Thai teacher Mike Surinak

Mike Surinak

Community Tutor
Teaches
Thai
Speaks
English
Native
Vietnamese
Spanish
Russian
Learning Thai with an American dude has its advantages!
From United StatesLiving in Bangkok, Thailand (12:51 UTC+07:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Aug 18, 2022
InterestsFilms & TV SeriesHistoryReading
As a native English speaker, I am VERY familiar with the struggles that come with learning a tonal language - in fact, I bet I can help you overcome these struggles better than a native speaker simply because I have experienced them myself. I'm a native English speaker from the United States, but I have reached advanced and proficient fluency in the Thai language. I've lived in Southeast Asia for almost 8 years now, and I love teaching the Thai language and talking about Thai culture.
5.0
Rating
196
Students
1162
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate

Thai Lessons

Trial Lesson
115 lessons completed
USD 8.00+
Tourist Thai - essential phrases for travel and short conversations
A1 -  A2

Language Essentials

805 lessons completed
USD 13.00+
Intermediate converstion practice
B1 -  B2

Conversation

242 lessons completed
USD 13.00+

Availability

73 Reviews

Jeffrey Frank
7 Thai lessons
Mike is a solid Thai language teaching pro! Perfectly aligned to my level and goals. Good at breaking things down into "bite-sized pieces". His lessons are geared towards real-world use, with each one building on the previous lessons, making it easy to track my progress.
Mar 21, 2026
Student Brendyn Hoag
Brendyn Hoag
2 Thai lessons
Best Thai Teacher Out There!!! I’ve been learning with Teacher Mike for over a year now, and honestly he’s one of the most knowledgeable and dedicated teachers I’ve ever worked with. His deep understanding of both Thai language and Thai culture really shows in every lesson. What I appreciate most is how thoughtful he is with his teaching. He doesn’t just explain things, he makes sure you actually understand and can use them in real life. His bilingual teaching style is incredibly effective and has helped me learn much faster than I expected. Every lesson is engaging, relaxed, and fun. You can tell he genuinely cares about his students improving and feeling confident with the language. His years of experience in Thailand make him an extremely valuable teacher for anyone who wants to seriously learn Thai. If you’re looking for a teacher who is patient, intelligent, and truly passionate about helping you succeed, I can’t recommend Teacher Mike enough.
Mar 10, 2026
maya johnson
5 Thai lessons
Mike is great at explaining tones in a way that i can easily understand and remember, i feel confident in my thai learning journey now. Every lesson is fun and Mike has great resources that help with studying and actually retaining what ive learned.
Mar 4, 2026
Student Jeramy
Jeramy
14 Thai lessons
A really refreshing approach to learning Thai. In a few lessons, Mike made the tone rules I'd struggled to internalise finally click. Learning from someone who's navigated the language from the outside, they get the specific struggles of coming into Thai from a completely different base, and know how to structure things from that lens. Highly recommend. Thanks so much Mike!
Mar 15, 2026
Student Jack G Adams
Jack G Adams
2 Thai lessons
Great teacher 10/10
Mar 4, 2026
Josh Thomas
5 Thai lessons
Mike is very open to helping. He’s got a good sense of humor. He’s lived in Thailand, so he has real world experience. He’s just really easy to talk to.
Mar 3, 2026
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