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Tourist Driving


Nouf

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Hi, looking to hire a car, and wonder how easy it is to hire a car, thinking of travelling from bangkok to udon thani

i am british, can i ask is it a simple case of making a booking from the uk and pick the car from the airport and showing my british license, or do i require a international licence as i will be only hiring the car for a couple of weeks

thanks

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I use my US license , But I also carry A international Driving license , Got stopped in Udon showed the policeman my US license he said it was ok, but kind of was looking at it , I advised i also had a international License , he stated ok. walked off. I would get a i nternational one as well. cant hurt yo have it.

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Nouf, driving here is no big problem for somebody from the UK as we already drive on the correct side of the road ha ha ha. There are a couple of things to look out for though. The biggest difference for someone from the UK is when waiting to turn against traffic and people flash their lights at you its not as in the UK a sign you can pull out. It means Dont move Im coming through and cannot stop. Also be aware that you will get cars and bikes travelling against the flow of traffic, its normal here just get used to it. Another is if when driving you see bits of green branches laid in the road BEWARE. This is the Thai equievelant of a warning triangle andyou will see normally a broken down truck further ahead. The only other bit of advice I would give you is never be in a hurry to get anywhere. Ive just done over 9000 km in a couple of months on the new bike and we are planning a 2 month trip. This is a beautiful country so just take your time and enjoy the view. Happy motoring :o

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Get use to driving defensivly all the time, as Dunc said be aware of traffic comming against the flow of traffic. Dont know much about driving in towns at night but out in the country it's not uncommon for drivers to have no lights, esspecially the bikes.

Beware of the buses!

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Beware of the buses!

Be especially aware of the 'iron buffalo' on country roads after dark, turn the stereo off and wind the windows down a little, you can usually hear the 'thuk thuk thuk' before you see them.

Many thanks for all your advice

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i still use the old UK paper licence. I don't know how legal it would be in a crisis but the BiB get really confused when they unfold it and cannot find a picture. Normally they just give it back and tell me to go away!

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Thailand is the perfect place for both Europeans/Americans and Anglophiles to drive in harmony, since it is perfectly acceptable to drive on whichever side of the road you are most comfortable.

Q: Do they drive on the left or the right hand side of the road in Thailand?

A: Yes.

I would suggest getting out of Bangkok very early in the morning as the traffic is no where near as bad once you are 'out of town'

Cheers,

Daewoo

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yes i know driving on the right US yanks have to be careful . Have to think LOL :o

And this is where they got it wrong you see. For the longest time it was believed that in order to drive safely the driver would need to change gears with their right hand, most people being right handed. This in turn demanded that the steering wheel be on the left and that cars in the US drive on the right. When the Brits took a look at the problem they said, surely the steering wheel is the most important part of the drivers controls therefore it should be managed by the dominant hand, the right one and hence we drive on the left. The other plausible excuse for the American error is that Yanks need to have their right hand free for some other purpose whilst driving although I can't possibly imagine what that might be. :D

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The other plausible excuse for the American error is that Yanks need to have their right hand free for some other purpose whilst driving although I can't possibly imagine what that might be. :D

Holding their 4 gallon cup of 'soda'???? :o:D:D

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I can't remember where I got this (could've been from a Thaivisa member) but here are the road rules in Thailand;

RULES OF THE ROAD IN THAILAND.

In order to successfully drive a motor vehicle in Thailand you must understand the transportation gestalt in an entirely different way. Definitions which you once thought were above definition will be immediately re-defined.

Please note the following:

THE ROAD.

The road includes not only the paved portion of the highway, but also what we might call the verge, the curb, the footpath, the front yard, the roadside footstalls and the Wat. The paved portion of the roadway is generally one lane wide. Not one lane wide in each direction – just one lane.

ROAD MARKINGS.

These colourful white and yellow lines mark the centre of the lanes and are especially useful on dark and rainy nights.

PASSING OR OVERTAKING.

Passing or overtaking is the national pastime in Thailand. Observant motorists among you may have encountered the following:

1. The Vertical Triple Manoeuvre.

The act of overtaking three vehicles in one accelerated movement.

2. The Horizontal Triple Manoeuvre.

The act of overtaking a vehicle, which is in the act of overtaking another vehicle.

3. The Double, Double Manoeuvre.

The act of overtaking a vehicle at precisely the same time that another vehicle, coming from the opposite direction, is also engaged in the act of overtaking.

TAILGATING.

Tailgating is what you do when not overtaking.

BEING OVERTAKEN.

The act of being overtaken is an insult not to be endured. The greater the differential between the vehicle being overtaken (BMW) and the overtaking vehicle (utility or a low ranking sedan) the greater the potential loss of prestige and face. The owner of the more expensive vehicle must always do everything possible to thwart the attempt of the being overtaken by a less expensive vehicle.

HEADLIGHTS.

Rapidly flashing headlights can mean anything including but not limited to the following:

• OK to pass now.

• Do not pass now.

• Get out of my way.

