Thailand has 3 seasons. The hot season which begins in March with April being the hottest month at 36 degrees Celsius (97 degrees Fahrenheit) and ends in May.

Also be mindful that Bangkok's high humidity and scorching heat can induce serious health concerns if you don't drink enough fluids. So please drink plenty of water. Bottles of water are cheap at 7-Eleven stores. Don't let the heat discourage you from visiting Bangkok. There are many places to cool down. Here are some tips for coping with the heat:

• Wear loose cotton fabric clothes.
  
• Carry an extra shirt.
• Carry a small towel from the hotel.
  
• Walk in the shade.
• Apply talcum powder.
• Cool down in a hotel lobby. There are many hotels in Bangkok and you do not even have to be a guest to sit in the lobby or use the restrooms.
  

Then comes the rainy season from June to late November, which is still hot and humid with temperatures hovering around 32 degree Celsius (90 degree Fahrenheit). Heavy rain in Bangkok is an understatement. The clouds are thick and black and the lightening is breath taking yet the roaring sound of thunder will send a shivering chill down your spine. The rain water will often get so high that low level streets are converted into canals and cars become temporary boats. Taxis, though plentiful in Bangkok are difficult to find when it rains as traffic comes to a standstill. So hunker down at a mall or inside one of the many 7-Eleven stores found on almost every Soi. Heavy rain usually ends in an hour.

Finally the cool season starts from late November and lasts until late February. The weather in Bangkok is beautiful around that time with temperatures topping off at 30 degree Celsius (86 degree Fahrenheit) during the afternoon. In the morning and sundown the temperature is nice and cool around 21 degree Celsius (70 degree Fahrenheit) and sometimes a bit cooler. The real treat this time is the low humidity which provides an excellent environment for exploring all the nooks and crannies in Bangkok.

Most Western visitors are allowed a 30 day visa on arrival at Suvarnabhumi airport for tourism purposes only. To check if this applies to you visit the Thailand Foreign Ministry of Affairs website for more information. Once your 30 days are over you can extend your stay up to 7 days by paying a B1900 application fee at the new Thai Immigration Bureau in Bangkok. You will need one passport sized photo and photocopies of your passport photo page as well as the current stamped date of entry page.

There are 60 day tourist visas available again for most Western visitors so check with your local Thai embassy or consulate for more information. When a 60 day visa is over you have the option to extend an extra 30 days at the Thai Immigration Bureau in Bangkok for just B1900 as well. Currently the Kingdom of Thailand is offering free tourist visas to most countries to help boost tourism. This offer ends on March 2010 so check your local Thai Embassy or Consulate for more information. A tourist visa to Thailand currently cost $35 USD, so it's a good deal.

An alternative option is to do a visa border run and the nearest border is Cambodia in a small backwater town called Poi Pet. There are many visa border run agencies in Bangkok and it's a good idea to use their services if you're unfamiliar with the process.

Please be aware that the Kingdom of Thailand has strict laws against visitors who overstay visas. But if for whatever reasons you've ended up staying in Bangkok more then you should have you'll have to pay a B1000 fine for the first two days overstayed and each day thereafter is B500 at the airport. If you're caught by the police however it's a different story which is jail time and a huge fine.

Once you get your passport stamped you will find several bank run currency exchange booths and ATMs flanked by the luggage carousels. The Thai Baht is the only currency used in the country.

There are two choices for acquiring Baht at the airport. Through Automated Teller Machines (ATM) or money exchangers. My suggestion is to try out an ATM first. I say try because bank ATMs charge a 150 Baht surcharge for using their ATMs, since your bank account is foreign. Plus your local bank will most likely tack on a surcharge as well. But most ATMs in Bangkok might allow you to withdraw money fee free when you are using their ATMs for the first few times. If the ATM will charge a 150 Baht fee it will inform you beforehand and give you the option to decline the transaction.

Your next and only choice are the money exchangers operated by a few of Bangkok's major banks. Their exchange rates are decent but there are places that does offer even better rates. But for more information on fee free ATMs and a money exchange with the best rates read Money Matters.  

There are 2 options now, soon to be three for getting to where you are staying in Bangkok.

1. Taxis - There are two types of taxis, public (cheaper) and official airport limousine (expensive).

For public taxis look for signs in the airport. It will lead you out to a public taxi stand, outside entrances 3,4,7 and 8. They are not hard to find because there's usually a line of newly arrived tourist. At the taxi stand, hand the service attendant your hotel voucher or address of where you're going. They'll translate it for the taxi driver on a receipt slip. You keep one piece of the half of the receipt that has a phone number to make complaints. It's a good idea to have the phone number of the hotel with you so that the taxi driver can call them if they can't find the hotel. Many taxi drivers have mobile phones, just make sure you give a small tip for the extra assistance. Remember there is a B50 airport surcharge on top of the final taxi fare. For more information about public taxis read Getting Around Bangkok.

For official airport taxis you won't have to find them. They'll find you. They employ an army of uniformed sales people offering you their services. If by any chance they miss you, you can easily find signs leading to their service desk once you get by airport customs. They charge set rates by location. Expect to pay at least double or triple the cost of a public taxi ride.

The second options are the Airport Express Bus and Public Bus. Airport Express Bus charges a flat rate of B150 and here's a list of hotels where it stops. Follow the signs to the Airport Express Bus stands on the ground level near entrance 8. These buses are air conditioned and operate from 5am to midnight.

The Public Bus is an even cheaper option at a flat rate of B35. You may need to take a shuttle bus to the transport center where the public buses are. Here's a the public bus service route from the airport.

Bangkok is a burgeoning cosmopolitan city so you will be glad to know that Western style toilets are everywhere and in places you will most likely visit during your tour of Bangkok - so you don't have to worry about using squat style toilets. You will only come across squat style toilets mostly in rural parts of Thailand.

Toilets can easily be found in hotels, malls and restaurants. However, most of the cleanest restrooms are found in hotels and major shopping malls selling Western luxury items such as Siam Paragon, Central World Malls and Emporium.  Cleaning staff routinely scrub those restrooms religiously. And a word for the men - don't be shy if you are using a urinal and a female cleaning lady comes in and starts cleaning.

Some toilets in certain malls such as MBK require a small fee to use their bathrooms and cost about 3 Baht.