buick

i'd go with Emirates. i've got a trip i'm setting up soon. i'm looking at the 2:00am dep (BKK) and arrive JFK 2:25pm (both flights on A380). return is dep JFK at 11:20am, arrive BKK at 6:55pm (both flights A380). 2.5 hr layover and one hour 45 minutes for the other one.

i've been using a 2s model from Xiaomi for a couple years (only use during the bad air months). it works great. i've recommended their models to others and they've been happy with theirs.

i also prefer the orange can noted by a couple others.

most ATMs i use in Bangkok have a screen at the very end of the transaction. something about 'doing a conversion', you want to answer NO to that. don't answer YES. one bank's ATM specifically mentions a 5% fee related to 'the conversion', i think it's SCB. maybe others do also and i haven't noticed. i'm pulling cash from my account in USA. it comes out in THB. so somehow i get the 'conversion' without answering YES. i can't explain it. maybe someone else can. edit: i'd say this new screen with the conversion question started showing up about a year ago. maybe a little longer than that. and wasn't on all ATMs in the beginning. much more common now.

i used the C section at CW to go from exempt to 90 day Non O - retirement. 2017 and 2021. both times there was not much of a wait. one or two people in front of me. if you can get an appt that's great, but probably not much of a wait if you go in person. for me, the C desk has been the area that takes the least time if you go with no appt, compared to O extensions, 90 day reports in person, tourist visa extension, re-entry permit, etc.....

if your 800k is held in a Foreign Currency Account - eg. the equivalent of 800k in a different currency - you don't need the bank statements.

i did the Exercise Stress Test at Bumrungrad, as a separate thing, not part off the Health Screening Package where they do all sorts of stuff (including the EST). it was 10,000thb. that's just a data point for you. not saying it's the best place. i'm also interested in the artery calcium scan, will probably do that in the next year or so. let us know what you find out there.

i agree. real easy. no lines, no hassles.

DJIA to 5,000 ? it's at 40,000 now.

i've crossed their several times, i've got friends in Buriram and i've done a couple true border bounces (to get new visa exempt) plus a couple visits just for the casino (on a Non-O retirement). a couple times, i had to pay the Cambo folks a fee to come/go same day. i think it was 300thb. they asked how long i was staying when i got the Cambo visa. it didn't happen every time, i'd guess it was 2 out of 5. be it a scam or not, i wasn't going to make a fuss about it.

i'm still seeing BEIN 1, 2, and 3 on True. might the message you saw have said F1 wouldn't be shown on BEIN after August 1 ? with F1 on the summer break, we may not know for sure until the next race in roughly 30 days. i may be wrong as my memory does fail at times, but i recall F1 being dropped by a channel on True but was then picked up by another one, i think one of the TSP (1,2,3 etc..) channels. i believe it was BEIN who stepped in the next year.

i did an in person 90 report at CW two weeks ago. the IO did not ask me to see a TM30 or to update the TM30 (or give me the stamp you posted a picture of). my apartment manager gives me a screenshot of the TM30 in the immigration system for my visit to do the one year extension each year. unfortunately, i don't know when she updates it so i can't say how old it is.

thank you for the info, i was not aware that appts could be made for the 90 day reports. i did see desk A2, is that the area that handles appts ? where do you check in when you have an appt ? the appt system sure made the one year extension much easier. i didn't mind this 2 hour session at CW but i'll gladly take a less than 30 minute session instead !!

reportedly, CW now requires an in person 90 day report if you've just returned to the country. i've been on the NON O for almost 8 years and that's only the 4th 90 day report i've done - two in person and two online (before rule change). i travel a few times a year so don't need to them much.

you can get the TM47 Form at the desk just inside the entry door to the Immigration section.

i had my passport and the TM47 form. nothing else. thanks for the link, i hadn't heard of appts for 90 day reports. i don't do them often given my travel schedule so don't pay alot of attention to some of the posts on the topic.

i arrived CW at 9am on Tuesday (this week, holiday weekend coming up), got queue A1 127. they were on number 34 at the time of my arrival. there is now an electronic board at the entrance to the immigration office area which shows the current queue number for each area inside (in the past i've used sections A, C, J, K, L but there are more !!). maybe i missed that board on my last visit as i had an appointment at the L section and wasn't focused on a queue number. that board made it a little easier to keep track of where i stood, not having to go back to the actual A area. at 11am, i went to the A area as they were on 120 at that point. while i stood there, i noticed someone sitting down with 210 and another person with 259. i was done at 11:15am. i'm fairly certain the 210 and 259 folks didn't finish before the lunch break. if you want to be done by the lunch break, an arrival after 9:15am or so might be pushing it. i can only speculate but that person with 259 arrived before 11am, will be there through the lunch break, and likely two hours after that - i waited 2 hours for them to process about 100 people, so they'd be doing the same. earlier this year, i didn't do a 90 day report. i flew out around day 105. no mention of this 'miss' was made by the 90 report desk person.

