connor6063 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 Im not sure if this is the correct spot for me to put this question so sorry if it isnt. I am an American Citizen and I will bevisiting Thailand from August to December. I was a Rotary Youth ExchangeStudent from 2009-2010. I speak Thai as well. This will be the firsttime that I will be visiting the country as a tourist. I will be stayingin Chonburi with one of my Host families from my exchange. My questionis what are the policies about bringing a Hookah pipe (Arabic Water pipeused for smoking flavored tobacco) and shisha (Flavored tobacco used ina hookah) to thailand. I am an avid hookah smoker here in the unitedstates. I actually started in Thailand. I have been planning on bringing1 hookah pipe with accessories and about 5 kilo grams of Shishatobacco. I know that there is probably a tax on the shisha because it isa tobacco. Do you know how much the tax is? Also would a Clean hookahand Shisha tobacco be confiscated by customs? It has a total value ofapproximately 300$ usd. I would really like to bring this to thailand toenjoy while im living in Chonburi since it is a Daily activity andhobby of mine. I wanted to bring my own because getting these materialsshipped to thailand would cost the price of the items plus about 200$ inshipping which is alot. I also havent found any good sources forhookahs in Thailand. Thank for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 A warning first. The customs department here is extremely corrupt. Any answers here should be taken with that in mind. What happens to one traveler may, or may not, happen to another.The legal limit of tobacco is 250 grams. Anything more and you risk a HUGE fine. Determined on the spot by the officials. With no recourse.http://www.customs.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/custen/travellers/allowance+and+relief/allowancereliefAs for the pipe, I can't find anything saying it is illegal. Hopefully others will help out here. I did find this article for New Zealand. Seems it's illegal: http://www.customs.govt.nz/news/resources/factsheets/Documents/Fact%20Sheet%2028.pdfAs for a young person doing this, I'd do some research on the health risks: A typical, one-hour-long hookah session involves the inhalation of the equivalent of 100 or more cigarettes. The water in the bowl of the pipe does not filter out the addictive nicotine or any of the other toxins in tobacco http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hookah/AN01265 Seems you'd be better off just smoking cigarettes. And we all know how dangerous that is. They've got campaigns here trying to warn young people regarding the dangers of these pipes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 I have seen them using the pipe openly outside a bar, a 100 meters from a police station. You better check if you can get the tobacco in Thailand itself, per above post the tobacco is above the duty free limit so you must declare it and pay duty on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bangkokburning Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 Im sure you can buy your kit in Pattaya. You are only allowed so much tobacco anyway. Im sure when they see that stupid thing in your bag, you will be subject to search. Thanks for coming to Thailand and smoking, especially you working with kids and all +3 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 I have seen them using the pipe openly outside a bar, a 100 meters from a police station. You better check if you can get the tobacco in Thailand itself, per above post the tobacco is above the duty free limit so you must declare it and pay duty on it. These pipes are all over the place now. Especially with the increase we've seen in Arab tourists and the popularity now of them among younger people....unfortunately. My concern would be a sneaky customs agent saying they tested it and found marijuana residue. I've never heard of this happening, but we know they employ some dodgy tactics. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connor6063 Posted May 23, 2013 Author Share Posted May 23, 2013 I have seen them using the pipe openly outside a bar, a 100 meters from a police station. You better check if you can get the tobacco in Thailand itself, per above post the tobacco is above the duty free limit so you must declare it and pay duty on it. These pipes are all over the place now. Especially with the increase we've seen in Arab tourists and the popularity now of them among younger people....unfortunately. My concern would be a sneaky customs agent saying they tested it and found marijuana residue. I've never heard of this happening, but we know they employ some dodgy tactics. I never thought about that. That would be pretty crappy. A warning first. The customs department here is extremely corrupt. Any answers here should be taken with that in mind. What happens to one traveler may, or may not, happen to another. The legal limit of tobacco is 250 grams. Anything more and you risk a HUGE fine. Determined on the spot by the officials. With no recourse. http://www.customs.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/custen/travellers/allowance+and+relief/allowancerelief As for the pipe, I can't find anything saying it is illegal. Hopefully others will help out here. I did find this article for New Zealand. Seems it's illegal: http://www.customs.govt.nz/news/resources/factsheets/Documents/Fact%20Sheet%2028.pdf As for a young person doing this, I'd do some research on the health risks: A typical, one-hour-long hookah session involves the inhalation of the equivalent of 100 or more cigarettes. The water in the bowl of the pipe does not filter out the addictive nicotine or any of the other toxins in tobacco http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hookah/AN01265 Seems you'd be better off just smoking cigarettes. And we all know how dangerous that is. They've got campaigns here trying to warn young people regarding the dangers of these pipes. The part that mayo clinic didnt include is that Shisha, atleast the big brand name shishas in america dont contain any of the chemicals and tar that perhaps traditional egyptian tobacco has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 A post has been removed from view and a member warned to abide by forum rules. Specifically these: 1) To respect fellow members. 3) Not to post in a manner that is vulgar, obscene or profane. 4) Not to flame fellow members.Flaming will not be tolerated. 'Flaming' is defined as posting or responding to a message in a way clearly intended to incite useless arguments, to launch personal attacks, to insult, or to be hateful towards other members. This includes useless criticism, name-calling, swearing and any other comments meant to incite anger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 Seems this member doesn't like our help. Topic closed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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