drbeach

On 3/7/2020 at 7:38 PM, ubonjoe said:

Not at Ban Phu Nam Ron crossing. You pay 960 baht for transport across no mans land that includes 500 baht for the border pass.

I regularly cross this border now, but with a visa in hand to travel into Myanmar.

I did ask Myanmar immigration about a border pass option. They said it's USD10 and you can visit Dawei and surrounding areas (including the beaches) for up to 2 weeks. You then have to head back the same way you came.

I assume if the OP wanted to, he could tell Thai immigration his intention to travel to Dawei using the border pass option.

I think the 960 Baht transportation thing only applies if you intend to come back the same day. A car to Dawei can be arranged for about 3,000 Baht for a private transfer or 600-800 if you're sharing with other passengers.

However, by August, it will end because the CIQ facilities will move to a new building located right on the border. Once that happens, you can probably just walk the remaining 1km or so to Burmese immigration (which they don't plan on upgrading for some time; only the Thai side has new buildings). Even if they don't allow you to walk, I'm sure Burmese drivers will be waiting on the Thai side in their dozens, eager to take you across...much like in Mae Sot, where there are long lines of Burmese Proboxes waiting near the bridge.

The current situation is somewhat frustrating and confusing - you tell Thai immigration or the guy at the coffee shop just behind that you want to head into Myanmar and he'll call for a car. Said car will be allowed to drive up to the barrier, but not across, meanwhile, lines of Thai cars cross freely with no one checking anything. Could be that some of these vehicles are owned by people who live in between the existing immigration and the new immigration complex, while others arrive from Htee Khee, where dozens of Thai cars drive around every day.

4 hours ago, balo said:

If their holiday in Thailand only last for one week, how can they quarantine for 14 days ??? 

Well they don't come and flights from these countries should be suspended. I'm sure they will be anyway, it's only a matter of time.

On 3/5/2020 at 6:13 AM, pookondee said:

Lately it seems politicians everywhere are making up laws "on the fly" without

thought of how it will work or be implemented.

Thailand is even worse when you consider: Army, Thai thinking and "Thai face" 

 

If anyone, media or otherwise should challenge this Thai minister or ask any awkward questions like above..

the typical Thai answer:

"You think to much"

 

Then If they persist the guy will get furious and start throwing around threats.

which is standard Thai 101.

 

So If you are a tourist coming in soon, add a new lot of <deleted> Immigration officers can throw at you at the airport.

 

Then think about how many times in handling your visa affairs, you will be forced into these options:

 

- travel to an IMMS office for extension.

- exit/ enter the country.

- travel 9+ hours in a van/bus.

- flying in/out.

 

And conside Isaan Songkran (if you are there)

 where they actually drive all around the area on the back of a pick-up and splash each other with water..

perfect way of how to meet people and become infected.

 

Yes maybe I

"Think to mutt"

 

Yes. it was kinda cute and all when there were not such bad implications..

 

but when sหit gets real, i think id prefer to think to much instead of not at all! 

Nobody has ever said that to me. I speak my mind. However, I also speak Thai fluently, which makes a difference.

Listening to the media conference held last week in my car, members of the media asked questions and demanded answers as best they could, although some members of the media covered for others by re-phrasing their questions so the health minister spokesperson could answer. As usual, the answers he provided were peppered with frustration and sometimes evasive answers, not much different to news conferences held in western countries.

Anyway, this year things WILL be different. Songkran has been canceled in a number of places and many Thais will probably be staying home.

KTB, like other banks, offer horrible exchange rates anyway. Anyone with a bit of sense changes money only at independent money changers such as Super Rich.

The most laughably ridiculous thing is the KTB money changer located at Suvarnabhumi on the lower ground floor as you're heading to the ARL. It's opposite Super Rich. No one would ever exchange money there because their rates were much lower than Super Rich. Good riddance if they go out of business - unless they adapt to the competition they're bound to die.

Can always head to Laos for water splashing if you wish. Nothing seems to be cancelled over there.

41 minutes ago, mikebell said:

Sounds like most Thai males' view of parenthood.

What do you mean exactly?

On 3/2/2020 at 5:18 AM, Grumpy John said:

A bit tough on the Vietnamese girls.  I would have thought the ASEAN agreement was working smoothly by now.

What agreement? AEC is nothing like the EU, if that's what you're insinuating. Whether it might be one day, is another story, but don't expect any major changes for years if not decades.

