Advice On Owning A Boat In Thailand

[bitterbatter]

My friend and I are considering buying a boat and living on it in Thailand. I was curious if anyone has any advice about safety or piracy that needs to be considered.

I have heard alot about pirates near indonesia. I am mostly concerned with thieves and personal safety. But any advice about owning a boat in Thailand waters is greatly appreciated.

[Travel2003]

Interesting.

Will follow the thread with great interest.

Curious about how one can live in Thailand, just because it is a boat.

Have a feeling you can not, unless you have the correct papers, as one would need for living ashore here.

Whenever you have been out of Thai territorial waters, and return, you will need to contact the immigration/customs for clearence I pressume.

Regarding thiefs (pirates/robbers), this is a relative high problem in entire South-East Asia.

[Jimi007]

Have you ever heard of the 3-F rule? If it floats, flies or <deleted>*cks, rent it!

On a more serious note, there have been people robbed and killed here on their boats, boats stolen and taken to Myanmar. Also customs inspections, having to register you boat here and in other countries. Indonesia and the Philippines have some pirates... But I know some people who have boats here. By the way for some reason boats here are rather expensive compared to other countries. A know a couple of Aussies that brought their boats here as it was much less than buying one here. Good luck! And maybe someone who does own a boat here will post with their experiences...

[JohnLeech]

By the way for some reason boats here are rather expensive compared to other countries.

That used to be the case when boats were taxed as luxury goods at 300%, but now tax for boats is amongst the lowest in the world (VAT only).

I have owned a boat here and know a lot of people who have boats but it is impossible to give any advice without knowing a lot more deatils, such as your boating experience (national/international/licences, etc), type of boat (sail/power/hull layout, etc), type of mooring (marina/offshore/coastal, etc), budget, experience of Thailand, etc, etc.

For what its worth (as a starter!), the regulations for living on a boat are exactly the same as far as immigration is concerned as living on land; there are no problems over ownership (unlike a house!); you would need a registered captain and engineer.

[IanForbes]

There are boats and there are yachts. I know several people who have small boats that they trailer to lakes. It sounds like the OP is talking about an off shore yacht. I go with the 3 F rule on that one... unless you live full time in Thailand and know the locals, as well as the rules and customs.

[geronimo]

I wonder what the legalities of living on a houseboat on the rivers or canals would be?

[morrobay]

You want to have a 12 gauge on board.

[bitterbatter]

There are boats and there are yachts. I know several people who have small boats that they trailer to lakes. It sounds like the OP is talking about an off shore yacht. I go with the 3 F rule on that one... unless you live full time in Thailand and know the locals, as well as the rules and customs.

I am talking about a yacht. What are the 3F rules? I have a work visa and I am employed here.

[Loz]

The best advice I can repeat on the topic of Yachts is this:

There are only two great days in Yacht ownership. The day you buy it, and the day you sell it.

[IanForbes]

I am talking about a yacht. What are the 3F rules? I have a work visa and I am employed here.

As quoted above...

Have you ever heard of the 3-F rule? If it floats, flies or <deleted>*cks, then rent it!

A yacht takes a lot of maintenance, and finding a reliable HONEST crew can be difficult, and especially so if you are not going to be around full time. Anything of any value is ripe for the picking in areas where there are poor folks living. Security is a prime issue. Initial investment is pricey and even finding a reliable dealer offering what you want can be difficult. Before I made any decisions I would first check at all the marinas where off shore fishing is conducted by farangs. You REALLY don't want to cut into a Thai's supposed territory if you are going to be running charters.

[astral]

Aren't there any reliable marinas where a boat can be moored safely.

A full time captain and crew, sounds like overkill to me.

[swissie]

By the way for some reason boats here are rather expensive compared to other countries.

That used to be the case when boats were taxed as luxury goods at 300%, but now tax for boats is amongst the lowest in the world (VAT only).

I have owned a boat here and know a lot of people who have boats but it is impossible to give any advice without knowing a lot more deatils, such as your boating experience (national/international/licences, etc), type of boat (sail/power/hull layout, etc), type of mooring (marina/offshore/coastal, etc), budget, experience of Thailand, etc, etc.

For what its worth (as a starter!), the regulations for living on a boat are exactly the same as far as immigration is concerned as living on land; there are no problems over ownership (unlike a house!); you would need a registered captain and engineer.

Referring to "You need a registered captain & crew". I would like to think this applies only to large ships. Although the lagalities in LOS can be somewhat "strange", I can't believe that Thai law requires anyone who wants to own a 30 foot riverboat, that he MUST hire "a captain & a (Thai) crew". Right ? Cheers.