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What TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) does & doesn't do

Replies: 14 - Last Post: 11-Dec-2007 05:58 Last Post By: arnkje

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Posted
19-May-2004 17:29
by: Anil

Posts:  54
Registered:  06/10/00

What TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) does & doesn't do

Clarification on TAT
Taken from Tales of Asia website

Okay, let's go back to talking about scams on tourists. This one's the TAT scam. TAT stands for the Tourism Authority of Thailand and they are a government agency.

What the Tourism Authority of Thailand does:

TAT promotes tourism in Thailand to both the domestic and international markets. They publish literature, books, magazines, etc. They attend travel fairs. They bring the amazing wonders of travel in Thailand to the world. They license travel agencies and travel guides.

What the Tourism Authority of Thailand does not do:

The TAT does not operate travel agencies. They do not sponsor tours. They do not sell tickets - not for the bus, not for the train, not for an airplane, not for a concert, a cabaret show, nothing. They don't sell anything! They do not have agents wandering around bus and train stations to assist travelers.

And there lies the scam. Hualumphong is Bangkok's main rail terminal and if you're going to take a train somewhere it's here you need to buy your ticket. So what happens is you arrive at the depot, looking like a tourist (does any tourist ever consider how their experience in Thailand might change for the better if they wore long pants and a collared shirt? But I digress...). You spot the ticket windows and start walking in that direction when you are intercepted by a pleasant individual possibly displaying what is a bogus ID card saying they are with the TAT. They'll ask you where you are going, inform you that the route is sold out but what good luck for you they have a TAT travel agency across the street that can take care of you. So you head across the street, see the TAT license and assume you've been told the truth - that this is a TAT travel agency. But what you don't know is that TAT doesn't operate any travel agencies, only licenses them with the criteria being little more than the agencies ability to comply with a few bureaucratic requirements. Inside the agency, the pleasant people will sell you a bus ticket on a private "VIP" bus. And as most people who fall for this scam report, the VIP bus stands for Very Inferior Product, the trip was one hassle after another that would be a true comedy of errors if it wasn't all intentional and what kind of operation is this TAT running anyway?

So here's what you need to do. When you go to the train station to buy a ticket somewhere make sure you go straight to the ticket windows and ignore anybody that tries to prevent you from reaching those windows no matter what they may say. The only person that can tell you with any authority or veracity that a route is sold out is the person behind the window. If they have what you want, buy the ticket. If it really is sold out, then you need to buy a bus ticket. But you do not buy one across the street from one of these travel agencies. Ignore the people that tried to intercept you in the first place and leave the train station by whatever means you arrived and go to the proper bus terminal (southern or northern) and buy your bus ticket there on a government bus.

For more about government bus versus private "VIP" bus, see last month's column.

As national tourism authorities go, TAT is a pretty good one. They've done a marvelous job promoting Thailand and are certainly one factor, though hardly the only factor, in Thailand's surge in foreign visitor arrivals all the while conveniently ignoring one certain aspect of Thailand that brings in quite a lot of these visitors. While it's true sometimes the people of TAT don't quite grasp just what exactly foreigners want or need, as a national promotional organization they are pretty good at what they do. But they aren't a travel agency or tour company. So don't be fooled

The TAT website is at: http://www.tourismthailand.org/index.php. Though is often the case, for truly useful travel information you'll find dozens of better sites, but this will at least give you an idea of what they are about.

As this is related to transport, two websites are:

For the government bus service, which I often rave about, or at least rave in comparison to the KSR tourist bus nonsense, see: http://www.transport.co.th. However the site is only in Thai and I suppose if they really want foreign tourists on their buses they might want to address this situation, but there's really not that much on the site anyway. And for the trains, try this: http://www.srt.or.th, which is a bilingual website and does include train schedules.

The forecast today is dark and cloudy with a possibility of a drive-by.

Posted
19-May-2004 20:05
by: steve252

Posts:  1,263
Registered:  19/01/01

1

re the final paragraph...