On 2/28/2020 at 12:08 PM, CNXexpat said:

Because the tourists want Thai prostitutes and are shocked when they find out, that the Asian girl comes from Vietnam and the black ones from Africa? Do they feel scammed?

Well, if you wanted a Vietnamese prostitute, wouldn't it make more sense to go to Vietnam? I'm actually surprised there would be any Viet prostitutes in Thailand. Ditto for black African prostitutes - Thailand, an Asian nation with only a few thousand black residents out of a total of 69 million people seems like the last place to come for some African booty.

Maybe Thai men are into African women?

2 hours ago, twocatsmac said:

I was out at the weekend in UD town and it was ram packed as usual, last night still busy enough. 

The Centara hotel now has competition from newer, better hotels on soi Sampan etc so will always be quieter from now on.

Using the bars as a barometer to judge Udon Thani will give a false picture. They’ll  always struggle because they’re mostly <deleted> and only cater for the alcoholic expats, not much to attract the younger clientele.

Higher rents and strong baht obviously haven’t helped in the red light areas but Udon Thani doesn’t rely on the Singha t-shirt crowd for revenue.

Yes it’s quieter than last year, only just. Udon is a University city with plenty of ongoing construction and should fare better than most cities in Thailand in the present climate, helped by its close proximity to Laos.

 

 

Exactly my thoughts. The economy in neighboring countries is also going to take a major hit especially from all the quarantines and travel restrictions. In Laos, the hotel I stay at in Savannakhet is completely devoid of guests - I was the only one present for breakfast. Had a really North Korean feel to it - grand breakfast hall, full of dishes and cutlery but no food!

A favorite restaurant of mine - is always empty. I was the only diner for lunch yesterday (same as last year and 2 years ago). Don't know how they remain in business, though I suspect the proprietor owns the property and thus doesn't have to worry about paying rent. So far have only seen one Chinese registered truck, no private Chinese cars. One doesn't normally see tons of Chinese cars in southern Laos, but usually a fair few, as the Chinese tend to drive throughout the country. Nowadays, none at all. Plenty of Thai and Vietnamese plates as usual though.

As in parts of Thailand I was in recently, like Kanchanaburi - yes there are still tourists but somewhat fewer than "normal". Remains to be seen how things will develop in coming months. When you don't see ANY tourists in touristy places, then it might be time to worry. From what I could tell, in Laos, still plenty of western backpackers and a few elderly people but no Chinese. In Thailand and Myanmar, much the same thing.

Sounds a bit exaggerated to be honest. Just the other day I stopped off at a new shopping plaza on Mitraphab highway in Phol, Khon Kaen. Parking lot full of cars, quite a few shoppers inside (hardly packed, but remember it's Phol not Khon Kaen or Udon Thani). A couple of westerners were shopping inside as well. Shopping malls down in Bangkok a few days earlier, hardly packed, but certainly a sizeable number of patrons; still pretty busy on weekends.

Keep in mind the recent shootings (Lopburi, then Terminal 21 Korat) may have scared some shoppers away from going to malls. While the economy does look like it's dragging it's feet, I feel it's a bit over the top to suggest "everywhere is like a ghost town".

On 2/29/2020 at 6:44 PM, puchooay said:

I would say that the translation of "muang" would be "town". "Mahanakorn" is city. Bangkok is the only place that is recognised as a city. Bangkok is not part of any province.

Nakorn is city - such as Nakorn Phanom, Nakorn Pathom, Nakorn Ratchasima and on train timetables, Nakorn Lampang.

Nakorns and even Muangs are very much cities.

Therefore, Buri Ram and Surin are both cities and provinces, since all provinces in Thailand have Muang districts that share the same name as the province.

On 12/3/2019 at 5:47 AM, jacko45k said:

In it's early days it was Had Lek border, and I remember using it a couple of times. The old name tends to stick in one's head. 

I've noticed that all the Thai immigration stamps refer to either the district the border is in, or the province (if there's just one border crossing in that province). For example, Had Lek is referred to as "khlong yai" on stamps because it's in that district. However, there's no "Mae Sot" only "Tak". Whether this will change once the 2nd bridge opens for foreigners (currently it's only open to trucks) or another border crossing opens in the province remains to be seen. Ditto for Phu Doo (referred to as "Uttaradit" though when it first opened it said "Nan" because immigration was operating out of Huay Kon in Nan). On the Lao side it's just "Phou Dou" (French style spelling).

