A Conference Organizer's Guide to Simultaneous Interpretation

A conference organizer in Bangkok budgets ฿15,000–25,000 a day per interpreter, two per booth, plus ฿35,000–120,000 for equipment; a one-day Thai–English conference runs about ฿80,000–200,000.

Half the conferences in Bangkok have an audience that reads Thai more comfortably than English, and half of those pretend otherwise. Simultaneous interpretation is what lets a conference organizer stop pretending. It's a specialist service with its own logistics, and it's cheaper than most clients expect once it's understood.

What does a conference organizer need to book for simultaneous interpretation?

Interpreters in pairs, a soundproof booth with a view of the stage, a transmitter, receivers and headsets for every delegate who needs them, and a sound technician to run it.

• Interpreters. Two per language pair per booth, switching every 15–20 minutes; one can't sustain simultaneous work alone for a day. Three for long or technical days.
• Booth. A soundproof, ISO-standard booth at the back of the hall or a side room with a video feed; the interpreters must see the speaker and the slides.
• Audio feed. A clean feed from the sound desk into the booth; without it the interpreters hear the room, not the speaker.
• Transmitter and receivers. Infrared or radio; one receiver per delegate using the channel, plus 10% spares, with a sign-out desk.
• Technician. Sets up, monitors channels, replaces dead receivers, and works with the AV team.
• Materials. Slides, speaker names, a glossary and the agenda, sent to the interpreters a week ahead.

Bangkok's Thai–English simultaneous pairs are a small pool and book fast in the October–March season; eight to ten weeks ahead is realistic.

What does it cost in Bangkok?

For a one-day conference with one Thai–English booth: roughly ฿80,000–200,000 for interpreters, equipment and technician, before receivers for a very large audience.

Two interpreters at ฿20,000, equipment for 300 receivers at ฿80,000 and a technician at ฿20,000 comes to ฿140,000: about ฿470 per delegate for a 300-person conference, less than the coffee.

Simultaneous, consecutive or remote: which should a conference organizer choose?

Simultaneous for a plenary with more than about 50 delegates needing the language; consecutive for small meetings and Q&A; remote or AI captioning as a supplement for hybrid audiences or budgets that can't carry a booth.

• Simultaneous. Real time, no delay, the full programme in both languages. Needs a booth and pairs of interpreters. The standard for conferences.
• Consecutive. The interpreter speaks after the speaker. No equipment, half the cost, but every session takes nearly twice as long. Fine for a small workshop or a press Q&A; wrong for a keynote.
• Whispering. One interpreter beside one or two VIPs. Useful for a visiting chairman, not for a room.
• Remote simultaneous (RSI). Interpreters work from elsewhere; delegates listen on phones via QR code. No booth logistics; depends on good internet and audio feed.
• AI live captions. Increasingly used for accessibility and as a second layer; accuracy with Thai tonal audio should be tested with your content before relying on it.

A common Bangkok pattern now: a human Thai–English booth for the plenary, and AI captions on phones for breakouts.

How does a conference organizer prepare the interpreters?

By sending the agenda, speaker bios, slide decks and a glossary of technical terms a week before, and by giving them a short briefing with the speakers on the morning.

1. Ten days out: agenda, speaker list, and any pre-recorded videos (these need scripts).
2. Seven days out: slide decks as they stand; interpreters read them for terminology.
3. Five days out: a glossary of company names, product names, acronyms and Thai technical terms, agreed with the client.
4. The morning: ten minutes with the keynote speakers on pace and jargon; a sound check of the booth feed two hours before the first session.
5. During: a runner who can pass a note to the booth when a speaker changes their slides.

Speakers who read from a script should share it. Speakers who speak fast should be told, kindly, that half the room is hearing them through someone else.

What goes wrong, and how does a conference organizer prevent it?

A dead audio feed, receivers that run out, a booth with no sightline, and speakers who talk over videos; all preventable in the pre-event meeting with the AV team.

• Feed. Confirm a dedicated line from the desk to the booth and test it with a real microphone, not a line-in tone.
• Receivers. Count delegates who need the language, add 10%, and staff the sign-out desk so headsets come back.
• Sightline. Place the booth where the interpreters see the stage and a screen; if it must be in a side room, give them a camera feed and a slide feed.
• Videos. Send scripts in advance; interpreters can't translate a film cold.
• Panels. Brief moderators to stop cross-talk; interpreters can only carry one voice at a time.

Sources

The figures and rules in this article come from the following references.

• Snapsight, Thai conference translation costs and Bangkok event guide (May 2026)
• Wara Words, Bangkok interpretation rates
• TJC Global, simultaneous interpreting practice
• BeTranslated, Bangkok interpreting equipment