# Buying a holiday home in Thailand: use, letting and the costs

Source: https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/living/buying-a-holiday-home-in-thailand
Updated: 2026-11-14
Publisher: Thailand Property Investor (Omnia Capital Group)

## The short answer

A Thai holiday home works best when its season matches yours: the Andaman coast is at its best from November to April, the Gulf islands from January to September. While you are away it can stay empty, be let by the month, or be let nightly through a hotel-licensed programme that limits your own nights. Ordinary condominiums cannot be let by the night. Owning gives no right to stay: from 15 September 2026 a visa-exempt tourist stay is 30 days.

## Key points

- Phuket's season is sharp: January and February brought 43.4% of the island's air arrivals in the first half of 2026, and June only 10.8%.
- A home outside a hotel programme can be let for 30 days or more; nightly letting needs a hotel licence, which condominium units cannot hold.
- Hotel rental programmes limit owner use, often to between a few and a dozen days a year in a pool, and the nights owners want are the ones hotels value most.
- A holiday home costs the same to keep whether you are in it or not: the common-area fee, land and building tax, insurance and care.
- From 15 September 2026 a visa-exempt tourist stay in Thailand is 30 days, replacing the 60-day scheme; longer stays need a visa.

A holiday home in Thailand is two decisions at once: where and when you want to be there, and what the home does while you are not. Get the first right and the second follows. A home on the right coast for your months, held in a way that lets it earn or rest as you choose, is a pleasure. One bought on a rental projection for nights you then want for yourself causes friction.

## Choose the coast for your months

Thailand's two coasts have opposite seasons. The Andaman coast, which includes [Phuket](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/phuket) and [Krabi](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/krabi), is at its best from November to April. The Gulf islands, led by [Koh Samui](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/koh-samui), are driest from January to September and take their heaviest rain from October to December. [Hua Hin](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/hua-hin) and [Pattaya](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/pattaya) are within driving distance of Bangkok, which suits owners who fly into the capital. See the [coast and season explorer](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/tools/seasons) and [climate and seasons](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/living/climate-and-seasons).

Demand follows the same calendar. In the first half of 2026, January and February brought 43.4% of Phuket's air arrivals for the half year, and June only 10.8%. An index of hotel revenue per room, where 100 is the average, stood at 196 in January and 41 in June. For a holiday-home owner that has two consequences: the months you most want are the months the home would earn most, and the months it is free may earn little.

## Three ways to use the home while you are away

| Model | What happens while you are away | What it suits |
|---|---|---|
| Leave it empty | A contact or manager checks it; it is ready when you arrive | Owners who want flexibility and several stays a year |
| Let by the month | Tenants on lets of 30 days or more, arranged by an agent | A long block of free months, such as May to October on Phuket |
| Hotel rental programme | The operator lets the unit nightly and pays you a share | Owners who want little involvement and accept limits on their own nights |

**Monthly lets** are lawful for an ordinary condominium or villa. Nightly lets are not: lets of under 30 days need a hotel licence, and condominium units cannot be used for hotel operations. See [short-term rental rules](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/short-term-rental-rules).

**Hotel programmes** are open to units in a hotel-licensed scheme, usually a branded residence or hotel residence. Every programme limits the nights an owner may use, because each owner night is a night the hotel cannot sell. In a rental pool, owner use is often limited to between a few and a dozen days a year. Read the clause for the number of nights, whether peak dates are excluded, the notice you must give and any charge when you stay. See [hotel-managed and rental pool schemes](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/hotel-managed-and-rental-pool-schemes).

A buyer who wants December to February every year is asking for the nights a hotel values most. Phuket's hotels averaged THB 7,117 a night in the first half of 2026, with occupancy of 76.8%. A home outside a programme, let by the month for the rest of the year, often fits that plan better.

## What a holiday home costs to keep

The costs run all year, whether you are there or not: the [common-area fee](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/glossary/common-area-fee), land and building tax, insurance, utilities that run while you are away, and the care a closed home in the tropics needs. Set them out in the [running cost calculator](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/tools/running-cost-calculator) before you buy, and read [running costs of a Thai property](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/running-costs-of-thai-property).

Letting changes the sums, and sometimes the tax. Rent paid to a non-resident owner is subject to 15% withholding. A home let by the month stays in the residential category for land and building tax; one let by the night for payment falls outside it. See [rental income and tax](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/rental-income-and-tax).

## Work out what letting covers


Tap the months you will spend in the home, choose how it is used while you are away, and the planner sets the rent against the running costs. The headline is what each night of your own stay costs once the rent is counted: a fairer measure of a holiday home than a yield.

