Automatic car rental

Sixty-two automatic cars are available for rent in Pattaya, from ฿690 per day, and every one of them is automatic — no manual gearbox in the fleet. We deliver the car to any address in Pattaya and to U-Tapao Airport (UTP), Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) and Don Mueang Airport (DMK), with the address, date and time agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed.

What automatic car rental in Pattaya means with Rent-Trip

This page covers one thing: hiring a car with an automatic gearbox here. Every one of the 62 cars listed here has an automatic gearbox and right-hand drive.

Why every car on this page is automatic

All 62 cars available for self-drive hire have automatic transmission and right-hand drive, matching Thailand's left-hand traffic. The fleet runs from the MG MG3 at ฿690 per day — a 1.5 L petrol hatchback with 112 hp, five seats and front-wheel drive — up through the Suzuki Swift, Suzuki Ciaz, Mitsubishi Attrage, Mazda 2 Hatchback and Mazda 2 Sedan, Toyota Yaris and Toyota Yaris Ativ, Nissan Almera, MG MG5 and Honda City, to the Toyota Fortuner, Ford Everest and Ford Ranger Raptor, and on to the Premium, Convertibles and Luxury classes up to the Rolls-Royce Cullinan at ฿150,000. Hybrid and electric options sit inside the same automatic line-up: the MG MG3 Hybrid+, Toyota Yaris Ativ HEV, Toyota Corolla Altis Hybrid, Toyota Yaris Cross, BYD Dolphin and Jaecoo 5 EV.

What self-drive means for your booking

Self-drive shapes the whole booking. Because there is no driver, the delivery address, the date and the time are agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed — that is the moment to settle where the car should meet you, whether that is your hotel, a condo in Jomtien or one of the airports we serve. Nothing is confirmed until those three details are settled, so have them ready before you write. A delivery fee, if any, is agreed at the same point. Know the destination address and the exact hour before you write.

Who this page is for

• First-time visitors: automatic cars take the gearbox out of the equation while you adjust to driving on the left.
• Long-stay renters: weekly rates start from ฿4,140 and monthly rates from ฿14,490, so a month costs less per day than a single day at the same class.
• Families and groups: seat counts run from 2 and 4 in Convertibles and Luxury through 5 in most classes to 7 in Minivans and SUV & 4x4, and 12 in the larger vehicles.
• Airport arrivals: we deliver to any address in Pattaya and to U-Tapao Airport (UTP), Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) and Don Mueang Airport (DMK).

Rental is available from one day.

Automatic car rental in Pattaya by class and price

Ten classes sit on this page, from Economy at ฿690 a day to Luxury at ฿22,500. Below are the class sizes and starting daily rates, then how weekly and monthly bookings are priced and what the figure already covers.

Classes and daily rates at a glance

The cheapest automatic on the page is the MG MG3 at ฿690 per day — a 1.5 L petrol hatchback with 112 hp, five seats and front-wheel drive. Economy alone holds twelve cars, among them the MG MG3, Suzuki Swift at ฿790, Suzuki Ciaz at ฿800, Mitsubishi Attrage at ฿890 and the Mazda 2 in both body styles at ฿950. Minivans give seven seats from ฿1,290 and the Chery Tiggo 8 PHEV crossover at ฿1,550, and the Electric class starts at ฿1,284 with the BYD Dolphin.

Weekly and monthly rates for longer bookings

Weekly rates start from ฿4,140 and monthly rates from ฿14,490, calculated as the daily rate multiplied by six and by twenty-one respectively. A longer booking lowers the cost per day, so a month costs less per day than a single day at the same class. Take the Suzuki Swift at ฿790: that is ฿4,740 for a week and ฿16,590 for a month at the same car. Rent-Trip prices every class on this one scale, and the car is available from one day, so a weekend and a long stay use the same tariff rather than two separate ones.

What is included in the price

• VAT 7%: included in the prices shown, so ฿690 a day is the final daily figure and not a pre-tax one.
• Fuel and condition: the car comes clean with a full tank.
• Rental period: available from 1 day, with no separate short-hire tariff.
• Longer bookings: weekly and monthly rates are lower per day than the daily rate.
• Security hold: a bank card in the main driver's name is used for it, and the amount is set out in the rental agreement.
• Delivery: the address, date and time are agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed.

Renting an automatic car in Pattaya for local driving

The fleet runs from 12 Economy cars to 4 Premium and 5 Luxury, so the choice is really about seats, fuel type and where you plan to drive rather than about transmission — every car here is automatic.

