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I will be arriving at Phuket on May 14, may i know...


Nick Ferrossi

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It's a no-brainer : rent a car, they're cheap as chips. Either from one of the multinational rental companies at the airport, around 20-30 usd per day, or from the local places on the main road south of the airport, for as little as half that.

If your budget doesn't stretch that far, rent a scooter. Simples.

Any other method of transport on Phuket is suicidal.

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It's a no-brainer : rent a car, they're cheap as chips. Either from one of the multinational rental companies at the airport, around 20-30 usd per day, or from the local places on the main road south of the airport, for as little as half that.

If your budget doesn't stretch that far, rent a scooter. Simples.

Any other method of transport on Phuket is suicidal.

And you can rent using your home drivers license. An IDP is not required in Thailand.

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Quite a few posts recommending you rent a car. I have no problem with that, however, I do note you are staying in Patong, so be sure to check you hotel/resort/guest house etc has parking available, if not, you may end up having to catch a tuk-tuk from you accommodation to your hire car. :)

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Thank u very much for all the info & replied on this thread, thank u...

So now what i need to do is getting into the yellow meter taxi, right? Seriously are they really scary in Phuket? blink.png

In Phuket airport where can i get a map? A clear map

Actually do anybody here know any nice manners driver who can fetch me around the island? wai.gif

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There are two things you need to know. One, there are a lot of scams being attempted at the Phuket airport. Two, transport on Phuket is an utter disgrace.

The airport "limo" service (somehow a mid-sized car has come to mean "limo" in Phuket, part of the scam IMO) is very expensive by Thailand standards, and it was been repeatedly reported that there are entities inside and outside the airport who are trying to charge 2 to 3 times more than the already expensive fare. To Patong should not cost more than 800b.

As an alternative to the silver "limos", you go out the main doors and turn right you will find the yellow metered taxis. Demand they use the meter or don't use them. The 100B airport surcharge is normal. If they don't overcharge you, they should be slightly cheaper than the silver colored "limos". Metered taxis and "limo" drivers both drive like they have a death wish. In any taxi in Thailand, check if it has seatbelts and if they work. Many have superficial, non-operable seatbelts that are only there in order to pass safety inspection.

The "limo" companies also have minibuses. Fare is 200b but you may have to wait for there to be enough passengers. It can also take over 2 hours to get to your destination depending on where the other passengers are going.

All three types of transport may kidnap you and take you to a "tourist info" booth against your will and give you the hard sale on tours or tell you that your hotel is in a bad area, closed, or that they can't find it, or has burned down, and that they must re-book you into another hotel. A hotel which gives them an nice commission, no doubt. Sometimes they will stop for petrol or CNG and demand you pay for it. For these reasons its a good idea to note the vehicles ID and call the taxi complaint line at 1584 if there is a problem. Another good number to have is the Tourist Police at 1155. Befor you get into any taxi at the airport, insist they take you directly to your hotel, andmake sure they know where it is. Be polite but firm.

.

The safest and scam free way to get to Patong is the express bus which runs to the center of Patong 9 to 10 times daily. Fare is 120b. Their website is phuketairportbusexpress.com but it appears down. You can see an older version of the site using the wayback machine by clicking here. Signs inside the airport pointing to where the bus picks up are routinely vandalized by the taxi drivers so you may have to hunt around for it. Note that although the site says the bus goes to Kata/Karon, it doesn't. That route had to be scrapped because the Kata/Karon tuk tuk/taxi mafia has threatened violence and blockades if that were to happen. Also note that once in Patong, you will probably need a tuk tuk or taxi to take you to your hotel which, even though it may be only a few hundred meters away, will cost you a minimum 200B. So the last few hundred meters will cost you more than the previous 40km's.

As I said, transport is a disgrace. I recently had the displeasure of trying to bargain with a tuk tuk driver at the bottom of Bangla Rd. Two girls, one of which was so drunk she had to be carried, wanted to go back to thier hotel, the Royal Pawadee Village. About 500m away. He wanted 300B no less.

what a great ambassador for Phuket you are. Why don't you tell the OP he is going to get gang raped by 20th ladyboys the second he steps out of his hotel??? This sort of 'reporting' is iresponsible and damaging to Phukets image.

