand profile (checked October 2026)
- Thai Customs Department – Guidelines for airport passengers (checked October 2026)