Farang Prices In Thailand

[samran]

I have.

Grand Palace.just about everywhere in Phuket. Auythaya. Khao Yai. Bangkok aquarium. The zoo. Safari world. Reclining Buddha. Taken her to Cambodia to a casino, no passport checks for Thai's.

Never an issue.

Thailand isn't the conspiracy theory you want it to be.

Well your experiences sound very different from mine, but then again we are talking about a child with a thai passport.

Different from those of us who are not tourists but reside and pay taxes here.

BTW, not a conspiracy theorist, just call em like I see em.....it is what it is

We are talking about a blond haired, blue eyed, fair skinned child (with freckles) with a Thai passport.

You are banging on about a racial/racist aspect to this. Clearly, there is not.

Clearly there is, you are clearly a minority, most likely a troll

Sent from my GT-S5660 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Oh, do tell, how am I a troll? Edited May 24, 2013 by samran

[bangkokburning]

My issue has become food vendors, they often tack on a farang tax to the food.

I've had to tell my wife repeatedly and I often take for granted getting the proper price of the cart or stall. I akways order in Thai, I presume that also says - I know the price.

People food and otherwise charge her more when they see me.

Part of eating of the cart or in the street is the price, a big part. If I was willing to pay more, Id go to a food court or a restaurant.

Here it is...

The vendor adds b5 to a b35 bowl of marginal soup that should have only been b30 in the first place. So know you have a 33% increase in perceived vakue of the product. I ordered a snack, Im paying for a meal. Just happened a few days ago. Chinese, of coutse.

It was a new place in an area Im not in much anymore. Funny thing is not 100m another shop (only eves though) does a rockin' bowl of noodles for b45.

I mean, Ive paid b25 for that bowl of noodles <deleted>. b40 - you can actually get fast food in states for this money and surely you can get a small breakfast items for 1.35us!

Edited May 25, 2013 by bangkokburning

[Kilgore Trout]

By insisting that your experiences sum up the world.

You are either a troll or just a very,very self centered person.

Most likely both.......

[yankee99]

Thailand is a poorer country than most farang countries- makes 100% sense that they would try to charge extra for tourists. Getting boycotted by a handful of stingy/miserly farang tourists is going to have zero impact.

That's why countries like Spain and greece are seeing 27% unemployment figures and the UK almost hits a double dip rescession, add to that the ever increasing strength of the Baht.

Imagine a Spanish family working their socks off all year to keep their jobs and their yearly holiday is tarnished by paying 5 times as much to see the same things. These threads come up again and again and I would usually agree with you, however Thailand is doing very well at the minute with increasing investment and the purchase of bonds etc.

The Spanish family pay 2400 baht for a night safari and then the Thai family pay 425 baht and then jump into their brand new merc and drive home.

I have a hard time imagining the greeks and spaniards working at all.

[bangkokburning]

as previously said, a flash of a driving licence or work permit will generally get you in at thai prices, it is suppose to be because as a thai resident or work permit holder you are paying taxes here, or so they say. in actual fact i think its a great idea that as a countryman your natural beauty spots are free or cheaper, after all thailand belongs to the thai people. im from the uk and i only wish our country would do the same for us, you get better looked after as a foriener there.

Won't get you anywhere in the Similan or Koh Surin NP, that is for sure!

[yankee99]

as previously said, a flash of a driving licence or work permit will generally get you in at thai prices, it is suppose to be because as a thai resident or work permit holder you are paying taxes here, or so they say. in actual fact i think its a great idea that as a countryman your natural beauty spots are free or cheaper, after all thailand belongs to the thai people. im from the uk and i only wish our country would do the same for us, you get better looked after as a foriener there.

Won't get you anywhere in the Similan or Koh Surin NP, that is for sure!

Flashing the license never worked for me either

[Stradavarius37]

Double pricing is just wrong anywhere, regardless of motivations !

What an incredibly profound statement...

[samran]

By insisting that your experiences sum up the world.

You are either a troll or just a very,very self centered person.

Most likely both.......

hold on, I thought it was you who was the oracle of all things and motivations in Thailand. You make yourself out as quite the angry expert.

