May 20, 201016 yr I am an American, set to fly to Chiang Mai on Wednesday 26 May for wedding. How is the situation there? Have things calmed down? We are worried, but know news reports can be skewed. Input from people living in CM would be helpful to make a decision to come on 26 May, postpone trip, or cancel. Thank you!!
May 20, 201016 yr There have been a few protest rallies here but,on the whole it's fairly quiet.That said the country as a whole is changing daily so,one never really knows for sure.If it were me I would come but keep abreast of the news.This forum will keep you up to date.Good luck.
May 20, 201016 yr There have been a few protest rallies here but,on the whole it's fairly quiet.That said the country is changing daily so,one never really knows for sure.If it were me I would come but keep abreast of the news.This forum will keep you up to date.Good luck.
May 20, 201016 yr You are in far more danger crossing the road in Thailand at a pedestrian crossing than you are from any protest group.
May 21, 201016 yr CM was hardly affected beyond a couple of small incidents. Now it is quiet, the local red shirt leadership has abandoned the rallies & barricades at their base & stopped broadcasting their radio station. I was out for dinner last night & saw plenty of people having a good evening in the Nimmanhaemin area. I would have no qualms about travelling here in the current state of things.
May 21, 201016 yr I live here ....... but if I didn't have a Thai wife, I would be gone. Don't come, not worth risking your life. This could get very nasty, very fast. At the moment it's just buildings being burnt.
May 21, 201016 yr CM was hardly affected beyond a couple of small incidents. Now it is quiet, the local red shirt leadership has abandoned the rallies & barricades at their base & stopped broadcasting their radio station. I was out for dinner last night & saw plenty of people having a good evening in the Nimmanhaemin area. I would have no qualms about travelling here in the current state of things.
May 21, 201016 yr I live here ....... but if I didn't have a Thai wife, I would be gone.Don't come, not worth risking your life. This could get very nasty, very fast. At the moment it's just buildings being burnt. Huh? Stay away from demonstrations, don't do anything stupid, and you are as safe here as almost anywhere else. My only tie to Chiang Mai is that I like it here, and I don't intend to leave.
May 21, 201016 yr I live here ....... but if I didn't have a Thai wife, I would be gone.Don't come, not worth risking your life. This could get very nasty, very fast. At the moment it's just buildings being burnt. And what buildings were burnt in Chiang Mai? There was a gate at the governor's residence, a fire truck and fireworks thrown at the Bangkok bank Tha Pae Gate but I haven't heard of any buildings burning.
May 21, 201016 yr I'm wouldn't be so worried about comming to Chiang Mai. There is really no way for anyone to promise you a safe journey or a safe stay for that matter. We are in CM at the moment and we are not leaving until 27 of May to Suvarnabhumi for take off home to Sweden. People in CM are very angry at the government for imposing the curfew, since it affects their income of business. Only a small number of minor incidents occurred and where dealt with rapidely the day after. We are not worried and we can hardley experience any activities of magnitude. Life seems to go on as if almost nothing has happened, bearing the exception of the irritating curfew-decision in mind. We hope you feel less worried.
May 21, 201016 yr Friends have said that it is safe as it can be. I would not go to Bangkok at the moment, but would go to Chiang Mai IMHO. Edited May 21, 201016 yr by Lizard2010
May 21, 201016 yr I have to second Lillmassa. No one can ever guarantee safe travel anywhere, but the notion that life in CM is anything but pretty normal right now stretches it. I live in CM and am as cautious as anyone. I'm not urging you to do anything except follow your gut feeling and common sense. This chapter of a very long and recently very sad drama has quieted for now. It's certainly not over for the Kingdom, but if you wait for that to be the case you'll probably be attending the silver anniversary instead of a wedding.
May 21, 201016 yr It is not at all normal in CM Every evening there are road blocks everywhere to enforce curfew. Banks are all closed, some banks have turned off their ATMs. Shopping plazas are randomly closed, all day, or just early. Schools in CM are closed. Petrol stations keep running out. Wednesday at 8pm the bus and train station were closed and people with tickets told to go home. How many people need to be shot in CM before people start considering it dangerous? As far as I know none shot so far ........... so it must be safe! What if you have some sort of accident out here? Your holiday insurance is surely invalid if you choose to travel. Edited May 21, 201016 yr by sarahsbloke
May 21, 201016 yr I live here ....... but if I didn't have a Thai wife, I would be gone.Don't come, not worth risking your life. This could get very nasty, very fast. At the moment it's just buildings being burnt. You must be in bangkok to quote all that .
May 21, 201016 yr It is not at all normal in CMEvery evening there are road blocks everywhere to enforce curfew. Banks are all closed, some banks have turned off their ATMs. Shopping plazas are randomly closed, all day, or just early. Schools in CM are closed. Petrol stations keep running out. Wednesday at 8pm the bus and train station were closed and people with tickets told to go home. How many people need to be shot in CM before people start considering it dangerous? As far as I know none shot so far ........... so it must be safe! What if you have some sort of accident out here? Your holiday insurance is surely invalid if you choose to travel. My advice to you is: Get into bed, Pull the blanket over your head.... Take some deep calming breaths.... And relax...
