khunjeff

On 12/30/2023 at 11:53 AM, GypsyT said:

Great to hear.

Vietnam even easier - no visa, just walk in for 45 days, FREE -:)

If you have a passport from a country on their visa exemption list, yes. That list doesn't include the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or many others.

I really wish they would stop this idiocy of referring to everything around this time of year as "a gift to the people", as though the cost won't eventually be paid by those same people via taxes.

On 12/27/2023 at 11:58 AM, brianthainess said:

That doesn't answer my question CC or is a debit card with a VISA logo excepted? and how do you pay if your card is not USD who decides on the exchange rate and how long is the visa valid for.

I was hoping to get an answer without logging into their site.

Another member has already confirmed that Visa-branded debit cards are accepted. As for the exchange rate, that depends on the card issuer, but the conversion is usually done by Visa itself - their rate is updated daily, and is normally very good.

I don't know whether the e-visa validity is the same for all nationalities, but when I got one last month as a US passport holder, it was valid for entry within three months of the issuance date, with an authorized stay of 30 days from the date of entry.

5 hours ago, bamnutsak said:

 

In business class, yes, Priority lane/aka Fast Track between the east and west arrivals entrances. Show your boarding pass.

 

Also available to all over 70 years old.

 

This particular Fast Track lane is no longer available to First/Business Class pax.  The sign has been changed, and the officer on duty at the door will send you to the Premium Lane next to the Thai Citizen lane.

4 hours ago, Swiss1960 said:

There us another priority line in arrival 1: go in on the right (Thai) side, turn sharp left on top of the short walk, and the priority / business entry is straight ahead. I used it yesterday morning, through after 3 minutes. 

Correct, this is where Premium Class pax are now sent. Just show your Business Class boarding pass - no additional voucher or payment required.

This has been discussed repeatedly for years and years. Since the countries involved all have completely different visa policies, though, it's hard to see how anything will ever come of it.

On 12/21/2023 at 11:46 AM, brianthainess said:

No the phonetic would read: SNAM BIN TRANG

Perhaps you're just trolling, but the sign didn't say "sanam bin" in Thai - it used the more formal term "tha ahkatsayan" (or however you choose to transliterate it).

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

There are now 12 city lines in Greater Bangkok

Virtually every article published these days says the same thing, and yet I can only see 10 lines, no matter how hard I count (even using my toes). Where are these two invisible train lines? (Non-operating lines such as the eastern Orange Line certainly shouldn't count.) Does @Crossy know what they're referring to?

1 - Light Green

2 - Dark Green

3 - Blue

4 - Purple

5 - Gold

6 - Pink

7 - Yellow

8 - Light Red

9 - Dark Red

10 - ARL

11 - ?

12 - ?

4 hours ago, Deserted said:

What does all this mean?

As written, it's incomprehensible. 

They talk about "transferring" operation, yet the Grey Line doesn't exist, and a "Bang Na-Suvarnabhumi airport Blue Line extension" not only doesn't exist, but doesn't seem possible, since the Blue Line doesn't go to either of those endpoints.

Meanwhile, there is no explanation of how or why operation of the Gold Line would be taken away from BTSC, other than some cryptic word salad about advertising revenues.

2 hours ago, Sig said:

Ok... I'm a little confused. So, if as of the start of this month this problem has come about at Phrom Phong and other major development projects continue to sprout presently bringing disputes... just how recent is it that Bangkok started developing with proper urban planning? I realize he didn't say directly that there is now developed planning, but "Until recently" it hadn't had such planning and saying "until recently", it certainly implies that it now does have proper planning, yet all the information preceding that statement says it has no proper planning.
So, is that landscape architect living in lala land? Are we to understand that within the last 2 weeks there has been a miracle change of proper urban planning? Or is this just another article with horrible translation?
Pardon me if there's some obvious thing I'm missing here. I'd be happily corrected and have my confusion dispelled.

I'm interpreting this to mean that in the past there was no planning at all, while now there's some planning, but it isn't sufficient to meet the city's needs, so a more effective system is required. But, yeah, it's confusing, so I might be totally wrong 🤷

6 hours ago, webfact said:

the 61 year old prime minister has directed state agencies to hasten construction on the unfinished sections

Yes, clearly career road-building professionals wouldn't actually complete the project unless a politician "directed" them to do so 🙄

Yes, "ordering" is always the best way to get career professionals to do their jobs - I'm sure it never occurred to them to try to improve traffic flow until his "order" came down.

As usual, a lot of hyperbolic verbiage and zero explanation of how this would actually work in practice for travelers from Thailand to HK.

The sidewalk on my soi was completely rebuilt about seven years ago, but you would never know to look at it - the construction was so poor that it looks like it's been degrading for 25 years. Placing the tiles on concrete rather than on sand will be an improvement, if they can really carry through on their promises.

5 hours ago, webfact said:

IKEA Sukhumvit is getting a new concept compared to other IKEA stores in Thailand, indeed in all of Asia

About 20 years ago I went to an IKEA in the middle of downtown Hong Kong, located in the basement of an office building. So no, this is not a new concept "in all of Asia".

5 hours ago, webfact said:

We at Destination Asia were invited to the premiere screening

Since I have an IKEA membership, I was also invited. They asked me to register online, and said the first 500 registrants could participate. I did so, but they never sent any acknowledgment or provided any indication of whether I was one of the lucky 500, so I didn't try to go. Very peculiar way to run a promotion.

They haven't "reestablished" or "reinstated" anything. These are the exact same flights that have already been operating, using the exact same planes that have been flying those routes, except now the flight number will begin with TG instead of WE. Big whoop.

They made the same kind of ridiculous announcement in Hanoi a few weeks ago, holding a grand press conference to announce that they were "resuming" service to Vietnam - by which they meant changing the flight numbers on the exact same flights that had already been operating daily since Covid. Misleading the public isn't a good first step towards regaining trust after bankruptcy.

On 11/25/2023 at 5:47 PM, StayinThailand2much said:

Aren't Americans, Canadians, the British, and Russians eligible for 10-year visas? Way more than the paltry 15 days offered to Europeans in the OP.

You're confusing visa validity (the period during which you can use your visa to enter the country) with length of stay (how long you can remain in the country once you enter) - the two are completely different.

Yes, some nationalities can get a ten year visa, but they must fill out a lengthy application form, pay a fairly substantial fee, and probably make a personal appearance at a consulate or application center. The nationalities covered under the new program can just get on a plane with no formalities and be granted a 15 day stay in China.

11 hours ago, webfact said:

During the Loy Krathong festival, from November 24 to 28, 2023, the immigration office expects over 50,000 tourists per day.

Thailand has averaged over 50,000 foreign arrivals per day for all of 2023, so I have no idea what they're talking about.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1423617/monthly-foreign-tourist-arrivals-thailand/

So they arrested and punished disfigured people who are victims of human trafficking gangs? I guess they want to get back on the Trafficking in Persons watchlist, as the last TIP Report noted specifically that

"government officials did not identify the majority as trafficking victims, placed foreign victims in immigration detention centers, and arrested victims, including Thai citizens, for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked in these illicit operations"

- exactly what they're doing here, yet again.

20 hours ago, Deserted said:

I'm pretty sure that's Rangsit not Prathum Thani.

Rangsit isn't a province - both Rangsit Station (Red Line) and Khu Khot (Green Line) are in Pathum Thani province.