I love Thailand but let me just warn you that there is not always honesty and genuine affection behind the smiles there. You can get used by people you think are your friends. Enjoy the country but be careful in situations where recourses are involved (money, business, belongings, property etc) that’s where things can quickly go sour in Thailand unfortunately and have for a lot of foreigners.

Don’t get too many stamps in your passport before applying for a ED visa (for example) as they often deny you then and ask you to get a new passport.

Try to find a contracted house/apartment as they are the cheapest. Most contracts span for at least 6 months but sometimes you can find 3 month ones too. Usually find these on Facebook marketplace, but if you have local contacts in the area you want to live they will usually know someone. It’s always good to ask thais too as they usually ”know someone” and you tend to get more fair prices that way. We paid 10 k for a pretty big apartment with an upstairs that we found through a thai contact. You can definetely find a small house for that price (or less depending on area) if you look around.

Remember that areas like Phuket may be nice but its harder to make your money last there. A place like chiang mai for example has a good Muay Thai scene but way less expensive.

If you’re smart and shop at the markets/eat at thai places you can live pretty cheap most places though.

If you need stuff I recomend ordering from Lazada, saved me quite a bit of money buying household items and even furniture through there.

Make sure you get a bike or car as taxis and such get expensive.

Remember that prices of accomodation can vary A LOT if you arrive during high vs low season in certain areas.

It can be good to test out a few gyms before you pick one as it can be hard to know what you might be missing if you have only been to one.

Good luck ! 🙌