robsamui

Actually the road toll in Thailand is far worse than the statistics reported by the government or media. Deaths in hospitals or home care caused by motor accidents aren't considered part of the roll toll. Random police road blocks changed every few hours should be top priority, here they seem to be in the same places everyday. Maybe 2nd offence confiscate the vehicle and make a serious deterent.

Yep - if you die in the ambulance on the way to hospital you are not considered a 'road fatality' - you need to be dead on the ground to qualify.

This Thatcherite approach to road deaths (overnight she "reduced" Britain's unemployment by half using similar means) ... means that whilst Koh Samui had a documented 300 road deaths a year a decade ago, now it has suddenly shrunk to around 30 a year. The fact that the population has doubled and the traffic has quadrupled in this period only reflects just how effective the current policing and road safety measures have become today compared to back in 2000!

R

Ahem!

I've watched Thais build a lot of roads. They seem to have an aversion to using stone as a base or any kind of compaction equipment. My wife says there's a lot more money to be made fixing roads than in building roads.

Yes - it's almost beyond belief - the ring road is 5 inches of concrete reinforced with rebar and straight onto the dirt, with no footings or hardcore whatsoever. My guess is that they work on the assumption that they will have to repair and maintain them, so they might as well spend as little as possible building them to begin with. I expect the budget for building and the budget for repair are two quite separate things and getting them built for next to nothing scores lots of brownie points!

R

just would like to know if it would be cheaper direct from KL

if so it is not a long flight rom thialand to KL then direct from there.

For some reason Thailand is the onlu country where they charge the same price for rtn as for 2 singles rarther than every where elese they charge u cheaper for rtn.

also thailand is the only duty free i have seen wherwe the price goes up. seems like they just want as much money as possible before u leave the country.

seems a bit greedy to me.

it is also a country that favour manolpyies which is obviuos.

BBk airways

duty free at bangkok airport. they know u cannot go anywhere once u have gone through international deparutres so if u want some good or a coffee they wake the prices up.

really annoys me at times.

the thais can seems so nice and at other times seems so greedy.

then still u can't knocjk thailand it has more pro's than cons

that why i ain 't left yet

Correct o large one. It's Duty Free but it's certainly not profit free! Shops can set the prices at anything they want!

R

Hi Rob, I have not done it myself, but have friends on Samui who did a lot of research and if you don't mind landing at Stanstead, the cheapest is from Kuala Lumpur via Air Asia. They were very happy with that . Three ways to reach KL. 1) Firefly from Samui.

2) Air Asia from Surat.

3) Coach to KL.

They went by coach and will do it again.

Good luck and please let us know how you went .

Ta dude - but logic dictates - and the subsequent costing also - that going south to Malaysia then buying a flight that heads back this way again will be more spensive cos

a) you have to fly south to begin with,

you've then got to add the cost of flying back to where you began - before you then add the cost of whatever flights.

Doing it this way comes to 40,000 baht at the minimum.

Going on a cheapie from BKK costs 28,000 plus the cost of getting to BKK.

But thanks for the input! I couldn't be so assertive without others like you helping me already!

R

OK Rob, but KL to London Stanstead is 156.50 English pounds one way

Sounds really good!

But then add taxes and the cost of coming back and we're on 40,000 baht for the UK flights plus the cost of getting to KL and back.....45,000 baht?

I've got it down to 25,000 baht (plus cost of getting to BKK) from BKK to Heathrow.

But thanks for helping!

R

have you tried http://www.samuiregatta.com/ ?

Ah! Just the job. I wasn't aware of this - thanks!

R

Hi guys.

Is anyone in the know about or connected with the Samui Regatta?

I need some info - dates, contact names and numbers ... stuff like that.

Anybody able to help me out here?

Ta in advance, :jap:

R

You might want to try searching some flights out of Phuket HKT. Oh and I forgot to add, the different Mobissimo sites can come back with different prices. Tuesday and Wednesday departures are generally lower in price as well.

good luck

Oooh. Tuesdays and Wednesdays? I'll have another go!

Already got it down to 25,000 baht (plus cost of getting to BKK) But I'll keep nipping on to the websites and checking every 2 or 3 days.

Ta for the info

R!

Hi Rob, I have not done it myself, but have friends on Samui who did a lot of research and if you don't mind landing at Stanstead, the cheapest is from Kuala Lumpur via Air Asia. They were very happy with that . Three ways to reach KL. 1) Firefly from Samui.

