Thailand
The information below is provided by Lonely Planet readers and is not verified by Lonely Planet. For the official lowdown, contact your nearest embassy or check out our Travel Links.
Visas, Embassies & Border Crossings
Crossing the border at the Friendship Bridge from Thailand to Laos: The safest and definitely the cheapest way of obtaining a valid visa to Laos is buying it at the official border, not from the several travel agencies or túk-túk drivers nearby. Foreigners are charged an additional entrance fee of 10B after having their visas are stamped at passport control.
Janne Rueness, Norway (Sept 05)
If you have a free 30 day stay (i.e. as a US citizen) that is just stamped in at arrival, a 10-day extension of the visa is available for 1900B at any of the immigration offices. I was told by an officer at the Patong (Phuket) office that this is the only short-term extension available.
Robbie Reeves (Jan 05)
Travel Tips
In Bangkok my son was very disappointed to find the
ice skating in the world trade centre closed and will be for about 2 years.
Elizabeth Lydon, Ireland (Aug 05)
If you are vegetarian the magic word you need to learn for eating in Thailand is kin-jay (spelt ginjay). This word does not mean vegetarian but relates to a chinese lifestyle meaning you do not eat meat or fish products, do not smoke or drink alcohol. As Thailand has October dedicated to this lifestyle, everyone understands it and they will adapt any meal accordingly. Even if you manage to learn the word vegetarian in Thai, they don't really understand the concept and will look at you blankly.
Susan Luxford (July 05)
I went to Thailand recently to begin research on mahouts (elephant drivers). I have found that they are very low paid and they get the least money of most of the workers at the tourist elephant areas. I would like to suggest that on any elephant trek or ride that it is important to tip the mahout. Although it is changing, many mahouts were brought up in families with elephants and so have about 10 years or more experience. A tip is the least tourists can do.
Jean Vortkamp, USA (April 05)
Moving About
Several maps (including the standard issue available at the airport) now provide
bus routes, and the Sky train and BTS are miraculous, if crowded at peak times.
Taxi drivers are feeling the pinch of petrol prices and may
claim that a simple trip can only be done for B200 or B300, off the meter. If they can
not be persuaded, the taxis departing from hotels and department stores are under contract to use the meter, so head there if haggling fails. And leave a generous tip to thank
them for their honesty.
Marie-Therese Le Roux, Oman (Sept 05)
I can not emphasise enough that business is up and running again on Koh Phi Phi. Those poor people are suffering another disaster, this one financial, because tourists think the island was totally devastated in the tsunami and are consequently
avoiding it. Tourism is down 90%. It is true that a large proportion of hotels and shops were destroyed,
but thanks to a massive voluntary effort many are open again and eager to receive tourists. If people want to assist with the ongoing voluntary clean-up and rebuilding effort on Koh Phi Phi, they can volunteer at 7pm each night at Carlito's Bar on the island to receive a task for the following day. There are also daily tours from the pier at 9.30am that describe what occurred during the tsunami and how the island has changed, etc.
Julie Symons, New Zealand (Aug 05)
Once you buy a ferry ticket to Ko Tarutao islands, you should keep some money aside. The ferries do not actually go all the way to the islands. They stop 500 meters away and a longboat comes up to the ferry, and you have to pay the longboat to take you the rest of the way to the island. I don't know if this is to protect the environment or to create an income for the boatmen, but the cost is 20B to get ashore at Ko Tarutoa, and 30B to get ashore at Ko Lipe. It's the same procedure to leave the islands.
Joanna Woolf, UK (April 05)
I noticed that the vision through the windows of air-conditioned carriages (where the windows cannot be opened) nowadays is often impaired by huge advertisements on the outside, that typically span an entire carriage. The same problem exists with the Bangkok sky-train. When 3rd class is available in trains, windows can be opened, however the Thais like to close the sun screens so that again the vision is impaired. Also in buses they tend to close the curtains. So don't be disappointed if you do not see a lot from a Thai bus or train not geared for tourists. Perhaps better to travel at night.
Reinier Bakels, The Netherlands (Jan 05)
The BTS in Bangkok will be very crowded during rush hours, 7.30am - 8.30am and 5.00pm - 8.30pm. So you may not find a seat. I suggest buying the Tourist One Day Pass for unlimited travel for a day.
Phanuphong Paothong, Thailand (Oct 04)
Scams & Warnings
Our hotel manager told us never, ever to rent a jetski anywhere in Phuket. He says what will happen is that the jetski owners complain that you "broke" the jetski engine by driving it improperly and then take you to the police who demand a cash payment for the "repairs" - then they both take a cut. This is a total scam.