+For the government bus service, which I often rave about, or at least rave in comparison to the KSR tourist bus nonsense, see: www.transport.co.th - however the site is only in Thai and I suppose if they really want foreign tourists on their buses they might want to address this situation, but there's really not that much on the site anyway.

see also: www.suk11.com/bus.htm (which is in English)

*And for the trains, try this: www.srt.or.th - which is a bilingual website and does include train schedules.+*

www.srt.or.th is now defunct - the new address is www.railway.co.th

see also: www.seat61.com/Thailand.htm - has good general info (including pictures, and guidance on how to book in advance / from abroad), at-a-glance timetables covering the most popular journeys, price guides, map of the main SEA rail connections, etc

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Posted
20-May-2004 01:54
by: OzAround

Posts:  2
Registered:  17/02/04

2

Except the Suk11 site is hopelessly out of date. Bus fare to Pattaya is 97 baht and they run every 20 minutes, just to give one example

The real dangers in this world are the people who want to change everything - or nothing.

Posted
20-May-2004 02:24
by: steve252

Posts:  1,263
Registered:  19/01/01

3

Ekamai to Pattaya is 90 Baht; Moh Chit to Pattaya is usually 90 Baht but in a minority of cases 97 Baht, depending on the route it takes (you dont get a choice, it depends on the time of day - the 7 Baht is an expressway surcharge)

frequency isn't fixed on either of these services - varies depending on the time of day (plus additional services are provided at peak demand periods, eg public holidays, festivals, concerts, etc) - I think it's simply trying to give you an honest guideline as to frequency without individually listing every single bus all day long

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Posted
20-May-2004 04:46
by: Anil

Posts:  54
Registered:  06/10/00

4

the bus schedule on suk11 is stolen...ahem..I mean translated from the official website

The forecast today is dark and cloudy with a possibility of a drive-by.

Posted
20-May-2004 09:06
by: steve252

Posts:  1,263
Registered:  19/01/01

Posted
20-May-2004 09:24
by: pennywise

Posts:  63
Registered:  20/05/00

6

Fab posting Anil! Everyone even thinking of going to Thailand needs to absorb the info as stated!

man makes plans...and God laughs

Posted
20-May-2004 10:50
by: dearsirsam

Posts:  706
Registered:  05/09/00

7

Good options all. But for the record, last time I went to Hualamphong, some girls from the "tourist info" desk stopped me to see if I needed help, but I don't recall them dissuading me from going to the ticket counter. They did have train schedules, and ferry info for the islands, but I didn't get the feeling they were trying to move me in any direction; almost seemed more like they were just keen on practicing their English.

Posted
21-May-2004 00:16
by: steve252

Posts:  1,263
Registered:  19/01/01

8

re #6 - as Anil points out at the start of the OP, the source for this is www.talesofasia.com/thailand-update-aug03.htm#tat - so thanks should also go to the author, GorShar

his government bus versus private "VIP" bus article is here: www.talesofasia.com/thailand-update-jul03.htm#bus

the TAT website is here: www.tourismthailand.org and/or here: www.tat.or.th

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Posted
06-Apr-2005 07:18
by: steve252

Posts:  1,263
Registered:  19/01/01

9

update for reply #1

now available in English: www.transport.co.th/Eng/HomeEnglish.htm

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Posted
08-Mar-2006 04:17
by: ArnoQ

Posts:  2
Registered:  08/03/06

10

Even better yet Do not go to tour operators or "TAT offices" near Huolampong station (Very good thread by the way)

So far what I have been reading on thorn tree and what I've heard from other travellers these agents (especially opposite Huolampong station like Suk Sum Ruen Tours) should not be awarded with your money. Here's the reasons why;

You might say that a fool is soon parted with his money. Perhaps true. What if someone tells you that Hill Tribes are afraid of sunglasses? Would you take your sunglasses off? You do because you're a nice person and, more important, anyone who travels knows sometime they have to work with the little information you get. Sometimes you have to trust someone or something to get somewhere interesting. These companies are abusing this trust.

Thai people need a break to enjoy the money the West have?
Definitely, the Thai people are convinced they are not hurting anyone but (western) people weigh negative experiences heavier then positive ones. Those people might hold a grudge towards Thailand and will spread that negativity to others. Not a good thing for the Thai people.