2) Air Asia from Surat.

3) Coach to KL.

They went by coach and will do it again.

Good luck and please let us know how you went .

Ta dude - but logic dictates - and the subsequent costing also - that going south to Malaysia then buying a flight that heads back this way again will be more spensive cos

a) you have to fly south to begin with,

you've then got to add the cost of flying back to where you began - before you then add the cost of whatever flights.

Doing it this way comes to 40,000 baht at the minimum.

Going on a cheapie from BKK costs 28,000 plus the cost of getting to BKK.

But thanks for the input! I couldn't be so assertive without others like you helping me already!

R

I am the queen of getting flight deals... First I go to the major travel search engines Mobissimo, Kayak etc......run my dates through clicking dates flexible whenever possible, check with surrounding airports as well. Then the cheapest dates and options they come up with I then go directly to the airlines website and save a bit more. This isn't just a one time thing. Go back different times of day and different days of the week as the prices fluctuate. When you find a good price you are happy with, bite the bullet and purchase.

( Sept 2010 found $19 flights out of Bellingham to Las Vegas ) $129 all in for four of us November 2010 $802 roundtrip Vancouver to Bangkok

good luck if you need some help give me some more specifics and I'l have a go at it for you...

Thanks a lot for the info. Cheapest quick-search my daughter came up with was 30,000 baht (600 pounds) and with 10 minutes on Mobissimo I found a flight for 25,000 baht.

Bottom line is that my times are flexible - in as far as I can go any time from the beginning of June to the beginning of July. (My visa runs out on 7th July so that's the target date.) Work commitments mean that I can't go before June 1st.

Any tips as to the best way of juggling these dates for optimised results? Different UK airports, for example? (seems to only be choice of Heathrow - or is that the cheapest anyway?)

Thanks for the names/links and help!

R

Yes LHR is invariably the cheapest but if I am trying to get to Leeds (say) then it's an additional £15 say to get to a London rail terminal and another £70 ish for a return ticket - plus the time plus the rip-off cost of food when you are travelling in England (70 baht min for a bottle of drinking water). Flying to Manchester can therefore be as cheap and quicker.

Just an illustration to remind you to price everything in and that all travel arrangements are personal-specific. The other factor to consider is what time you are arriving and how knackered you are likely to be. I'll pay a premium of £150 for a direct flight on EVA or Thai because their flights are overnight and I sleep well on planes with a well-practiced regimen. So - if I can arrive during the day in Bangkok that gives me another easy night out in Bangkok or if I'm travelling home I have all day to get to my destination - gives you more options and a better range of prices.

Many on Thai Visa prefer EVA to Thai Airways. It depends on whether you want in-flight-entertainment. For me EVA's food is occasionally disgusting and usually suspect so I am pretty equivocal between the two and simply buy the cheapest each time, pricing in an extra £15 for a decent Yo Suchi meal in LHR T3 before I fly if it's gonna be EVA. BA has never got close on pricing in my last 50 return flights, but for one time. You are going to get more alcohol offered on Thai as well if that is important to you; it doesn't matter if you don't give a nat's bottom about being viewed as a soak by your continual button presssing on EVA! (Personally I would give a nat's bottom, but I can live with one trolley round as I want to sleep anyway).

Emirates (the best airline on all the routes in my mind) and Etihad are great, but I just cannot stand breaking a flight and all that boring queuing when I should be sleeping - but I will do if it saves me £150 or if a flight to Manchester suits my particular circumstances.

Different strokes for different folks. As you can see I tend to have my prices for everything bad about an airline so it's purely a financial decision at the end of the day.

Thanks for the detailed and thoughtful reply - yet more things to ponder on - decisions decisions . . .

google south hall travel , and request kingfisher, top notch airline and only 450 quid return with them ... if you aint been back to uk for a while , the shock of the floods will seem like a brezze when you are back ! ....

It's actually Southall Travel, as in Southall, South London..

http://www.southalltravel.co.uk/

I'd recommend using a Middle Eastern Airline as it would be middle of the Road cost wise, gives you a chance to stretch your Legs & no matter what anyone says, they're genrally the bets Airlines in teh World with Qatar being number 1 choice if you can find a Price that suits you..

