Sattahip to Songkhla car ferry service set to begin by March, Prachuap Khiri Khan misses out - for now

[Rimmer]

Some baiting/bickering posts and replies removed

[EVENKEEL]

I'm not sure how comfortable I'd feel catching some sleep on this vessel. I'd be questioning are the ramps secured for sea, is the cargo properly secured, is the crew making regular security rounds. I don't know.

[jacko45k]

9 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm not sure how comfortable I'd feel catching some sleep on this vessel. I'd be questioning are the ramps secured for sea, is the cargo properly secured, is the crew making regular security rounds. I don't know.

Are the containers on any trucks secured down or will they all shift in the swells?

[EVENKEEL]

2 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Are the containers on any trucks secured down or will they all shift in the swells?

I don't know, I can't see these guys securing each vehicle properly. Probably just set the brakes and that's it. Be interesting to see.

[Jeffr2]

4 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I don't know, I can't see these guys securing each vehicle properly. Probably just set the brakes and that's it. Be interesting to see.

Gulf of Thailand isn't the North Sea.  I'm sure they'll deal with the trucks properly.  It's a big ship and has been in business doing this for years.

[EVENKEEL]

31 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

Gulf of Thailand isn't the North Sea.  I'm sure they'll deal with the trucks properly.  It's a big ship and has been in business doing this for years.

You have more confidence than I do on the Thai way of doing things. It's not the ship but the people operating it. We'll see, could be a fun trip.

[Jeffr2]

6 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

You have more confidence than I do on the Thai way of doing things. It's not the ship but the people operating it. We'll see, could be a fun trip.

Understood.  My experience with ship "captains" here has not been good.  Hopefully, they'll get this one right.  If it has the right accommodations, could be fun!!

[soi3eddie]

17 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm not sure how comfortable I'd feel catching some sleep on this vessel. I'd be questioning are the ramps secured for sea, is the cargo properly secured, is the crew making regular security rounds. I don't know.

 

So many negative and dismissive comments on here. I know that this is Thailand and often procedures can be sloppy or ignored. I would say that from HammerMan's interaction with this forum topic it appears that there is a western influence in the setting up and management of this venture. I have confidence therefore that proper safety features will be adhered to and personally would have no fear about taking this service once it starts running. Only if there were proven safety issues would I reconsider travelling with Seahorse Ferries. It's a real shame that there are so many bureaucratic hurdles placed in the way of commerce. I wish them well and success in this venture and will travel with them at first opportunity.

 

[HammerMan]

2 hours ago, soi3eddie said:

 

So many negative and dismissive comments on here. I know that this is Thailand and often procedures can be sloppy or ignored. I would say that from HammerMan's interaction with this forum topic it appears that there is a western influence in the setting up and management of this venture. I have confidence therefore that proper safety features will be adhered to and personally would have no fear about taking this service once it starts running. Only if there were proven safety issues would I reconsider travelling with Seahorse Ferries. It's a real shame that there are so many bureaucratic hurdles placed in the way of commerce. I wish them well and success in this venture and will travel with them at first opportunity.

 

Thank you, you are correct - there is a strong western influence in this project with over 50 years experience.

The ferry is fitted with fully automatic, "double" doors (as in all modern ferries) with sensors/alarms and flashing lights etc.. all fully tested and surveyed to highest levels. All vehicles will be secured with locking chains and straps plus wooden chocks at the wheels.  Also there will be strict security, limiting access to the car decks during the sailing and safety/fire watch checks every 30 mins with 'check in' points to ensure the persons conducting inspections of the car decks actually do inspect them. Trucks will be weighed and inspected prior to entering the vessel to ensure declared weights are correct and cargo properly secured on the trucks.  All/Any dangerous goods are banned from using the ferry, as per international practice. The crew/officers although Thai nationals all have years of experience sailing on foreign owned vessels and were chosen for the knowledge and experience for working on RoRo/RoPax vessels..  I hope that puts everyones mind at ease. 

[HammerMan]

Vessel now at Sattahip.. 

[Leaver]

On 4/8/2021 at 3:41 PM, HammerMan said:

The ferry is fitted with fully automatic, "double" doors (as in all modern ferries) with sensors/alarms and flashing lights etc.. all fully tested and surveyed to highest levels.

 

But will they be regularly maintained?  

[Kerryd]

6 hours ago, Leaver said:

 

But will they be regularly maintained?  

Probably.

For the first year or two.

Or until someone realizes that maintenance costs money.............

Every time I take the ferry to Koh Chang (or the motorcycle ferry across the Chao Praya by Bangkok, or the one that crosses the lake by the Paknai fisherman's village in Nan) I wonder at how they are even allowed to operate.