the two places i've seen crowded in Patpong are Shenanigans and King Castle 1. the main soi seems to be the only one with life, the other soi that had The Strip, Electric Blue (years ago), and Paddy Fields is not looking good at all. Nana is far better than Cowboy if you are interested in go go bars. i prefer Billboard, Geisha, and Red Dragon.

on the day that you apply for the Non O, you will be given a date to return to have the Non O stamp placed in your passport. it is typically 10 business days. i changed from visa exempt to Non O twice (2017 and 2021) at CW in BKK. both times my 90 day Non O began on the day of application - not the day the stamp was placed in passport. i've stated this a few times on this forum and others that did the same at CW claim their Non O started the day they got the stamp. keep that in mind if you are booking travel before you are sure what date your extension is due by/the end date of your 90 day Non O.

the one tiny gripe i have on the appts process is you have to queue in front of that first cubicle. it seems a bit awkward, i wasn't sure the IO wanted me standing there. plus the one time i did it another person was already standing there, but the IO eventually pointed to me, so i looked over at the other person, they didn't say anything. so i went ahead and 'cut in line'.

BGC is the place in Manila. everything is walkable until you need to go to P Burgos, which is only a 10 minute taxi ride if you leave after 8:30pm. i always stay at the F1 Hotel. two good restaurants for me are Agave (mexican) and Va Bene Pasta (Italian). for lunch i enjoyed a salad place, SaladStop!, which has a bunch of different salads to offer or you can customize your own. there is also a Shake Shack next to SaladStop. another one is Brotzeit, a german place, nice outdoor seating - had a great pork loin there. there are a bunch more restaurants in Burgos Circle (which is in BGC, not P Burgos), including another outlet of SaladStop! the High Street Mall is a good place to walk around, Burgos Circle is at one end. sometimes you spot some freelancers. my first visit to MNL was in 2008 and i had real problems with the food selection. i did find some decent offerings at the Green Belt Mall and that helped me survive. but i found MNL to be pretty dire at that time. a friend of mine lived in La Union, a couple hours north of Angeles and he bought a condo in BGC around 2012 or so. that's when i got introduced to it. it is the one place i'd consider living if i needed to depart Bangkok. i like Saigon and Danang but couldn't live in either one. i like Hong Kong but too expensive. i go to BGC at least once a year. my understanding is there is an immigration office in BGC also.

sorry for the delayed response. exit ramp - that is the slightly 'downsloping' area coming out of the immigration area, landside to airside. it would be 'upsloping' if you are airside going to landside. hall - this refers to the immigration area. there are two main 'halls', one has a re-entry permit desk, the other one does not. the one with the desk is closest to A/B/C concourses.

you won't have a problem when you arrive and go through immigration. i've left many times after day 90 but before day 120 and no problems at all when i return. in the past, i was able to do an online report first time after re-entry (that includes times when my previous stay was over 90 days with no report filed). maybe things have changed ?

go through the Business Class/Fast Track lane to get airside. once airside, proceed to the exit ramp for the Hall with the re-entry desk (towards the A/B/C concourses). go up the ramp and turn right. there are signs there. after right turn to end of immigration desks, look to your left and you'll see the re-entry permit desk. many people believe you must get a re-entry permit BEFORE you are stamped out, that is WRONG. lots of people do it after being stamped out. i've been doing this for many years. some claim it is 'poor form' as if i'm doing something wrong, even though there are signs directing you to the desk from the airside area !! it must be OKAY !! when i say i've never had a problem, i get 'confused' and 'laughing' emojis from those 'not in the know'.

the re-entry permit desk is accessible BEFORE and AFTER the stamp out process. not a problem to get stamped out first and then go to the desk. you can get stamped out in any immigration hall and still access the desk, just walk airside and enter the hall with the desk from the backside and turn right, then left using a lane to the re-entry desk. if you are stamped out in the hall with the desk, you turn left, then left up the lane to the desk.