davidgtr

Sounds a bit like your personal statement "Why make things difficult, when you can make them completely impossible, with a little extra effort" on your bio.

Som nam na springs to mind.

Who is your "dealer"?

dotcom, i've just sent you PM to answer that

Arh come on, let us in on the secret. Who's your dealer?

Interesting

You're not related to this fellow "murni" as well are you

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Mai-Sai-t199672.html

We want to go up to Mai Sai for a couple of days. Does anyone know if there are any hotels that allow dogs (2 small ones) in the room?

Thanks in advance.

Posted in the CEI forum on 12th July.

I think you'll find there's a diference between TOT & CAT.

TOT is domestic & CAT is international.

If it's o/s then it should be CAT. CAT HQs on the inside of the super near Nong Prathip intersection, south of the intersection / Bor Sang road. Near the highway police HQs if you know that one.

We want to go up to Mai Sai for a couple of days. Does anyone know if there are any hotels that allow dogs (2 small ones) in the room?

Thanks in advance.

Don't know the answer to your question as I don't carry a dog around with me on my motorbike, but the place I use in Mae Sai, the Umporn Resort should be ok.

If you drive up the Hang Dong Rd, The road all the way from the Airport is two lanes. About 15-20km up this rd, just as you reach Hang Dong itself the road will narrow to 1 lane. As it does this look immediately to your right. You will see a large gravel area that I have been seen being used for driving practice many times. Its set just behind the road, no traffic or people whatsoever and is fine to use. I have had a bit of fun wit a real wheel drive car in there and no-one minds you using the land.

About 15-20 kms from the airport, as you approach Hang Dong?

You should be in Sanpathong by then & overshot Hang Dong by a not inconsiderable distance.

Good luck finding the place.

I do wish that Honda or Yamaha would wake up to this market and sell a decent 400cc or 600cc bike.

Wake up Yamaha? But you can buy new big bikes here. There's a list of Yamaha models here.

All crotch rockets for about B500,000 up.

If you sat on a FJR1300 or the FZ6 Fazer, you wouldn't really call them crotch rockets. The YZF R1 / 6 I agree are crotch rockets, but not the others. The FJR is a full on touring bike, extremely comfortable to sit on & easy to ride. Try it sometime.

I do wish that Honda or Yamaha would wake up to this market and sell a decent 400cc or 600cc bike.

Wake up Yamaha? But you can buy new big bikes here. There's a list of Yamaha models here.

Forget it. Buy a local bike & save yourself heaps of time, worry & money.

Hi, guys.

I'm new to this forum, but used to live in Chiang Mai, and am currently (unfortunately) in the US. About 10 years ago, I met a fellow who grew coffee in one of the Queen's forests in a national park somewhere on the north side of the road from CM to Chiang Rai. He used to ship it to California and got a fantastic price for it then because of the variety he was growing.

I need to get in touch with him again. Anyone know who this is? Is he still there? It was somewhere past the restaurant with all the delicious pies, as I recall....

thanks

You wouldn't be thinking of Uwe & his Duang Dee Hill Tribe coffee would you?

Amazing how trying to be helpful and answering the OPs question and then adding a simple BTW comment leads to all this. Actually, not amazing, just typically ThaiVisa......

No offense intended, I was just suggesting that other options to the age old system would be welcome and could be advantageous to both sides. Also, was not aware in 2008 that most shops have no credit card capability.

Perhaps you need more first hand experience with the rental shops in Chiang Mai then.

Dear Forum,

A friend is thinking of coming out here, and then travelling around SE Asia on motor-bike.

He is thinking of buying my bike and then travelling around, but I remember I couldn't buy the bike in my name until I had been here 90 days and got a letter from Immigration. Does this still apply?

If he cannot buy the bike, can he cross the border and use the bike if I give him some kind of letter permitting him to ride my bike across the border? Would this letter have to be in Thai?

Or a letter from immigration?

Hope you are keeping well,

All the Best

Bill Z

BillZ

Yep your mate needs permission from the registered owner of the bike to take it out of the country.

At the border he also needs to complete the following forms

Customs Temporary Export Permit

Immigration Notice of Conveyance

Immigration Crew List

Immigration Pax List

For more info go to GT Rider where you can also download the forms if you like.

I still wont be leaving my passport it stays with me period and my advice is you dont do it either there are shops that dont require you to leave your passport so frequent there business is my advice.

Now off to rent a car for mai sai run (No passport required)

Ah, yes but you live in Chiang Mai & the shop probably figures they know how to track you down. Not the same for Joe Blow the tourist who just rocks up & has no attachment to Cnx when he's just passing through on a tourist visa. Passport please.

Every vehicle I have ever rented in the world has been done so with my credit card as security. This leaving your passport thing is a joke and should only be needed for those with NO Credit. If they want to run my card as security, fine. If they want to hold my American drivers license, fine. But they are not getting my passport. I plan to rent a bike in CM soon and will pay the 3 weeks in advance. That should be enough to convince that I am not some low-life bike snatcher.

I understand the rental shops' need to guarantee return of the rental, but renters with other, more secure means of deposit should not be required to surrender their passports. It's just an out-dated practice that needs to change.

