Getting ripped off in Thailand

[cookieqw]

20 hours ago, baansgr said:

Bill padding is the norm in Jomtien and Pattaya. Pay as you go they even try charging for 2. Ask prices first. No wonder the bars are empty. 

i ordered a beer at the corner bar LK Metro when it came the bill said 130 i was a bit urgh but she said you get another, i was only waiting for a chow mein so she nicely gave the second beer with the top on. i love thailand 

[SpeakeasyThai]

1 minute ago, cookieqw said:

i ordered a beer at the corner bar LK Metro when it came the bill said 130 i was a bit urgh but she said you get another, i was only waiting for a chow mein so she nicely gave the second beer with the top on. i love thailand 

LK Metro is in Pattaya. You say you love Thailand but Pattaya is not Thailand. More overweight old fat western gits you could ever poke a stick at, is not Thailand.

[The manic]

31 minutes ago, Skeptic7 said:

You came to the wrong place for commiseration dude! Lots of deniers, holier than thous, teetotalers, early birds and selective memories here. Yes...Thailand can be a Tourist Trap ripoff nowadays and has been for the past decade. Been here 25 years, so have a decent reference time frame. Have to be very careful and watch and inquire about everything. Many years ago I dubbed LOS (formerly Land Of Smiles)...Land Of Scams & Snarls. 

 

All that said, it certainly does not happen everywhere...nor all the time. When out of your comfort zones and familiar watering holes...ASK UP FRONT. Even that won't always save you from being gouged and/or encountering a very unpleasant situation. (Think some upstairs bars in Pat Pong).

 

Anyhoo...y'all got ripped. Chalk it up  to experience and move on. Happens to all of us...or most of us...or at least some of us. Remember the old adage...'fool me once...' 

 

Cheers?

If he wasn't aware of CM Karoke bar scams he won't be aware of the scams, years ago in Patpong upstairs bars.

[The manic]

6 minutes ago, SpeakeasyThai said:

LK Metro is in Pattaya. You say you love Thailand but Pattaya is not Thailand. More overweight old fat western gits you could ever poke a stick at, is not Thailand.

Pattaya is quintessential Thailand. It's not rural Thailand. But it is the only truly international  cosmopolitan city in Thailand.  The foreign visitor demographics changes and the elderly retired crowd are outnumbered by Chinese and Indian visitors. Next- London isn't England, Paris isn't France. 

 

[FritsSikkink]

"I had 7 glasses while my girlfriend had 1 bottle of beer over 2 hours (or less). We got a taxi home and I breath tested myself with my new breath tester and I was 0.00 BAC "

 

How can you drink 7 glasses and don't taste that their is any alcohol in it? 

[cookieqw]

10 minutes ago, SpeakeasyThai said:

LK Metro is in Pattaya. You say you love Thailand but Pattaya is not Thailand. More overweight old fat western gits you could ever poke a stick at, is not Thailand.

overweight old fat,  you missed out  'aged'  thats the same as old,  as for pattaya thais flock to it on holidays and weekends, you wont scare me i still love THAILAND

[Skeptic7]

1 minute ago, FritsSikkink said:

"I had 7 glasses while my girlfriend had 1 bottle of beer over 2 hours (or less). We got a taxi home and I breath tested myself with my new breath tester and I was 0.00 BAC "

 

How can you drink 7 glasses and don't taste that their is any alcohol in it? 

Yeah...sounds like he's got a defective detector! 

[FritsSikkink]

Just now, The manic said:

But it is the only truly international  cosmopolitan city in Thailand.  

Never been in Bangkok then or Phuket or Chiang Mai or Hua Hin or Samui

[The manic]

16 minutes ago, cookieqw said:

i ordered a beer at the corner bar LK Metro when it came the bill said 130 i was a bit urgh but she said you get another, i was only waiting for a chow mein so she nicely gave the second beer with the top on. i love thailand 

Two for one. As well as Chow Me in Charlie's the stand next door sells fish and chips and potato scallops. Over the opposites is Touch a pretty good GO Go bar. Nearby is the cheapest Thai restaurant in Pattaya and one of the best steak houses in Thailand. Regarding rip offs. They are rare and only happen to naive, foolish people for whom the experience is a life lesson or they are false positives from people who have a victim complex. Actual scams are rare. You are more likely to find open honesty in Thailand. That is my experience. Some visitors crying ripp off take an anti malaria drug which makes them paranoid, some are village idiots with no city experience and not experienced travellers, some just thoughtless and immature  and just a tiny percentage are really conned. The OP in this thread was not one because he ended up only paying a modest amount. Compared to North Africa, India, Egypt, and a whole host of other countries Thailand is a smooth, easy going, dream.