On 1/20/2020 at 12:51 PM, BritTim said:

A couple of years ago, when through trains ran between Malaysia and Thailand, Padang Besar was an excellent place to enter Thailand (at the station). More recently, immigration clearance at the station has ceased, and you have needed to walk to the nearby road crossing for immigration. Unlike at Poipet, Padang Besar is not exactly lawless, but the woman in charge will look for any possible legal excuse to deny entry. It is an unpleasant experience. In contrast, while Sadao has at times in the past been a horrible, corrupt crossing, reports in the last couple of years have been mostly positive (though there was a single bad report recently).

 

Vientiane and Myawaddy are, indeed, excellent places to enter Thailand, as are the other crossing points from Laos.

 

It is important to stay current on the status of land crossings, airports and embassies/consulates. They can become better or worse than previously.

I concur. A few years ago (around 2012-13) Mae Sot wasn't the most pleasant place to do visa runs due to an unpleasant immigration lady but more recently it's become very straight forward. Vientiane/Nong Khai, although busy, is also very easygoing. So is pretty much every Thai/Lao crossing. BTW there's also a new one now - although a little isolated, open since Feb 1, Ban Huak in Phayao.

On 1/28/2020 at 7:00 AM, elviajero said:

No, but the border has a history of being difficult in the past. Local rules can and do change from time to time.

 

Maybe they asked. These land borders see visa runs all the time.

 

Semantics. By re-entering you are extending your stay in the country.

 

The bottom line is that Non O ME visas are not meant to be used for long term stays, and it’s practice will be ended at some point. Reports like this will become more frequent this year.

That is pure speculation. The Non O ME can be used for residence in Thailand but some borders don't want people to come back the same day, especially if they exit on day 90 and have been doing this continuously for years.

4 hours ago, RobertL said:

I don’t know the way things are looking right now I might as well just cancel and start arguing with ANA about my airline ticket refund now. But if all this blows over and I cancel our trip from Bangkok to Tokyo than I’m gonna feel really stupid. We had a huge trip planned for Tokyo for the 2020 Summer Olympics. I was looking so forward to. So now I’m online doing all the research I possibly can!! So I’m conflicted maybe I should call the airline first and ask them because if it’s that bad I’m sure ANA of all airlines will have a plan or at least a refund plan so maybe I won’t ask for my ticket refund just yet maybe I’ll give it at least a month and see. Who knows maybe it’ll blow over. The way things are looking now maybe watch the Olympics from here but I was looking forward to seeing Tokyo again if it comes to that. Sad. We’ll see, I guess I’m not the only one in this situation obviously. 

They have been saying the Tokyo Olympics could be cancelled. A decision will be made in the next 2-3 months.

23 hours ago, homemade514 said:

Vietnam and Malaysia are now on the MOE list. You will need to quarantine if you go. 
 

im in the same dilemma. 

I've been told the same by my wife, even though Thailand has more cases than either country. Go figure.

I have also read some rather confusing information from Vietnamese news websites suggesting that country is refusing entry to all foreigners who are citizens of or arriving from countries with any cases of the virus? If so, that would mean nobody from Thailand could enter Vietnam yet flights are still running.

I'm a bit confused. Can anyone clarify this?

On 2/24/2020 at 12:31 PM, marko kok prong said:

Do these people ever read papers or watch the news China has mostly stopped people from leaving that's why there are none there,honestly another brain cell and this guy may qualify as being a plant.

LOL. He might also consider relying more on local commuter or local tourists or changing his profession. Tourism is a risky industry to be involved in.

On 2/25/2020 at 9:53 AM, Burma Bill said:

From my experience, avoid Poi-Pet (technically Aranyaphratet Thai side) like the plague! I have made several crossings over recent years and I have always experienced long delays. The worst was 4 hours queuing and my latest, last month, 2 hours! Cambodian Immigration in Poi-Pet never a big problem and generally quick and friendly. 

Ditto for me. The queues are the worst part, though granted, I now always travel in my own car which means I can use the immigration counter for cars, which is located outside. The chaos and traffic as well as arbitrary rules by Thai customs like having to bring along some photocopies of your car registration to re-enter the country make it more of a hassle. I can save time by using Ban Pakkard, which is not that much further away from Bangkok compared to Aranyaprathet.

