Motorcycle rental in Bangkok

Motorcycle rental in Bangkok starts at ฿350 a day for a 150 cc Yamaha MT-15 or Honda CB150R and reaches ฿5,000 for a BMW R1200 GS Adventure or a Yamaha Niken. Twelve of the 23 models cost ฿1,800 a day or less. Below: engine classes, big bikes, monthly tariffs, licence rules, pickup and deposits.

Day rates from 350 to 5,000 baht

Twenty-three motorcycle models carry a daily price in this section, and the most expensive of them costs more than fourteen times as much as the cheapest one.

Daily rates by price band

Where the middle of the market sits

The middle of the range is ฿1,800, the price of the Honda Rebel 500, with eleven models below it and eleven above. A quarter of the bikes start at ฿800 or less and a quarter at ฿2,800 or more, so the band between those two figures holds the realistic choice for motorcycle rental in Bangkok. The average, about ฿2,050, is pulled up by five machines at ฿3,600 and over. At the bottom the scale comes close to scooter money: the 150 cc MT-15 and CB150R both start at ฿350, half of the ฿700 at which the Rent-Trip car section in the city begins. The make tells you little — Honda models alone run from ฿350 to ฿3,800. In my view, a first budget is easier to set by engine size than by the badge on the tank.

One model, two daily prices

The same model can carry two different daily prices in the city. The Honda CL500 starts at ฿1,050 at one rental and costs ฿2,100 at another on its 1–6 day tariff, exactly double. The CB500X is ฿1,900 at one shop and ฿2,200 at a second for rentals shorter than seven days, and the CRF300L is ฿1,300 against ฿1,400. For all three models the cards in this section carry the lower figure, which makes every card price a starting point rather than a quote for your dates. Part of the gap is tariff structure: one figure is a "from" price, the other a fixed short-rental band. Before you compare two offers, ask what rental length each one assumes — a price for three days and a price for a month are different products.

Engine classes and riding styles, 150 to 755 cc

Engine size is stated for 20 of the 23 models, from 150 to 1,170 cc, and it tracks the daily rate more closely than make or riding style does.

Price by engine size in this section

Entry bikes from 150 to 350 cc

Eight models have engines of 350 cc or less, and they start between ฿350 and ฿1,400 a day. The naked Yamaha MT-15 and CB150R open the scale at ฿350, the Honda CB300 follows at ฿500, the GPX DZ3 300 at ฿700 and the CL300 scrambler at ฿800. Above them the 349 cc Royal Enfield Hunter 350 and the 286 cc CRF300L both cost ฿1,300, and the 233 cc Kawasaki KLX230 costs ฿1,400 — so the smallest engine of the group is also its most expensive bike. The line between a light motorcycle and a big scooter is thin here: a Honda ADV 350 scooter starts at ฿800, the same as the CL300. If the plan is short hops around town, price both before choosing gears over a twist-and-go scooter.

Mid-weight twins from 471 to 500 cc

Five models with 471 to 500 cc engines start between ฿640 and ฿1,900 a day, and the order inside the group does not follow the spec sheet. The Honda NX500 adventure bike is the cheapest at ฿640, below five of the six bikes in the 233–349 cc class, while the CB500X, also an adventure bike with a 471 cc parallel twin, costs ฿1,900. Between them sit the CL500 scrambler from ฿1,050, the Honda CBR 500R sport bike at ฿1,236 and the Rebel 500 cruiser at ฿1,800. All five carry the Honda badge, so the ฿1,260 spread has nothing to do with the make. Which of them for a weekend out of the city with luggage? One of the two adventure bikes; for riding inside the city, the cheapest of the five does the same job.

Riding styles and makes

• Adventure: six models, from the Honda NX500 at ฿640 to the BMW R1200 GS Adventure at ฿5,000, the largest style group.
• Naked: four road bikes — the Yamaha MT-15, Honda CB150R, CB300 and the 649 cc Kawasaki Z650 at ฿2,200.
• Scrambler: the Honda CL300 and CL500 plus the Triumph Scrambler 400 X, from ฿800 to ฿2,100.
• Dual-sport and sport: two of each — the Kawasaki KLX230 and Honda CRF300L, the CBR 500R and CBR650R.
• Single examples: a Royal Enfield roadster, a Rebel cruiser, a Kawasaki Versys tourer, a Honda X-ADV adventure scooter and the Yamaha Niken.
• Makes: Honda supplies 12 of the 23 models, Yamaha and Kawasaki three each, BMW two, and GPX, Royal Enfield and Triumph one each.

Big bikes: the 650s, adventure 700s, BMW GS and Niken

Big bikes of 649 cc and more start at ฿2,200 a day, and in this upper band the shape of the bike moves the price as much as the engine does.

