Shazdeb

So it doesn't look like there is a 90 day grace period for those arrested. Caught with a 1 day overstay and it's a 5 year ban!

That's exactly how it reads.......is there any official clarification on that? It seems a bit draconian.

Why is everyone saying 1 day overstay is prosecution ?? I read it and it says OVER 90 days so a couple of days is still no problem ....... If your overstaying 3 mths or more you should prosecuted thats not an oversight. Every Country has the same whats the big deal

Just out of Patong is Patong Grand Ville. Its a small 38 room resort with a nice pool and swim up bar. Close enough to get to Bangla in 3 to 4 min but away from the noise when your ready to relax. There are bungalows around the pool or on the hill with a tropical forest setting. Lots of Australians go there as the new owners are Australian

You know what ... instead of being rude and defeatist in your postings how about this ... Give them a chance.

Anyone actually living here should know what a mess General Prayuth took on, did you expect him to fix every thing in a few short months ??? If you did your delusional or don't actually live here.

This place will take years to fix and I for one think he has done a very commendable job so far under hard opposition

There will be a lot of starts and stops as they try something finds it doesn't work and tries something else.

Have some faith and support a man who has the conviction to try and do the best for his Country and people, try giving some support for a change, will the 10% on beaches change ? who knows but I suspect probably and actually think it should be higher and im sure it will soon as the details of how to manage it are worked out and in place with a lower manageable amount

I for one am quiet happy with how things are going, I would hope for higher Tourist numbers but re building a Country takes time and it will get better ... I am sure none of you naysayers could do a better quicker job

You are joking right? Is beach umbrellas the biggest issue facing Thailand? Is it even one of the top 500 biggest issues as the economy is going down the pan? You improve things by focussing on a few key problems and hammer away at them until they are permanently fixed. Then move on to the next lot. Trying to fix all this issues at the same time, by edict, and then following none of them up will improve nothing. <deleted> the man is a general and should know that he has to concentrate his forces, not spread them all over the show.

Where exactly did I say the beach umbrellas were the biggest problem ?? I said much the same as you but with reference to the " Beach Umbrellas " as that was the topic

You know what ... instead of being rude and defeatist in your postings how about this ... Give them a chance.

Anyone actually living here should know what a mess General Prayuth took on, did you expect him to fix every thing in a few short months ??? If you did your delusional or don't actually live here.

This place will take years to fix and I for one think he has done a very commendable job so far under hard opposition

There will be a lot of starts and stops as they try something finds it doesn't work and tries something else.

Have some faith and support a man who has the conviction to try and do the best for his Country and people, try giving some support for a change, will the 10% on beaches change ? who knows but I suspect probably and actually think it should be higher and im sure it will soon as the details of how to manage it are worked out and in place with a lower manageable amount

I for one am quiet happy with how things are going, I would hope for higher Tourist numbers but re building a Country takes time and it will get better ... I am sure none of you naysayers could do a better quicker job

It depends on what type of farang. Farang kee nok or farang work in office or posh farang.

Base on Nationalities also. For example American talk too much. Over act , show off, too independent... (a bit crazy)

British too proud of acents even from Liverpool, Manchester or New castle and i never understood scottish.

French just pretend to be elegant but actually quite rude (resist)

Australian too thrifty, never gave any tips to servicers. (If Thais know this customers from Australia they dont wanna give good service)

Just what we think.

Best regards,

To be fair Australians are not thrifty or adverse to giving tips, a lot of them don't understand the " tipping culture " as we don't have it. I am Australian and tip always because I live here and have learnt to do it, even for the bad service I get for being Australian apparently ( thanks for the heads up ). Really when your rude or give bad service to an Australian based on nationality with out knowing the person are you surprised we don't tip you ?? especially seeing your being paid to give the service, a tip is based on how a customer is served after all, so by not servicing you are in fact causing the " non tipping "

How long should it take to get once you apply

Shazdeb, a VERY HARD decision indeed

Having to choose between my best mate and my fiance was one the hardest decision I've ever faced.

I had the little dude from 4 weeks old for 4 years and we travelled >10000km across Australia together.

Thankfully he is now with some very good people and is enjoying beach life instead of Isaan life which is probably better for him (or so I keep telling myself...)