The sad thing is those companies are not only undermining Thailand's reputation but also their own employees. Most tourists will not come back to back to use their services which makes them lose business and dinner on the table, just to get a 100.000 Bhat of one tourist instead 30.000 from six tourists. I hope the goverment can somehow forbid or fine tour operators to pose as a TAT offices towards tourists but this this is a bad thing for Thailand despite what Thai think.

Tips for wary travellers;
1.When in doubt, say no.
2.When curious, say go.

Posted
10-Jun-2006 00:40
by: piroco

Posts:  1
Registered:  10/06/06

11

God, we just fell for this TAT scam here in Bangkok. Luckily, it turned out the agency have actually made reservations for us so we haven't lost our money but we have probably been overcharged.. Friendly guy telling us about TAT and how they are now licensing agencies to stop them overcharging, a very handy tuk-tuk suddenly turns up, and there we go... God that I could be so stupid!

Posted
10-Jun-2006 01:10
by: ZenCloud

Posts:  8
Registered:  27/11/03

12

Part of traveling in second and third world countries - number 11 ;-) The trick is being able to let it go and move on - there are so many pissed off travelers out there that are bitter about being ripped off (I used to be one of them), you paid what you thought was fair at the time – must have been a bargain! If you don't want this to happen to you then don't travel - you are going to get ripped off no matter how savvy you are.
I've seen a lot of travelers arguing over a service which they think they’ve been overcharged an extra 50c whereas mucher poorer locals wouldn't even bat an eye lid over it - it's very hard to know what things costs and even harder to get used to paying things on a sliding scale

Posted
09-Dec-2007 09:29
by: arnkje

Posts:  2
Registered:  05/12/07

13

I fully agree with Pennywise: Fabulous posting Anil! Everyone even thinking of going to Thailand needs to absorb the info as stated!
Anil’s posting is from 2004, but cheaters still operate under cover of their TAT license - but I would not call it a TAT scam. This is the scam of the operating travel agencies, and it seem especially Suk Sum Ruen Tours Co opposite Hualampong station have specialised in the art of overcharging tourists at a rate of 200-400%. The procedure is similar to the one described by Anil – except for the fact these well-dressed and polite ‘intercepters’ nowadays also operate in a rather wide neighbourhood of Hualampong railway station eager advising a tuk-tuk to take you to the office of Suk Sum Ruen Tours. Beware of the ‘interceptors’ versatile strategy – very often pretending they have a friend or family member living in your home town or the capital of your country – a sly strategy that unfortunately causes you to lower your guard.
There is but one advice – Suk Sum Ruen Tours should not be awarded with your money and neither your visit. The scam is that TAT does not withdraw the cheater’s license or rights to operate under the name of TAT despite of numerous complaints, and also that the government is unable to fine mismanaging agencies. Because this is in the long run a bad thing for Thailand that also for sure undermines the reputation of TAT all over the world.
Since you in beforehand, as a foreigner, do not know the culture, commercial practices and function of the urban infrastructure in a country you visit you face a situation where have to trust somebody otherwise you are totally lost in confusion. I mean you normally approaches the reception of your hotel in the perfect trust they will give you correct and useful advice. To a traveller in Thailand the name of TAT standing for the official Tourism Authority of Thailand should vouch for trustworthiness - and abusers must be punished in one way or other otherwise the proportions of these scams simply grows to the detriment of the wonderful Thai people.

Posted
11-Dec-2007 05:58
by: arnkje

Posts:  2
Registered:  05/12/07

14

Addendum to the foregoing posting:

On one point I agree with ZenCloud: To travel is to take risks – and is part of the thrill of travelling. So for the sake of your personal wellbeing it seems wise to let such incidents go as fast as possible and move on – albeit not in silence. To let such scams go without further ado will send the message THIS IS OK to the swindlers and for sure consolidate their nasty behaviour. The brave move is to strike back in a humane way and make damage to this dishonourable activity. Not only for your own sake but also for all foreigners to arrive – and the honest majority of the Thai people. So let us hang the swindlers out on the Internet – and I am convinced Suk Sum Ruem Tour very soon will turn to more sociable activities. Afterwards we can let go and move on – perhaps even a bit satisfied.

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