Matching the car to your trip

For two people a hatchback such as the Suzuki Swift at ฿790 per day is enough. A family of five to seven gets seven seats in the Mitsubishi Xpander at ฿1,290 per day, the Toyota Veloz at ฿1,290 or the Toyota Innova Crysta at ฿1,590. Five-seat crossovers start at ฿1,050 with the Honda WR-V, and the Honda CR-V at ฿1,690 adds all-wheel drive. Convertibles come with 2 or 4 seats from ฿10,000 per day, and the Luxury class starts at ฿22,500. Tell us how many travel and whether luggage goes with you.

Petrol, hybrid or electric

• Petrol: the widest choice, from the MG MG3 at ฿690 per day to the Honda CR-V at ฿1,690 and on into the premium classes, and the easiest option if you are unsure about charging points on your route.
• Plug-in hybrid: the BYD Sealion 5 at ฿1,550 and the Chery Tiggo 8 PHEV at ฿1,550, the latter with seven seats.

Pickups and 4x4 for the east side

Rear-wheel-drive pickups — the MG Extender at ฿1,250, the Toyota Hilux Revo at ฿1,605 and the Ford Ranger at ฿1,650 — suit luggage and sports gear. Thailand's traffic keeps to the left and every car is right-hand drive, so the first hour is the one to take slowly, whichever class you book.

Documents for automatic car rental in Pattaya

What you need for automatic car rental in Pattaya

• Home driving licence: your national licence from your country of residence, valid and unexpired for the whole rental period.
• International Driving Permit: the 1949 Geneva Convention document, which Thailand recognises alongside your national licence.
• Bank card in the main driver's name: used for the security hold; the amount is set out in the rental agreement.
• ASEAN nationals: a national licence from an ASEAN country is accepted without an International Driving Permit and without conversion.

Why the International Driving Permit matters here

Thailand is a party to the 1949 Geneva Convention, so a foreign visitor drives on a home licence plus an International Driving Permit — the permit is what the police and an insurer expect to see together with the national one. Citizens of ASEAN countries are the exception and drive on their national licence alone.

Age, experience and the card behind the booking

The minimum driver age is 21. Conditions for drivers under 25 and for premium classes are set out in the rental agreement rather than fixed on this page, so a younger driver should raise it when booking and have the answer in writing before the trip. A bank card in the main driver's name carries the security hold; the amount is set out in the agreement, and no figure for it appears here. Traffic-camera fines are issued to the car owner and re-invoiced to the renter.

Bringing your own documents together

• Keep the licence and permit on you: both travel with the driver, not in the glovebox of a parked car.
• Match the card to the driver: the security hold sits on a bank card in the main driver's name, so the person signing is the person paying.
• Ask about under-25 conditions when booking: the terms are agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed, not negotiated at hand-over.

Insurance and legal side of automatic car rental in Pattaya

Two documents decide how a claim ends: the Por Ror Bor attached to the registered vehicle and the Class 1 policy behind it.

Compulsory cover and Class 1

Every registered car in Thailand carries Por Ror Bor, the compulsory motor insurance that pays for injury to third parties — passengers, pedestrians, other drivers — and it travels with the vehicle rather than with the driver. On top of it sits first-class cover, known as Class 1, which handles damage to the car itself. Terms and the excess are set out in the paperwork, not in a leaflet, so read the schedule before you drive off.

Documents and the police check

• Home driving licence: your national licence, valid and unexpired, is the base document for a foreign visitor.
• International Driving Permit: a 1949 Geneva Convention IDP must travel alongside it; Thailand recognises that format under section 42 bis of the Motor Vehicle Act.
• ASEAN licences: citizens of ASEAN countries drive on their national licence, with no IDP and no conversion.
• Passport: carried as identification; the agreement lists what else is required.
• Bank card: a card in the main driver's name is used for the security hold, with the amount set out in the agreement.

Drive without the permit and the police fine runs ฿500–1,000, and an insurer may refuse a claim — the cheaper document is the one you already have.

Age, fines and the contract itself

The minimum driver age is 21; conditions for drivers under 25 and for premium classes are set out in the agreement. Since 30 December 2025 a car rental agreement has been a contract controlled by the OCPB: it is written in Thai, and every fee and penalty is disclosed inside it. Speed cameras on Motorway 7 issue fines to the registered owner — us — and we re-invoice them to the renter, so an unpaid camera ticket follows you after the car goes back. Ask the manager which documents you must bring before the booking is fixed: that one question prevents both the roadside fine and the refused claim later.