Thanks - already found that on Google

They are advertising a London-Bkk return at 460 pounds (22,000 baht) but no quotes for the other way around.

I've emailed them for a quote . . .

Thanks for the info!

R

Firefly to KL and then AirAsia to London.

Thanks for the suggestion - but surely the flight to KL is going to cost more than to BKK? And then I have to double back again and add the extra distance to the flight from KL to London? Logic indicates this can't be cheaper than flying directly north from BKK in the first place?

R

Firfly to Subang: 2790 baht one way.

KUL-STN: 13 410 baht one way.

Leave time to switch airport from Subang to KLIA.

Hmmm - just done a search - no set return so two singles - comes to about 40,000 baht including the flights to KL. I think it's cheaper to go from BKK . . .

thanks anyway,

Rob

Firefly to KL and then AirAsia to London.

Thanks for the suggestion - but surely the flight to KL is going to cost more than to BKK? And then I have to double back again and add the extra distance to the flight from KL to London? Logic indicates this can't be cheaper than flying directly north from BKK in the first place?

R

Firfly to Subang: 2790 baht one way.

KUL-STN: 13 410 baht one way.

Leave time to switch airport from Subang to KLIA.

OOOH! Looks good. What's the airline from KLIA to London? I'll check on the return prices.

Can you send a link?

Thanks!

R

Firefly to KL and then AirAsia to London.

Thanks for the suggestion - but surely the flight to KL is going to cost more than to BKK? And then I have to double back again and add the extra distance to the flight from KL to London? Logic indicates this can't be cheaper than flying directly north from BKK in the first place?

R

Apologies and thanks for the correction. I guess I was thinking of Nok Air?:jap:

Another thing to bear in mind is that July is likely to be a peak travelling time. My gut reaction would be to wait a little before booking in the hope of some discounts, I find it difficult to imagine people are rushing off their feet to come to Samui after all this bad weather. Of course, people might be rushing off their feet to get OFF this island right now!

Hiya.

A scan reveals that flight prices take a hike after the 14th July. I can leave any time after the middle of June so it's looking like out in the last week June and back again on the 12th/13th July.

Looking good so far and only spent an hour on it!

Thanks for the help,

Rob

google south hall travel , and request kingfisher, top notch airline and only 450 quid return with them ... if you aint been back to uk for a while , the shock of the floods will seem like a brezze when you are back ! ....

Ta Boats, they only list UK to BKK but I'm on it!

R

google south hall travel , and request kingfisher, top notch airline and only 450 quid return with them ... if you aint been back to uk for a while , the shock of the floods will seem like a brezze when you are back ! ....

Ta for the tip. They are offering this for 460 (around 23,000B) but only with the UK as a starting point - not BKK to London and return.

I've emailed them for a quote this way round.

Ta!

R

England is still there. Sadly. Are you sure about the trip? It depressed the hell out of me last time I was there!

Flights. Direct non stop are the quickest and simplest, but are the most expensive. Thai Air and Eva are your choices. Don't even think about BA!!

Middle range are people like Emirates and Etihad. 2 jumps, connecting in the middle east. Usually good connections, times and services.

The cheapest options would usually be people like Jet Airways and Kingfisher via India.

Of course your biggest expense will be getting off the island in the first place if you use Bangkok Air. Remember using the cheaper alternatives from Surat take you into the old airport in Bangkok.

Good luck!

I am already practicing depressed in readiness for the excursion - I have to work at it as, over the years here, I've lost the knack.

And thanks for the info re flying from Surat. I didn't realise they went to Don Muang but it makes sense. I'll be probably going on the high-speed Lomprayah package to Surat airport. Adds 3+ hours to the time (compared with spit-spit BA) but is only what? ... a bit over 2,000 baht? Time I have a ton of: money not so!

Thanks again!

I am the queen of getting flight deals... First I go to the major travel search engines Mobissimo, Kayak etc......run my dates through clicking dates flexible whenever possible, check with surrounding airports as well. Then the cheapest dates and options they come up with I then go directly to the airlines website and save a bit more. This isn't just a one time thing. Go back different times of day and different days of the week as the prices fluctuate. When you find a good price you are happy with, bite the bullet and purchase.

( Sept 2010 found $19 flights out of Bellingham to Las Vegas ) $129 all in for four of us November 2010 $802 roundtrip Vancouver to Bangkok

good luck if you need some help give me some more specifics and I'l have a go at it for you...

