Thailand
Getting married in Thailand
Bangkok on its river and the ruined temples of Ayutthaya, the old capital, Chiang Mai’s old city and the misty hills of the north, Phuket’s beaches and headlands, the limestone cliffs and islands of Krabi and Phang Nga Bay, the palm-fringed bays of Koh Samui and its neighbours in the Gulf, and the long beaches of Hua Hin and Cha-am.
Thailand runs from the forested mountains of the north to the islands of the south, and its two coasts take their rains at different times: the Andaman side, Phuket and Krabi, is wettest from May to October, the Gulf islands from October to December. The cool, dry months from November to February suit most of the country best, and this close to the equator the light barely changes: all year the sun sets between about a quarter to six and seven.
Couples from abroad can marry here legally, without living here, in one way only: before a registrar, at a district office or, for a fee, at a place you choose, with a document from home saying each of you is free to marry, translated into Thai and legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Same-sex couples have been able to marry since January 2025. A Buddhist blessing or a beach ceremony has no legal weight on its own, so many couples sign the papers at home and celebrate here, on an Andaman beach, on a Gulf island or in the hills around Chiang Mai.
6 places
Where in Thailand
City, mountains, islands or beaches: each has its own light, landscape and best months. Start with the one that feels like you.
- Bangkok & AyutthayaA river city of gilded temples: vows by the Chao Phraya, portraits below Wat Arun at dawn, in the old town’s lanes and on a rooftop at dusk — and a day among the ruined temples of Ayutthaya, the old capital to the north.Best: Jan · Feb · Nov · DecPhotographers joining
Chiang Mai & the NorthThe old walled capital of Lanna at the foot of a temple-topped mountain, and beyond it the North: mist over rice terraces, Thailand’s highest peak, Chiang Rai’s White Temple and the hill valley of Pai.Best: Jan · Nov · DecPhotographers joining
PhuketThailand’s largest island: bays of pale sand on the Andaman Sea, longtail boats off Kata, the sunset at Promthep Cape and the painted shophouses of Phuket Old Town.Best: Jan · Feb · Mar · DecPhotographers joining
Krabi & Phang NgaLimestone towers rising straight out of the Andaman Sea: Railay’s beaches, reached by longtail boat, the Phi Phi islands and Maya Bay, the karsts of Phang Nga Bay and the quiet island villages of Koh Yao.Best: Jan · Feb · Mar · DecPhotographers joining
Koh Samui & the Gulf IslandsGranite shores and coconut palms on Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao to the north, the limestone islands of Ang Thong to the west: vows by the Gulf of Thailand, then portraits on the rocks, on the sand or out on a boat at sunset.Best: Feb · Mar · AprPhotographers joining
Hua Hin & Cha-amThe seaside towns where Thailand’s royal court and Bangkok’s high society took their holidays a century ago, some 200 km south of the capital: long beaches facing the sunrise, an old railway station, mangroves at Pran Buri and the limestone peaks of Khao Sam Roi Yot.Best: Jan · Feb · DecPhotographers joining
Through the year
When to marry, region by region
Dark: the easiest months. Outlined: they work with some planning. Grey: the quieter, wetter or hotter part of the year there.
- Bangkok & Ayutthaya
- January: Best
- February: Best
- March: Good with planning
- April: Quieter
- May: Quieter
- June: Quieter
- July: Quieter
- August: Quieter
- September: Quieter
- October: Quieter
- November: Best
- December: Best
- Chiang Mai & the North
- January: Best
- February: Good with planning
- March: Quieter
- April: Quieter
- May: Quieter
- June: Quieter
- July: Quieter
- August: Quieter
- September: Quieter
- October: Good with planning
- November: Best
- December: Best
- Phuket
- January: Best
- February: Best
- March: Best
- April: Good with planning
- May: Quieter
- June: Quieter
- July: Quieter
- August: Quieter
- September: Quieter
- October: Quieter
- November: Good with planning
- December: Best
- Krabi & Phang Nga
- January: Best
- February: Best
- March: Best
- April: Good with planning
- May: Quieter
- June: Quieter
- July: Quieter
- August: Quieter
- September: Quieter
- October: Quieter
- November: Good with planning
- December: Best
- Koh Samui & the Gulf Islands
- January: Good with planning
- February: Best
- March: Best
- April: Best
- May: Good with planning
- June: Good with planning
- July: Good with planning
- August: Good with planning
- September: Good with planning
- October: Quieter
- November: Quieter
- December: Quieter
- Hua Hin & Cha-am
- January: Best
- February: Best
- March: Good with planning
- April: Good with planning
- May: Quieter
- June: Quieter
- July: Quieter
- August: Quieter
- September: Quieter
- October: Quieter
- November: Good with planning
- December: Best
The seasons
What each season brings
- March – MayHot seasonThe hottest months: in April highs reach about 36 °C in Bangkok and nearly 37 °C in Chiang Mai, and the nights stay warm. Mid-April brings Songkran, the Thai New Year, when the streets fill with water fights for days; late in the dry season, smoke from burning fields and forests can haze the northern sky. The rains return in May, first on the Andaman coast. Keep portraits for early morning and the last hour of light — the sun sets around half past six.