OP. you are perfectly safe in Phuket and won't get kidnapped or robbed. The taxi will cost you between 25 to 30 bucks to get wherever you want on the island. Probably a third of the price of your home country. Only the cheapskate expats here have a problem. The 5 million tourists that visit the island every year barley have a problem.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I will yield to your expertise on the ladyboys Ivan. wink.png

I am not a member of the TAT Ivan. Nor do I have relatives which draw income from the exploitative transport system here. You cannot debate things are not as I have described them. Yet another negative story on airport taxi's hit the news stand just today. Tourists deserve to be warned. Possessing the above knowledge drastically reduces the chance you will get scammed.

Edited by NomadJoe
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Thank u very much for all the info & replied on this thread, thank u...

So now what i need to do is getting into the yellow meter taxi, right? Seriously are they really scary in Phuket? blink.png

In Phuket airport where can i get a map? A clear map

Actually do anybody here know any nice manners driver who can fetch me around the island? wai.gif

Get an Airport Authority of Thailand map at information. AOT make good ones.

I wouldn't say they are scary, just really, really annoying. Just keep the info I have written in mind and use your common sense and you will be fine. Phuket is still a great place to visit, though I am not fond of Patong. Kata, Karon, Kamala, Surin, Rawai, Nai Harn are less crowded, cleaner, and just plain nicer. Patong is where the main nightlife is. It just depends what you are looking for.

Edited by NomadJoe
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Thank u very much for all the info & replied on this thread, thank u...

So now what i need to do is getting into the yellow meter taxi, right? Seriously are they really scary in Phuket? blink.png

In Phuket airport where can i get a map? A clear map

Actually do anybody here know any nice manners driver who can fetch me around the island? wai.gif

Yellow taxi dudes are fine. Just agree on a price first. Easy.

Then when you get to your hotel / guest house use a driver recommended by them. If you are using them daily they will lower the price for you. If you go to the beach they will wait most of the day for you there. If they take you around to the Tourist places like tiger kingdom and the zoo or elephant trekking they get a small commission, so they are happy to hang around.

I regularly have groups of friends come to Phuket and they never have a problem with the taxi service. Only the cheap charlies and bitter old expats have problems paying for taxis with their pension money. You will see them in their native environment sitting on concrete blocks outside shops. Drinking cans of archer beer with sour looks on their faces. Complaining about exchange rates and how the price of beer has gone up 25 satangs since the first came to Phuket in 1998.

Edited by IrishIvan
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There are two things you need to know. One, there are a lot of scams being attempted at the Phuket airport. Two, transport on Phuket is an utter disgrace.

The airport "limo" service (somehow a mid-sized car has come to mean "limo" in Phuket, part of the scam IMO) is very expensive by Thailand standards, and it was been repeatedly reported that there are entities inside and outside the airport who are trying to charge 2 to 3 times more than the already expensive fare. To Patong should not cost more than 800b.

As an alternative to the silver "limos", you go out the main doors and turn right you will find the yellow metered taxis. Demand they use the meter or don't use them. The 100B airport surcharge is normal. If they don't overcharge you, they should be slightly cheaper than the silver colored "limos". Metered taxis and "limo" drivers both drive like they have a death wish. In any taxi in Thailand, check if it has seatbelts and if they work. Many have superficial, non-operable seatbelts that are only there in order to pass safety inspection.

The "limo" companies also have minibuses. Fare is 200b but you may have to wait for there to be enough passengers. It can also take over 2 hours to get to your destination depending on where the other passengers are going.

All three types of transport may kidnap you and take you to a "tourist info" booth against your will and give you the hard sale on tours or tell you that your hotel is in a bad area, closed, or that they can't find it, or has burned down, and that they must re-book you into another hotel. A hotel which gives them an nice commission, no doubt. Sometimes they will stop for petrol or CNG and demand you pay for it. For these reasons its a good idea to note the vehicles ID and call the taxi complaint line at 1584 if there is a problem. Another good number to have is the Tourist Police at 1155. Befor you get into any taxi at the airport, insist they take you directly to your hotel, andmake sure they know where it is. Be polite but firm.

.

