Extra-long weekend in Thailand: here’s what you need to know

[blackshadow]

14 hours ago, CanadaSam said:

Does anybody know if the banks are open on Monday, 31st July?  Thanks!

 

call yur bank ask !!!!

[Sydebolle]

Well, when I arrived almost 40 years ago, Thailand had a ceiling of not more than 13 public holidays.

The cabinet's "gift" to the people of Thailand is not paid by the government or its tax payers (if you discount those millions of government employees) but by the private industry. They carry the burden of paying taxes (for the government employees holidays) as well as the absence costs of their own staff; latter being paid for not having to show up to work. 

That really has a great impact on anybody seriously considering investing in a labour-intensive industry in Thailand where it is questionable, which is the greater problem. The inability to find (semi-)qualified staff, the complete absence of loyalty among most staff or the unheard of high number of paid public holidays. Your call! 

[FritsSikkink]

16 hours ago, bdenner said:

My 28 yo step daughter has been employed (after we bought her the position) for some 9 months in a local 'Orr Bor Tor' Office. Has spent more time here at home than when she was unemployed.

Ahhh the land of the long weekend!!!!!

Why would you buy a position? Qualified people can get a job without paying.

Will you be paying for promotions too?

[Skeptic7]

A long weekend in the West is 3 days. Extra long...4. Here in dirt poor, ThirdWorld-land...6 days❗That's NOT a weekend...that's a WEEK. ???? This place has nearly as many booze-ban days as not. 

 

T. I. T. to the MAX...in a "nut"-shell. 

[marin]

12 hours ago, MrJ2U said:

Air fare and Hotel prices will double.

 

Places will still be slow.  Not many Thais can afford to travel far from home.

Not at all. No hotel rates will go up they are waiting for customers, just checked all airfares and none have gone up, mostly down. The government promotes these holidays for consumer spending thats why we now have a 6 day weekend. 

 

Also remember its the middle of the low season. 

[KhunLA]

I'm stocked up, all of 2 beers (490ml).  Took 3 with me on a 10 day O&A, and opened 1, didn't finish it.

 

2 remaining beers probably won't get opened, unless I make a pizza or something else worthy of pairing with it.

 

Maybe wash down a doobie, ever rarer.

 

I came here for the Tax Free, easy investment opportunities & healthcare.  Not the bars & hookers.

 

'What I need to know' ... not much, except avoid hwy#4 on first & last day of holiday, direction dependent.

 

Whatever your vice ... Stock Up & ENJOY

[FritsSikkink]

2 hours ago, Lapun said:

According to -

https://thailandformats.com/no-alcohol-days/2023

. . . the alcohol free days are Tuesday 01 & Wednesday 02 August.

I was also told the King's BD (28 July) could be alcohol free - but I do not think this is the case. Could be mixed up with Tuesday 05 December which is alcohol free. That is the last King's BD & also Father's day.

Kings birthday, there is always alcohol same as Father's day.

[FritsSikkink]

1 hour ago, Sydebolle said:

Well, when I arrived almost 40 years ago, Thailand had a ceiling of not more than 13 public holidays.

The cabinet's "gift" to the people of Thailand is not paid by the government or its tax payers (if you discount those millions of government employees) but by the private industry. They carry the burden of paying taxes (for the government employees holidays) as well as the absence costs of their own staff; latter being paid for not having to show up to work. 

That really has a great impact on anybody seriously considering investing in a labour-intensive industry in Thailand where it is questionable, which is the greater problem. The inability to find (semi-)qualified staff, the complete absence of loyalty among most staff or the unheard of high number of paid public holidays. Your call! 

Most people who work in the private sector, don't get these last moment freebies. Government workers mostly

[FritsSikkink]

20 minutes ago, Skeptic7 said:

A long weekend in the West is 3 days. Extra long...4. Here in dirt poor, ThirdWorld-land...6 days❗That's NOT a weekend...that's a WEEK. ???? This place has nearly as many booze-ban days as not. 

 

T. I. T. to the MAX...in a "nut"-shell. 

Thailand isn't dirt poor, there are very poor areas. Booze ban isn't for 6 days.

[KannikaP]

4 hours ago, Bepah umayun said:

But they are not that unhuman: with a valid ID showing it's your birthday, you're allowed to buy alcoholic drinks, (my case ????).

I very much doubt that. And if so and you are born on 29th February, I feel for you.

The electronic tills in 7-11s, Lotus's etc will not allow any alcohol sales to go through. Mom & Pop shop are OK though.

Or can they GIVE you the booze in bars and you pay for it next day, after leaving something as a security deposit of course.

[Lucky Bones]

3 hours ago, Venom said:

What you need to know - crowds, traffic, noise. ????

More girls working the bars.????????

[couchpotato]

31 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Why would you buy a position? Qualified people can get a job without paying.

Will you be paying for promotions too?

Probably none of your business.

[Lucky Bones]

33 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Why would you buy a position? Qualified people can get a job without paying.

Will you be paying for promotions too?

Really?

Have you spent any time in rural villages or only experienced city life?

Buying a position and promotion is a way of life for both side of the transaction.

Education runs a very distant 2nd as no money would change hands.????????

[proton]

2 hours ago, gomangosteen said:

Surprised that can happen; daughter was shift supervisor at a 7-11 while at uni - their tills are 'locked-out' from accepting alcohol scans during the no-alcohol sales hours to protect staff from getting into trouble selling outside prescribed hours.  

Our local 7/11 takes the money and rings it up later, they even deliver out of hours

[proton]

14 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Thailand isn't dirt poor, there are very poor areas. Booze ban isn't for 6 days.

5% are not poor, they own 67% of the wealth, a lot are poor.