Delivery of your automatic car rental in Pattaya

We deliver the car to any address in the city and to U-Tapao Airport (UTP), Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) and Don Mueang Airport (DMK). The delivery address, the date and the time are agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed; a delivery fee, if any, is agreed when booking. Delivery elsewhere is arranged case by case and is not promised on the site.

What we need from you to arrange delivery

• Address: the exact building, hotel or villa where the car should meet you, not just the street or the area.
• Date and time: the window you want the hand-over in, agreed with a manager before the booking is fixed.
• Contact number: a number that works on the day, so the manager can confirm the meeting point.
• Flight number, if you arrive by air: useful when the car meets you at U-Tapao (UTP), Suvarnabhumi (BKK) or Don Mueang (DMK).
• Main driver's documents: passport, home driving licence, International Driving Permit unless you hold an ASEAN licence, and a bank card in the main driver's name.

Airports and addresses we cover

The three airports around the city sit at very different distances, and that shapes the delivery plan. U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport (UTP) is the closest, roughly 48.9 km by road from the city centre and about a 62-minute drive without traffic. Suvarnabhumi (BKK) is about 115.8 km by road and around 100 minutes. Don Mueang (DMK) is the furthest, 151.3 km and roughly 121 minutes.

Inside the city, the spread is smaller but still matters for timing. A car reaching Jomtien covers about 11.2 km and 11 minutes from the centre; Naklua is 2.0 km and 4 minutes; Pratamnak Hill is 7.6 km and 11 minutes; East Pattaya around Mab Prachan is 13.5 km and 16 minutes.

Delivery outside the city

Koh Larn is reachable only by passenger ferry — the car stays on the mainland, and Bali Hai Pier is where you leave it. The same applies to Koh Samet via Ban Phe; the Koh Chang ferries do take cars, and taking a rental car across is agreed when booking.

For longer mainland drives, the road itself is straightforward. Motorway 7 runs from Bangkok through Chonburi to the Pattaya spur at Mab Prachan Interchange and on to Sukhumvit, with the Bangkok–Pattaya stretch measuring 125.865 km. The full Bangkok–Pattaya run costs ฿105–130 for a passenger car, and any further conditions are set out in the rental agreement.

Driving rules for automatic car rental in Pattaya

Automatic transmission removes the gear lever from the equation, but it does not remove the rules. Speed limits, the alcohol threshold, child seats and camera fines apply to you exactly as they apply to a local driver, and an automatic car rental in Pattaya is no different from any other car on the road.

Speed limits you will actually meet

Pattaya City is named a built-up area in the 1969 law, so the limit inside it is 80 km/h, rising to 90 km/h outside built-up zones and 120 km/h on Motorway 7. A posted sign can lower any of these, and on the motorway the 120 km/h limit is enforced primarily by speed cameras. Fines run up to ฿1,000, though the receipt issued on the spot is usually ฿500. Because a camera fine is issued to the registered owner of the car, it reaches the rental company first and is then re-invoiced to the renter — so budget for a delayed charge rather than an on-the-spot payment.

Alcohol, seat belts and child seats

• Alcohol: the ministerial regulation published in the Royal Gazette on 20 September 2024 sets 20 mg/dl for drivers under 20, holders of temporary licences, drivers without a licence and drivers holding the wrong category; for everyone else, treat any drink as a risk.
• Seat belts: every passenger wears one, including the rear row.
• Child seats: children under 6 travel in a TISI-standard child seat, and anyone below 135 cm needs a seat or a special restraint; the fine reaches ฿2,000 under the 13th amendment to the Land Traffic Act 1979, in force since 17 August 2023.
• Kerbside parking: parking at a red-and-white or yellow-and-white kerb is prohibited.

The child-seat rule applies to passenger cars, pickups and minivans alike, which is worth remembering if you book a seven-seat minivan for a family trip. Where a child cannot use a seat, the practical fallback is the rear seat with a lap belt, slow driving in the left lane — and never the cargo bed of a pickup.

What to carry and what to hand over

A foreign visitor needs a home driving licence plus an International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention, recognised together with the national licence; citizens of ASEAN countries drive on their national licence without one. Driving without the permit carries a police fine of ฿500–1,000, and an insurer may refuse a claim. Compulsory motor insurance, Por Ror Bor, is attached to every registered car and covers injury to third parties, while first-class cover for damage to the car and its excess are set out in the rental agreement.