buzz

I have a Non-Immirgant B. I want to change to Retirement. Is it basically the same procedure as for a Non-O ?

Thanks for that Inthai...

Anybody know the correct number for the Thai Travel Agents Association ?

The numbers I was given are 02-266-6934/5, 02-2666-6923, but do not work (not answering) ...

Thanks for your input onethailand ... I tried contacting TAT but haven't been able to get thru yet ... agree the standard ticket issue is about 1 week, so if they have gone out of business it's just recently as they must have kept extending it ... I'm getting a friend to go check their office hopefully today

a new ticket is going to cost we another 25,500bht ... all up it's going to cost me 45,500bht to go Bali from Bkk ...

the actual booking is still valid till Sept 6th, but the money hasn't been paid to TG and thus the ticket has not been issued...

Called TG and they said yes, they still had a 'booking' for me and that ticket issue deadline was Sept 6th 7pm.

I have had a great relationship with Siam Golf Tours & Travel for over 4 years ... live on Samui but travel frequently ... just call/email Siam Golf (On Nut, Bkk) make a booking - have it confirmed - put money into their account - print the ticket and away I go ...

I booked and paid for a ticket to Bali way back in June (to avoid the fuel surcharge increase by TG from June 24th) ... emailed them to send me the e-ticket last monday (email went thru ok) - no response - emailed again and the mail could not be delivered - tried many times, same result ... started phoning them on their mobile number and office number - mobile not switched-on and office phone never answers ...

Called TG and they said yes, they still had a booked for me and that ticket issue deadline was Sept 6th 7pm.

Called IATA to find that they have no record of them ... so, I presume they are like a sub-agent ... majority of Thai travel agents probably do operate this way ... anyway, have never had a problem before ...

I think they have closed shop/done at runner and have pocketed my 20,000 odd baht ... such a dissappointment after years of great service ... and getting 'done' for 20,000bht also hurts !

A thai friend said they have probably shut down temporarily since the 'state of emergency' was declared ... but i don't think so ...

Anyone know what can I do further? (other than just right it off as a loss)

cheers ...

I don't think a referendum is required - as soon as you reach 50,000 residents it's automatic as far as i know ... one of our local 'rags' reported a few months ago that Samui only needed another few hundred to reach the magic 50,000.

They did do quite a bit of drainage works update in the Lamai area in the past year ... they have also been slowly repairing sections of damaged concrete ring-road from Lamai to Nathon (don't know about other areas) - but i did notice that some of the repaired sections had already broken-up in places again before i left last monday after the recent heavy rains of the previous 3 weeks.

We need city-status for sure ... but ARE the locals capable of doing the right thing once they get the reins ? who bloody knows ... (look at how the mafia familys run the 'taxi-meter' scam - this one pisses me off the most as a tourist business owner)

Don't forget it is an island in the tropics and some years it will just bucket down and floods will happen no matter what - some years are dry and we have to buy water ... go figure ... plus, local bureaucrats are not of 1st world level by far ... you just gotta live by it ... that's how it is...

I came in via BKK airport with a B-visa, and got a 30D. CNX immigration rectified the error immediately.

Same thing happened to me (on arrival Oct 19th) - always get 3 mths on my 'B' Visa (past 12 years) , but she/he only stamped 30days .... have become so used to getting the 3mths I normally take it for granted that they've stamped me 90 days so didn't notice till I was in my hotel room ...

Glad to hear this happens from time to time because I was just a little worried ... anyway, had already planned to go to Vietnam next month so no probs - BUT, I will be checking immediately what I've been given every time from now on...

This is so ridiculous ... the ring can not dissapear inside the machine ... if it showed up on the x-ray, then it went thru the machine and came out the other end ... someone must have grabbed it when it cam thru ... either another passenger or the security staff ... why didn't the Dr realise his ring was missing when he got his stuff out of the basket ? If he did, then, he could've alarmed security and other passengers or staff could have been searched !

Why take the ring off in the first place ? as some one else mentioned, I've never been asked to take my ring off ...

PS: Thais going for student type - special education - visas are generally accepted as well.

Sorry to be frank, but I think there is a good chance they will refuse the visa.