It appears they do zero maintenance on any of them and run them non-stop until they break down.

But, as the saying goes, maybe this one will be different ! ("My ferry is different" - just like "My Girl is Different" or "Same same but different".)
Then again, "This is Thailand" so who knows.

Personally I hope this venture is successful and continues to be for a long time. I've been talking to some other people who are also interested in being able to to get to the "deep south" without having to make the long trip around the Gulf (though a couple aren't keen on being on a "boat" for more than an hour as they get sea sick).

The way it looks now, we probably won't be planning any trips that way until the Fall, after the rainy season is over and (hopefully) the covid situation has improved (don't want to get caught somewhere where we have to quarantine for 2 weeks because we spent a day in another place).

Fare price (and cabin/seat prices) would also be a determining factor as well.

I see they did fix the spelling on the web page though, so that the "Sattahip Brunch Office" (and the other "Brunch" offices) now properly read "Branch". 

No posts or news updates. Still can't book passage online or see fares, or even a (proposed) sailing schedule. I see the Facebook page did update their cover photo a few hours ago though.

Be interesting to see how it goes, and what the reviews are from the first couple of sailings.

 

[pontious]

Songkhla  is requiring visitors to quarantine -that will not help the start date.

[pontious]

1 hour ago, pontious said:

Songkhla  is requiring visitors to quarantine -that will not help the start date.

Or maybe just from red areas? I find it difficult to understand what province does what.

[HammerMan]

10 hours ago, Leaver said:

 

But will they be regularly maintained?  

Dah.. of course..  

[HammerMan]

FYG with the strict Covid-19 regulations currently in place the ferry is being restricted to limited numbers at this stage. As correctly pointed out above, there remains confusion on who or how people can travel between provinces. The vessel is being visited by Health Officials again today. Additionally at this stage we are still allowing all associated parties (such as Pilots/tugs etc..) to familiarise with berthing and un-berthing procedures. Also, as correctly pointed out by many, staying on board 18-20 hours with very limited facilities aboard at this stage will be exceedingly boring. Preparations of drinks and food facilities has been delayed by Songkran holidays, despite promises/commitments and Owners are doing their best to resolve this.  I understand the skeptics and why they feel this could become yet another Mickey Mouse operation, but we are committed to improving everything and providing everything that would normally be provided on overseas operations. Please just be patient but we appreciate always everyone's suggestions/comments regardless if good or bad.

 

[Leaver]

14 hours ago, Kerryd said:

Probably.

For the first year or two.

Or until someone realizes that maintenance costs money.............

 

If so, just a tragedy waiting to happen.  

[Leaver]

11 hours ago, HammerMan said:

Dah.. of course..  

 

I hope so.  

 

There's been many deaths on the water here from overcrowding.  Such a simply rule to follow for the capacity of the boat, yet ignored.  

 

It would be easy to ignore maintenance as well.  

[HammerMan]

Today the vessel was ready to sail to Songkhla but was stopped at the last minute by the authorities basis they were reviewing Covid-19 restrictions. We are now forced to wait until the 19th for a decision from the Governor of Songkhla, this despite passing several in depth health inspections and confirmation the vessel was theoretically Covid-19 safe with all requested safety procedures in place..  we now wait and see.  Whilst frustrating I'm sure everyone can understand that people's safety and health must come first.

[pontious]

1 hour ago, HammerMan said:

Today the vessel was ready to sail to Songkhla but was stopped at the last minute by the authorities basis they were reviewing Covid-19 restrictions. We are now forced to wait until the 19th for a decision from the Governor of Songkhla, this despite passing several in depth health inspections and confirmation the vessel was theoretically Covid-19 safe with all requested safety procedures in place..  we now wait and see.  Whilst frustrating I'm sure everyone can understand that people's safety and health must come first.

I can imagine the frustration - you can drive there - at the moment! - but a big white and blue boat cannot sail there.. Well at least till the 19th. I assume this was going to be a test run. Good luck.

[Kerryd]

Not really a surprise. Songkla imposed a "14 day quarantine" requirement a few days ago on people from certain provinces (mostly around Bangkok) but since then, 18 provinces, including Chon Buri, have been declared "red zones".

The latest announcement from the Songkla Covid committee regarding travel to the province.

Basically, people from certain provinces (like Chon Buri) are supposed to self-quarantine for 14 days and people from certain areas are also supposed to have a certificate showing a negative Covid-19 test within the previous 72 hours.



