Hello,

First time poster here. I am obtaining an international driving permit here in the US which mirrors your state license. Since I don't have a motorcycle endorsment here, will I be legal to drive a motorcycle in Thailand? More importantly, is a motorbike considered a motorcycle?

Thanks

Hello,

First time poster here. I am obtaining an international driving permit here in the US which mirrors your state license. Since I don't have a motorcycle endorsment here, will I be legal to drive a motorcycle in Thailand? More importantly, is a motorbike considered a motorcycle?

Thanks

Welcome to TV

In the UK a motorbike and a motorcycle are one and the same (motorcycle is used in a more formal manner). Do the US have a different interpretation?

Your IDP won't cover you for a 2-wheeler here as it doesn't at home. HOWEVER, 99.9% of the Boys-in-Brown will never know the difference. BUT, if you come off, your travel insurance will find it a suitable excuse not to cough up. Take care, please!

I agree 100% with Crossy.

For further confusion, the Thais seem to refer (conversationally) to the small bikes as "lot motorsai", anything above around 250cc becomes a "chopper". Not quite the same as the UK (or US) definitions. However these are only conversational terms, they don't apply to the license.

Thanks for the info. In my state anyway, anything under 100cc is a moped and doesn't require a motorcycle endorsement. Sounds like the best thing to do for insurance reasons would be to get a motorcycle license here.

Thanks for the info. In my state anyway, anything under 100cc is a moped and doesn't require a motorcycle endorsement. Sounds like the best thing to do for insurance reasons would be to get a motorcycle license here.

Or, to save hassle... when in Thailand just ride a 100cc Honda Wave etc..

totster

I doubt there's a uniform, standard definition. In most states of the USA, a motorcycle is any motorized two-wheeler, but what we motorcyclists consider a 'real bike' would not be a step-through. A real bike would have at least 400cc or 881 cc. In American slang, a 'motor-bike' might be a motorized bicycle or a moped.

Americans haven't called Harleys and Harley clones "choppers" since about 1975. And it's funny if Thais would call a Honda CBR600RR superbike a chopper. Hey, they call a Kawasaki 175 Boss a chopper, and my boyfriend's Tiger 125 Joker is a chopper, too.

When I got my IDP, I made sure it stated what was on my Texas license: cars and motorcycles. Hopefully, if I ever get to the Thai license bureau after 35,000 kilometers in Thailand, they'll give me both licenses without requiring me to take a road test.