You ever thought people might just be taking a disliking to you? Not that I'd know why based on writings...

Edited May 25, 2013 by samran

[David48]

The local vs tourist pricing here has nothing to do with race, much less any racist "attitudes".

Are you really that naive? From my experience in Thailand it most certainly does.

Furthermore, theres no need to try to intellectualize your way out of an argument; racist attitudes are the same whether we are talking about anthropology based "races" or ethnic groups.....come on:whistling:

My blond haired, blue eyed daughter gets thai prices. That is cause she is thai. How is there racial discrimination against her?

She's the one in the middle.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/279140-show-your-half-asian-baby/?p=2881065

Hey ... she's very cute ... must take after her Mum ...

.

[LongTimeLurker]

I went there with a friend (farang) who's an expat. I had a tourist visa and paid farang price. He had a retirement visa, flashed proof of residency and paid resident (Thai) price.

Has anyone else tried this with success or failure?

They have double pricing everywhere but I've never tried showing my workpermit to get the Thai price here.

[StreetCowboy]

I went there with a friend (farang) who's an expat. I had a tourist visa and paid farang price. He had a retirement visa, flashed proof of residency and paid resident (Thai) price.

Has anyone else tried this with success or failure?

They have double pricing everywhere but I've never tried showing my workpermit to get the Thai price here. Pepi2005 Avatar.jpg

I can just imagine it...

"But I live here. Yes, I have a work permit. I'll get it out... GOODNESS ME! It's in my pocket... sorry, the trousers are a bit tight... look, tHERE It IS, QUICKLY... YES A WORK PERMit... oh, too late, doesn't matter...."

[David48]

I went there with a friend (farang) who's an expat. I had a tourist visa and paid farang price. He had a retirement visa, flashed proof of residency and paid resident (Thai) price.

Has anyone else tried this with success or failure?

They have double pricing everywhere but I've never tried showing my workpermit to get the Thai price here. Pepi2005 Avatar.jpg

I can just imagine it...

"But I live here. Yes, I have a work permit. I'll get it out... GOODNESS ME! It's in my pocket... sorry, the trousers are a bit tight... look, tHERE It IS, QUICKLY... YES A WORK PERMit... oh, too late, doesn't matter...."

Sadly, like many here ... his hands were tied?

[StreetCowboy]

I went there with a friend (farang) who's an expat. I had a tourist visa and paid farang price. He had a retirement visa, flashed proof of residency and paid resident (Thai) price.

Has anyone else tried this with success or failure?

They have double pricing everywhere but I've never tried showing my workpermit to get the Thai price here. Pepi2005 Avatar.jpg

I can just imagine it...

"But I live here. Yes, I have a work permit. I'll get it out... GOODNESS ME! It's in my pocket... sorry, the trousers are a bit tight... look, tHERE It IS, QUICKLY... YES A WORK PERMit... oh, too late, doesn't matter...."

Sadly, like many here ... his hands were tied?

Should've tied a knot in it...

[Neeranam]

Double pricing is just wrong anywhere, regardless of motivations !

Are you going to tell us why?

[GAZZPA]

This flashes up almost every week here... but it is so simple:

As a foreigner, you have no chance to change that policy, independent of whether it is legal or not. As a foreigner, you have two options, either accept and enter or decline and leave.

Yes, some places will give you the Thai price when you show either retirement Visa / Thai Driver licence or any other document to prove that you live in Thailand. I did however notice that if I go with GF and kids, she gets the tickets, tells the guy "he is my husband" and most of the time I get in on the Thai price as well

Not really worth the 10th or 20th thread about dual pricing policy...

Agreed, I always tell foreigners in my country that they should never complain about things they don't like because it won't change.

They are aliens and should just shut up and accept it. This goes for alien foreigners outside the country as well, as I often hear people complaining about US policies.

If you don't like what the US does and you are an alien, you need to just keep your mouth shut. Not really worth the 10th or 20th complaint.

