Best City In Thailand For Expats

[roamer]

One tip I would give the OP is to always keep at least one province between you and your in-laws.

That's something I definitively agree with, but unfortunately my gf having relatives in Chiang Mai, Nong Khai, CQ, Bangkok, Chanthaburi and a couple of other places as well, it's an advise that will be difficult to follow.

Actually most of them are really great people. As long as I stay away from her mother, I should be fine

PS : If my gf sees this post, I'm dead !!!

I've emailed her the link.

[evanson]

Not Phuket!!

Well 'not phuket's' been posted twice. It's nowhere near as lovely as when I arrived 12 years ago, but having spent 6 months in bangkok, phuket beats it by miles. Ignore the tart bars, don't hire a tuk tuk/jetski and above all, avoid places that cater solely to farang. It still has some beautiful scenery/beaches, and everything you might want from farang land when you get the occasional itch for good bakeries and delis in a relatively small area.

Although health care, being a necessity, ranges from the 'Slaughterhouse' (as the Wachira is named by the locals, and the Mill (Bangkok hospital) and not much in between.

Oh, there's also a large percentage of up themselves/'no better than they should be', standoffish/oafish farang here. Including thieves and frauds. There are those who will say that they're everywhere, but this is an island, and has exactly the same problems as samui. Due to lack of LAW ENFORCEMENT being answerable to a very small area/s.. But I believe they're catching up ... or at least some of them are trying.