smileplur

^^ Predictive text on my phone ... sigh ...

I don't really know. I guess that depends on traffic. My boss makes the commute everyday to Klong Toey from there, so it can't be too bad. I drive s motorbike or car. By bike, it takes me about 10 minutes most of the time.

How about the biggest park in Bangkok? It's just a song thaw ride away. Check out the giant park behind Paradise Park. 8 baht by songthaew.

How about the biggest park in Bangkok? It's just a song thaw ride away. Check out the giant park behind Paradise Park. 8 baht by songthaew.

I am trying to get my head around this, so please forgive my ignorance. I have never heard of this card until I read this thread and a few others. My situation is simple. I have AIA Insurance from my employer. It is pretty worthless. I was involved in an accident. In the end, my broken leg required surgery and implants. It cost me 300,000 baht. Time was critical, so I didn't have time to search the internet looking for options. I bit the bullet and had the operation. My insurance only covered 30,000 of the cost. That is in the past. I can't change it. My leg is fine now; although, I suffer from moderate to severe pain from time to time.

My questions are basic. I live in Bangkok. I would like to register at a government hospital for reasonably priced health care. I would prefer Chulalongkorn Hospital. My son was born there. That was a positive experience. I have a couple of weeks off now, so I would like to do whatever I need to do. Do I simply go to the hospital and register there? Is there are fee? Do I need to select a certain hospital based on where I live in Bangkok, or am I free to choose?

I apologize if this isn't within the scope of this thread. I would just like to know how to register and where I should go to register for affordable health care. I have found out the very difficult way that healthcare can be very expensive. I would like an affordable solution. I am not getting any younger.

Thank you for any help!

That is a serious price gap. I wonder if the figures are misquoted. I don't understand how such a large price difference could exist. Then again, two people are dead because of the inferiority of the cheaper products. It doesn't matter where they are made. When it comes to an activity like jumping out of an airplane, you don't let price be a major contributing factor in the decision making process for sourcing materials. Otherwise, catastrophic things like this can happen. That is blindingly obvious to virtually everyone with the slightest bit of common sense. RIP. May there be swift justice, if possible, for those involved in this tragedy.

I live on On Nut Rd. Got to Sukhumvit 93 (Bang Chak BTS). I buy them at the market there once or twice a week!

Personally, I have done it myself on a couple of occasions. Both times were at Udon Thani flying to Bsngkok. Air Asia and Nok Air are next to each other. I selected the cheapest ticket available for the next flight out. I think I paid 1200 baht each time and departed within an hour. It was low season. Nok even gave me a key chain that I still used to this day.

Klong Toey market is the mother of all markets. It's where other markets go to buy the things they sell. You are going to pay that markup if you go elsewhere. Also, the quality and freshness will not be as good as a result of the transportation and poor storage I the heat. It's up to you! I would stick with KT even though I find it pretty disgusting.

Is it possible for retirees to obtain a CC in Thailand with a substantial deposit of cash in a fixed deposit account?

Of course. That is called a secured credit card. Banks prefer it, as they have nothing to lose. They can only gain from their primary sources of income, interest and merchant charges.

Secured credit card appears to be an American option, and prepaid another option I don't find on my Thai bank website.

If any retiree here has obtained a credit card from their Thai bank I would like to hear of how they did it.

Thanks in advance.

Edit: my status is retired with 800,000 on deposit in Thai bank.

It certainly isn't just an American option. It is an option that exists with banks in most countries around the world. Having looked extensively at the credit card pages on most of the Thai bank's websites, I don't ever recall seeing the option explicitly stated in writing. However, this forum has dozens of posts about obtaining a credit card. Many of these posts come from retired people. Despite not being stated on their websites, Thai banks do offer "secured" cards. When you go into a branch to apply or get information, they are likely to present this as the "only" option available for retirees who don't have a work permit with no source of verifiable income in Thailand. Any bank manager will be able to give the details of a secured card and their policies for that particular bank. It is worth noting that each branch seems to have their own interpretation of the rules, so each branch may differ slightly in terms of what they are prepared to offer.