Glad we see eye to eye

If it is the 10th or 20th thread you have seen why did you click on it and participate in dialogue? I think people have a very good point about overcharging foreigners, it is important for Thailand's future as the second fastest growing country in Asia to be seen as a safe, fair and honest country. There are always people who simply say "if you don't like it go home". This is nonsense, these points are valid and everyone who comes here on holiday will tell people about their experience on their return home,,, the more the reports people get about institutional dual pricing, being ripped off and other things (which i wont mention here) the worse Thailand's reputation gets and the less tourists will eventually come. This then becomes a big problem for Thailand. Why can't you see that? I am getting bored of reading "TIT". The best thing for people to do is share their experience and warn others, then people will avoid going there and eventually the charging policy has to be reviewed,, so keep posting is what I say.

-

I disagree with you in so many ways.

Dual pricing is fine, I think it's a good policy and one they should keep, showing documentation you're living and working here usually gets you the Thai price but even if not, I think foreigners should subsidize locals as much as possible.

Also fewer tourists coming to Thailand would be a good thing for those of us foreigners living here, and IMO for the kingdom.

And finally venting your feelings here on TV certainly doesn't do anything to accomplish your objective of ending this heinous racist practice and comes up so often it drives forum regulars nuts, right up there with discussions of "is 'farang' derogatory?"

Oh dear, it's ok that you disagree, you are entitled to your opinion and I respect that. As for "venting" my feelings what are talking about. This is a forum for people to openly discuss things, I have a different opinion from you but I did not suggest it is a "heinous racist" practice, I never suggested racism at all, purely of unfair charging practices, there is no derogatory generalisation in my post, how you got that from my wordings I will never know. Glad to know you are the spokesperson for all regular contributors and informing me that my post has collectively driven everyone nuts. I suspect that there are people that agree with me so I would like to speak on their behalf in telling you that "shut up and accept" crowd like you drive us all nuts, next you will be telling us all to "go home if we don't like" it and "TIT", which also drives us all nuts. Being new to this forum does not mean I am naive or stupid in what is happening in this country I have been living and working in Asia for many years and stating that falling tourism would be a good thing for Thailand is complete nonsense. It would be a disaster for this countries GDP and everyone living here, increasing poverty across the country just when the countries growing for the better, you must be the only person who does not understand this. Back to my original point, people should post their experiences so we can all make informed choices on how and where we spend our money,, people won't stop doing this whilst perceived unfair practices continue, looks like you will be very busy typing replies to posts telling everyone to stop driving you nuts.

[meatballs]

Lots of farang are poorer than Thais. I don't know why they should pay more.

[StreetCowboy]

Lots of farang are poorer than Thais. I don't know why they should pay more.

No-one has to pay anything, unless they want to go into the attraction in question. We can always vote with our feet

SC

[willyumiii]

My favorite...

After purchasing about 100 baht worth of furit at a local market, an older Thai woman followed me to my scooter and informed me that " Farang tip 20 baht".

In Thai, I asked " What??"

Again, she said "Farang tip 20 baht"!

I told her " o.k., but only one time. You will never see me at your market again."

Over two years now. Haven't returned

. But I do always honk my horn, wave at her and make sure she sees me doing business with the market across the street from her market.

[Tomtomtom69]