• Help, I am in trouble.

It takes years or sometimes an entire lifetime to learn this subtle, intriguing and non-verbal communication skill. Generally however, you have three seconds in which to respond.

THE HORN

When sounded loudly and frequently, the horn sets up an invisible energy barrier, which protects the vehicle and its passengers from all harm. The faster the vehicle is traveling, the better the horn works.

SEAT BELTS

Not only are seatbelts not worn, seatbelts are absolutely unnecessary. Driver and passengers are protected by the horn.

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I can't remember where I got this (could've been from a Thaivisa member) but here are the road rules in Thailand;

I don't know where you got that from either, but it's absolute garbage written by someone who has obviously not driven much in Thailand. Just another way for a Farang with a superiority complex to put down Thai people.

In 17 years I have driven all over Thailand and still travel great distances on a regular basis, sure there have been dangerous moments, but also I used to drive in UK, France, Italy, Spain, you think I never had a dangerous moment there either?

People are really strange, when I used to live in UK, I heard so many people talk about how bad French drivers are, then Italian drivers, and of course, all non English people who drive in UK.

Now I'm in Asia, I hear ( from Farangs ) about how all Asian drivers are useless.

Cos we all know that there are never accidents in Westren countries, all the drivers are well mannered, keep to the speed limit, never ever drink and drive, never get aggressive behind a wheel, etc etc.

Edited by Maigo6
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I can't remember where I got this (could've been from a Thaivisa member) but here are the road rules in Thailand;

I don't know where you got that from either, but it's absolute garbage written by someone who has obviously not driven much in Thailand. Just another way for a Farang with a superiority complex to put down Thai people.

In 17 years I have driven all over Thailand and still travel great distances on a regular basis, sure there have been dangerous moments, but also I used to drive in UK, France, Italy, Spain, you think I never had a dangerous moment there either?

People are really strange, when I used to live in UK, I heard so many people talk about how bad French drivers are, then Italian drivers, and of course, all non English people who drive in UK.

Now I'm in Asia, I hear ( from Farangs ) about how all Asian drivers are useless.

Cos we all know that there are never accidents in Westren countries, all the drivers are well mannered, keep to the speed limit, never ever drink and drive, never get aggressive behind a wheel, etc etc.

When I first read it, I thought it was more of a joke than to be taken seriously. BTW, you may like to look up road death toll statistics for various countries. Whilst I think like you (that western countries have their road idiots), I think you'll find that in case of Thailand, there are few idiots but many people who simply lack common 'road sense', which is quite possibly one of the main reasons why Thailand has about the 3rd or 4th highest road death toll in the world.

As with all statistics, the figures are relevant to 'per capita' & so provide a slightly scewed impression.

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why Thailand has about the 3rd or 4th highest road death toll in the world.

As with all statistics, the figures are relevant to 'per capita' & so provide a slightly scewed impression.

It may happen to be something to do with the ammount of Motorcycles on the roads, do you in your wildest dreams think that if UK or USA roads were as heavily populated with Motorcycles as is the case in Thailand, the death toll would not increase?

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why Thailand has about the 3rd or 4th highest road death toll in the world.

As with all statistics, the figures are relevant to 'per capita' & so provide a slightly scewed impression.

It may happen to be something to do with the ammount of Motorcycles on the roads, do you in your wildest dreams think that if UK or USA roads were as heavily populated with Motorcycles as is the case in Thailand, the death toll would not increase?

And you dont think that it might have something to do with the Thais on the motorbikes driving the wrong way up roads at night with their lights off ?? Or 12 year old children playing speed demon outside schools ?? Or or or..

Thai driving standards are truly awful.. I dont care, just insure up and drive defensively. I prefer it a little wild west myself.

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If anyone really thinks thailand is bad for driving then please take a trip to India, nobody will be complaining after that.

Just returned from driving an autorickshaw 2000 KM's across india in a charity race.

Didnt find them any worse than Thais to be honest tho the roads are far worse.

Indo is a pretty crazy place for driving, downtown denpassar on Bali can be a hoot.

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I can't remember where I got this (could've been from a Thaivisa member) but here are the road rules in Thailand;

I don't know where you got that from either, but it's absolute garbage written by someone who has obviously not driven much in Thailand. Just another way for a Farang with a superiority complex to put down Thai people.

When I first read it, I thought it was more of a joke than to be taken seriously.

Anyone who doesn't take the Thai Driving stuff as being most definitely tongue-in-cheek must have had their sense of humour removed at birth :o Whilst I can't take credit for initially producing it, there is an embellished version on my website.

That said, I guarantee that anyone who has actually driven in Thailand will have seen at least one example of each of the manoeuvres described :D

As to India, try driving in central Mumbai in the rush hour (I won't I have a driver) there is just nothing on earth like it, well not that I've seen, yet :D

The worst place I've driven was Belgium, not because of bad driving per-se, but because they are incredibly aggressive drivers "I have right of way, and I'm taking it even if it means having an accident", Italy and France are nothing.

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