The 650 class from 2,200 baht

Four bikes between 649 and 750 cc start between ฿2,200 and ฿2,800 a day. The Kawasaki Versys 650 tourer and the Kawasaki Z650 naked bike share the lowest price, ฿2,200, which is the cheapest big bike rental Bangkok has in this section. The Honda CBR650R sport bike costs ฿2,800, and the 745 cc Honda X-ADV 750, an adventure scooter rather than a geared bike, ฿2,700. The step up from the mid-weights is smaller than it looks: the CB500X at ฿1,900 sits only ฿300 below the two Kawasakis, and the Triumph Scrambler 400 X at ฿2,100 already costs nearly as much as a 650. For a two-up trip out of the city, then, compare a 650 with the CB500X before settling on the smaller bike: the difference comes to ฿2,100 over a week.

Adventure 700s and the X-ADV

Two mid-size adventure bikes cost more than any 650: the 689 cc Yamaha Ténéré 700 starts at ฿3,600 and the 755 cc Honda XL750 Transalp at ฿3,800. That puts them ฿800–1,000 above the Honda CBR650R and within ฿700–900 of a BMW R1200GS with its much larger 1,170 cc engine. Both are priced on a tariff for rentals shorter than seven days, and on that same tariff a CB500X costs ฿2,200 — so the 700s come to 1.6–1.7 times the price of the 500-class adventure bike. The X-ADV 750, with a 745 cc engine of similar size, costs ฿900–1,100 less than the two 700s. On a multi-day loop the 700s earn their price; for a single day in and around town, the X-ADV or a 650 covers the same ground for less.

BMW R1200GS and GS Adventure

The BMW R1200GS starts at ฿4,500 a day with a 1,170 cc engine, and the R1200 GS Adventure at ฿5,000 — the two most expensive geared models in this section. Both are handed over at the same pickup point on Sukhumvit 33 in Wattana, together with the Kawasaki Versys 650 and the X-ADV 750, and that pickup asks for a Thai or international driver's licence. For BMW GS rental Bangkok gives one clear reference pair, and the ฿500 between the two versions adds up quickly. Seven days on the standard GS at the daily rate come to ฿31,500, and on the Adventure to ฿35,000. Only daily rates are shown for these two models here, so ask for a weekly price before multiplying — where a weekly tariff exists here, as on the Yamaha Niken, it costs far less than seven single days.

Yamaha Niken, the three-wheeler

The Yamaha Niken, a three-wheeled sport tourer, starts at ฿5,000 a day, ฿25,000 a week and ฿55,000 a month, with a deposit of ฿30,000. It shares the top of the day-rate scale with the BMW R1200 GS Adventure, but its long tariffs change the picture completely. The weekly price equals five daily rates, so the sixth and seventh days are effectively free. The monthly price equals eleven daily rates, which works out at about ฿1,830 a day over 30 days, less than half of the daily figure and close to the ฿1,800 of a Rebel 500. No other model in this section shows a weekly and a monthly price side by side. Budget for the deposit on top: ฿30,000 is six daily rates and the highest hold stated for any model here.

Monthly tariffs and the 40 per cent drop

Long rentals change the arithmetic: on the five models with a 30-day tariff, the daily rate is exactly 40 per cent lower than the 1–6 day price.

Short and long tariffs side by side

What the 40 per cent means over a month

Each of these five bikes costs 60 per cent of its short-rental rate once the booking reaches 30 days. On the Honda CRF300L that is ฿780 instead of ฿1,300, and a full month comes to ฿23,400 against the ฿39,000 that 30 days at the short rate would cost — a saving of ฿15,600. Put differently, a 30-day booking costs the same as 18 days at the 1–6 day price. Rates for 7 to 29 days are not shown here, so a stay of two or three weeks needs its own quote. If your trip is close to a month, ask for the exact number of days and for a full 30-day booking side by side; the longer rental can turn out to be the cheaper one.

When a cheap short rate beats a month tariff

A monthly tariff is not automatically the lowest price in town. The Honda CL500 costs ฿1,260 a day on a 30-day tariff at one rental, while another starts the same model at ฿1,050. The short-term starting price undercuts the long-term rate by ฿210 a day, or ฿6,300 over a month, provided the ฿1,050 offer holds for your dates and length. The same check works across classes: a monthly scooter starts from ฿5,480, less than a quarter of a month on the CRF300L. So before committing to a long tariff, compare it with the cheapest short offer for the same model and with a scooter month, because for commuting alone the scooter is the cheaper tool and the motorcycle month pays off only when longer trips are planned.

Licence, IDP, helmet and the on-the-spot fine

The riding rules for a rented motorcycle in Thailand do not change with engine size, and the licence decides whether a ride is legal and whether it is covered.