This topic has been done to death but let me bring up some points that have generally not been raised by any posters so far:<br /><br />As has already been stated, there are plenty of ways to avoid dual pricing including speaking Thai, flashing your Thai driver's license and asking to speak to management. Of course an even better way would be to highlight this discrimination by writing a polite, but firm letter to relevant authorities and perhaps taking it further by publishing your experiences in a local newspaper in case your case is not heard or responded to favorably - this might actually stir up a positive change just like what happened when a reporter pointed out how the ferris wheel at Asiatique was trying to charge Thais a measly 50 Baht less than foreigners (Thais 200 Baht, foreigners 250 Baht), which eventually caused Asiatique to back down and charge everyone the higher rate. Of course it doesn't help when Asian foreigners are sometimes charged only the local price (and often don't have to do much apart from not talk to receive this privilege) because the Thais can't even tell the difference between themselves and other Asians and wrongfully assume the only foreign tourists in Thailand are westerners and perhaps a smattering of Indians and Africans when in fact the majority of tourists these days are from East Asian countries.<br /><br />Thailand should really start to move beyond this racist practice, by also considering that these days, Thailand has moved well into the realm of middle income countries so playing the race card by saying foreigners are rich is almost akin to admitting "Thailand is a poor country where everyone is poor, thus the locals should pay less than the foreigners". It's with this attitude that the country seems to be content with its position in the global hierarchy and thus doesn't seem to want to become more developed.<br /><br />Case in point that this practice needs to be urgently reviewed: virtually every Thai that can afford to visit a national park or an attraction such as Siam Ocean World has a car, often a new one. Now given that Thai car prices are higher than car prices in many western countries, the very fact that so many Thais can afford a car, even if it's financed means they have money and can thus afford to pay a reasonable amount for a ticket. It is thus ludicrous to rely on foreigners to subsidize the cost of entry - indeed, at many attractions in the countryside there may not be any foreigners visiting these attractions at all, so the extra income that a foreigner would bring is tiny and thus not worth it. The best price to charge would thus be one which is somewhere in between the current local and foreigner rates and thus eventually charge everyone the same. The argument that poor people would be left out is also just as ludicrous - first of all, even at current rates of say 40 Baht to enter a national park, poor people can't afford this and for the most part don't have time for leisure activities like this. Poor people are usually too busy working all day, every day to make a living in the rice fields, or as laborers etc. so clearly tourist attractions in Thailand are for middle and upper class people, who apart from having the financial means to visit these attractions also have at least some work-life balance, i.e. time to do so.<br /><br />China and Vietnam both stopped the practice of charging foreigners more for entry at all tourist attractions some years back (although in Vietnam the Hue Palace is one exception; though the price difference isn't huge, foreigners pay 55,000 Dong, whilst locals pay 35,000 Dong) and Vietnam is a much poorer country than Thailand, go figure! So if the Vietnamese could do it, why can't the Thais? How about China? Not only are most tourist attractions there much larger, more interesting and you get more value for money than anything in Thailand, but seniors upon showing their IDs, students (including foreigners studying in China and sometimes even foreigners studying abroad) will, upon showing their student cards be entitled to a student discount. In Thailand? Forget it - not only do seniors and students of foreign origin have to pay more than locals and the same as every other foreign adult, but locals in these categories are also discriminated against - I have never seen any senior or student discounts at national parks, museums or other tourist attractions only one rate for adults and another for children. So in summary, Thailand still has a long way to go in this respect.<br /><br />Fortunately though, unlike Myanmar, in Thailand there is generally one rate for all when it comes to hotels, plane tickets, bus tickets etc. except in the case of special promotions, which sometimes even entitle foreigners to discounts that locals can't access although conversely, the opposite is also sometimes true especially during peak local travel periods when locals and expats can get a special rate but not visiting foreigners (although the differences are usually small). Most recently I was listening to an ad on Met 107 for a 6900 Baht voucher for some kind of accommodation for Thais, expats AND ASEAN citizens? Hmm...why should ASEAN citizens also be entitled to this voucher especially if they don't have Thai work visas etc.?

[Tomtomtom69]

GuestHouse, on 24 May 2013 - 10:05, said:

stevo2, on 24 May 2013 - 06:18, said:

I haven't bothered to read the whole thread so I may be repeating someone..........but, we are in Thailand. How many of the people moaning here speak Thai? I speak Thai and I speak to the people collecting the money at these places in Thai. I have never had a problem. Always pay local prices.

If you had read the thread you might have spotted the posts referring to dual pricing for heath care.

Trust me, speaking Thai does not get you the Thai price and if the price is out of reach then no medical care.

While I find dual pricing in tourist attractions a petty annoyance dual pricing for medical care which inevitably places the care out of reach of some is something far more serious.

Two people enter a private hospital for the same treatment, one is charged double the price on the basis of not being Thai - Simply wrong on so many levels.

I have never heard of this - private hospitals charge everyone the same unless you can show me some evidence to the contrary. It is an unfortunate fact that most Thais have to pay out of pocket when going to a private hospital whereas in most western countries, insurance would cover you for nearly all out of pocket health expenses. I know that the 30 Baht health scheme is only for locals, but I don't see that as discrimination per se as payment of taxes should entitle locals, particularly poor people who don't have medical insurance to pay for treatment at government hospitals and clinics as the private ones would be out of their financial reach.