If you do a search of this forum (and others), you will find countless posts about secured credit cards. Again, the bank loves this option because it minimizes the risk completely for them. You will have to deposit your money into some sort of a fixed account that can be used as collateral for the balance you accrue on the card. If you pay it off monthly, you won't pay interest. Also, you should have the opportunity to accumulate points towards whatever incentive program they offer. For retired people or those who need to keep funds "seasoned" in a bank account here, this might be an acceptable option. For me, it defeats the purpose of having a credit card. There are a number of debit cards in Thailand that will allow you to make online purchases, so a credit card isn't required.

I would suggest you select the bank you would like to have a card with. Then, go into a branch that is convenient for you. If you find one in a tourist area, you are more likely to find someone who speaks a reasonable amount of English which will be helpful. Otherwise, bring a competent translator with you. Make sure they are up to speed with their bank terminology. Words like interest, grace period, accrue, balance, etc. may not be in the vocabulary of casual English speakers. It might be worthwhile to sit down with them and discuss these words and your requirements before visiting a bank to ensure things go smoothly. The key is to accumulate points, pay no annual fee, and have a grace period for interest. Unfortunately, interest rates seem to be the same for all of the banks, so that isn't a primary concern. I do find 20% to be rather high, but it is what it is. You aren't going to be able to change that! Best of luck to you!

Is it possible for retirees to obtain a CC in Thailand with a substantial deposit of cash in a fixed deposit account?

Of course. That is called a secured credit card. Banks prefer it, as they have nothing to lose. They can only gain from their primary sources of income, interest and merchant charges.

Thank you very much spoonman had a look at the rates and prices are good hop it is safe and one more thing my car is in my name not a Thais name I not give thai lady every thing I not stupid like a lot I see on this forum .

No worries mate. I would go out there well before you departure though and check the price....... just incase.

I would second that advice. We went the day before our departure to confirm that we could get the monthly rate. They said it was possible when we called, but we wanted to make sure. I don't live too far away, so we drove out to make sure. We found what I posted above.

Just a note about my own observations at the long-term parking lots at Suvarnabhumi .... My wife and I went there to ask about obtaining the monthly rate to leave our car there when we went to America. We were going to be gone for 21 days or so. We attempted to get the monthly rate, as it was affordable for us. They refused to give us the monthly rate. We were told we must pay the daily rate since we weren't going to be leaving the car there for the entire calender month. They told my wife that would also be the case if we stayed for 45 days. The car would get the monthly rate for one month and then pay the daily rate for the additional 15 days. That made it very expensive for us!

Thanks for that all.

Just need an emergency card, convenience. I loathe credit and esp credit cards. Sometimes you just need it, car rentals for instance. Some online purchases.

I'm tempted to move to Krungsri. Just not enough banks and atms. Getting better though.

For the purposes of having a Credit Card, why do you need an abundance of branches and ATMs? Unless you are planning to take a cash advance on the card which would result in a "no grace period" situation, you would never need to use an ATM or go into a branch. I'm not sure where you are located, but Krung Sri branches and ATMs in Bangkok are literally everywhere. They are every bit as common as Bangkok Bank and Kasikorn Bank. Their network seems to be much larger than Siam Commercial Bank's network in Bangkok. I cannot speak for other provinces or areas. The number of branches and ATMs shouldn't have any impact on your decision for obtaining a Credit Card. Good luck! If your salary is stable and can be verified with pay slips and and statements showing the monthly deposit of your salary (I needed 6 months of statements from UOB where my salary is deposited), getting a First Choice card should not be a problem. As I said, that's why I have two cards. The First Choice card was a "sure thing" according to Krung Sri. They told me they have had teachers from the Philippines obtain the card with a much lower salary than mine.