Documents the rental desk asks for

• Licence with a motorcycle category: your national driving licence has to cover motorcycles, not only cars, for any bike in this section.
• International Driving Permit: an IDP issued on a car-only licence from your home country does not cover motorcycles in Thailand.
• Passport: the Sukhumvit Soi 19 pickup for the 150–500 cc bikes asks for a valid international motorbike licence with the physical passport.
• Big bikes: the Sukhumvit 33 pickup for the BMW GS models and the Kawasaki Versys 650 asks for a Thai or international licence.
• Age: rental shops in Bangkok typically set the minimum age for a motorbike or scooter at 18 years.

Fines and insurance without the right licence

Riding a motorcycle in Thailand without a valid licence carries an on-the-spot fine of ฿500 to ฿2,000. The fine is the smaller risk. Insurance policies for two-wheelers contain clauses that void cover if the rider does not hold a valid motorcycle licence at the time of an incident, so a car licence with a car-category IDP leaves a rider exposed twice: fined if stopped and uninsured if something goes wrong. The stakes grow with the bike. On a BMW R1200GS at ฿4,500 a day, or a Yamaha Niken with a ฿30,000 deposit, a single uninsured incident can cost far more than the whole rental. Check that both your licence and your IDP show the motorcycle category before you book, not at the pickup desk.

Helmets, passengers and two-seat bikes

Both the rider and every passenger must wear a helmet at all times on the road in Thailand, with no exceptions. Ten models in this section state their seating, and all ten take two people, from the 150 cc Yamaha MT-15 to the BMW R1200 GS Adventure. Riding two-up therefore means two helmets that fit, so ask whether helmets come with the rate and in which sizes before the day of pickup. A passenger also changes the choice of bike. The two 150 cc models start at ฿350, but in my view a second adult with bags calls for a 471–500 cc twin such as the Honda NX500 at ฿640 or the CB500X at ฿1,900. The ฿290 between the MT-15 and the NX500 buys an engine more than three times the size.

Pickup districts, delivery fees and deposits

The motorcycles in this section are handed over at three central pickup points, while delivery and deposit terms differ from one rental to the next.

Where the bikes are handed over

Pickup for most of the motorcycles here clusters around Sukhumvit Road and Khlong Toei. The BMW R1200GS, R1200 GS Adventure, Kawasaki Versys 650 and X-ADV 750 are handed over on Sukhumvit 33 in Wattana; the Yamaha MT-15, Honda CB150R, CB300, CL300 and CL500 on Sukhumvit Soi 19 in Khlong Toei Nuea; and the Honda CB500X, CL500, CRF300L, Rebel 500, Royal Enfield Hunter 350 and Triumph Scrambler 400 X in Khlong Toei. The CL500 appears at two of these points, so the three places cover 14 of the 23 models. That makes motorbike rental Bangkok largely a matter of the Sukhumvit and Khlong Toei area, which suits anyone staying nearby. For the other nine models, among them the Yamaha Ténéré 700 and Kawasaki Z650, ask for the exact pickup address together with the price.

One-way delivery fees by district

Deposits and the delivery round trip

Deposits vary as widely as daily rates. One rental that delivers the GPX DZ3 300 together with its scooters takes a ฿3,000 hold on collection and charges the delivery fees shown in the table, while the Yamaha Niken needs a ฿30,000 deposit, ten times as much. If return collection costs the same as delivery, a round trip adds ฿500 to a rental in a central district and ฿1,000 in an outer one such as Don Mueang. On a single day with the ฿700 DZ3 300 delivered to Silom, that round trip adds ฿500 to the bill. For the other models, ask for three figures with every quote: the hold, the delivery fee each way, and whether the hold is taken in cash or as a card block.

What to put in a booking request

• Dates and length: give exact dates, because 1–6 days, under seven days and 30+ days are priced on different tariffs.
• Model: name the bike from the Rent-Trip cards on this page and ask whether the quote is for that model or a similar one.
• Licence: state the motorcycle category on your licence and IDP, since both pickups with stated rules ask for the licence.
• Passenger: say whether you ride two-up, and ask for a second helmet in the right size.
• Pickup or delivery: name the district, so that the delivery fee and the hold can be added to the daily rate.

Key points before you book a bike

Five figures to keep in mind

• Day rate: the 23 models start between ฿350 and ฿5,000 a day, and the middle of the range is ฿1,800.
• Engine size: median daily rates climb from ฿1,050 for 233–349 cc bikes to ฿2,750 for 649–755 cc big bikes.
• Long rentals: a 30-day tariff cuts the daily rate by 40 per cent on the five models that have one.
• Same model, two prices: the Honda CL500 costs from ฿1,050 to ฿2,100 per day, depending on the rental.
• Licence: both the licence and the IDP need a motorcycle category; without it the fine is ฿500–2,000 and insurance can be void.