cwmkpg

As said, why waste precious holiday time on such a pursuit? Get a licence at home that you can use in future, here just get a skipper with the boat & enjoy yourself without the worries, you will find the price won't be that much more.

They also know places you will never find on your own.

Spot on Rooo....

My friend had a RIB (rigid inflatable boat) on Ko Samui for three years,at the start he hired a local boatman for a couple of weeks to guide him around the reefs etc,he was stopped at sea twice by Marine Police over the next three years and gave them 1000 baht backhander each time for not having a licence,and when he saw them at the pier at Bangrak they laughed when he inquired about the need for a licence and joined him in getting drunk at the Boat Bar opposite Bangrak Tesco (he paid for the alcohol).

Don't waste your (expensive) time while on holiday here trying to obtain a boat license... It won't happen, and you will be left frustrated.... Yeah, it sucks... but that is how it works here...

Make your holiday easy.... ask around and hire a local boat guy....

It's not a question of easy or hard. I WANT to learn how to navigate a speedboat, including "traffic rules" and the whole shabang. Maybe at some point I want to go boating in other parts of the world, too. At home, I don't live near any sizable body of water - while being in Samui would be the perfect time to learn.

Please forgive me if my reply was anything less than totally respectful...

Anyone who wants to truly learn how to navigate the seas is,.. IMHO, ..... O.K,... and absolutely worthy of any and all assistance....

Best of luck...

PM me for a basic list of essential books to study.

IMHO

Don't waste your time....

Make your holiday easy.... ask around and hire a local boat guy....

95 % of the local "speedboat" captains don't even have a motorbike license, let alone a speedboat license...

( if there is even such a thing )

I was, some years ago, a live-aboard yacht captain here on the waters of Thailand and Malaysia... I once asked the local "boat boss" about a local boat license....

He laughed in my face for 2 minutes and then said "For Thai people only"....

If the rules have changed, I am " all ears ".....

Pit Bulls are illegal in the UK and would be put down Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 so not an option,, and OP is asking for option on Samui not UK.

I was not aware that Pit Bulls were banned from import to the UK..... but I am not surprised...

You sound like a fairly decent bloke...

PLEASE don't leave your animals unattended here.

If you had the means to buy , and raise, an imported Pit Bull Terrier ( the wordl's most dangerous canine ) , surely you still have the means to take him (or her) with you to the UK.... It's not difficult.

The very last thing that is needed here is yet another unwanted imported dog.....

My family and I have personally rescued many, many dogs and cats in the last 20 years, and, alas, we now have very little patience with " temporary " residents and their "temporary" pets...

With a pet comes a responsibility....

Once I became involved and responsible with an elderly foreigner, with a serious medical issue which made all traveling very complicated. I was suggested by an immigration officer personally to go for the overstay option instead and just pay the fine when we left the country, and so we did. They just mentioned one can do this without problems when he usually just stays at home. Thus he lived here for almost 4 years without a visa. Once we had to leave the country in advance I went to the immigration office to inform them. The advised: just go to the aiport to immigration checkout and explain the situation, and pay the 20.000b fine. But do take some extra time for it because the officers dislike it when you force them to hurry. The overstay fine issue was handled as a formality, nothing negative. The officers were very, very friendly and asked how my friend was doing now with his health.

What's very important in Thailand is your attitude, always show respect and make them willing to help you. Never come with complaining remarks, arrogance or agression. It doesn't count if you are married to a Thai and think it gives you more 'status', or have lots of money or how long you live here, it's how you interact with the Thais.

Respect.... The perfect word with which to end this topic.

jbrain

My (Thai) wife is very aware of the rules !

She marks the calender with the days 90 day reports are due and when my extension of stay is due for renewal !

Your remarks could/would be viewed as being offensive by many Thai people -----my wife included!

And why your wife is such aware of the 90 day reporting ?

Could it be because you told her about ?

Of course he told her about the date. What the hell is wrong with that ??? I also tell my spouse, as well as mark it on the calendar, so that we can plan other things to do on the reporting day.... ( it is a 5 hour round trip for us, with only 20 minutes required at the immigration office)

You must be delusional ( or at least quite ignorant )..

What the Thais truly hate is Farangs who think that they are somehow special, and therefore above the law.

What the Thais truly hate...