[The manic]

15 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

"I had 7 glasses while my girlfriend had 1 bottle of beer over 2 hours (or less). We got a taxi home and I breath tested myself with my new breath tester and I was 0.00 BAC "

 

How can you drink 7 glasses and don't taste that their is any alcohol in it? 

Awareness is not this guys forte.

[cookieqw]

4 minutes ago, The manic said:

Two for one. As well as Chow Me in Charlie's the stand next door sells fish and chips and potato scallops. Over the opposites is Touch a pretty good GO Go bar. Nearby is the cheapest Thai restaurant in Pattaya and one of the best steak houses in Thailand. Regarding rip offs. They are rare and only happen to naive, foolish people for whom the experience is a life lesson or they are false positives from people who have a victim complex. Actual scams are rare. You are more likely to find open honesty in Thailand. That is my experience. Some visitors crying ripp off take an anti malaria drug which makes them paranoid, some are village idiots with no city experience and not experienced travellers, some just thoughtless and immature  and just a tiny percentage are really conned. The OP in this thread was not one because he ended up only paying a modest amount. Compared to North Africa, India, Egypt, and a whole host of other countries Thailand is a smooth, easy going, dream.

well said

[The manic]

14 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Never been in Bangkok then or Phuket or Chiang Mai or Hua Hin or Samui

I been to them all. Bangkok has changed. The others you mention are parochial and provincial. 

[FritsSikkink]

7 minutes ago, The manic said:

I been to them all. Bangkok has changed. The others you mention are parochial and provincial. 

Everything changes but Bangkok has loads of different nationalities and is way bigger than Pattaya.

[OneMoreFarang]

I am not going to read nine pages and maybe that was mentioned already:

Pay the bill and after you pay go to the tourist police. They will sort it out for you and you will get the money back -  without hassle.

That is standard advise and it works.

 

And about this drinks: At least in Soi Cowboy standard drinks are 25ml of the real staff. One problem is that it seems to be difficult to impossible to buy the 25ml optics for the bottles in Thailand. But since bar owners can buy them online this shouldn't be a problem anymore.

[The manic]

6 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Everything changes but Bangkok has loads of different nationalities and is way bigger than Pattaya.

It has changed for the worse. Early closing, elimination of street life and enterprise. It's vacuous and sterile with a heavy police presence. Random piss tests and shake downs are not the sign of a cosmopolitan city and the freedom of movement that goes with it. That's just third world nonsense mainly imposed by an unelected authority.  I used to live in Bangkok but had to leave as the regime gutted it.

[The manic]

10 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I am not going to read nine pages and maybe that was mentioned already:

Pay the bill and after you pay go to the tourist police. They will sort it out for you and you will get the money back -  without hassle.

That is standard advise and it works.

 

And about this drinks: At least in Soi Cowboy standard drinks are 25ml of the real staff. One problem is that it seems to be difficult to impossible to buy the 25ml optics for the bottles in Thailand. But since bar owners can buy them online this shouldn't be a problem anymore.

As the tourist police have changed their role there is not much point going to them anymore as a poster on another thread pointed out. He ended up in jail. Avoid all police if possible to avoid shake downs.

[OneMoreFarang]

13 minutes ago, The manic said:

It has changed for the worse. Early closing, elimination of street life and enterprise. It's vacuous and sterile with a heavy police presence. Random piss tests and shake downs are not the sign of a cosmopolitan city and the freedom of movement that goes with it. That's just third world nonsense mainly imposed by an unelected authority.  I used to live in Bangkok but had to leave as the regime gutted it.

How often were you part of a piss test or a shake down? I live in Bangkok since more than 20 years (in lower Sukhumvit) and the police never ever checked me not even asking for a passport. The traffic police stopped me often enough on my bike but that's 99% of the time about money and 100B solves the problem.

I know these drug test exists. But it happens so seldom that it won't affect most of us - ever.

[oobar]

What OP and his mates need to do is up their level of smarts a bit.  Their adventure makes them look like greenhorns. 

[mogandave]

I think if I were served a drink with no booze in it I would complain after the first one.

[Rhys]

...not even a  kiss....live and learn... 