Here is a Thai site that has Covid announcements from every province:
Office of the Coronavirus Disease Management Center 2019, Ministry of Interior
http://www.moicovid.com/ข้อมูลสำคัญ-จังหวัด/

[pontious]

Just reading the T and C,s  on there website. Dated 10 April.  The vessel  is completely smoke free. You cannot smoke anywhere on board.  That will appeal to some I know.

Carrying alcohol onboard  is forbidden and will be confiscated. I do not think they will have bar facilities on start up.. That will be a boring 20 hours.

[Kerryd]

2 hours ago, pontious said:

Just reading the T and C,s  on there website. Dated 10 April.  The vessel  is completely smoke free. You cannot smoke anywhere on board.  That will appeal to some I know.

Carrying alcohol onboard  is forbidden and will be confiscated. I do not think they will have bar facilities on start up.. That will be a boring 20 hours.

There will be the initial excitement at boarding and for the first hour of the voyage as people wander about and gawk at (whatever).

Then 18 1/2 hours of boredom crossing the middle of the Gulf. Then a half hour of scrambling to get back to your vehicle and off the ship. 

That's why I'm hoping they'll have the sleeping cabins available. Might have to wait until this covid thing is under control though. 

And I doubt they can search people (or their vehicles) to see if they've brought booze with them. They could punish them if they get caught drinking on board of course. 
(Can you imagine the sh**storm that would be kicked up if they started searching people's vehicles and belongings before boarding ?)

I'm sure they'll have a smoking area somewhere near the stern as well, despite the T&Cs. (A lot of their crew will be smoking somewhere, you can be sure of that.)

I don't think they'll ever serve alcohol on board though. Same thing. Imagine a bunch of people drinking in the "bar" and then piling into their vehicles and trying to drive off the ship. The liability issues alone would be huge.

Read the T&Cs myself and sheesh - they could literally lift the ramp, stop, lower the ramp and kick everyone off for almost no reason at all and not have to refund a single satang !
They also absolve themselves of almost any liability for almost any kind of incident.

(Most of it is boiler plate indemnification that appears in the T&Cs of other companies as well, like airlines.)

 

[pontious]

3 hours ago, Kerryd said:

There will be the initial excitement at boarding and for the first hour of the voyage as people wander about and gawk at (whatever).

Then 18 1/2 hours of boredom crossing the middle of the Gulf. Then a half hour of scrambling to get back to your vehicle and off the ship. 

That's why I'm hoping they'll have the sleeping cabins available. Might have to wait until this covid thing is under control though. 

And I doubt they can search people (or their vehicles) to see if they've brought booze with them. They could punish them if they get caught drinking on board of course. 
(Can you imagine the sh**storm that would be kicked up if they started searching people's vehicles and belongings before boarding ?)

I'm sure they'll have a smoking area somewhere near the stern as well, despite the T&Cs. (A lot of their crew will be smoking somewhere, you can be sure of that.)

I don't think they'll ever serve alcohol on board though. Same thing. Imagine a bunch of people drinking in the "bar" and then piling into their vehicles and trying to drive off the ship. The liability issues alone would be huge.

Read the T&Cs myself and sheesh - they could literally lift the ramp, stop, lower the ramp and kick everyone off for almost no reason at all and not have to refund a single satang !
They also absolve themselves of almost any liability for almost any kind of incident.

(Most of it is boiler plate indemnification that appears in the T&Cs of other companies as well, like airlines.)

 

I agree with most of your post - but you can only book assuming the T/C are correct. I hate the journey down south but at present I will stick to a hotel stop, wine in my room { at present { and continue next day. The T/C seem like a prison ship - not a ferry cruise.

[HammerMan]

9 hours ago, pontious said:

Just reading the T and C,s  on there website. Dated 10 April.  The vessel  is completely smoke free. You cannot smoke anywhere on board.  That will appeal to some I know.

Carrying alcohol onboard  is forbidden and will be confiscated. I do not think they will have bar facilities on start up.. That will be a boring 20 hours.

There are smoking areas with Independent extraction systems and areas on deck.. restrictions on smoking simply follow Thai Law whereby you cannot smoke within air-conditioned areas. The authorities have emphasised the importance of these regulations.

[HammerMan]

6 hours ago, Kerryd said:

There will be the initial excitement at boarding and for the first hour of the voyage as people wander about and gawk at (whatever).

Then 18 1/2 hours of boredom crossing the middle of the Gulf. Then a half hour of scrambling to get back to your vehicle and off the ship. 

That's why I'm hoping they'll have the sleeping cabins available. Might have to wait until this covid thing is under control though. 

And I doubt they can search people (or their vehicles) to see if they've brought booze with them. They could punish them if they get caught drinking on board of course. 
(Can you imagine the sh**storm that would be kicked up if they started searching people's vehicles and belongings before boarding ?)