[Tomtomtom69]

timewilltell, on 21 May 2013 - 07:51, said:

lannarebirth, on 18 May 2013 - 11:42, said:

I remember about 30 years ago I was on vacation in Rome. I was outside the Forum or the Colosseum, I can't remember which, and there was a large signboard listing all the entry prices. There were about 3 dozen different entry prices based on what nationality the visitor was. I asked someone why the pricing was structured so and they told me the pricing was intended to reciprocate the prices Italians had to pay to see major historic attractions in other countries.

In the last ten years I've visited China many times and visas have cost me anywhere from about $70 to $150. People from first world countries aren't used to paying such extreme prices to visit other countries, but it was explained to me that China has a policy to reciprocate by country what it cost for their citizens to travel to those other countries. I could hardly argue with that.

Anyhow, as mentioned, a Yellow Book, a Thai Driver's Licence or a strident wife will often get you the local price.

What a great idea. I would gladly accept the reciprocity argument. When can I buy my land?

Nothing wrong with charging different visa prices based on nationality or just whatever the country wants to charge you...this is hardly in the same vein as government instituted discrimination where foreigners and locals are charged different prices (as in Thailand). China is one of the fairest countries in Asia, if not the world...government instituted dual pricing is gone, you can visit any tourist attraction and rest assured you will be charged the same as a local and even receive a discount if you are a student or a senior citizen aged above 60. Indeed, it wouldn't make any sense to charge a foreigner more anyway since most tourist attractions see so few foreigners it would be a joke.

[sumrit]

I've always shown my Thai DL and paid Thai prices.

Last week was even better. While attending a wedding up north we decided to go to the Dinosaur museum in Kalasin with some family and friends. As usual I shew my Thai DL and the young girl agreed I could pay the Thai price. Then, looking at some older people in our group, she asked if anybody was over sixty. Yes me, I piped up, at which she burst out laughing and said OK, just for you it's FREE. It's not the first time I've got in for free because I'm over sixty either.

The only time my DL hasn't got me Thai prices was several years ago when I took my wife and her family to the Royal Palace in Bangkok. They insisted I still had to pay the foreign price. I don't know if it's still the same but at the time they had a policy where a Thai went in for free if they were taking a foreigner there. So out of the six of us five went in for free while I paid 100 baht. So a very good deal and I'm not complaining about the total cost art all.................but the irony is, I'd been there three times before while my wife and her family had never been. I was showing THEM round and had to pay for the privilege while they were 'thanked' for taking a foreigner with them by getting free admittance.

[GuestHouse]

GuestHouse, on 24 May 2013 - 10:05, said:

stevo2, on 24 May 2013 - 06:18, said:

I haven't bothered to read the whole thread so I may be repeating someone..........but, we are in Thailand. How many of the people moaning here speak Thai? I speak Thai and I speak to the people collecting the money at these places in Thai. I have never had a problem. Always pay local prices.

If you had read the thread you might have spotted the posts referring to dual pricing for heath care.

Trust me, speaking Thai does not get you the Thai price and if the price is out of reach then no medical care.

While I find dual pricing in tourist attractions a petty annoyance dual pricing for medical care which inevitably places the care out of reach of some is something far more serious.

Two people enter a private hospital for the same treatment, one is charged double the price on the basis of not being Thai - Simply wrong on so many levels.

I have never heard of this - private hospitals charge everyone the same unless you can show me some evidence to the contrary. It is an unfortunate fact that most Thais have to pay out of pocket when going to a private hospital whereas in most western countries, insurance would cover you for nearly all out of pocket health expenses. I know that the 30 Baht health scheme is only for locals, but I don't see that as discrimination per se as payment of taxes should entitle locals, particularly poor people who don't have medical insurance to pay for treatment at government hospitals and clinics as the private ones would be out of their financial reach.

Go check your local private hospitals.

Private hospitals absolutely do not charge everyone the same.

I have regular check-ups at the private hospital I use (I choose this hospital because the top specialist for the health care I seek works there - so please I don't want the response 'go somewhere else').

