Caldera

Good decision, the Isaan region already has enough if not too many airports offering a few domestic flights per day.

If Thailand had decent highways, most wouldn't even be needed. 

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Those who don't receive such outreach can continue with their banking activities without worry.

The problem with that silly approach is that you won't know if they haven't contacted you because (a) your registration is fine and your name match is confirmed or (b) they haven't gotten around to it yet or have screwed up the notification.

I've heard nothing from my banks and I know that my SIM card is properly registered in my name. No need for me to worry, says the guy. And yet, there's a lingering suspicion that their name matching exercise could go wrong, especially with foreigners and complications like middle names.

Now I'm in Thailand and could fix whatever needs fixing with relative easy, what worries me is that they might have another go at it while I'm abroad and unlikely to be able to visit my bank at a moment's notice. 

If I was him, I wouldn't want to rock the boat. I think public sentiment would be in favor of requiring those who receive state pensions to spend them back home.

It wouldnt surprise me if you'll need to be resident in your home country to receive these kinds of pensions in the not-too-distant future, given the precarious financial situation of Western governments and social security systems. Allowing this guy to relocate to Thailand and to spend his pension money here? I'd bet many of his fellow pensioners who are stuck in Blighty resent that!

Having a physical altercation over a dime-a-dozen Pattaya slapper is beyond stupid.

On 4/24/2025 at 3:36 PM, ddl said:

I’ve been buying crypto on an exchange (nothing shady, just regular P2P stuff), but now my bank account is under review - restrictions, weird checks, that kind of thing. I haven’t done anything illegal

What makes you think that doing a P2P crypto exchange is legal in Thailand?

On 4/25/2025 at 9:59 AM, Ben Zioner said:

Thanks, been thinking about this for a while. Just worried about banking fees, as my FCDs (Foreign Currency Deposits) are with Bangkok Bank.

Same here, I just make free instant transfers from my Bangkok Bank account to my Kasikorn Bank account as needed. No problem. 

12 hours ago, webfact said:

Children can now sport regular school uniforms or PE kits, with scout scarves as the only requirement.

Wearing just a scout scarf with otherwise regular attire is just sad. Either do it right or don't do it at all.

I stopped using my Bangkok Bank card for online payments many years ago, ever since they changed to TPN it has been unreliable at best.

No problems whatsoever with my Kasikorn Bank cards, on the other hand. So that would be my recommendation if you're looking for a reliable alternative. 

11 hours ago, webfact said:

Scorching temperatures have hit parts of Thailand, including Phuket and Bangkok, with the heat index soaring to "very dangerous" levels.

Like every year at this time. Meh.

On 4/23/2025 at 12:56 PM, GammaGlobulin said:

So, is the USA doomed?

Yes.

I had to check my calendar reading this. Surprisingly, we're more than three weeks past April 1st already. 

On 4/23/2025 at 4:31 PM, snoop1130 said:

The court prohibited Nestlé from producing or distributing its famed instant coffee under the Nescafé brand

I'd argue that not having access to this "famed" yet shoddy instant coffee isn't a big loss! 

Looks like Thailand is yesteryear's destination of choice for Chinese travelers, nowadays they prefer to travel to Japan

I don't think there's anything Thailand can do to change that. Those scams, boat accidents and abductions sure didn't help!

On 4/23/2025 at 4:50 PM, snoop1130 said:

As of April 21, 2025, the Swedish furniture giant announced that cash payments will no longer be accepted

Better make sure that your payment terminals work at all times then. I still remember trying to pay cashless at an IKEA restaurant once when the lady couldn't get the terminal to work. Back then I could pay cash, what would I do in the future?

20 minutes ago, JB300 said:

I asked the question because as I said, other posters in the past (couple of years ago) said they were able to get an LTR with >$40k annual income & the promise of future pension income

The "promise" of future income doesn't matter. You can qualify with $40k/yr income plus an investment. Which is what you have in mind, just why you mention 10 million baht is a mystery (it's $250k).

8 hours ago, emptypockets said:

Surin

It's worth noting that many immigration offices do issue a certificate of residence to someone who entered Thailand visa exempt. Even Bangkok nowadays, where that used to be impossible in the past.

Which means that, being a tourist on visa exempt, you can "shop around". If you're in Surin and they refuse to issue you one, book a hotel in another province where they do issue them to tourists. Sorted.

11 hours ago, webfact said:

Sai claims he confronted the tourist and demanded their expulsion from the Krabi park for the perceived slight.

Clearly he wasn't a suitable person for his park ranger job.

On 4/18/2025 at 4:09 PM, snoop1130 said:

The incident unfolded when the tourist allegedly greeted Sai with “Ni Hao,” a Mandarin phrase for “hello,” which Sai interpreted as a racial slur, given that he is Thai, not Chinese.

Good grief.

16 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Freight volume data underscores this shift: transport between Thailand and the Lao PDR surged from 2,288 tonnes in 2021 to 46,287 tonnes in 2023, soaring further to 63,676 tonnes in 2024—a 37.56% increase from the previous year.

And pre-Covid? Everything looks great when compared with times of closed borders.

On 4/14/2025 at 11:57 PM, altayvan said:

Just wondering if anyone else feels this shift? Or is it just me, feeling a bit left behind?

I think it's just your perception.

Thailand has been chasing a higher tourist spend for years, so there's been no shift.

It just doesn't materialize, no matter what they try. The result is always the same: they open the flood gates and make do with whoever they can attract. Only to whinge about low quality tourists later.

On 4/14/2025 at 8:09 AM, Red Phoenix said:

The upping of the 30-days to a 60-days permission to stay when entering Thailand Visa exempt was introduced to boost tourism and meant to be 'temporary'.    

They didn't make it temporary unlike when they had previously upped it to 45 days though. So whatever they'll do next (and when) remains to be seen.

What they failed to make clear is if "Thai residents" means "residents of Thailand" which would include some foreigners or "Thai nationals" which would exclude them. The example given (foreign tourists being excluded) isn't really helpful to determine that.

As the BTS and the MRT currently have different policies on whether the discount for the elderly applies to foreigners, that's quite an important distinction.

On 4/10/2025 at 9:46 AM, JoseThailand said:

How is it possible to be so stupid and not understand this?

How come you're still moaning about Songkran after all those years? 

5 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

My experience is you can if the automatic system will not approve you.

Not sure if anyone can just walk up to an Imm officer.

Whenever I've exited, you could. Someone would direct people to the auto gates, but if you just walked past to the manned booths, nobody has taken any action to force you to use the auto gates.