They don't have to provide a reason, but the reason could be your boyfriend has no job to return to ... the people at the Embassy doing the processing more than likely will sum up the risk - that being , that he will not want to return, is quite large ... reason being - even he has parents to take care of here, the tempation for him to earn money in Australia and send it back to his parents is quite possible ... (your personal gurrantees that he won't have to work will not count)... also, your relationship actually causes problems as well ... they just don't believe a Thai person who has no job to return to here, will go to Australia on a tourist visa to stay with his boyfriend, and NOT want to overstay and/or work...

Thai people currently employed, who have a decent work history, bank account records, and a letter from their current employer that states they will be returning to work upon their return, generally don't have any problems getting a tourist visa to Australia.

Even Thai's who are unemployed, and usually wealthy, and who are generally going as real tourists (ie: not visitng long term boyfriends) booked on package type tours, have no problems.

Personally, sometimes I think, it's better not to mention the relationship and just set up the application as being just wanting to go to Australia to travel around (maybe to say hello to some Australians who he had met in Thailand) - but you need to have proof to show someway that the Thai applicant has had money of his own for a reasonable period ... has booked dates and has airline details for all flights... maybe mention places wanting to visit in Aussie etc...

I tried applying the same way you want to do years ago, and got refused... it turned into a real saga !

I worked for a large Resort here for years, and generally our staff had no problems in getting tourist visas for all countries because we guranteed their continueing employment upon return to Thailand.

Good luck whichever way you go.

Buzz

I hear there is good surf around Puket at this time of year, I have surfed Kho Samui at about 1 metre, nice beach break. Has anyone surfed Phuket? I have heard there is a couple of nice point breaks on a large swell but I have no idea where.

definitely the wrong time of year for surf in Phuket ... best is May ~ Sept ... and even then it's very fickle ... mostly get storm swells from wind - if your lucky and get a rain squall hit, it can be glassy either before or after ... but, it gets over-crowded a lot as well ... most guys surf Kata, Karon and Kalim ... the surf contest they hold there is a bit of a joke - the last 2 years was run in pitifully small waves ...

I just had a swim at Lamai Beach and it's not even breaking ! Only about 1/2 mtr swell at the most ... Chawang gets more swell, so it might have a tiny waves close to the shore ... I've been living here 12 years and only had about 1 or 2 surfs in that time ... if you want real surf, go to Bali ...

Does anybody know if this will affect the night boats going from Surat to Koh Phangan? Is there a tel number to try and find out or is it a matter of pitch and see?

Try calling Seatran Ferry on 077-246086 ...

I've got to fly home to Samui proong-nee ...

ANYBODY got an idea how long approximately it's going to take to get there (new airport) from Sukumvit Soi 3 in a taxi ???

who said I didn't have compassion ? especially for the families and children ... you've twisted things around...

Not surprised. People do dangerous work with little or no protection every day in Thailand.

Great, criticizing dead mechanics, that shows a lot of compassion and sympathy. Whatever the reason, do you think it is any easier for the families and children.

You've hit the nail on the head BlackJack ... very most likely 'operator error' rather than a system failure ...

Don't forget this is thailand were i've seen 'em 'hammering' screws into door hinges to hang doors as well as heaps of other unmentionables on construction sites and the roads in general ! (My 'favourite' one is how they love to overtake going round a corner up a hill) ... but all in all i still love the place & most of the people....

no i bet there was nothing wrong with the system or the machinery - its the maniac thai attitude that they can do anything, fix anything, creat anything - when in fact this is not the case as is proven now.

Remember the MTR crash and countless other mindless incidents.

They simply refuse to follow instructions or guidelines- over confident - you bet

NEXT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you've ever had anything to do with construction in Thailand - this is completely the 'norm' ... bigger the project the bigger the 'f..k-ups'

How much is the legal price of Windows XP in Thailand anyway ?

And how much the U.S. , and say UK and/or Australia ?

I'm sure I wasn't dreaming ... definitely read the story in the Bangkok Post ... dosen't anyone know if you can get a Non-Immigrant "B" visa valid for 3 years instead of the normal 1 year vailidity ?

I can remember reading about 6 months ago that you could now get a Non-Immigrant B visa valid for 3 years ... is this still correct ?