Can I only buy it in season?
It is listed as a year-round fruit. What a stall actually sells, including variety and stock, still varies, so compare whole fruit and prepared fruit separately.
Banana
Banana · กล้วย
In Thailand you can find everything from small bananas to bananas of many shapes. Besides eating them fresh, there are menu items where they go into roti or are grilled. If you are looking for a simple snack on the street, take a look at roti with banana too.
Bananavarieties · TimothyPilgrim · CC BY-SA 3.0
Resized for display · Photo provided under CC BY-SA 3.0
When is the best time to eat it?
A fruit available year-round
Varies by variety and growing region
Kamphaeng Phet Kluai Khai banana: harvest listed as year-round
Use the main harvest period, or the harvest window for a regional fruit, as a guide. Actual availability can change with growing region, variety and weather.
What does it taste like?
The sweetness and the firmness of the flesh vary with the variety and ripeness. It helps to tell apart bananas eaten when yellow and ripe from bananas used for cooking.
Why this fruit is known in Thailand
It is a familiar fruit used in many Thai dishes and snacks. Kluai Khai banana of Kamphaeng Phet is introduced as a regional GI fruit. If you have only pictured one kind of banana, look for varieties of other shapes and sizes at the market.
Buying basics
- Thai name
- กล้วย
- Harvest period
- A fruit available year-round
- Regional fruit
- Kamphaeng Phet Kluai Khai banana: harvest listed as year-round
- How to buy
- Bananas are sometimes sold by the bunch rather than by the kilogram. See how many fruits are in a bunch, and if you want to eat them right away, pick ripe ones.
How to prepare and eat it
- Ask whether the price is for a bunch or for a certain number of fruits.
- For bananas to eat right away, pick ripe ones, peel them and eat.
- Banana roti and grilled banana are different menu items from whole fruit, so look at their prices separately.
Price reference
Bangkok retail prices · October 14, 2026
These are prices by variety and grade surveyed by Thailand's Department of Internal Trade. They do not apply to every street vendor.
| Fruit and variety | Price | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Banana · Nam Wa (น้ำว้า) | 40–50 baht | 1 bunch |
Keep the price of a bag or tray of cut fruit separate from the per-kilogram price of whole fruit. In this survey, bananas are priced per bunch.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare a per-kilogram price with a price per pack?
Bananas are sometimes sold by the bunch rather than by the kilogram. See how many fruits are in a bunch, and if you want to eat them right away, pick ripe ones.
Keep exploring
Official sources and references
If you want to read more about the food and the regions behind it, these sources are a good place to start. Ingredients and recipes can vary from one restaurant to the next.
Sharing image credit: TimothyPilgrim · CC BY-SA 3.0