## How long you can stay

Owning a home in Thailand gives no right to be there. From 15 September 2026 the visa-exempt scheme for tourists is 30 days, replacing the 60-day scheme. An owner who wants to spend a season in the home needs a visa that allows it.

- The [Destination Thailand Visa](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/visas/destination-thailand-visa) gives stays of up to 180 days on a five-year visa.
- [Thailand Privilege](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/visas/thailand-privilege) is a paid membership with long-stay entry for 5 to 20 years.
- The [retirement visa](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/visas/retirement-visa) is open from age 50.
- The [Long-Term Resident visa](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/visas/long-term-resident-visa) suits wealthy owners, pensioners and remote workers who meet its thresholds.

The [visa pathfinder](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/tools/visa-pathfinder) compares them against your plans.

## Condominium or villa

A condominium is the simpler holiday home. A foreigner can own it freehold within the building's foreign quota, the building is managed and secured, and it can be locked and left. A villa gives privacy, a garden and a pool of your own, but a foreigner holds the land on a registered lease of up to 30 years and must arrange the upkeep that a building would otherwise provide. See [freehold vs leasehold](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/freehold-vs-leasehold) and [buying a villa in Thailand](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/guides/buying-a-villa-in-thailand).

On Phuket, [Bang Tao](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/phuket/bang-tao) took 32.7% of condominium sales in 2025, followed by [Karon](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/phuket/kata-karon) and [Kamala](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/areas/phuket/kamala). The most villa sales were in Cherng Talay, which takes in Bang Tao and Layan, followed by Pa Khlok and Bang Jo. Browse [property for sale in Phuket](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/property-for-sale/phuket) or compare [Phuket and Koh Samui](https://www.thailandpropertyinvestor.com/compare/phuket-vs-koh-samui).

## Before you reserve

1. Which months will you use the home, and which coast is in season then?
2. Will it be empty, let by the month or in a programme while you are away?
3. If a programme, how many owner nights does the contract give, and in which months?
4. What does the home cost to keep for a year, before any rent?
5. Which visa covers the length of stay you have in mind?

## Questions

### Can I rent out my Thai holiday home when I am not there?

Yes, by the month. Lets of under 30 days need a hotel licence, and condominium units cannot be used for hotel operations. Nightly income is open to owners of units in a hotel-licensed scheme, through the operator.

### How many nights can I use a unit in a rental programme?

The contract decides. In a rental pool, owner use is often limited to between a few and a dozen days a year, and peak dates are often restricted. If you want the whole of December to February, a home let by the month outside a programme may suit you better.

### Which coast should I choose for a winter holiday home?

For a European winter, the Andaman coast, including Phuket and Krabi, is at its best from November to April. The Gulf islands such as Koh Samui are driest from January to September and wettest from October to December. Our seasons explorer shows both month by month.

### How long can I stay in my Thai holiday home each year?

Owning property gives no right to stay. From 15 September 2026 a visa-exempt tourist stay is 30 days. For longer stays, look at the Destination Thailand Visa, Thailand Privilege, the retirement visa from age 50 or the Long-Term Resident visa.

### Should a holiday home be a condominium or a villa?

A condominium can be owned freehold, the building is managed for you, and it is easy to lock and leave. A villa gives privacy and space, but a foreigner holds it on a registered lease of up to 30 years and must arrange its upkeep. Many holiday-home buyers start with a condominium for that reason.

## Sources

- [Knight Frank Thailand, Bangkok and Phuket hotel market H1 2026](https://content.knightfrank.com/research/2972/documents/en/bangkok-phuket-hotel-market-h1-2026-12985.pdf)
- [Knight Frank Thailand, Phuket villa and condominium market, year-end 2025](https://content.knightfrank.com/research/2838/documents/en/phuket-villa-condominium-market-year-end-2025-12944.pdf)
- [Tilleke & Gibbins, Thailand condominiums cannot be used for hotel operations, 13 November 2023](https://www.tilleke.com/insights/thailand-condominiums-cannot-be-used-for-hotel-operations/11/)
- [Tilleke & Gibbins, land use classification for land and building tax, 18 June 2020](https://www.tilleke.com/insights/thailand-provides-detailed-criteria-land-use-classification-tax-purposes/2)
- [Twins Real Estate, rental management in Phuket (agency guide, owner use and commissions), updated 6 June 2026](https://realestate-twins.com/en/guide/rental-management-phuket/)
- [Government Public Relations Department, revised visa exemption schemes from 15 September 2026](https://thailand.prd.go.th/en/content/category/detail/id/48/iid/538547)
- [Revenue Department, Revenue Code (withholding on rent paid to non-residents)](https://www.rd.go.th/english/37749.html)