If, as I always do, I schedule my next appointment with the doctor during my consultation, I can turn up for that next appointment and go directly to his consulting room, the staff there chase down my records and I get to pay the Thai price.

If, for some reason, I need to make an unscheduled appointment - ie turn-up at the hospital without an appointment, I will always be directed to speak to the 'Expat Medical Services Desk' - I am then redirected to the same specialist and my bill comes out at twice the price.

The difference in these two routes to getting treatment - the only difference, is being checked in as a foreigner with the expat service. (ie being identified as someone who shall be charged at a different rate)

I receive absolutely no additional service for being directed via the expat medical service desk - Literally - Register as a foreigner and then be taken to receive the exact same service at twice the price.

Edited May 29, 2013 by GuestHouse

[Gweiloman]

For the record, I don't have a problem with double pricing, so long as it is on a local residents / out of state or country basis. For the most part in Thailand it effectively works that way but the times it doesn't makes this issue get up everyone's nose.

Having said that, I don't see too many here protesting against the visa fee's Thai's must pay to visit the west, where most foreign nationalities get to turn up for nothing. Nor do I see the whine about the fee's international students must pay when they study in the west, well above and beyond what locals pay.

So long as economics exists, sellers will always want to charge more to the people who can afford these things. It is a basic concept in economics, one which is taught in first year economics. So long as it isn't based on race or creed, I've got no problem with it.

I get a bit annoyed when people use the visa fees as an example of "double pricing" as well as school costs. So I just want to say that I think the visa costs are totally understandable, to countries such as mine, the US, for Thais and others in like countries. A Thai person is paying for the cost (and probably not the real cost), of checking out their application in great detail. And their applications surely require quite a lot of expertise and follow-up and really checking what they say, because some huge percentage of info that they present is a fabrication. And as well, some percentage, just don't qualify, even if 100% of what they present, is true.

I also get annoyed that Thai people are angry that they have to pay, even when they get turned down. It costs money to check them out, and if they lie and get caught, they are angry they have to pay anyway. Imagine what would happen if Thais could apply for free in the case they got turned down? It would be like a free lottery, with people just going crazy and trying it out, for the hell of it.

Re foreign tuition prices, I think all countries have this. We have this in the US, because all schools are supported to some extent by taxes, even private schools, (maybe just in the form of tax breaks they get as non-profits) and they are often supported to some extent by donations/religious affilations which pay no taxes, etc. I think foreign students are just charged whatever the schools decide is the real cost of the education without this other type of support. Why would a state have any interest in educating foreigners, especially since most of them will not stay to enrich the country with their education, with their taxes later in life, etc,? (Okay, but I do know that many students would happily stay in the US and do that, if they were allowed to, but still, why would we want to do that, over educating one of our own citizens?) I think the definite "for profit" schools, like Univeristy of Phoenix, which aren't really 100% real schools, probably charge the same for foreign students ...but I haven't checked that, just a guess.

And in fact, in the US, any person can go to school for 100% free, up until high school graduation. Even if you are an illegal foreigner. So that is quite a nice benefit we provide. Thailand definitely has a different price for education for foreigners too.

As far as some other posters who are discussing discounts for locals, for things like skiing ...there is a good reason for this ..in my opinion. "Locals" tend to go to various theme parks and things like ski resorts, during low periods. I used to live in one of the best ski resort areas in the US. We don't usually go skiing on Thanksgiving weekend for example, or over Xmas. They also usually have blackout periods/times/dates for local discounts. But we tend to go skiiing, on a Thursday, when there was just a good snow, and we can skip school, or call in sick for work, or we don't happen to work then. Locals don't want to go when there are long lines for rides/lifts. We also support and pay the same price, once inside, for food, drinks, t-shirt, toys, whatever. And we give the benefit of supporting a business many, many times. Most people might visit a Disneyland/Disneyworld, once in their life, or 2-3 times max, if they have to fly, stay in a hotel, etc. As a CA resident for much of my life, I must have visited Disneyland maybe 40 times so far. So I think of this as a sort of "quantity discount" as for most locals, this type of numerous visits, is pretty standard. Now that I have a child, if I lived there now, I would certainly go at least once a year, for the first 15-20 years of my child's life. And then more again when they have kids! Or for example, Disneyland has special passes for summer for kids. You can go an unlimited amount of times for some set price.