The safest and scam free way to get to Patong is the express bus which runs to the center of Patong 9 to 10 times daily. Fare is 120b. Their website is phuketairportbusexpress.com but it appears down. You can see an older version of the site using the wayback machine by clicking here. Signs inside the airport pointing to where the bus picks up are routinely vandalized by the taxi drivers so you may have to hunt around for it. Note that although the site says the bus goes to Kata/Karon, it doesn't. That route had to be scrapped because the Kata/Karon tuk tuk/taxi mafia has threatened violence and blockades if that were to happen. Also note that once in Patong, you will probably need a tuk tuk or taxi to take you to your hotel which, even though it may be only a few hundred meters away, will cost you a minimum 200B. So the last few hundred meters will cost you more than the previous 40km's.

As I said, transport is a disgrace. I recently had the displeasure of trying to bargain with a tuk tuk driver at the bottom of Bangla Rd. Two girls, one of which was so drunk she had to be carried, wanted to go back to thier hotel, the Royal Pawadee Village. About 500m away. He wanted 300B no less.

what a great ambassador for Phuket you are. Why don't you tell the OP he is going to get gang raped by 20th ladyboys the second he steps out of his hotel??? This sort of 'reporting' is iresponsible and damaging to Phukets image.

OP. you are perfectly safe in Phuket and won't get kidnapped or robbed. The taxi will cost you between 25 to 30 bucks to get wherever you want on the island. Probably a third of the price of your home country. Only the cheapskate expats here have a problem. The 5 million tourists that visit the island every year barley have a problem.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

OP. you are perfectly safe in Phuket and won't get kidnapped or robbed." - see below link. I believe this happened on more than one occassion.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/613887-phuket-taxi-driver-held-for-female-tourist-assault/

As for kidnapping, if you get a minivan from the airport, it takes you to a shop first, not directly to your hotel, where you areall told to get out and go into the shop, then you are told your hotel is full, no good, burnt down, went out of business etc etc. Have you not been "kidnapped?" You have been taken to a place, by someone else, and not by your own choice.

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I suggest you don't come. We're full and tired of the neverending stream of newbies with the same old questions on this forum.

If ever there were a case for a "dislike" button, there it is.

Everyone was a noob once. Some more than once. A lot more.

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I suggest that if this your first visit, you contact my good friends at Easy Day Thailand, They can pick you up at the airport and take you to your hotel, or organise one for you.

They specialise in private tours, dive trips , boating , island hopping and are very reasonably priced,

PM me for more info. Enjoy yourself

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I suggest you don't come. We're full and tired of the neverending stream of newbies with the same old questions on this forum.

Sadly, "the same old questions on this forum" are always about the same old BS that's been happening on Phuket for years, and is steadily getting worse.

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I suggest you don't come. We're full and tired of the neverending stream of newbies with the same old questions on this forum.

Sadly, "the same old questions on this forum" are always about the same old BS that's been happening on Phuket for years, and is steadily getting worse.

And it's the dynamic nature of the problems that make the answers to the same old questions change occasionally, hence the noobs asking them...again- because up to date info can't be found in the travel guides or brochures.

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There are two things you need to know. One, there are a lot of scams being attempted at the Phuket airport. Two, transport on Phuket is an utter disgrace.

The airport "limo" service (somehow a mid-sized car has come to mean "limo" in Phuket, part of the scam IMO) is very expensive by Thailand standards, and it was been repeatedly reported that there are entities inside and outside the airport who are trying to charge 2 to 3 times more than the already expensive fare. To Patong should not cost more than 800b.

As an alternative to the silver "limos", you go out the main doors and turn right you will find the yellow metered taxis. Demand they use the meter or don't use them. The 100B airport surcharge is normal. If they don't overcharge you, they should be slightly cheaper than the silver colored "limos". Metered taxis and "limo" drivers both drive like they have a death wish. In any taxi in Thailand, check if it has seatbelts and if they work. Many have superficial, non-operable seatbelts that are only there in order to pass safety inspection.

The "limo" companies also have minibuses. Fare is 200b but you may have to wait for there to be enough passengers. It can also take over 2 hours to get to your destination depending on where the other passengers are going.

