Many Dutch and Belgian retirees want to give back to their new homeland. Teaching, helping at an animal shelter, or doing odd jobs for the temple seems like a matter of course. However, Thai law also considers unpaid work to be “work,” and your retirement visa explicitly prohibits this. Anyone caught risks fines of up to 50.000 baht (approximately 1.250 euros), visa revocation, and even deportation.
Private hospital or government hospital in Thailand? Here's how to make the right choice.
For Dutch and Belgian expats and retirees in Thailand, medical care is not a theoretical issue. The private sector is world-class, but expensive and often requires a substantial upfront deposit. Government hospitals are cheaper, but as a foreigner, you officially pay the highest rate. In 2026, the choice between the two will revolve primarily around insurance, location, and cash flow.
How the centuries-old fishing village of Naklua stands its ground among the towers of Pattaya
The old fishing village of Naklua, north of Pattaya, clings to its character as high-rise development encroaches. The municipality invested at least 300 million baht in the Old Town Naklua plan, which aims to combine heritage, a fish market, and wellness tourism. But the towers of Wong Amat are drawing ever closer, and land prices are rising. How long can the village hold out?
Night flight or day flight to Thailand? Here's how to choose smartly between jet lag and costs
Flying to Bangkok costs you eleven hours and five to six time zones of rhythm disruption. The choice between an afternoon flight arriving in the morning or an evening flight arriving in the afternoon seems small, but it determines how you experience the first days of your holiday. The price difference within a single airline is limited, but the difference in recovery is not.
Many farang build a happy life with a woman they met in a bar in Pattaya, Bangkok, or Phuket. Others lose their savings, their house in an ex's name, or their illusions after a few years. The difference rarely lies in pure luck, but in what you know, see, and arrange beforehand. This article lists the real risks and red flags.
Many Dutch and Belgian men with a Thai partner struggle with the same question: how do you deal with in-laws who constantly ask for money, without your wife being seen as an ungrateful daughter in her village and you as a stingy farang? The solution lies not in saying no more forcefully, but in a different way of giving. In this article, you will read how to approach this.
In southern Thailand, several cities vie for the title of culinary capital. Hat Yai boasts its famous fried chicken, Phuket scores with Peranakan cuisine, and Nakhon Si Thammarat is known for its spicy curry stalls. Yet cookbook authors, culinary journalists, and serious eaters are increasingly pointing to one place: Trang, a quiet provincial town of about 60.000 inhabitants.
Thai Airways is expanding towards Europe again in the coming months. The daily Bangkok-Amsterdam route returns on July 1, while the airline takes into account more expensive kerosene, possible fuel shortages, and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Thailand officially enters the rainy season on Friday, May 15. According to the Thai meteorological service, approximately 10 percent less rain is expected this year than average. Nevertheless, meteorologists warn of heavy showers, flash floods, and possibly one or two tropical storms in August and September.
Chinese tourist banned for life after vandalizing immigration gate at Suvarnabhumi (video)
A Chinese traveler was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Samut Prakan after damaging an automated immigration gate and allegedly insulting officials. Thailand has revoked his visa, placed him on a permanent blacklist, and is criminally prosecuting him.
THAI Airways is temporarily reducing the fuel surcharge by 30 percent for Royal Orchid Plus members using their miles for international economy class tickets. The discount applies to travel from May 25 through July 31, 2026.
Which Thai laws are risky for retirees and tourists?
Thailand is a dream destination for many Dutch and Belgian retirees, but legally it is not an extension of home. Four laws are truly life-changing: lèse-majesté, the Computer Crime Act with its criminal defamation, and the ban on land ownership. In addition, “minor” offenses such as vaping, driving under the influence of beer, or working online often lead to immediate deportation.
Anyone booking a hotel in Bangkok, Hua Hin, or Chiang Mai from the Netherlands or Belgium often sees the same thing: the same room costs tens of euros less on Agoda than on Booking.com. How is that possible, while both platforms belong to the same parent company? The answer lies in a combination of business models, tax presentation, app discounts, and a European legislative change from 2024.
You experience everything in Thailand (55)
Dolf Riks is a legendary Dutchman, who spent the last 30 years of his life in Pattaya. Everyone who regularly visited Pattaya before the turn of the century knew him. He owned the first western restaurant in Pattaya, was also a painter, writer and a fascinating storyteller.
Rad Na (rice noodles in thick sauce)
Rat Na or Rad Na (ราดหน้า), is a Thai-Chinese noodle dish with wide rice noodles covered in a gravy. This dish may contain beef, pork, chicken, shrimp or seafood. The main ingredients are Shahe fen, meat (chicken, beef, pork) seafood or tofu, sauce (stock, tapioca starch or cornstarch), soy sauce or fish sauce.
Bueng Kan, Thailand's newest province (video)
Bueng Kan, also spelled Bung Kan, is officially the 76th province of Thailand and therefore also the newest, because this province has only existed since March 23, 2011.
An adventurous tour through Bangkok's Chinatown
The best time to visit Bangkok's Chinatown is in the late afternoon. The district is quite hectic during the day, but as soon as dusk falls it becomes quieter. Thais visit Chinatown mainly for the excellent street food, of course there is plenty for tourists to see and experience besides the delicious food. If you visit Bangkok, you should not miss Chinatown.
Thailand is surrounded by dubious neighbors and autocracies: this is how grim the region is in 2026.
Thailand borders four countries where human rights, press freedom, and democracy are under severe pressure. Myanmar is waging a bloody civil war, Cambodia is hardening under a dynastic autocracy, Laos remains a closed one-party state, and Malaysia is abandoning its reform promises. Five years after the coup in Naypyidaw and three years after the transfer of power in Phnom Penh, the balance looks bleaker than ever. And Thailand itself is becoming increasingly entangled with the problems of its neighbors.
Why does she always get the blame? On money-grubbers, generous farangs, and shared responsibility
In Thailand, Thai women are often branded as money-grubbers, while their Western partners foot the bill themselves. This is evident from practices in Isaan and Pattaya as well as from academic research into Thai-Western marriages. It is time to take an honest look at who actually gives, why, and what role the farang himself plays in the dynamic he often denounces in retrospect.
A ticket from Amsterdam to Bangkok can cost around 588 euros in May, but during the Christmas holidays, that same return trip rises to well over 1.500 euros. The difference lies largely in timing. For Dutch and Belgian travelers, when you book turns out to be at least as decisive for the price as which airline you fly with. An overview of the booking windows per month for 2026.
The benefits of spending the winter in Thailand: warmth, low costs, and a smooth arrival.
More and more Dutch and Belgians are trading the wet winter for three months of sun in Thailand. The dry season coincides exactly with the European winter, and you live there for less than half of what you would spend at home. This is what spending the winter in Thailand actually offers you, plus the pitfalls you need to address beforehand.
The forgotten meaning of the white thread around your wrist after a Thai temple ceremony
Many travelers leave a Thai temple with a thin white thread around their wrist, knotted by a monk. For most tourists, it is a lucky bracelet or a vacation souvenir. But those who look further discover an ancient ritual centered on protection, blessings, and the recall of the soul.