Im glad he is happy. I brought my dog with me 4 years ago and the process was hard and really scary because as you know if he is denied entry he cant go back to Australia but I had no choice as he will not stay with anyone but me. Luckily all was good but I know it was thanks to a very kind ( and ridiculously tall ) Thai Vet that works at the Phuket airport, with out this caring wonderful man, that was willing to look beyond all this " bad breed " bull shit my Batman would not have been happily in Thailand with mum for the last 31/2 years

How about we all just stop the nastiness and wait and see, I for one hope this is all true. and if anyone thinks that all these medical research associations are not CASHING in then your deluded and living in a dream state. Medical research is all about the money and fair enough, they spend huge amounts to do the research so they deserve to protect their investment and recoup monies spent to continue the work, otherwise no further " discoveries " would be made. Lets all for once have a go at being happy and positive

Its best to do the right way, If he is denied entry some times there is no where for him to go back to. Tuskfish is correct partly, Staffies are a banned breed here and wont be allowed, even a part breed wont be allowed, you may however have better luck if you class them as another breed. Get your vet at home to change all his paperwork so you have proof, call him example " Australian Bulldog Cross " because a lot of these breeds look similar you may be able to get his Import license this way, beware he will also be inspected at the airport and if the vet doesn't pass him he will be refused entry, they mostly look for temperament. If he is a friendly dog all should be well. I wish you luck its a hard decision but let's be serious if your like me, where I go my dog goes

Yes everything is different here, but that's why we come A lot of things bother me for a min or two but then I breath deep and get over it.. The only thing that I really don't get is the whole " save face " mentality... by that I mean I get the concept what I don't get is how telling a lie because you have to make something up because you don't know the answer is just crazy LOL Just say you don't know that is way better and to me and saves more face than lying .... But what do I know. The rest I just roll with it ... either that or you will go crazy

I came through Sadeo last night with visa company, all in the van had either non B, non O, ed or business visa's. I had asked about taking 20,000 with me before I left at the visa company office and was told " nonsense not needed they will not ask " well must say they didn't because we were all told to put 200 baht in passport, one girl tried not to, to see what happened, she was instructed to hand it over. We all sailed through with no problems except the girl who tried not to pay was stamped with the wrong date, lucky she noticed and the tour operator took her back and got it fixed. Also used the Banana Hotel, not impressed with there vans though really squeezey couldn't wait to transfer back to the Thai ones, much more comfy with better aircon

What passport nationality where you all from?

A couple of Australians, a French girl, a couple of Philippinos and the rest Russian

I want to clarify that this was a tour where everyone went as a group primarily to obtain a new visa from Penang consulate. This is a very interesting report.

I have done the Sadao border a couple of times (USA passport, non-ed or non-o every time) and had zero problems without any additional 'stamp fee' or out of pocket cost. Was never asked for 20k baht either. The last bus stop right before the border where you can use toilet/exchange money they have an OPTIONAL service where they will fill out most of the arrival and departure card printed in legible English for 2 RM. I just get the card from immigration and fill it out myself, but non-native english speakers I can see where this would be helpful.

The visa run to ranong the non-english speakers get this done included in the visa run service. The visa run company should be handling any 'extras' themselves imo.

Yes Visa run company. Also done the Visa run may times with visa run bus's and have never been asked to put money in passport. Was shocked when the girl didn't put and Immigration guy requested it

I came through Sadeo last night with visa company, all in the van had either non B, non O, ed or business visa's. I had asked about taking 20,000 with me before I left at the visa company office and was told " nonsense not needed they will not ask " well must say they didn't because we were all told to put 200 baht in passport, one girl tried not to, to see what happened, she was instructed to hand it over. We all sailed through with no problems except the girl who tried not to pay was stamped with the wrong date, lucky she noticed and the tour operator took her back and got it fixed. Also used the Banana Hotel, not impressed with there vans though really squeezey couldn't wait to transfer back to the Thai ones, much more comfy with better aircon

What passport nationality where you all from?

A couple of Australians, a French girl, a couple of Philippinos and the rest Russian

Really don't understand the problem ?? I had one too and was happy for him to stay, he just wandered sunned him self, swam in the pool and liked laying under my bed !! Go figure. since he left I miss him

And the wife???

[/quote

LOL I am the wife

Im looking for an American bull terrier ... NOT a pit bull but a bull terrier anyone know a guy?? I can find Pit's by the ton but no actual Bullies

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I am moving to Chiang Mai in July and want to bring my two beloved staffies with me. Has anyone managed to get staffies into Thailand?

You can try getting your vet to change there breed on your papers but it's hit or miss, If you get that far and they are inspected at the airport ( which is part of the process ) If he decides they are staffy's they wont be admitted Sad really because the problem is not with the dogs but with the owners

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I came through Sadeo last night with visa company, all in the van had either non B, non O, ed or business visa's. I had asked about taking 20,000 with me before I left at the visa company office and was told " nonsense not needed they will not ask " well must say they didn't because we were all told to put 200 baht in passport, one girl tried not to, to see what happened, she was instructed to hand it over. We all sailed through with no problems except the girl who tried not to pay was stamped with the wrong date, lucky she noticed and the tour operator took her back and got it fixed. Also used the Banana Hotel, not impressed with there vans though really squeezey couldn't wait to transfer back to the Thai ones, much more comfy with better aircon

We will pick whomever we like, the world is not our father.

You cannot pick whoever you like and the world while not your father is most certainly part of your family. Your statement shows the typical Thai mentality which has stopped its progress in its own country and the rest of the world. If we adopted your mentality we would still be in the stone age which you are not far removed from.

