Rip-off at famous Thai floating market: "Long running con" investigated after tourist pays 5,000 baht for two hour trip

[steven100]

58 minutes ago, MrJ2U said:

seems a little high but not excessive. 

    I woulda said excessive   ..    or simply a rip-off  !!

[Woof999]

Is "Scammer" one of the protected jobs that is for Thais only or can anyone do it?

[ikke1959]

Good to hear a inside story now a Thai is involved.....

[Fairynuff]

5 hours ago, Celsius said:

I really like it when capitalist comes to Thailand and then complains about Thais being a capitalist.

 

Remember, in Thailand there is always a choice.... as a matter of fact a lot more choice than back home. If you are lazy to do a research then you really shouldn't complain about being "ripped off". It's called capitalism, not scam.

No, it’s a scam. And it’s not really a choice when the only choice is pay up or don’t go.

[Fairynuff]

1 hour ago, MaiChai said:

What happened to "No thank you*? You can say no if something seems over priced? No need for Thai bashing; other places have tourist traps as well.

Just because other places have scams it doesn’t excuse Thailand. Thai bashing as you call it is perfectly valid in this case.

[BritScot]

5 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

That's really very naive!

 

What kind of tourist comes to Thailand and spends 5k a night on a 5 star hotel and then thinks a boat trip on the river cost between 5k and 20k! Tourists need to use some common sense and help themselves just a little bit, nobody ever said you couldn't get ripped off in a tourist area but that happens almost everywhere in some shape or form.

 

Ah the "It happens everywhere else" argument/excuse! First it's a Thailand  forum and second in civilised countries it is very rare as when reported to the police it is acted on severely and licensing are revoked regardless of who you are.

[Fairynuff]

Let’s not forget that scamming or at the very least overcharging is sanctioned by the government here. Just a few days ago I tried to enter QS botanical gardens at Mae Rim. The “foreigner” price was a mere 300% rip off instead of the National Park average 1000%. My pink card was refused so we turned the car round and went elsewhere.

[nigelforbes]

8 minutes ago, BritScot said:

Ah the "It happens everywhere else" argument/excuse! First it's a Thailand  forum and second in civilised countries it is very rare as when reported to the police it is acted on severely and licensing are revoked regardless of who you are.

And in the meantime, lots of people get ripped off. I imagine you will have seen all those families in the UK before Xmas who bought expensive tickets to those Lapland Xmas experience or similar that seem to appear every year, it's the same opportunistic ploy used everywhere in the world when there's an opportunity.

 

 

[Boyn]

So some Thais put up prices when they saw tourists, nothing new there been happening for ever.

[NRGF]

I was taken to the Floating Market for the first time more than 40 years ago when I was young and foolish, now I am no longer young but even then I could immediately see it was just a tourist trap and so declined the boat trip. 

[still kicking]

1 hour ago, nigelforbes said:

No, NF.

I will tell you how tourists getting treated where I live took my nephew to an attraction (Zoo)he is Thai I am Australian I paid 25 dollars entrance fee he paid only 18 because he was a tourist so explain that

[Xonax]

Scams like this have been going on for ages in Damnoen Saduak floating market. 

[still kicking]

1 minute ago, Xonax said:

Scams like this have been going on for ages in Damnoen Saduak floating market. 

Yes I lived near the market and I know 

[richard_smith237]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

She seemed to have a foreign husband in tow, suggests ASEAN NOW. Either that or they were paying more because they were going to places with foreign tourists.

How can the authorities expect businesses to behave any other way they the ‘dual pricing’ and surcharging of foreigners is something the actively pursue and support ????

(dual charing in hospitals and national parks etc).

 

 

The authorities send out the message that this practice is not only ok, it's expected. 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

29 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

And in the meantime, lots of people get ripped off. I imagine you will have seen all those families in the UK before Xmas who bought expensive tickets to those Lapland Xmas experience or similar that seem to appear every year, it's the same opportunistic ploy used everywhere in the world when there's an opportunity.

 

 

No... it becomes the same ‘opportunistic ploy’ when in the UK they charge you a higher entrance free than others because your wife is not British... 

[TheFishman1]

From the police to the taxi drivers to the guy that wants to you to take a ride in this boat at the floating market for corruption from the top down. TT.

[Kalasin Jo]

Mostly the Thai scammers leave you alone, as do the beach and street vendors if you say no thank you don't they? Perhaps not so easy to do and just leave in this scenario if you've taken a taxi to THIS pier on the driver's recommendation and he's hanging around waiting for his cut of the boat trip charge.

 

I used to take holidays in the Caribbean. I love the islands, the vendors and scammers there not so much. Very friendly to start but they WON'T leave you alone, they will follow you, they will start to curse you and appear aggressive. Hire an open jeep? Big mistake if you have a white attractive lady in the passenger seat. Stop for even a moment and local men appear from nowhere wanting to touch her. They will pretend they are authorised guides then rip you off. One such "guide" with whom a sensible fee was agreed at the start at the end wanted so much more. A tip perhaps but not this. So the curses started and aggressive behaviour. We left sharpish. Of course most locals are dirt poor but this behaviour wins them no sympathetic friends.

Sadly I learned that the Caribbean is best done at a closed and gated resort, often with armed guards at the perimeter, with excursions organised through the resort.

I haven't experienced this in Thailand, nor Laos or Cambodia. I did experience insistent and persistent pressure to buy something amongst the hill tribes in North Vietnam but it was always friendly done with a smile not a curse.