Thanks a lot for the info. Cheapest quick-search my daughter came up with was 30,000 baht (600 pounds) and with 10 minutes on Mobissimo I found a flight for 25,000 baht.

Bottom line is that my times are flexible - in as far as I can go any time from the beginning of June to the beginning of July. (My visa runs out on 7th July so that's the target date.) Work commitments mean that I can't go before June 1st.

Any tips as to the best way of juggling these dates for optimised results? Different UK airports, for example? (seems to only be choice of Heathrow - or is that the cheapest anyway?)

Thanks for the names/links and help!

R

Yep - big community and all very closely-knit - everyone knows what everyone else is doing!

I've PMd you a contact phone number - one of the 'mommas'!

R

Hi fellas - decided that I need to go and see if England is still there.

But WAAAAAY out of touch with flights, fares, tips or tricks. I'll be going the first week of July so any advice is very much needed!

Cost is the main consideration, so I'm happy with stop-overs etc.

Cheers

Rob

300 teachers for the first and later 1000..... that's ridiculous.

The English teachers can't speak English, so why not teach them first. I know only Thailand where a teacher is allowed to teach English even he himself don't speak English. 1000 native speakers don't cure the misfit in education, neither on school level nor in the universties. As mentioned above, it is part of the Thai education system to keep the main part of population uneducated, so they are easier to manipulate. 1000 teachers are nothing more than a writen down thing to show ..."we do something"... but for sure it is not a really attempt to solve a problem. Its just an eyewash.....

fatfather

A few years ago I found myself in regular email correspondence with the Head of English at (XXX) university in Bangkok. I was totally gobsmacked by her lack of ability in English. Certainly it is universal that written English always falls behind spoken English. But this is the Head of Department in a big BKK university, and her grasp of punctuation and grammar was worse than several middle-management Thai friends I have.

On the other hand I might point out also that few English nationals who are teachers have a competent grasp of their own language. I recently viewed a website belonging to an international school on Koh Samui. The mission statement by their Head of English demonstrated that she didn't understand the use of commas (or punctuation at all, other than the use of full stops) and in the first paragraph alone there were three punctuation errors and two glaring howlers in sentence structure and grammar.

But this is all academic (ahem ) It is the verbal ability in the junior schools that is the aim here and the only way to learn any language is by constant repetition and re-enforcement. Children's TV programs in English. Foreign films subtitled and not dubbed-over in Thai. Thai teachers in the junior schools using occasional English phrases and expressions in all subjects and in all lessons, and so on.

It is quite one thing to wish to retain a national and cultural heritage and the Thai Nation has managed to get away with this attitude so far. And perhaps 50 years ago Thailand was able to do this. But now, today, no country can exist in isolation. A world economy has emerged with every nation being affected by economic and political forces outside of their borders or their control. And if the proud and xenophobic Thai ruling classes can't grasp this then they are guilty of sacrificing their country, their entire nation, purely for reasons of archaic nationalistic pride.

At the bottom of a dunghill somewhere there is undoubtedly one small grub who has dug himself in whilst all the rest of his kind has become butterflies and flown away. And he is smug and pleased with himself, this lonely little grub, keeping himself company by chanting over and over again, "I'm a magnificent grub. I survived; I didn't get eaten. I'm a magnificent grub. I survived; I didn't get eaten." Seems to me that this sums up the nationalistic attitude of Thailand quite well . . .

R

With the drama of a superbly-scripted opening, no sooner had the heavens closed than the unfinished and still-wet petroleum station in Mae Nam began to dispense with gasoline somewhere between cheerful and moderately drunk (me) on Thursday evening.

I (almost) feel sorry for every (literally, every shop has them) shop that still has 100 bottles of 91/95 Sang Som in neat racks outside but at 55 baht a litre (40B for 70ccs) no doubt they will find a use for these.

R

Hmmm i smell April Fool

Best news in ... hours.

Don't be so cynical!

R

Lemon's and three star? Chuckle chuckle.

The best is IBIS in Bo Phut around the corner and only a 200 baht taxi away. 1,000B a night air.TV/DVD but I'm not sure of the stars.

Can't understand why anyone wants to drink with Austin and stay 3-star also - but up to you. He's got a room inside for half this cost.

Tell him I said this. And say sorry about the wooden spoon. I was elsewhere!

Rob