Renting A Bike For A Touring Holiday In Thailand

[RickSee]

Posted this a few weeks ago, but apparently got the forum wrong (thanks to an observant reader for pointing this out...).! Trying again.

I would like to rent a motorbike in Bangkok and tour parts of Thailand for a few weeks. A few questions: (i) do I need a motorbike drivers license for this (or, is there a limit on the bike size that I can drive w/o a license)? (ii) what would be the minimum bike size to make this enjoyable/practical?; (iii) where would be a good place to start looking to hire?; (iv) how much can I expect to pay? thanks, RS

[Fishenough]

Have you visited the GT Rider forum, it's a wealth of information regarding bike touring in Thailand.

i. Nope, just a valid licence for your home country and a passport copy. Even have read that it doesn't have to be valid for motorcycles. Some feel comfortable carrying around an international driving permit, though never heard of rental agenices asking for a drivers licence. To rent a Harley they will ask to see a valid bike licence, most everything no.

ii. You would have an enjoyable trip on a 100/125 Honda Wave or Dream, which given there vast numbers in Thailand would be highly practical.

iii. Check out the Motorcycle directory project sticky post at the top of this forum.

iv. Depends what you want; ~120-150 baht a day for a basic step through, ~500 Baht a day for a Phantom and a bit more for the 250 Kawaasakis, ~900 to 1300 a day for the 650 Kawasaki's - prices vary on your negotiation skills and rental duration.

[Daewoo]

I am an admin on the GT-Rider forum, so I am a bit biased, but you will get a lot of great info there... The best place to ride is in Northern Thailand (Golden Triangle) so if you are just coming to ride, I would consider riding from Chiang Mai rather than BKK... If you are saying you want to start in BKK because you have a particular need to go to somewhere in Southern Issan (Burriram, Surin) maybe start from Pattaya... your hire options in BKK are very limited, I have only ever managed to find 1 place that rents bikes (rather than scooters) in BKK, and they only had a few really old bikes...

You will do better out of Pattaya, although most places are set up just for holiday rentals around Pattaya, and most contract restrict your from leaving the province... There are a brazillion hire places in Chiang Mai that are set up for hiring bikes to go touring...

i) Many locals don't have a licence at all... so what you actually do is really up to you... to hire the bike all you need to either leave your passport, or with some places you can arrange a large deposit instead... the hire places rarely/never ask to see a licence from your home country... after that it is up to you to choose what risks you are willing to take... if you dont have any licence you will usually be able to sort it out 'on the side of the road' (i.e. pay some cash) but you might find yourself in the cop station... same if you don't have a proper International Driving Permit... I do not usually bother about the IDP, and for a long time rode in Thailand without a riders licence in my home country... up to you - be aware, not all travel insurance covers you for riding on a motorbike, and (in Australia) none seem to cover you if you are riding a bike you are not licenced to ride in your home country... For policies purchased in Australia, the laws of the country you are hollidaying in are irrelevant for the travel insurance... i.e. In Australia you are not allowed to ride a bike over 250cc or carry a pillion for the first 3 years of your riders licence, so if you break those restriction in Thailand you are not covered... In most states of Australia you can not ride any bike without a riders licence, so your insurance is void if you ride a bike or pillion with someone without a licence... Insurance is far far far more important to worry about that licencing...

ii) There are sort of 3 types of bike to hire, Scooters, Old Bikes, New Bikes... - Scooters, freely available, about 100 baht a day, don't like sitting on more that 80 for long, but could take you all over the country as a real adventure, local style... - Old bikes - Typically 250cc dirt bikes, and 400cc cruisers. these bikes are usually between 15 and 20 years old and have hard lives at the hands of tourists... Many have disapeared now due to crackdowns on illegal imports/unregistered bikes. Both will tour OK, but reliability could be an issue. Typically around 600-800 baht/day... - New Bikes - 250cc road/trail bikes (D-Trackers) and ER6N/F (ER6F aka Ninja 650). When the crackdown on illegal bikes hit home, it miraculously coincided with 'big bikes' i.e. over 200cc, starting to be sold at reasonable prices from local dealerships... Many hire places bought new bikes from Kawasaki - D-Trackers and 650cc ER6N/F. both different but good bikes for touring - typically 1200-1400baht/day.

iii) You will have a hard time finding anywhere in BKK, you will probably need to head to a tourist place like Phuket, Pattaya, or Chiang Mai...

iv) See above.

Cheers,

Daewoo

[thaicbr]

also there is a guy here on TV that rents bikes in Bkk kifkif (franck) is his name i believe that they come with 1st class insurance as well.

QUOTE (KIFKIF @ 2010-01-17 23:53:16) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>REGISTERED,INSURED MOTORCYCLES.

KAWASAKI, KLX 250cc/ DTRACKER 250cc / ER6nABS 650cc

125cc scooters.

For rent in and around Bangkok.

PM for further infos.

Franck

Edited June 11, 2010 by thaicbr