 

i

[BritManToo]

Alternatively the couple could learn to say NO.

[Cake Monster]

6 hours ago, Shuya said:

Land of Scams in full swing again

They have had a 3 Year Holiday on the Scamming, and now its time to make back the lost earnings, as well as implement a few new scams dreamt up during the hiatus

[Celsius]

1 hour ago, Confuscious said:

Some people just can not say "No".
That's not a reason to scam them.
Thailand or elsewhere in the world.
You input in this thread is pityful at the best.

I said no to Trudeau taxes and immigration. I said no to rent control. I said no to subsidizing my property because Trudeau said it's my responsibility to make housing affordable. I felt scammed so I left.

[Stevemercer]

The only country I have visited as a tourist where I felt systematically fleeced was France (tourist spots in Paris). Short changing, over charging, not getting what was advertised: all seemed almost routine.

 

It was a relief to fly to my next destination (Glascow) where the merchants were honest, and you didn't have to count your change, even if I couldn't understand what they were saying.

[tonypattaya]

Tourist rip-offs are not isolated to Thailand. 

[still kicking]

57 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Alternatively the couple could learn to say NO.

You don't understand they are tourist. You are an Ex-pat who knows 

[NextG]

1 hour ago, Kalasin Jo said:

Mostly the Thai scammers leave you alone, as do the beach and street vendors if you say no thank you don't they? Perhaps not so easy to do and just leave in this scenario if you've taken a taxi to THIS pier on the driver's recommendation and he's hanging around waiting for his cut of the boat trip charge.

 

I used to take holidays in the Caribbean. I love the islands, the vendors and scammers there not so much. Very friendly to start but they WON'T leave you alone, they will follow you, they will start to curse you and appear aggressive. Hire an open jeep? Big mistake if you have a white attractive lady in the passenger seat. Stop for even a moment and local men appear from nowhere wanting to touch her. They will pretend they are authorised guides then rip you off. One such "guide" with whom a sensible fee was agreed at the start at the end wanted so much more. A tip perhaps but not this. So the curses started and aggressive behaviour. We left sharpish. Of course most locals are dirt poor but this behaviour wins them no sympathetic friends.

Sadly I learned that the Caribbean is best done at a closed and gated resort, often with armed guards at the perimeter, with excursions organised through the resort.

I haven't experienced this in Thailand, nor Laos or Cambodia. I did experience insistent and persistent pressure to buy something amongst the hill tribes in North Vietnam but it was always friendly done with a smile not a curse.

 

 

i

Utter garbage. 
Caribbean? That’s not unlike saying you went to Europe and they are all scammers. 
Secondly, I have visited the Caribbean on very many occasions. In all of these visits, not a single person offered to be my guide or tried to touch my girlfriend. 
On top of this, no one tried to rip me off in any way. I met only polite and considerate people, including a Rasta man who spotted my girlfriend’s red and peeling skin and plucked some aloe vera from the trolley he was pushing along. Saved the day. 
You seem to be very unlucky or very special…

[poyai111]

7 hours ago, Celsius said:

I really like it when capitalist comes to Thailand and then complains about Thais being a capitalist.

 

Remember, in Thailand there is always a choice.... as a matter of fact a lot more choice than back home. If you are lazy to do a research then you really shouldn't complain about being "ripped off". It's called capitalism, not scam.

Capitalism thrives on competition - leave exploitation to the socialists

[Mavideol]

52 minutes ago, Stevemercer said:

The only country I have visited as a tourist where I felt systematically fleeced was France (tourist spots in Paris). Short changing, over charging, not getting what was advertised: all seemed almost routine.

 

It was a relief to fly to my next destination (Glascow) where the merchants were honest, and you didn't have to count your change, even if I couldn't understand what they were saying.

did you took a close look at the scammers in Paris, were they "real" French or north africans, roumanians/gipsy gitans, eastern europeans... usually french people don't have time for scams, they work on regular jobs

[2009]

3 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

What does this have to do with anything at all? If a price is 400 baht per hour, and you charge 5000, that is a scam, not capitalism. Go back to school before you say things.

 

Those who work there, the 400 is similar than 100 us dollars is for a minimum wage worker abroad. Charging 5K for a trip would equal like 1000-1500 dollars abroad for the same.

Exactly.

 

Can't believe how much scammer apologist posts I had to read before I found a voice of reason.

[Lee65]

Caveat Emptor

[Spock]

5 hours ago, Ctkong said:

Tourists areas everywhere worldwide have scammers ripping off tourists .. it is what it is. People should research the places they are going to familiarize about the charges. We brought a couple of overseas friends last sept to the market . Booked a motorized boat negotiated down to tb800 for 4 people. Business was quiet then too and more than half the stores were closed. 

Tourist areas everywhere do not all have scammers. Some countries have almost none while some have more or many more than others. A measure of a country's moral fibre is the strength and power of its scam force, and Thailand has always had more than its fair share. With increased wealth and the growth of middle class aspirations, people would be expected to become more transparent and honest in their dealings with visitors to the country. These scammers exist because of the corrupt police turning a blind eye to them. Really this organised scamming of tourists is not unrelated to the other headline news regarding police extortion from tourists.

 

Sure tourists should be less naïve, but blaming them rather than the perpetrators of the scams and those who allow it to happen is simply deflecting the blame for dishonesty and corruption. 

[drgoon]

Floating markets, wat tours, special deals at Indian taylors