Deary me... a farang who feels qualified to speak for "the Thais"...feels himself qualified to speak on behalf of a nation...then informs other farangs that what Thais truly hate is farangs who think that they are somehow special. The irony...

For what it's worth, my Thai spouse was sitting next to me, making suggestions, on behalf of more than 300 relatives ( many of whom I have spent a lot of time with ), as to a sincere and respectful reply to the negative posters....

After translating English to Thai...

All I received was a sad shake of the head..

Deary me..... Yes, I feel fairly qualified.

It would be nice if they started enforcing the jail part of this law

How true...

The law states that if anyone is caught with an expired visa before they are physically standing in front of the immigration desk they are subject to arrest and jail.

2 Years, Ha

We had a seven year overstay up here in Chiang Mai.

Same thing went to airport with 20,000 in cash and sorted no problem.

He came back couple of months later with no problem

R

Overstay 2 years, ha....

Do you think it is funny that you can pay 20,000 Baht and then bullshit your way around the rules???

You should have been Blacklisted....Deported....and not allowed to return.!!!

You obviously have nothing substantial to offer to this country or its people....

Those of us who choose to live here and live by the rules are absolutely disgusted by your kind, with your total lack of respect for the Thai Immigration laws ignorant at best )

( however crazy they may be )

Paying 20.000b IS nothing but the rule, nothing 'bulshitting your way around the rules' about. Get a life !

ps, Thais absolutely hate the arrogant and agressive attitude of your kind, you don't understand much if them do you.

You must be delusional ( or at least quite ignorant )..

What the Thais truly hate is Farangs who think that they are somehow special, and therefore above the law.

While it may be true that the maximum fine for overstay is 20,000 Baht, it is a bit of a slap in the face to the Thai people and their immigration rules when you stay here for many years without reporting.

I have lived here for 15 years, and have been married to a local Thai for 10 years... .

I report to the local immigration office every 3 months, without fail, as required by law.

My comments to you come directly from my Thai family.

I don't speak " agressive ", only the opinions of relatives.....

On one side a new member asking for a legitimate question and get a not so polite and completely useless answer. On the other side the new member quickly upset answering in another not so polite way.

IMHO 2 bad ways to behave in a forum.

I hope maitraya just rethink about his/her departure from Thaivisa and some members don't answer a post if they really don't have nothing to say.

Angiud, you are quite the diplomat... as always...

The OP asked a rather stupid question....

If He / She can afford a plane/ train/ boat/ songtaew ticket to Phangan, well, the price of a plate of rice should be totally irrevelant

You have a better chance of winning the lottery than you have of getting Thai citizenship....

still wont hold a candle to same same burger phangan homemade ice cream or chicken from the evening market.

hovever any improvement on the crap sold at tesco is welcome

You are 100% correct Candypants.. The "fresh" food on offer at the Tesco Koh Phangan is absolute crap.!!!... Dog food at best...

OP last try and then that will be the end of this.

While you may think quality is better than quantity if there is not enough threads to drive traffic then there is no point in creating a separate forum. It is not simply a matter of creating it, see if it works out and then getting rid of it when it doesn't. SEO does not work that way.

So, start contributing. See if you can increase Phangan members posting. Then maybe it will be considered but as things stand it is not going to happen now.

OK Ms. SBK... My last try as well

What the hell is SEO ???

Also... While I am not a fan of the full moon, black moon, half moon, or any moon party, 20,000 or more people visit Phangan every month for the "experience"...

Every day and everywhere ( anywhere) I go I see many, many people glued to their pads, phones, etc. looking for up to date Phangan info ( so they tell me ) .... but nothing really relevant is available....

Since I no longer have any financial interest in Phangan the lack of decent online info doesn't matter that much to me one way or the other... I'm just trying to help....

Finished....

Hi,

It is not about population or government but about traffic. There are not enough Koh Phangan posts to warrant a separate forum at this time. If you can help increase the number of Koh Phangan related topics and users from the island then it might be considered but as it stands now there are very few posts and members and not enough to populate, or keep thriving, its own forum.

SBK,

You have been the voice of reason here on phangan for many years.... I'm sure that you and I would know each other on sight.... In fact, we have probably both enjoyed a meal at Peppercorn at the same time....

I don't post many messages for the simple reason that I am an old retired guy and I just can't be bothered with most of the B***s**t that I read on the Samui "forum ".