I stand corrected. I knew something didn't feel right when I was posting before bed last night. I was thinking of Train-Inn rather than We-Train. Yes, wetrain used to be a close option to Don Muang. I am not sure if it still exists or not. I will try to ask a friend who lives in that area at work today if I remember to do so!

I can't help with a cheap guesthouse near Don Muang, but I thought We Train was near the train station. It'd be closer to go find a flop house on KSR than go to Hualamphong. I may be mistaken and have ,y names mixed up though.

I should add tat they did nothing else. I mean nothing. They didn't even check my blood pressure.they do know me after going there for damn medical certificates for one reason or another over the years, driving license, etc. They didn't even look at my passport. They simply asked the number!!

Sukhumvit 77 Clinic. Like the name suggests, it's in Skhumvit 77 (aka: On Nut). It's opposite Big C, about 5 minutes walk from Sukhumvit Road. 400 baht including the blood test for Tertiary Syphilis. It takes 10 minutes. It's always accepted. I haven't been able to find it cheaper or faster. In fact, I'm not entirely convinced they even check the blood. Tertiary Syphilis would be apparent to the naked eye should one have allowed the disease to progress to that stage. I'm pretty sure they would have no hesitation signing off that a person was negative based on a regular exam action using their eyes, but together insist the blood test must be taken per government regulations. This was accurate last week when I had it done fir my annual renewal.

It's been a whie sinceive checked, but I previously found long term rates at te airport a bit pricy! Are there any other options out there? In the US, there are usually a lot of smaller lots that ar privately owned near major airports with free shuttle services. Does something like this exist over here?

I've been with AIS for many years. I've heard these carriers offer significant discounts if you threaten to eave. I never had a single problem in many years, but my last bill was 100 baht higher than usual and I can't figure out why just yet. I just got an SMS telling me ow much they were charging me for this cycle. DTac has a plan that's cheaper and suits my needs. I might give AIS a call and tell them about the deal. I wonder if they might offer me a similar deal. It's wortha shot if the discounts can be that significant! Is this really normal when you call and tell them you're considering switching carriers?

I have two unsecured credit cards in Thailand. Both are with Krung Sri. I have a First Chiice Card. I applied for this first, as the bank said it was easier to get for most people. They said they didn't have experience with faring applicants, ant they could only help me with the application at the bank (ensuring all the documents were in order, signed, etc.). From there, the application is sent to the credit department for evaluation. It has nothing to do with the branch in my experience despite many threads that state otherwise. The girl at the bank and even the bank manager don't make decisions about extending credit, unsecured or otherwise. They just forward paperwork. At the same time, I applied for a Platinum Visa Card which had sone additional benefits (airport lounges, etc.). They were right.

My First Choice Card arrived about a week later. That was plenty for me. I didn't expect a full-blownPlatinum Card. Nonetheless, it came in a nice package about 5-6 weeks after my application. So, it certainly is possible! I don't have an extremely large salary as a teacher, but I have been with the same job for several years. Despite haing a savings account with Krungsri, they weren't interested in any details about it. They wanted statements for the previous 6 months from the bank my salary is deposited into. They Lao wanted my most recent salary slip. It was as easy as that!

No, all of my bills are automatically charged to the card (except rent and car payment) and I collect points for miles instead of paying 7-11 for the privilege of Counter Service, using the ATM or anything els. Just one bill for everything with 45 days interest free grace. Againg, it is possible and was quite easy in my case!

Let me inject some of my own reality. I have seen a test (a stick dipped into a urine sample) that tested for several substances at once. There were several "windows" on the stick that would change color to show a positive result for each substance. I believe there were 5 substance "windows" on the stick. That was 15 years ago or so. I would imagine they have gotten a bit better and developed more sophisticated, cheaper test equipment. Of course, it would be cheapest to buy test kits that tested for only one substance, i.e. methamphetamine.

That's the late bill. It means your payment is past due. If you ont pay before the date at the bottom embedded in the text (Thai), you have to pay a 40.00 THB late fee.