mintberrycrunch

44 minutes ago, 3stan said:

Went for a SETV in Penang 1 week ago. Ticket out of the country and hotel booking seem to be required..but an agency (such as JIM) will take care of that for a small fee. I prefer Penang to Vientiane. Having an agent deal with it is just a lot easier imo.

May I ask: what was the fee? 

From memory, Last time Jim charged me 190 ringgit total (150 for visa, 40 for his work). 

So how much extra to 'take care the ticket / hotel? 

Did you actually not have the ticket out, nor the hotel reservation? Yet you still got your visa? 

Thanks 

(I would prefer to go to Penang than Vientiane if possible, as it's more interesting IMO, but I could do without any hassle)

Thanks Joe. You are a fountain of knowledge

So it seems like Vientiane is currently the 'easiest' in the region, would you agree? Only downside is the Lao visa... 

Have you heard anything about Penang requiring 10 days hotel reservation in addition to an onward flight? Do you think it differs depending on who applies: individual or agency? (I previously used reggae Jim, he was great). 

Thanks again

Hi all

My current thai visa expires July 15 so I need to book my flights out. Just need to decide where to go (cheapest / easiest preferably!)

I have previously done both Penang and Vientiane tourist visa runs, and found them both super easy. (In 2016). 

However I have recently read reports that proof of onward travel is required at Penang? And even 10 days hotel reservation? (Quite an added expense :/ )

Are these requirements also applicable to Vientiane and Savannaket? 

Can anyone confirm? 

Lastly, is there now a fee for Malay visa on arrival? (Not free any more?). If so, how much? 

The Lao visa is 35$, correct? 

Thank you all for your input! 

Just to clarify:

I will only be spending another 3 - 4 months here in Thailand, before moving on again. Online teaching seems like a great option because of the flexibility and you can choose your hours. 

I have a laptop of course but it's old, and the shared WiFi at my apartment is probably too slow to meet minimum requirements. 

I'm not going to buy an expensive PC when I'm only going to be here for another 4 months. So that's why I was wondering about internet cafes with private booths because that would seem like the perfect solution. Afaik internet cafes here are cheap. 

Anyway I was just curious. Otherwise I will have to stick with the traditional language schools here... I'm not sure if the y will take me on for just 4months. We'll see...

So I was always sceptical about online teaching, but after a little research, it seems like a legit (and promising) opportunity. 

The only problem is that I don't have the necessary tech (desktop, fast internet, headphones etc.) 

So I was wondering about internet cafes. I remember going to one in Germany that had private booths for Skype calls etc. 

Does anyone know if there are internet cafes like this in BKK, or if this idea is even feasible?

I have heard great things about online teaching, and it's very flexible... I just need to find a (cheap) place to do it. 

Thanks in advance!

***UPDATE 2***

So I just passed through passport control at 4am for my 8am flight.

Passport guy passed me onto another guy, who stamped my passport, handed it back to me and smiled.

No questions, no comments, NO FINE!!! :) 

The stamp is inconspicuous... Not even in English... So it's not like it's a big black mark against me. 

In sum, it appears a 4 hour overstay is not a big deal at least... Although of course I would advise avoiding this scenario if possible, but it looks like a short overstay is no need for panic. 

Thanks everyone for your helpful comments!

UPDATE***

So I came to the airport tonight @ 23:45 (2nd) for my flight tomorrow morning (3rd). (The 2nd is my last day on my passport). 

I checked in online already so had my boarding pass ready. 

Went up to passport control but they were all like 'where you going?' they could see on my boarding pass that my flight is at 08:00, so they were like 'come back at 4 o'clock'.   

So - coming a day early didn't work. 

Let's see now if I get fined later for being 4 hours overstay... 

OP here

Thanks for all the replies guys. My passport clearly says 'permitted to stay until 2 Nov' I.e. Wednesday. My flight is early on 3 Nov. I think I might just chance my luck and turn up on the 3rd. I will report back here and let you guys know if I get fined or not. 

By the way, my flight is with air Asia. I'm pretty sure I can check in online now if I want. Then I would get an e-boarding pass on my phone so I think I could clear immigration the night without going near the check in desk (I have no luggage). 

Does anyone know if the departures area at the Donald airport is comfortable or not? Specifically, are there adjoining seats without pesky armrests where you can lay out and sleep? Busy or no?

Thanks

Thanks Joe :)

Wow that would be awesome if I didn't have to pay the fine! 

I am flying from/to Don Mueng ... I have a couple of tourist visas and just one visa exempt. I just hope my same day in/out doesn't look too dodgy... I just didn't feel like staying the night in KL. I do have a full day to go explore though.

Hi all

My tourist visa extension expires on Wednesday, but I've booked my flight for Thursday (all flights before this were stupid expensive). Even if I get the 500 baht fine, it will still turn out cheaper this way. 

Anyway, what are the chances of getting this fine? What if I go to the airport late on Wednesday, say 11pm? My flight is at 8am on Thursday, so I would have to be there by 6am ish anyway...

Finally, is a one day overstay a big deal? Like, will they put a big red mark in my passport?

By the way, I am doing a same day return to/from Kuala Lumpur... Am I pushing my luck?? Just need to get a final 30days before i leave for good. I do have a ticket out of Thailand back to Europe in case they want to see it.

Thanks guys! ?

^^^ Thanks for the replies guys. 

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, I should have my return ticket back to Europe booked by then, so hopefully that will help if they ask for it at immigration. At least now I have an idea of dates I need to look at to book my flight home. 

One more question: 

When doing an in/out to get my visa exempt (probably to KL or Singapore, because they have free visa on arrival, I think), do I have to stay a night there? Or could I return on the next available flight? Because I think Air Asia do several flights to KL a day... 

(I'm not from one of the Big 7 countries, so I think I would only get 15 days if I did a land border crossing). 

Thanks again dudes

Hi all 

I am in Bangkok and currently on my 2nd consecutive TV. My current 60 day TV expires early October. I will then extend this at Chaengwattana which will take me up to early November. 

At that point, I need to stay just 30 days more to get me to early December, when I will return home to Europe. (no plans as yet to return to Thailand next year). 

So my question is: 

1. -when i get to early November, can I just fly out (to, say, KL) and back in and get one last visa exempt for 30 days? 

2. -or should I apply for another TV, eventhough I only want 30 days and not 60? 

Obviously I would rather option 1, because it's cheaper and quicker. But I'm worried I have too many stamps on my passport and I might get asked 'questions'. (I also have 1 TV from last year). So I will do option 2 if necessary. (Current TV is from Vientianne, previous is from Penang. Both applications were easy). 

Thanks in advance for your advices