Evangeline Baker, USA (Oct 05)
A pair of French women I encountered told me of the elaborate jewellery scam they got nearly got taken by. The reason they felt so confident about what they were buying was that they met a French man at one place their tuk-tuk driver took them to who spoke to them of this great jewellery sale. However, when they got to the store they felt suspicious and left without buying anything. But I guess there are now some Westerners becoming involved in these scams.
David Good, Canada (Sept 05)
We booked an overnight double decker bus from Bangkok to Chumphon. Our luggage was stored downstairs, while we all slept upstairs. During the 10 hour trip, the driver's assistant (we cannot figure out who else would have had access to the bags) opened all our bags, and removed a few items before meticulously repacking them. While a theft of this kind is not unusual, the key point is that our bags were locked, and they forced open the zip, and zipped it back up again so that it was barely noticeable. I only noticed when trying to fix my bag at the cafe while waiting for the boat, and realized that the bag had been repacked incorrectly. The other passengers all checked their bags too to find the same had happened. Locking bags isn't enough, you need to either have a full cover over the bag, or at the very least check your bag when leaving the bus.
Edward Sylvester, UK (July 05)
I want to alert your readers to the danger of motorcycle based bag snatching in Chiang Mai,
particularly around tourist attractions such as the Sunday night market on Thanon Ratchadamnoen.
While walking back from the market on Moon Muang soi 5, two people on a motorbike
attempted to snatch my companion's handbag. Although bag snatching doesn't sound too bad, it was
actually a fairly unpleasant incident where both my companion and I were left cut and bruised.
Angus McIntyre, USA (June 05)
My friend and I got on to a bus in Phuket town, headed for Krabi.
Upon getting on the bus everything was fine, it was from the major terminal and
everything seemed legit. About 35-45 miniutes in we moved up from the back seats to the middle
due to blaring loud music (this was planned), the thai's needed to get somebody behind us
to spray this airesol substance in to the air. Upon having this substance sprayed over us
I took a few breaths and realized what was going on. They were trying to drug us to steal our
things. I ran to the front of the bus and told the driver to pull over in a threatening and assertive manner. He did pull over and we were handed our bags and left stranded and
drugged at the side of the highway. We had trouble hearing and seeing, but were able to
flag a car and pay them to take us to the airport where we then departed by plane the next
morning. If you smell something funny or feel abnormal, get off the bus. We were
extremely lucky!
Anonymous, Australia (April 05)
Gems, Highlights & Attractions
I wanted to let you know about a wonderful food festival that took place on the beach in Cha-Am. After checking with a local guide, this festival takes place for a week at the end of Sept every year. It was wonderful! Extremely Thai without a hint of the festival being put on for tourist benefits. The locally caught seafood sold was excellent and very cheap. Mostly it was a joy to have an evening with Thai people and see how they enjoyed themselves.
Esther Forster, UK (Oct 05)
While staying in Chiang Mai we discovered a wonderful sunday market, starting in the Tha Phae (east gate) courtyard and extending through to Th Ratchadamnoen. The market appears to be open from about sunset until midnight. The wats along the street are open and their courtyards are filled with food vendors. Most of the stalls sell clothes, tourist knicknacks and textiles (though I don't know how authentic they are) and food. Also, there are Thai musicians playing in the streets.
Karen Ginzburg, Israel (Sept 05)
I am writing to let you guys know a bit more about Khao Sok National Park and what wonderful things it has to offer. I just spent two months there after the Tsunami hit just 30kms away from there. It became a refuge for lots of locals and tourists. Not long after that the place had its quietest times yet. What the area needs are people to visit still and see what southern Thailand has to offer. Khao Sok is nestled in a beautiful valley and is surrounded by lush green jungle, which is the National Park. Singing from gibbons is normally the wake up call for most people. Also the Khao Sok River runs straight through this little enchanted
village.
Tony Howard, Australia (April 05)
Yarns, Fables & Anecdotes
I sat next to a monk on a coach journey in Thailand, I greeted him politely. The same greeting and politeness was returned, then nothing more was said. During a short break I got my cigarettes out, offered him one and that was it. It turned out he spoke a bit of English, and with my Thai we got on really well. Only one drawback - his mobile phone. 650 kilometers of it ringing what seemed like every ten minutes. The ringtone - "Happy Birthday to You".
John Chadwick (Feb 02)
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