Is there a need to be rude to a citizen of a country that has a God given right to have his opinion, you also have the right to yours but how about at least trying to be nice while doing it. I'm a permanent visitor to this beautiful country and agree with this person " Thailand has the right to pick whom ever they wish and it's none of the worlds business ". There are many instances world wide of Armed forces personnel moving into politics' and many very successfully, Where a person has spent his adult working years should have nothing to do with if he can serve his country in this capacity or not, it shouldn't matter if he was a street sweeper, a doctor, a sex worker even and defiantly not a member of the armed forces ... If he is the best man ( or woman for that matter ) for the job this is the one and only thing that matters. I for one love what General Prayuth has and is doing here and if I was able to would vote for him in a heartbeat and most Thai's I have discussed it with feel the same, and seeing it's their country .... You go ahead and do what ever you wish and If anyone doesn't like it just mention a few of the None Military leaders of the World and what a stuff up they have made of things.

There are so many old empty ugly billboards, these should be easy to remove so hoping the Army will get around to it. About the abandoned buildings, Its a shame, a waste and a disgrace ( mostly to those that just left it and walked ) Why don't the Government make a law that states basically " If you abandon a building and do no work on it for a set time ( I don't know how long, 6 mths 12mths ) that it is taken and sold with the monies raised from the sale going to country infrastructure to help the people of Thailand, such as fixing roads, fixing the electricity supply ( much needed ) supplying to schools etc ? and before you all say the obvious that is not within the law ... Change the laws It can be done for everything else why not for this. These buildings, and there is just so many of them, are ugly and bring down the look of this beautiful country, doing this can fax the problem and the money raised can help fix all the other problems !!! If the people that built and abandoned them loose out so what

My first house here had a spirit. We would hear noises that sounded like a party going on down stairs but no one was down there. The sound of glasses clinking was an almost nightly occurrence. My son, his girlfriend ( who was a total disbeliever at the time ) all saw people that didn't live there, there was 2 bedrooms downstairs and one of them no one would stay in it was just really uncomfortable, even the dog and cats wouldn't go in, would sit at the door and look in but wouldn't enter. My self and son's girlfriend heard voices very clearly right next to our heads while in bed and amongst other things while in the house alone I became very nervous due to weird sounds etc, I felt someone grab my leg and felt calm as though they were comforting me ( I must say what ever was there was never scary or disruptive ) didn't take much notice or get concerned as my bedroom was well and truly impregnable ( the doors were very think with excellent locks which were locked ) In the morning my leg was a little sore and when I looked at it there was a very obvious set of bruises depicting 5 fingers in a grab pattern, before you say I did it I couldn't even trying get my hands in the position to mimic the bruise as it was from the bottom of the bed I was grabbed, I got the photos to prove it. There was defiantly something there in that house

7 million key-money? So you are not buying this resort but renting it? How long is the rental term?

No not buying buildings just the business, should say " thinking of buying " If im not happy with everything not committing. Key money is now through lots talking 5 mil and the lease is 12 yrs

Rent is high due to the dreaded " sub lease " there is a reason we don't sublease in Australia its expensive and full of unknowns and pit falls

in either August or October the Army starting checks on Hotels to see if legal

If I were you I would not listen too much to rumours floating around.

Not listening too as gospel but need to take note off as they are fixing heaps. Always best to beware

To the OP, there is an oversupply of shophouse "hotels" and "guesthouses". These are the types of properties I've seen listed, and most of them aren't even available to purchase, merely a few year lease involving key money and rent. It's tough to be viable with low occupancy rates and 500 baht rooms. The only winners are those owning the land and the buildings that are renting out these "hotels". Original lessee then tries to make a go of it, find it's not worth it, then subleases, releases or abandons the property forfeiting his substantial deposit, then the cycle continues................

Yes its quite often the " subleasing " that makes it untenable

So many of these hotels are not licenced hotels, but do at least (I hope) have planning permission as a guesthouse or homestay. How they get upgraded to hotel status? Perhaps an inspection of their fire escape etc facilities and sewage treatment etc might help.

Operating a guest house still requires inspection and meeting a list of criteria.

Personaly I wouldn't be worried about buying a guest house that wasn't licenced as it's not a hard process to bring it up to the relevant standards and then arrange the inspection and sign off. If there was no hope of it meeting the guest house licencing requirements then it would have to be a deathtrap.

Not even close to being a death trap. run down yes but sound, has fire extinguishes, fire alarms etc just checking now to make sure he didn't ( as I have been advised is rather common ) apply for building permission to build house and build slightly ( lol ) more. Will know soon He seems rather pushy to get signed and done by August and in either August or October the Army starting checks on Hotels to see if legal, I know he isn't so ( although he says nonsense wont do it but taxi & illegal beach front thought this too ) think he wants out before he copes fines and fee's. OK by me as long as I can make it legal