[connda]

Extra-long weekend in Thailand: here’s what you need to know

Go shopping today and stock up (we just got back from an early morning shopping excursion) and then, like Songkran, hunker down for the next 7 days.  Drunks and the terminally aggressive drivers will be out in force on the road just like Songkran, but without the Songkran police blockades.  Traffic fatality stats should be interesting to see a week from now. 

[connda]

23 minutes ago, proton said:

5% are not poor, they own 67% of the wealth, a lot are poor.

The difference between dirt poor and so-called 'wealth' is the amount of unsecured debt that Thai banks and financial institutions are willing to extend.

Honestly - a truly poor but debt free person is probably better off in the long-run.  Maybe.  Or the entire financial infrastructure could collapse under the weight of bad debt and - TaDa!!! - Jubilee! at which point those with the most 'written off' debt win. 

[connda]

17 hours ago, bdenner said:

My 28 yo step daughter has been employed (after we bought her the position) for some 9 months in a local 'Orr Bor Tor' Office. Has spent more time here at home than when she was unemployed.

Ahhh the land of the long weekend!!!!!

Yep - government jobs and loaded onto the government gravy-train.

[connda]

13 hours ago, chickenslegs said:

According to the linked article the "no alcohol" days are Tuesday 1 August and Wednesday 2 August.

 

Kaow Pansa - Beginning of the rain retreats.

[connda]

5 hours ago, Bepah umayun said:

But they are not that unhuman: with a valid ID showing it's your birthday, you're allowed to buy alcoholic drinks, (my case ????).

Village Mom & Pop stores will sell any time, any day.

[connda]

2 hours ago, Sydebolle said:

Well, when I arrived almost 40 years ago, Thailand had a ceiling of not more than 13 public holidays.

The cabinet's "gift" to the people of Thailand is not paid by the government or its tax payers (if you discount those millions of government employees) but by the private industry. They carry the burden of paying taxes (for the government employees holidays) as well as the absence costs of their own staff; latter being paid for not having to show up to work. 

That really has a great impact on anybody seriously considering investing in a labour-intensive industry in Thailand where it is questionable, which is the greater problem. The inability to find (semi-)qualified staff, the complete absence of loyalty among most staff or the unheard of high number of paid public holidays. Your call! 

Benny Hill had a song about holidays that was brilliant but I've been unable to ever find it again.
He went through all the holidays and weekends and other special times and at the end of the day came up with the fact that the entire year is a holiday and nobody works. It was a really funny song, wish I could find it again.

[JayClay]

3 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I must be thick... I keep getting caught  out by the before 11am and after 2pm restrictions.....

I recently managed to get it all upside down and inside out.

 

After coming back from a lunchtime beer in town, I wanted to get a beer or two in 7/11 to take home. It was 13.30 and clearly the previos beer had fogged my brain as I thought to myself that I need to wait until 2pm before I could buy (!).

 

Not to worry, I thought to myself.... There was a bar next to 7 anyway, so I sat there, ordered a beer and obliviously waited for the clock to run down to 14.00 so I could go into 7/11 to be told that they couldn't serve me.

 

A bit embarrassing considering how long I've been here...

[FritsSikkink]

1 hour ago, Lucky Bones said:

Really?

Have you spent any time in rural villages or only experienced city life?

Buying a position and promotion is a way of life for both side of the transaction.

Education runs a very distant 2nd as no money would change hands.????????

Spend about 4 months in a row once and do come back a couple of times a years as my wife's family lives there and we own a couple of businesses there. Didn't want to stay there as I wanted my kids to have a good education followed by a good, well paying job.

[FritsSikkink]

1 hour ago, couchpotato said:

Probably none of your business.

Don't mention it in a public forum then.

[jacko45k]

2 hours ago, Sydebolle said:

That really has a great impact on anybody seriously considering investing in a labour-intensive industry in Thailand where it is questionable, which is the greater problem.

And yet they came........

So do Ford shut down the line Monday. or pay everyone a bonus to work,?

Or move back to Oz.......?

[Seppius]

From my recent experience in Pattaya, even the mum and papa are getting harder to find. The Thai market top of Pratumnak 5 used to sell on dry days, not any more, and another good standby is the red painted shop opposite Jomtien Plaza, always sold on these days, not any more.

 

The so called Russian Market on Pratumnak 6 does have stalls that usually sell for take away

[Andycoops]

19 hours ago, steven100 said:

  so can anyone confirm what are the two days of NO SALE      ??  I mean from 7-11 not bars.        thank you kindly.

 

 

1st and 2nd of August all bars will be closed.

[Andycoops]

3 hours ago, FritsSikkink said:

Spend about 4 months in a row once and do come back a couple of times a years as my wife's family lives there and we own a couple of businesses there. Didn't want to stay there as I wanted my kids to have a good education followed by a good, well paying job.

4 months and the odd visit not really CV for understanding how life really is. 

You need to have years under you belt.

[Andycoops]

4 hours ago, marin said:

Not at all. No hotel rates will go up they are waiting for customers, just checked all airfares and none have gone up, mostly down. The government promotes these holidays for consumer spending thats why we now have a 6 day weekend. 

 

Also remember its the middle of the low season. 

A friend of mine walked into a beach road hotel in Pattaya and got a 30% discount for this weekend...

[Andycoops]

5 hours ago, FritsSikkink said:

Why would you buy a position? Qualified people can get a job without paying.

Will you be paying for promotions too?

Clearly you don't understand how Thailand works.

 

As the chinese actress said when she paid for the police out riders to whisk her from the airport in Bangkok to her Pattaya hotel and I quote, 'everything in Thailand is for sale '

 

My wife's friend was offered a job at the local school when someone was retiring, after completing her degree, the fee was 200,000 baht paid into the school directors bank account if she wanted the position.

 

I suggest you wake up and smell the coffee...