All three types of transport may kidnap you and take you to a "tourist info" booth against your will and give you the hard sale on tours or tell you that your hotel is in a bad area, closed, or that they can't find it, or has burned down, and that they must re-book you into another hotel. A hotel which gives them an nice commission, no doubt. Sometimes they will stop for petrol or CNG and demand you pay for it. For these reasons its a good idea to note the vehicles ID and call the taxi complaint line at 1584 if there is a problem. Another good number to have is the Tourist Police at 1155. Befor you get into any taxi at the airport, insist they take you directly to your hotel, andmake sure they know where it is. Be polite but firm.

.

The safest and scam free way to get to Patong is the express bus which runs to the center of Patong 9 to 10 times daily. Fare is 120b. Their website is phuketairportbusexpress.com but it appears down. You can see an older version of the site using the wayback machine by clicking here. Signs inside the airport pointing to where the bus picks up are routinely vandalized by the taxi drivers so you may have to hunt around for it. Note that although the site says the bus goes to Kata/Karon, it doesn't. That route had to be scrapped because the Kata/Karon tuk tuk/taxi mafia has threatened violence and blockades if that were to happen. Also note that once in Patong, you will probably need a tuk tuk or taxi to take you to your hotel which, even though it may be only a few hundred meters away, will cost you a minimum 200B. So the last few hundred meters will cost you more than the previous 40km's.

As I said, transport is a disgrace. I recently had the displeasure of trying to bargain with a tuk tuk driver at the bottom of Bangla Rd. Two girls, one of which was so drunk she had to be carried, wanted to go back to thier hotel, the Royal Pawadee Village. About 500m away. He wanted 300B no less.

what a great ambassador for Phuket you are. Why don't you tell the OP he is going to get gang raped by 20th ladyboys the second he steps out of his hotel??? This sort of 'reporting' is iresponsible and damaging to Phukets image.

OP. you are perfectly safe in Phuket and won't get kidnapped or robbed. The taxi will cost you between 25 to 30 bucks to get wherever you want on the island. Probably a third of the price of your home country. Only the cheapskate expats here have a problem. The 5 million tourists that visit the island every year barley have a problem.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

OP. you are perfectly safe in Phuket and won't get kidnapped or robbed." - see below link. I believe this happened on more than one occassion.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/613887-phuket-taxi-driver-held-for-female-tourist-assault/

As for kidnapping, if you get a minivan from the airport, it takes you to a shop first, not directly to your hotel, where you areall told to get out and go into the shop, then you are told your hotel is full, no good, burnt down, went out of business etc etc. Have you not been "kidnapped?" You have been taken to a place, by someone else, and not by your own choice.

Ok, it appears I need to clarify my comments.

I think it's pretty clear I wasn't talking about kidnapping in the literal sense. What I meant was tourists are often taken to places they did not want to go, such as to the off-site tour booth, when they asked not to be. To meet the definition of kidnapping, the person would have had to, for example, demand the driver stop and let them out, then be physically denied the ability to do so through force or fear. I don't believe anyone has reported that, apart from the Chinese woman in the above link.

OP I would like to know how you fare with the taxi's at the airport, no pun intended. Please let us know.

Edited by NomadJoe
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www.phuketshuttle.com

book online no credit card required

pay the driver at the end of your journey

nice clean safe cars and drivers

will meet u at airport with your name on a card

just say NO NO to all the taxi touts

they do hotel pick ups to....

I've used them many times never an issue

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What is the price to be since 800bht is costly to travel to Patong from airport?

Just go to the website mentioned above. I just looked and it quotes 750 baht to Patong. That's about as cheap as it gets for a taxi.

If you think 800 baht is too much then take the shared minibus or the public bus.

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I suggest that if this your first visit, you contact my good friends at Easy Day Thailand, They can pick you up at the airport and take you to your hotel, or organise one for you.

They specialise in private tours, dive trips , boating , island hopping and are very reasonably priced,

PM me for more info. Enjoy yourself

I can second that, I know the owners quite well professionally and can assure you that you will be fine with them.

If you haven't driven in Thailand before and are just off a long haul flight or connexion I really wouldn't hire a car from the airport as soon as you arrive. There are a few quality car hire companies that I would be happy to recommend in Phuket, otherwise I have used Avis a lot and never a problem, just get all the extra insurance.

One of the chaps made a comment re parking in Patong and it is quite true that only a few of the big hotels have parking. I live in Kathu and rarely take a car into Patong, far too much traffic and idiot tourists riding scooters either very badly or like they are in a race.

SDM

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

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