On 2/24/2020 at 2:54 PM, hughglo9 said:

A side question. I know if I flew from Cambodia to Bangkok I would likely have problems in the airport due to my travel history and TV's, but..

 

What if I flew from Phnom Penh to Chiang Mai?, and tried to get a visa exempt? . There are flights which go via DMK, but I assume I would go through immigration at Chiang Mai and only transit DMK.

 

If I have a recent history of TV's, would I get problems at Chiang Mai?

 

 

 

New direct flights from PP to Chiang Mai start on March 10.

41 minutes ago, Destiny1990 said:

Hi max.. The Danang beaches are chosen as one of the best , widest and cleanest beaches in asia.

but whats ur opinion ????????????

Cleanest? Only during the summer high season when the cleaners have done their rounds. If you visit during the winter off-season, storms bring in all sorts of trash, mostly from China. In December 2018 I stayed at a beach side resort in Danang, the trash was out of this world and the vast majority floated in from China, probably Hainan.

Danang is unfortunately not a year-round beach destination. At best, 9 months of the year can be considered suitable weather/temperatures for swimming, but probably more likely 7-8, similar to the Gold Coast in Australia or northern Florida or South Texas.

On 1/31/2020 at 8:00 PM, Gweiloman said:

Naturally, we don’t discuss illegal immigration here as I don’t think any of us condone it. 
 

My point is that it is a lot harder for an Asian to live legally in the west than it is for a westerner to live legally in Asia. The financial requirements are a lot less, thus I feel that a lot of the complaints are not justified. 
 

Reference your last sentence, countries like Thailand and Vietnam does depend a lot on tourism. But equally, tourism (and especially from Asia) is very important to many European countries as well. Without tourism, countries like the UK, France, Italy, Spain and a whole host of Eastern European countries will also be suffering. 

He does make a good point though. I think SE Asian countries are clearly much more reliant on tourism than any western countries are. Certainly, if one goes online and reads news about SE Asia, whether it's Thailand or Vietnam or Laos, Cambodia etc. the only common factor is that tourism is ALWAYS mentioned as being very important for their economies. It's especially regularly mentioned in reference to Thailand.

And indeed, almost no westerner seeks to sneak into or out of Thailand or any other country in the region (even though it's actually quite easy to do such as getting on a casino boat from Myawaddy to Mae Sot) BUT it's neither a good idea NOR necessary in most cases (unless you are a criminal and need to flee the country). Besides, even if you did manage to remain in the country for a while, being illegal you can probably never hope to achieve legal status or citizenship UNLIKE in say, the USA.

In my experience, Aranyaprathet (Poipet is the name of the town on the Cambodian side...please get it right next time as it confuses people otherwise) is fine with a non-O or non-B multi entry.

However, I must point out I never do a one day in-out. I always spend at least a night in Cambodia - not because I have to but because I want to - I like making a trip out of it. Also, I travel by car - the idea being I drive into Cambodia (usually at O'Smach) and then back into Thailand via Aranyaprathet. If I'm alone and since I'm the owner of the car, I can use the car channel outside, no need to go upstairs. I think the officials at this channel are more easygoing than their counterparts upstairs.

On my last trip I decided to no longer use Aranyaprathet not because I fear that crossing or because people say they're "strict", but rather because it's crowded and chaotic. The previous time I was forced back to the Cambodian side to make some photocopies of my car documents for entry, which I have never been asked to do at any border before. I parked at a casino and walked around to find a photocopy shop. At least half an hour wasted on some ridiculous bureaucracy.

I would thus recommend another border such as Ban Pakkard. Even better (if you're crossing the border on foot) is Ban Laem because the Thai and Cambodian posts are right next to each other. Minimal walking is required. Or you could try Chong Chom/O'Smach (located 100m apart), Chong Sa-ngam (ditto) or Hat Lek-Koh Kong (separated by less than 200m of "no man's land"). The latter has a poor reputation for overcharging on the visa on the Cambodian side, but they do accept a Cambodian e-visa, which saves time and avoids this problem.

Therefore, OP, if you insist on a same day "in-out" with your visa, choose any other crossing other than Aranyaprathet for the simple reason that it's more hassle than it's worth.

Other worthy options are Mae Sai-Tachilek and Mae Sot-Myawaddy. You pay US$10 for the day pass (don't give them the satisfaction of paying 500 Baht - they will always accept dollars provided they're in good condition).