SBK.... I would expect that you, of all people, would like to see more direct Phangan-related info....

A (temporary) new forum is not rocket science.... easy to set up and easy to close if no interest..

As you said, "people advertise in active forums".... Phangan does not have an active forum.... again, why don't we give it a try ???...

Now you have 35 posts in the last 2 years , 10 of them in this topic alone, sure I can see how the idea of a separate forum would fly.

Ahhh Rooo,

" Yee of little faith "....

Posts ( and new forums ) are not about quantity but are about quality....

Smokie.... your comments are spot on.... please don't abandon this forum... It desperately needs rational posters

The hippies are trying to break away, let them have there forum

You have made my day !!!

I haven't been called a hippy for more than 40 years....

Thank You !!

Hi,

It is not about population or government but about traffic. There are not enough Koh Phangan posts to warrant a separate forum at this time. If you can help increase the number of Koh Phangan related topics and users from the island then it might be considered but as it stands now there are very few posts and members and not enough to populate, or keep thriving, its own forum.

SBK,

You have been the voice of reason here on phangan for many years.... I'm sure that you and I would know each other on sight.... In fact, we have probably both enjoyed a meal at Peppercorn at the same time....

I don't post many messages for the simple reason that I am an old retired guy and I just can't be bothered with most of the B***s**t that I read on the Samui "forum ".

SBK.... I would expect that you, of all people, would like to see more direct Phangan-related info....

A (temporary) new forum is not rocket science.... easy to set up and easy to close if no interest..

As you said, "people advertise in active forums".... Phangan does not have an active forum.... again, why don't we give it a try ???...

Hi,

It is not about population or government but about traffic. There are not enough Koh Phangan posts to warrant a separate forum at this time. If you can help increase the number of Koh Phangan related topics and users from the island then it might be considered but as it stands now there are very few posts and members and not enough to populate, or keep thriving, its own forum.

As others have previously posted, SBK, why not give it a try ?? It would cost TV nothing and just might catch on... and bring advertising revenue to the good folks at TV... It seems that it is, after all, the bottom line that matters, no?....

Could be a win-win situation.... nothing ventured, nothing gained... ( I read that somewhere...).

As Koh Phangan & Koh Tao are sattelites of Samui for admin purposes (Courtl/immigration/hospitals/Govt) I feel one thread best serves all 3. Furthermore it's worked since 2003.

2003 was 10 years ago, and with all due respect, please inform all of us your qualifications to say that "It's worked"...

I have been a permanent resident here longer than TV has existed.... and while it has been an invaluable tool for many, many people, it hasn't worked as well as it could...

I believe that you are totally incorrect in your opinion that 1 forum is sufficient for all 3 islands. A single forum only makes it more difficult for people to find island-specific info.

Once gain..... this is supposed to be a so-called forum... sharing of information...........

Sorry, I was referring to the population, not physical size, although I am quite sure that Samui has a good bit more than 5X the population of Phangan... but that doesn't matter at all....

I agree with your post completely.... why not try it?... See what happens.. If a new forum works, that's great !... If no one visits the forum... close it. Simple.

Few TV members live on Phangan indeed. 9 out of 10 posts in Tao/KPG/Samui forums are about Samui which probably reflects TV membership.

Of course, Ang Thong,.... Samui is 10 X the size of Phangan...

I was only suggesting that some kind of additional forum ( or some kind of sub-forum ) related to Phangan only would be more efficient to the site users.

And again, adding an additional forum would be simple for the TV people. They could even sell more advertisements!!!

Sorry to say, but not so many TV members live in Koh Phangan, few lost during the last years and some new, but IMHO not enough to have a separate forum.

And I live in Koh Phangan

Sorry Angiud but I beg to differ. There are more than enough residents, short / long time tourists, businesses, etc to warrant a separate forum ( or at least a sub-forum )..

The setup time for the IT pro's at TV would be about 5 minutes, would cost them nothing, and just may help some people with their questions.

Isn't that the whole idea of a forum ???

Since you are asking:

Isn't it about time that the "powers that be" at Thai Visa granted our little slice of paradise a separate forum...???

Appears you are after an answer from the "powers that be", therefore moved to Forum Support for answers.

Have you actually looked at the forum "support" page recently???? Need I say more ?..