appropriate dress for men when in Thailand?
 

I've noticed a lot of good advice for women in regards to proper dress for wats, sightseeing, etc. Any thoughts for men? This will be our first trip to Asia, and we don't want to be ugly Americans.

Are shorts a no-no? What about footwear? No thongs/sandals I'm assuming? We'll be in Chiang Mai, Bangkok, and Phuket - if it matters. And we are hoping to pack light!

Thanks for your help-
LAchica

LA--i find that i dress "appropriately" so that i can go from a temple to a shop to a high end restaurant without thinking about my clothing being correct...

i usually wear chinos, a polo or collared shirt, socks, sandals with a heal strap or regular leather walking shoes (no sneaks)....this allows me to go anyplace i want without issues...it is also cool...

you see lots of shorts, but they are not appropriate for all places...i only wear them at the pool or at resorts...or in resort towns...

hope this helps

I'd add: if you like to hike, bike, jog, consider spending the money to get some athletic sandals from http://www.biteshoes.com/. You might be able to take only one kind of footwear with you.

Also: consider light-weight travel pants with zip-off legs. These are very comfortable during the heat of the day and you can convert them to full trousers at any time.

Having been to all of the places that u have mentioned..My husband wore shorts, the entire time we were in Thailand..In the beach areas and pool areas he wore tank tops/t shirts, as well as when shopping around..

If we knew we would be going out to dinner, he wore dressy shorts with a nice shirt or polo shirt..And he always wore the same sandals everyday..

Wasn't an issue anywhere..

Dress appropriate, and there is no problems..


When we visited the Royal Palace, and any other Wat, he wore long cotton pants.

When we were just in BKK a few months ago, i noticed alot of men wearing capris..

A nice short sleeve shirt or polo shirt, nice lightweight pants, and comfortable walking shoes are best. That will allow you entry into almost everyplace in town (LeNormandy at the Oriental is an exception: suit & tie required.) The Thais never complain, but they don't like to see men in shorts unless they are near the beach.

Casual dress and shorts are appropriate almost everywhere on Phuket.

Bangkok, being a capital city, I tend to wear long pants - but "smart casual" is fine for man almost every where in the country.

Sandals are fine also - almost everywhere - except maybe the finer restaurants in Bangkok.

Try www.PhuketDelight.com for a review of Phuket.

If you want to go to the Skybar in Bangkok, no shorts and no sport sandals - for men or women. Other than that, I didn't see anywhere where men were turned away because of dress.