Vegetarians traveling to Thailand are in for a treat. Thai fruit in particular is abundant, cheap, tropical and delicious.

1. Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai is vegan heaven. There are many pure vegetarian restaurants. Prices are extremely cheap (just a couple of dollars per dish). Order a few different dishes to share.

Massaman curry (peanuts, potatos, and tofu) is a particularly delicious Thai Vegetarian dish. Also, look out for wild red rice rather than plain rice.

The downside is that Chiang Mai is nowhere near the beach.

2. Vegan Coconut Ice-Cream

Don’t eat diary? Miss ice-cream. You can buy ice-cream made with pure coconut milk from street vendors.

3. Mango Sticky Rice

At most night markets, you’ll find dishes of sliced mango and sweet sticky rice for around $1. Many backpackers report craving this dish long after they leave Thailand.

4. Chopped Tropical Fruit from Street Vendors

You can buy delicious fruit from local markets (including yellow skinned Thai mangoes are delicious, smaller, less citrusy than green skinned mangoes from the Americas).

5. Accommodating Thais

At guesthouses and local restaurants, Thais will be very accommodating of your dietary requests. Just let them know what you need eg no egg, no fish sauce. If you don’t want your food cooked in the same dish, you can bring a camping pan and ask them to use it.

Guest house restaurants in Thailand are often very good. If you’re staying a few days, it often easy to establish a regular order e.g. pad thai made the way you like it.

You’ll be able to add your own condiments (sugar, vinegar, chili flakes etc). Usually a tray of four condiments is provided and one of these contains fish sauce, so beware of that.

6. Fruit shakes

Ask for these without salt and sugar if you prefer them plain. One of the most delicious drinks in Thailand is fresh squeezed orange juice made with tiny oranges that are green on the outside and are like sweeter versions of regular large orange-skin oranges.