- June – AugustRainy seasonThe southwest monsoon: it rains (1 mm or more) on about half the days in Phuket and Krabi, and on 12 to 17 days a month in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. The Gulf islands are the exception — on Koh Samui it rains on about ten days a month — and some marine national parks on the Andaman side close from mid-May to mid-October. The longest evenings of the year: the sun sets around ten to seven, just after seven in Chiang Mai.
- September – OctoberLate rainsThe wettest months in Bangkok and on the Andaman coast — in September it rains (1 mm or more) on 18 days in Bangkok, and on 19 or 20 a month in Phuket into October — and heavy rain can flood low-lying streets. The north dries out first: in Chiang Mai, October has half August’s rainy days. On the Gulf the pattern turns: Koh Samui’s rainiest stretch begins in October and runs to December. By mid-October the sun sets around six.
- November – FebruaryCool seasonDrier, less humid and a little cooler — the months the Tourism Authority of Thailand calls the best time to travel, so book early. From December to February it rains (1 mm or more) on one or two days a month in Bangkok, with highs of 32 to 34 °C; in Chiang Mai mornings fall to about 16 °C, and in Phuket February is the driest month of the year. The Gulf islands are the exception: their rains run into December. The days are shortest: the sun sets around six, a little later in the south.
The legal basics
Three ways to say yes
What makes a wedding legally binding in Thailand, in short. Couples from abroad can marry here legally, with no period of residence — but only by registering at a district office, with papers from home translated into Thai.
- CivilThe only legal wedding in Thailand: a registrar at a district office — the amphoe, or the khet in Bangkok — records your marriage before two witnesses, one for each of you, and gives you two copies of the certificate, in Thai. You can register at any district office, wherever you live; it costs nothing there, and for 200 baht, plus transport, the registrar can come to a place you choose. Same-sex couples have been able to marry on the same terms since 23 January 2025.
- ReligiousA Buddhist blessing by monks, a church wedding or any other religious rite has no legal weight on its own: Thai law recognises a marriage only once it is registered, so couples who want both register at the district office as well. In a temple, cover shoulders and knees, take off your shoes before you enter a hall, never point your feet at a Buddha image, and women don’t touch a monk or his robes.
- SymbolicAny place, any words, any celebrant — but no legal weight, and no Thai paperwork. Many couples from abroad sign the papers at home and exchange vows here, on an Andaman beach at sunset, on a Gulf island or in the hills around Chiang Mai. National parks set their own rules, so ask before you plan photos there; and a drone must be registered with the telecoms regulator, the NBTC, within 30 days of arriving, even if you never fly it.
Before any legal wedding
Each of you needs a document from your own country that says you are free to marry. Your embassy in Bangkok may issue it — the British Embassy’s ‘marital status affirmation’ costs £75 with a certified copy of the passport, at an appointment at least a week after you apply, and is valid only for the month and province it names — but not every embassy still does, so ask yours first. A certificate issued at home is legalised by your country’s foreign ministry and by the Thai embassy there. Then each document is translated into Thai, the translator signing it as correct, and legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of Consular Affairs — in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Pattaya, Songkhla or Ubon Ratchathani, by online appointment: 200 baht a document in three working days, 400 the same day. Finally the two of you, your passports and two witnesses go to the district office. From 28 February 2027 Thailand applies the Apostille Convention, which should shorten the papers from home.
Rules, documents and fees change and depend on your nationality: always check with your embassy in Bangkok, the Department of Consular Affairs and the district office where you will register — and, for photos in a national park or a temple, with the park or the temple — before you set a date.
Photographers
Photographers in Thailand
The first photographers in Thailand are joining now
We approve every photographer by hand, from three whole weddings, so the list starts small. Tell our concierge your date and your plans — it checks who is free and fits.
Plan your wedding
Guides
- Getting married in Thailand as foreigners: the papers, the district office, same-sex couplesHow couples who don’t live in Thailand marry there legally: the document from home that says you’re free to marry, its Thai translation and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ stamp, registration at any district office, same-sex marriage since 2025, Buddhist blessings and symbolic ceremonies, costs, and registering the marriage back home.
- Which country for a destination wedding? The law, prices, crowds and light, comparedThe legal route for couples who don’t live there, season and crowds, price levels, light, flights, venues and permits for photographs — Portugal, Italy, Spain, Greece, France and Austria compared with official figures, as of October 2026.
- How to choose a wedding photographer: the steps, and the questions to askThe decision in order — whole weddings, style, availability, the package, the contract and deposit, cancellation, delivery and a conversation — then a checklist of questions, with why each one matters.
- A wedding-day timeline for photosFrom getting ready to the last dance, planned around the light.
- A rain plan that still looks goodCovered spots, umbrellas and what photographers do on grey days.
- Deposits and payment protectionWhat you pay when, and what happens if plans change.
- Wedding photography contract checklist: what it should say, and how Lens & Vows handles each pointThirteen things a good contract covers — the day and the hours, what is delivered, deposit and balance, cancellation on either side, date changes, illness, image rights, personal data, backups, travel, overtime and complaints — and what our terms say about each.
All the countries we work in · More countries are coming.
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