[vincent13]

22 hours ago, cat handler said:

I have now finally found out why, in Australia the standard “shot” of spirits is 30ml, in the US I believe it is higher, however in Thailand it’s 15ml (a half shot) and they only use a full shot for Thai Whiskey.

That's not my experience of the bars I drink at in Thailand. Currently I drink at two different bars in Udon Thani where it's definitely 30 ml shots. Can anyone else comment on this aspect of the OP.

 

[The manic]

47 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

How often were you part of a piss test or a shake down? I live in Bangkok since more than 20 years (in lower Sukhumvit) and the police never ever checked me not even asking for a passport. The traffic police stopped me often enough on my bike but that's 99% of the time about money and 100B solves the problem.

I know these drug test exists. But it happens so seldom that it won't affect most of us - ever.

I'm happy you are still having fun in Bangkok.Its just not freewheeling enough for me anymore. And I really hate the expulsion of the traders, hawkers, pop up bars and pop up restaurants.  Lower Suk is just so depressing.  Where is late night Bangkok? Why do restaurants close so early? Why are the go go girls fully dressed? Why is lower Suk filled with Arab families and African pimps ? The destruction of the street life was the last straw for me. Now when I'm passing through Bangkok I don't bother to stay overnight. In the old days I spent most of my holidays there.   Artistic communities and street markets have been destroyed. It's awful now.

[OneMoreFarang]

2 minutes ago, The manic said:

I'm happy you are still having fun in Bangkok.Its just not freewheeling enough for me anymore. And I really hate the expulsion of the traders, hawkers, pop up bars and pop up restaurants.  Lower Suk is just so depressing.  Where is late night Bangkok? Why do restaurants close so early? Why are the go go girls fully dressed? Why is lower Suk filled with Arab families and African pimps ? The destruction of the street life was the last straw for me. Now when I'm passing through Bangkok I don't bother to stay overnight. In the old days I spent most of my holidays there.   Artistic communities and street markets have been destroyed. It's awful now.

It seems we talk about a different city. And maybe we have different views on some issues.

I still see lots of food vendors on the streets. Maybe fewer than before but there are still enough of them.

 

Personally I don't miss all the unlicensed street bars. They take away the business of the legal and licensed bars. I have a friend who has officially licenses bars. If he would open too long or server alcohol on a day when it's not allowed his place would be closed, maybe for months. If one of these illegal street bars does the same they pay to the police and open the next day again. For the long run that is not good for all the legal businesses.

 

I am also no fan of Soi Africa (which is by now a couple of Sois). But they exist there since decades. For me it seems like live and let live. I never had any issues with any of them.

 

And about how late is late: Many of us are drunk enough by 2am. Sure, some people want to party a little longer, and I am sure they will find some places.

 

Last but not least about the dancers: There are still enough of them - if you know where to look.

[connda]

23 hours ago, cat handler said:

A perfect example occurred in Pattaya a few years back at a popular Walking Street night club when I had 7 glasses while my girlfriend had 1 bottle of beer over 2 hours (or less).

Perhaps it's time to check yourself into the clinic? 

[sanemax]

3 hours ago, The manic said:

You have a rich fantasy life or false memory syndrome. The idea of the whole drinking population causing mayhem in CM is silly and patently an exaggeration.  I wonder if you over inflate your importance in the history of CM night life?

It wasnt just me and it wasnt all of everyone else , but there was a commotion going on in the felang drinking area all through the night .

   It was the Monks who campaigned to get the police to make the bars close at midnight , because the Monks got kept awake all night .

Edited August 27, 2018 by sanemax
addition

[worgeordie]

The bill was high,because the Tuk Tuk driver that took

you there, also had to get his cut?

regards worgeordie

[mogandave]

That's not my experience of the bars I drink at in Thailand. Currently I drink at two different bars in Udon Thani where it's definitely 30 ml shots. Can anyone else comment on this aspect of the OP.
 

Shots in the US are 1 1/2 oz ~ 45ml

[vincent13]

4 minutes ago, mogandave said:

 

Shots in the US are 1 1/2 oz ~ 45ml

 

Didn't know that, thanks. What about Thailand?

[mogandave]

Didn't know that, thanks. What about Thailand?

Never drank in Thailand, couldn’t say...

[sanemax]

15 hours ago, The manic said:

Pattaya's freedom is the envy of every local government in Thailand because it creates massive wealth and massive employment. 

Its quite odd then, that every other local Government chooses to not be like Pattaya