I'm sure they'll have a smoking area somewhere near the stern as well, despite the T&Cs. (A lot of their crew will be smoking somewhere, you can be sure of that.)

I don't think they'll ever serve alcohol on board though. Same thing. Imagine a bunch of people drinking in the "bar" and then piling into their vehicles and trying to drive off the ship. The liability issues alone would be huge.

Read the T&Cs myself and sheesh - they could literally lift the ramp, stop, lower the ramp and kick everyone off for almost no reason at all and not have to refund a single satang !
They also absolve themselves of almost any liability for almost any kind of incident.

(Most of it is boiler plate indemnification that appears in the T&Cs of other companies as well, like airlines.)

 

As rightly stated the T&C's are standard terms used by all major ferry operators and drafted by company lawyers in line with Thai Law.  To sell alcohol aboard the vessel we need a Licence and have to follow hours permitted under law for sales. This is currently in process and the intention of owners is to avoid people getting drunk aboard the ferry and becoming a danger to themselves and other people both on and off the vessel. As responsible persons I'm sure this makes common sense to everyone.  Additionally the vessel has extensive insurance coverage whereby owners also have strict guidelines to follow. However, anyone acting reasonably will not be ejected from the vessel for minor infractions. Currently it appears the vessel will only be permitted to operate with Trucks and Truck drivers.. no passengers or private cars under current Covid-19 restrictions particularly in Songkhla. However, confirmation of this is still pending.

[Leaver]

1 hour ago, HammerMan said:

As rightly stated the T&C's are standard terms used by all major ferry operators and drafted by company lawyers in line with Thai Law.  To sell alcohol aboard the vessel we need a Licence and have to follow hours permitted under law for sales. This is currently in process and the intention of owners is to avoid people getting drunk aboard the ferry and becoming a danger to themselves and other people both on and off the vessel. As responsible persons I'm sure this makes common sense to everyone.  Additionally the vessel has extensive insurance coverage whereby owners also have strict guidelines to follow. However, anyone acting reasonably will not be ejected from the vessel for minor infractions. Currently it appears the vessel will only be permitted to operate with Trucks and Truck drivers.. no passengers or private cars under current Covid-19 restrictions particularly in Songkhla. However, confirmation of this is still pending.

 

Is a small, but strategic deviation off course into international waters an option, which would get around a Thai alcohol licence?  

 

I'm sure profits from sales would be greater than fuel costs.  

[jacko45k]

10 hours ago, pontious said:

The T/C seem like a prison ship - not a ferry cruise.

Actually some of the luxury cruises have similar rules too....

[Kerryd]

Technically, the whole center of the Gulf is "international waters" as "territorial waters" generally extend 12 (nautical) miles from the shoreline. Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) are a different matter and the entire Gulf is covered by that (by one country or another). 

That's the basis of all the BS going on in the South China Sea between China and Vietnam/Japan/the Philippines, as China is claiming the whole area as their EEC and building up tiny islands with military airbases and then using them" to claim the waters around them as "territorial waters" and then using that to extend their EEZ into areas already claimed by those other countries.

As the ferry is operating in Thailand's EEZ, I think they'd have to follow Thai rules regarding alcohol sales (and other matters). 

I think that was part of what killed that scammer's attempt to build a floating "colony" 12 miles off the coast of Phuket, just outside of Thailand's territorial waters, but still within it's EEZ. Close enough to it's territorial waters that no one (i.e. the UN, USA or any other nation) had any problems with the Thai Navy dismantling the scam and towing the "tin can" back to Phuket to be scrapped.
They were (barely) outside of Thailand's territorial waters, but were trying to run a (scam) commercial venture within it's EEZ (and while still expecting full support from Thailand, without paying any taxes or following any Thai laws of course).

(Note: the same scammers are trying the same thing again, this time off the coast of Panama. They also tried to scam people by buying an old cruise ship and then selling cabins on it, with the ship anchoring off the coast of Panama. The scammer was going to "create a new cryptocurrency" and try to sell it to finance the venture. It didn't pan out - big surprise - and the ship was going to be sold for scrap last December - barely a year after they were trying to sell cabins on it. It ended up being bought by a start-up cruise company based in Montenegro, on the Adriatic Sea just north of Albania).

[HammerMan]

11 hours ago, Leaver said:

 

Is a small, but strategic deviation off course into international waters an option, which would get around a Thai alcohol licence?  

 

I'm sure profits from sales would be greater than fuel costs.  

Unfortunately no, we investigated this option but were told as we sail to/from Thai Ports as a domestic class vessel we therefore cannot.