I also don't mind when things like national parks charge extra for foreigners in Thailand. And I am not sure about some of the private businesses, like theme parks or zoos. Are those totally private, I am not sure? But I do feel bad about the amounts sometimes charged, the HUGE difference, and the fact that many businesses, do seem to be looking up the price for Disneyland or the San Diego Zoo, and charging MORE than places like that, for what is surely a 500% less experience, less cost to provide, etc. Even if Chiang Mai Zoo was comparable to world famous zoos, like San Diego or Singapore, is it really as expensive to provide that zoo here in CM? I seriously doubt it! But no attraction in Thailand is up to those kind of standards so hard to compare. (Oh, and I have to say this, that re the "farang price" the fact that most of that, is usually kicked back to a tuk-tuk driver, or tour guide, is total bullshit, and points in the direction that this money isn't needed by the place you are visiting ...that was probably the first thing I learned about Thailand that made me angry about this practice.)

And as far as tourists go ...well most of us "farang tourists" have to spend at least 1000 USD up to $2000 USD (from the US) per person, to get to beautiful Thailand, where we are now allowed to "save money" on the lower cost of living/visiting here. Thai people seem to be pissed off that we have "more" money, and I have even had people say things to me, like "you get 40 baht for 1 dollar" as if they really THINK that $1 and 1 baht were at some point, equal, and they are getting ripped off from the exchange rate...so we really should be paying 40 times more for what we get! They seem to think that a hotdog costs $40 in the US, vs $1 or 40 baht ...I am going back some years obviously.

Congratulations! My vote goes to you for the most racist post I have EVER read on TV.

[skyaslimit]

this double pricing topic is an on going epic for years, try to understand this ; tourism is an industry in Thailand if you can afford, the prices for Thai citizens and residents are discounted prices and Thai governance have every right to offer this, as far as unemployment rates are concerned Thailand have a lower rate of unemployment than many Western countries.

[skyaslimit]

further more Thailand offers free rides on trains and local buses to its citizens/residents and they have every right to do it..

so any complains about this?

[PoodMaiDai]

I won't go to places like that. Everyone who does is supporting such actions and allows them to raise the rates even more.

Wait until a bus driver in some small city bus tries to make you sit in the floor because "seat for Thai people." Up to you to accept that or not, but that is where I got off the bus and told him to xxxx himself.

Edited June 15, 2013 by metisdead

[Sandman77]

Reading around have of the topic!

Last year I go to time to Chiang Mai zoo

Want see the pandas but allready the animal sleeping on next day I wear a big sunhead deep in the face and vola I got thai price!

[Neeranam]

GuestHouse, on 24 May 2013 - 10:05, said:

stevo2, on 24 May 2013 - 06:18, said:

I haven't bothered to read the whole thread so I may be repeating someone..........but, we are in Thailand. How many of the people moaning here speak Thai? I speak Thai and I speak to the people collecting the money at these places in Thai. I have never had a problem. Always pay local prices.

I receive absolutely no additional service for being directed via the expat medical service desk - Literally - Register as a foreigner and then be taken to receive the exact same service at twice the price.

They probably spoke English, which is an extra service

[GuestHouse]

They probably spoke English, which is an extra service

No, I'm a Thai speaker. I speak Thai when consulting with my doctor, I don't need an interpreter and if I did I would ask for one.

If I asked for an interpreter I'd expect to be charged for an interpreter, but I doubt and I would not expect the provision of an interpreter to double the price of the medical services I use.

So you do not misunderstand - I go to the hospital for professional medical services, I'm a Thai speaker, I do not need nor want 'English Language Service', I want the specific services of a specific doctor, a man I speak to in his own language - Thai.

If I attend an pre-booked appointment I pay one price. If I'm directed to the same doctor via the expat service desk I pay double the price.

The only thing the expat service desk do is double the price.

Edited May 29, 2013 by GuestHouse