How to say “bathroom” in Thai

Hong nam: the water room

ห้องhâwng means room and น้ำnáam means water, so ห้องน้ำhâwng-náam covers bathroom, toilet, restroom and washroom alike. It's two syllables: hâwng falls, with the "aw" of "law" and a soft "ng" at the end; náam is high and long. Spellings like hong nam and hong naam are the same word. On signs you'll see the formal สุขาsù-kǎa; in malls, often just the English "toilet".

Asking politely

Catch someone's eye and start with ขอโทษนะkǎw-tôot ná ("excuse me"), then ask ห้องน้ำอยู่ที่ไหนhâwng-náam yùu tîi-nǎi with your particle. In a café or shop, ขอเข้าห้องน้ำหน่อยkǎw kâo hâwng-náam nàwy ("may I use the bathroom?") is the polite request; staff may hand you a key or tell you a door code. Answers usually come with a pointing hand or a nod of the chin, plus words like ข้างหลังkâang-lǎng (at the back) or ชั้นสองchán sǎwng (second floor; in Thailand the ground floor is floor one).

Thai toilets: what to expect

• The bum gun. A small hose next to the toilet, สายฉีดsǎai-chìit, is standard almost everywhere, from homes to petrol stations.
• Paper in the bin. In many places, especially older buildings, signs ask you not to flush toilet paper; use the bin beside the toilet.
• Bring tissues. Public toilets often have no paper. Packs of ทิชชู่tít-chûu are sold at every 7-Eleven.
• Squat toilets are still common in older buildings, rural areas and some stations and temples. There's often a water tank and a scoop (ขันkǎn) to flush by hand.
• Wet rooms. In homes and cheaper hotels the shower is often just part of the bathroom, so the floor gets wet. Bathroom slippers by the door are for exactly that.
• Paid toilets. At markets and bus stations you may pay a few baht at the entrance: เข้าห้องน้ำกี่บาทkâo hâwng-náam gìi bàat.

On a road trip, the cleanest free toilets are usually at big petrol stations (ปั๊มbpám) and shopping malls.