Motorbike rental shops all over the kingdom like to have your passport for security for the bike, as that means you will bring the bike back, or at least attempt to, to recover your passport.

There are so many dodgy characters out there I tell bike shops no passport, no bike rental. Simple.

For all you guys who bitch about it & find it unbelievable, get real TIT. This is the rental system that has been operating here for over 20 years.

Most of the shops dont have a credit card facility, so that does not help very much.

Some of you might be able to politely convince the shop to let you off with a photocopy or a plane ticket or a credit card, but for me (& Im not in the rental business) it's not good enough. If something does happen - an accident, you seriously injure someone & do a runner; they shop is left holding the can. I know of an instance of someone crashing a bike, seriously injuring someone & they did a runner, leaving the bike at the police station. Promising to return, but because they had their passport they simply disapeared & caught the next plane home. If only the shop had not been so nice & kept their passport for security.

There are many more instances of shops getting burned by customers than vice versa. The shop's dont rip you off with your passport or they will be in the deep shit & closed down by the cops.

So come on guys, get real & try to understand the system. Don't just mouth off about how you think it should be. Your own style of thinking (just my way) might in fact be what is a bit outdated & need changing.

Stealing bikes is big business. No need to steal just one if you can steal 100 and have them out of the country the next day. The little bicycle chain locks that most companies give out keeps the bike from being wheeled away while you are at lunch. But in the evening they can just be lifted on to a dolly and rolled away unless locked to something solid with a good strong cable. Passport or no passport....

Are you talking about stealing big bikes or small Honda Dream / Wave bikes in Chiang Mai? Because if it's big bikes, I certainly disagree & wonder where you get your info from?

Interpol. Thailand comes in just behind Japan as the highest ranking countries from which bikes are stolen. They don't break down their list by size. Osaka, Japan is at the top of the list of locations for bike theft. I doubt that very many larger bikes are stolen from Thailand. There just aren't that many to steal! But most likely quite a large percentage of the Dream/Wave size bike that are in Cambodia and Vietnam began their life in a Bangkok show room....

So you mean that stealing smaller bikes (scooters) is big business in Chiang Mai & "not stealing big bikes in Chiang Mai". And consequently the theft of a big rental bike would NOT be a very likely occurrence at all.

Stealing bikes is big business. No need to steal just one if you can steal 100 and have them out of the country the next day. The little bicycle chain locks that most companies give out keeps the bike from being wheeled away while you are at lunch. But in the evening they can just be lifted on to a dolly and rolled away unless locked to something solid with a good strong cable. Passport or no passport....

Are you talking about stealing big bikes or small Honda Dream / Wave bikes in Chiang Mai? Because if it's big bikes, I certainly disagree & wonder where you get your info from?

Could it have changed so much? We were last in the Goodview in April (Riverside was full), and the food was ordinary at best! Very bland and first time I have ever sent food back in Thailand! They couldnt even produce a spicy Tom Yum!

I mentioned it to a couple of friends and they agreed with my coments about the food and had stopped going to Goodview.

Iain

My sentiments too. IMHO The Goodview has been a place to go & drink, listen to music & enjoy the views, but not to have a meal. The food was not that great, but maybe it's improved significantly now?

Thanks.

I will go the route mentioned and will try to get to Philok in one day (wife&daughter don't like car travelling). Has anybody stayed at the Amarin Nakorn there? Also - in CR - are the Diamond Inn and Orchids mentioned above suitable for wife&child&car?

Curious, so what did you do / where did you stay?

Any feedback?

Limbo

That is indeed an excellent run down on the farang & their busineses in CEI.

I can think of another - Mike from Napoli Pizza - whom you might have missed

Don't know how big / heavy you are, but if it's like me - losing weight might work best.

Can anyone here trace the history of the Baitong. Ken was running it when I arrived. He had bought half interest from another Aussie or Kiwi (?) .. who then moved on to open a bar in Bali, I believe.

I think a Canadian, whose name escapes me, started the bar & actually owned the building freehold via his Thai missus I think. But I'm not sure if it was called the Baitong before Ken.

The Mom Khon Muang Pub gets my vote for a goodnight out in CEI everytime.

Start with a rooftop meal at the Nimseeseng, then a few drinks at the SoHub Pub, to hit the MKM around 10.00 PM.

What sort of motorbike?

If it's a big bike with a dodgy rego / book then be careful because the motorbike rego office in Chiang Mai is very strict, checking that your engine & frame nos do match the exact type of model bike you should have.

You can however keep the rego in Phuket & renew it here alright.

It is only if you want to change the place of rego from Phuket to Chiang Mai, that will do the full check where complications could arise.

Yep Neramit's the best one to use alright.

Sounds like you're still unsure.

Old the old airport road, there's a group of hotels close together, one of which should be ok. Might be easier to take a pick from there if you can't decide beforehand.

Check out the map below.

The hotels are marked in Red.

La Luna, Phiman Inn are up market. Sport Inn starts at 350 baht. Amorn Inn & Sabai Inn should be 1 or 2 hundred more.

The Red Rose "is the Red Rose" a theme hotel, rooms from 500 or 600 baht from memory.

Good luck & enjoy the drive.