May 21, 201016 yr It is not at all normal in CMEvery evening there are road blocks everywhere to enforce curfew. Banks are all closed, some banks have turned off their ATMs. Shopping plazas are randomly closed, all day, or just early. Schools in CM are closed. Petrol stations keep running out. Wednesday at 8pm the bus and train station were closed and people with tickets told to go home. How many people need to be shot in CM before people start considering it dangerous? As far as I know none shot so far ........... so it must be safe! What if you have some sort of accident out here? Your holiday insurance is surely invalid if you choose to travel. My advice to you is: Get into bed, Pull the blanket over your head.... Take some deep calming breaths.... And relax... And he clearly stated in an earlier post that buildings were burnt down in Chiang Mai. I asked him which ones? He hasn't responded. He now implies that people were shot or will be shot in Chiang Mai. Nobody was shot. God forbid he's just making stuff up and posting this rubbish because he supports the reds and wants to terrorize people. Edited May 21, 201016 yr by Loaded
May 21, 201016 yr went for a bike ride to chiangdao yesterday, no problem, rode around town a little, no problem, hope all returns to normal and relaxing the curfew will help to do that so. I am looking forward to a quiet beer in town in Sunday
May 21, 201016 yr It is not at all normal in CMEvery evening there are road blocks everywhere to enforce curfew. Banks are all closed, some banks have turned off their ATMs. Shopping plazas are randomly closed, all day, or just early. Schools in CM are closed. Petrol stations keep running out. Wednesday at 8pm the bus and train station were closed and people with tickets told to go home. How many people need to be shot in CM before people start considering it dangerous? As far as I know none shot so far ........... so it must be safe! What if you have some sort of accident out here? Your holiday insurance is surely invalid if you choose to travel. My advice to you is: Get into bed, Pull the blanket over your head.... Take some deep calming breaths.... And relax... And he clearly stated in an earlier post that buildings were burnt down in Chiang Mai. I asked him which ones? He hasn't responded. He now implies that people were shot or will be shot in Chiang Mai. Nobody was shot. God forbid he's just making stuff up and posting this rubbish because he supports the reds and wants to terrorize people. I don't think I have ever seen such a case of paranoia! Dangerous??? Have you ever been to Deptford, South London?
May 21, 201016 yr I live here ....... but if I didn't have a Thai wife, I would be gone.Don't come, not worth risking your life. This could get very nasty, very fast. At the moment it's just buildings being burnt. And what buildings were burnt in Chiang Mai? There was a gate at the governor's residence, a fire truck and fireworks thrown at the Bangkok bank Tha Pae Gate but I haven't heard of any buildings burning. A building at the Governors residence was burnt but that's the only one I know of. BKK post reported it yesterday and more importantly, I saw it myself. "Protesters burned the house of a senior provincial officer located in the compound of the provincial governor’s residence. A number of old tyres were also burned at the compound." Chiang Mai is very quiet at the moment. Extremely unlikely that foreigners will be harmed, unless they are joining in any protests. I'd be more concerned about getting married. That's really scary. Edited May 21, 201016 yr by twofortheroad
May 21, 201016 yr It is not at all normal in CMEvery evening there are road blocks everywhere to enforce curfew. Banks are all closed, some banks have turned off their ATMs. Shopping plazas are randomly closed, all day, or just early. Schools in CM are closed. Petrol stations keep running out. Wednesday at 8pm the bus and train station were closed and people with tickets told to go home. How many people need to be shot in CM before people start considering it dangerous? As far as I know none shot so far ........... so it must be safe! What if you have some sort of accident out here? Your holiday insurance is surely invalid if you choose to travel. My advice to you is: Get into bed, Pull the blanket over your head.... Take some deep calming breaths.... And relax... And he clearly stated in an earlier post that buildings were burnt down in Chiang Mai. I asked him which ones? He hasn't responded. He now implies that people were shot or will be shot in Chiang Mai. Nobody was shot. God forbid he's just making stuff up and posting this rubbish because he supports the reds and wants to terrorize people. I don't think I have ever seen such a case of paranoia! Dangerous??? Have you ever been to Deptford, South London? indeed. a few amateurs and wannabe anarchists burning the odd tyre? absolutely nothing. try the wrong part of london on a friday at midnight.
May 21, 201016 yr I'd like to know which of the posters has a crystal ball with some of the comments they are making. The correct answer to what will happen in the near future should be no one knows. It is obvious that all is not well in the LOS, there is a lot of underlying tension and friction and things can erupt and escalate at any time. This is a country where irrational behavior can and has happened recently - ie yellow shirts stranding thousands of foreign visitors on holiday from leaving and thinking nothing of it, to the most recent chaos created by another faction, the red shirts. When and how it will end is impossible to say. Bottom line, there are no guarantees in life on anything as we all know. Your trip here could be uneventful and enjoyable or you could be heading into the "eye of the storm". If you are worried to the point it is making you anxious about coming, stay home. If you're not, come and try to have a good time. In any case, life goes on.
May 21, 201016 yr Typical westerners trying to 2nd guess what is going to happen . I knew you would say that
May 21, 201016 yr Author Thanks so much to everyone for the helpful feedback. I certainly understand that one cannot predict the outcome of any situation or "guarantee" a safe trip-- but it is really helpful to hear about how Chiang Mai is right now from those who are there. We will be heading your way on 26 May, as originally planned Thanks again to everyone who responded, we truly appreciate it!!
May 21, 201016 yr Thanks so much to everyone for the helpful feedback. I certainly understand that one cannot predict the outcome of any situation or "guarantee" a safe trip-- but it is really helpful to hear about how Chiang Mai is right now from those who are there. We will be heading your way on 26 May, as originally planned Thanks again to everyone who responded, we truly appreciate it!! You are welcome.. Absolutely nothing strange going on here... exept we cannot go out after 9pm. Think government is a bit over reacting, but I understand they are a bit paranoid after the Bkk violence. I hope they realy lift the curfew tomorrow and we can go back to normal. Again Welcome!
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