geisha

Don't forget the bad exchange with the euro and the fact that Europe isn't a very happy place at the moment. Nearly all of my usual friends who comfortably retired , normally spend around 4 comfortable months in Phuket through winter are not coming . Thailand isn't cheap any more !

Similar story, was it Brett from Kata/Karon Phuket who disappeared , worried his parents to death, I think the elderly mother came to Phuket to find him ??? He turned up later too, no news on what happened though ?

While admitting we were all young, and sometimes a bit crazy, I for one never hurt my parents and family ! I think it's great for youth to have an adventurous spirit and go off wandering the world . Please put yourselves in the place of these parents , family and friends , who on the eve of Christmas hears from their son that he is in dire straights/ kidnapped/ fallen foul , to some maniac on the other end of the world ! I think he deserves the title of the most mean and uncaring idiot of the year !

For what it's worth, people with that kind of money do not ask those questions.

Ricardo is right, easy, just go get your boarding card in transfer, like we used to do before.

Thank you all, Ive decided not to stopover in Dubai and fly straight through. I'll look in the places you mentioned for my mess but will have enough probably to tide me over.

It is beyond me how these thugs and criminals have been getting away with all this for 20 years now ! I know how things work here, from the Marine 5 to the local police, but why hasn't someone ,one person in the whole of Thailand, tried to stop all these scams ? From the taxis to the jet skis , is there no way of cleaning this place up, and saving a lot of lives while doing so ????

From my experience European airports have very good safety checks and rules, even if they are not the smartest looking. Can you say the same for Thailand ? Or most other Asian airports? Now, we need those organizations to check things that we the passengers can't see don't we? In the air and safety and technical checks. So I would say that all these regular check ups are helping to keep us safe, and that's all. I don't think for a minute they'd give good marks for a bad airline .

Another reason to oblige all tourists to have a return ticket , although I suppose you could get to Thailand with one and miss the return flight. I have seen a few people absolutely stranded in Thailand, and of course the embassies don't help with money. Though in extreme cases I think there should be some legal way of getting them home, insurance? I remember a man in Phuket stranded for ages, and remember the man who was locked up even though he was mentally ill ( some good lady found a way to get him home) . Surely a few plane tickets a year wouldn't break the embassies banks, they have reserves, and when you think of what these embassies cost, I'm sure it would be a drop in the ocean !!!

And what about the bottled water while we're at a it ?????

With all the construction and huge hotels on the other side of the beach road in Karon , and Kata, it's a wonder there isn't even more trash !!!!!

Maybe it's to do with the large amount of unsavory " French" characters that are residing in Thailand, notably on Phuket and In Pattaya. Being French speaking I have heard and seen quite a few. Nearly all these want to be terrorists in France are plain common criminals, having spent most of their youth in prison and youth detention center s. There's a whole lot in Patong that are more than dodgy I can promise you. When I stayed there 5/10 years back I couldn't believe that they were behaving like they owned the place, blatantly calling passes by into their restaurants and flashing their money all over town. Anyone who lives in Thailand and reads the press etc will know how many of these " French" citizens are caught on credit card scams etc. Imo everyone should beware of these people as there are reasons they are in Thailand, and it's not for the beach !

Cant someone send these officials abroad to see how it's done?

Renewable Licenses are given to a certain amount of people that can then exploit a certain amount of chairs/ umbrellas, on a certain amount of beach. These people do not own the beach, and pay rent and taxes.Nobody abuses the system as they would risk loosing their license definitively.

These spots are usually spaced out with public beach in between. The money from the rent pays for local council employees to clean the brand everyday and empty waste bins , install showers and clean toilets for everyone's use.

It's not rocket science , anyone with half a brain could set this up in a week.

Number 6 , asking for hotel booking and or visa for neighboring country seems a new requirement to me. Anyone else seen it before from another country ?

Is it possible that this announcement was before 13 th November?

I've spent a long time in Phuket in the past. I fully know the local rip off s there and the brutal taxi scams . But ! I was there during the tsunami, and the Thai response in helping everyone , foreigners and Thais, was truly amazing! They gave everything they had to help, and I saw thai people take off their own shirts to give to foreigners in bathing suits. They were admirable.

Hi, every now and again , about 3/4 times now over the years, my password does not work , and I have to go through the steps again for a new password. Is this normal ? Also, when I get the new password sent to me, ( a line of letters and numbers) do I have to change it, or can I leave it like that ? I use an IPad and do not use shared devices. Thanks.

Wherever you are in the world, you do not do things like that , especially at a religious ceremony. Couldn't he find a side street, gutter? And this has nothing to do with the kid that died story.

Hi, Im British and living in France, spending a few months in Thailand every winter. I've always had a double entry from Monaco. I've seen lately a few posts on the new visa rules on TV , but can't see anything online here on the Frech websites. I have no problem with the requirements ( though some seem ratherOTT). Monaco hardly ever answers her phone and Paris is awful, does anyone have any news about the new rules? Is it best to wait till after the 13 November for more info ? And will the double entry disappea r as everyone seems to think? Thanks all.

@brling, if you think it's a bunch of laughs being a prostitute, I suggest you try it, wise up!

When a country starts a real education system where kids are obliged to go to school and parents educated enough to send them, then these problems will start to go away. It's only poverty ( mainly) that puts them on the streets. I have seen, as I'm sure many of you have, how the workers who serve us daily in restaurants / hotels/ shops etc live. Seeing for the first time how some of the waitresses in my regular restaurant on Phuket lived nearly had me in tears. That was a long time ago and things haven't changed anywhere. They are not that much better off than the poor devils who work the construction sites ! When I was in Hua Hin I was so surprised to see the public bus arriving on market days full of poor people who didn't have shoes on their feet, and this was only 3 years ago. I'm quite sure none of them went to school. I see a lot of the small villages and rice growing country and the current system is only enticing young people into dubious jobs. Shame. And shame on the government.

Please post a photo when the bruising / swelling goes down. Well done.

I think a few well earned compliments are needed ! Let us not forget the travel forums, all the useful information and personal experiences, advice on what to do and what not to do, this is one I use a lot. Then there is the health forum, which I have used once after a pretty traumatic experience. I was given a lot of help and advice and I deeply appreciated it, it also helped me psychologically as I didn't feel quite so alone. Of course the visa problems, so many of them , and concerning the tourist to the workers and expats. A quick answer when you might need it ! Fun and jokes bring a smile , and some people are crackers, but i for one are so glad that TV exists.

I'm curious to know more about this area of Burma, it's definitely off the beaten track and looks promising.hope you post back on your trip!!!!!

Hi again , all these comments sound terrifying! I don't think the dose I'm after can be very strong, as they are commonly prescribed for pain that parecetemol alone won't help.ive even had an over the counter , well known tablet that is quite common in France ! This is the kind the doctor has prescribed for my shoulder pain, and not some strong codeine mix that leads to all sorts of awful things. Also, I have never had constipation trouble with the dose I'm taking and no side effects. I think the medicine described here is probably for someone in terrible pain/ illness, which is not my case. I've also had tramadol which was quite good too, also no side effects, maybe a low dosage. Thank you all.