HUA HIN Tuk Tuk cheaters

[Tokay]

The 'mafia' is an over ued word here, local bullies is more apt

Thai society functions via a bully system. Bullying and violence is all they know. A mark of a uncivilized society.

[BenCrew]

I've always been charged 100 Bt from say the centre (McDonalds area) to the Market Village, and from there, back to the central market would be the same. If I'm not happy with that, a motorcycle taxi charges 40 Bt, that's okay by me. I've never been asked for more than a 100 Bt in a tuk tuk.

[lannaman]

Not only the tuk-tuks but the motorcycle taxis have doubled their prices. I visit Hua Hin quite often and the fare from the bus station to my guest house near the Hilton was 50 baht last year. Two visits this year and they tried to extort 100 baht from me, settling on 70 bt after a friendly haggle. On my last return I had my 17 year old stepson with me and it was 60 baht each (3 up on the bike), fair enough I suppose as we had bags too, but safe no, as the driver only had one eye!

[alfalfa19]

As you know that similar ride in Pattaya would be 10 or 20 thb. In Bangkok 35 baht in a metered taxi.

I don't think that not wanting to pay an overpriced fare has to do with the quality of the tourist.

The reactions on this post are most interesting.

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I agree with you, it is excessive. I myself would walk, but I enjoy exercise, and despise tuk tuk drivers. However, it's nothing like Phuket, so, one must take that into account. I agree, some posts are very interesting. I have noticed here that even the most innocuous topic can bring extremely vitriolic responses from members whom I would classify as bitter fruits.

[AngelsLariat]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

There are no alternatives and they take advantage of that. No other choice than to take their 150 thb ride or walk. I would be curious to see what the reactions would be once a 35 thb metered taxi charges you 150 thb instead...

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Hua Hin isnt Bangkok. Metered taxis run on LPG Tuk Tuks on benzine which is triple the cost. Metered taxis will almost be full all day and not have to wait 2 hours for a fare like Tuk Tuks, Song Taews in Pattaya take upto 12 people constantly full a lot of the time..compared to Samui and Phuket its cheap at the price. You really expect someone to take you for 30 baht.

Maybe part of the reason that the Tuk Tuk drivers go 2 hours between fares is that they are asking for 150 baht for a 1 km ride.

[AngelsLariat]

You really expect someone to take you for 30 baht.

Not when they have a monopoly and no competition, last time we got a tuk tuk in Bangkok it was 20 baht for about a mile

You must be good at talking to the tuk tuk drivers if you can get them to take you a mile in BKK for 20 baht. I use the meter taxis in BKK instead of Tuk Tuks mostly because tuk tuk drivers always quote me a silly price that is far higher than what a meter taxi would cost and they usually won't budge on price.

[masuk]

150 baht isnt that bad, what people are forgetting is that prices of basic foods and petrol have doubled in the past few years...if it was 400 I would agree with you but 150, you really need to get upto date on prices in Thaialnd...what did you expect to pay 30 baht???

150 baht would buy a lot of fuel and get you quite a few km.

I know the costs are not only fuel used, but I can get across Chiang Mai in the evening for 80 baht. The drivers also know that right behind them are the red vans, @ 20baht,

[tadthai]

In Chiang Mai, the Tuk Tuk rate is 80B to most anywhere within a few KM.

I must say I am surprised at how many people are siding with the Tuk Tuk drivers in this debate.

[Benmart]

The "quality" tourists are now here in force

150 baht OH NO ITS TOO EXPENSIVE

What do you want a free ride to the bar where you will no doubt spend a couple of grand

Please go back from where you came

I prefer to live and let live and refrain from telling people what to do or where to go.

The OP was sharing his experience and I doubt if he were looking for a relocation service.

[Doc50]

In Chiang Mai, the Tuk Tuk rate is 80B to most anywhere within a few KM.

I must say I am surprised at how many people are siding with the Tuk Tuk drivers in this debate.

Surprised me too. Taxi if you could find one would be same price. They have a monopoly on transport and use it. Resort town. Not as bad as Phuket I would think.

[Benmart]

In Chiang Mai, the Tuk Tuk rate is 80B to most anywhere within a few KM.

I must say I am surprised at how many people are siding with the Tuk Tuk drivers in this debate.

Count me as one not supporting them. I was in Hua Hin three weeks ago and found it safer and more convenient to rent a car. When I have been there other times, I walked.

I am in Phnom Penh as I write. The Tuk Tuk fare is 1-2 USD all over town. Some try to get more, but if you had them the money, smile and say Akun Trang (Thank you very much), no problem.

If you try that in most large,Thai cities with a high tourist population, the Thai driver will most likely get upset, curse you out or worse.

From my years of experience, most are ok, but their ranks are tainted by greedy, dishonest, drunken and violent thugs.

[spidermike007]

150 baht isnt that bad, what people are forgetting is that prices of basic foods and petrol have doubled in the past few years...if it was 400 I would agree with you but 150, you really need to get upto date on prices in Thaialnd...what did you expect to pay 30 baht???

Please stop being an apologist for the roaches. Yes, 100 baht is too much for 100 meters. get real. 30 baht would have been fair. Their tuk tuks do not cost much to operate. They are simply taking advantage of the local governments refusal to regulate the insect population. They do it in Bangkok, why not in HH? Come on now. They can do better than this, and it benefits nobody for you to be their apologist.

[KamalaRider]

We all need to make a living.

Yes, I agree, a living with normal levels of prices so everyone will feel satisfied,

I went around in New York four years ago in a taxi, cost half of what tuk tuk or taxi cost in Phuket and apparently Hua Hin.

The tuk tuk drivers are the ones that are to blame for most of tourists being involved in trafic accidents in Phuket.

Most can't and won't spend a huge chunk of their holiday spending on taxi or tuk tuk so they rent motorbikes instead.

If you Som wat are a tuk tuk driver or taxi driver, you should know that we farrangs hold you responsible for

the accidents involving tourists on motorbikes,

You and your colleagues simply force them into Phukets and Thailands horrible traffic.

The good part is that tourists stop coming here because of you and other greedy people involved in the tourist industry.

What you got now is Chinese and Russians that are used to look after their money, they prefer walking instead of paying extortion money for a fare with you.

So you all got what you deserved and that's just the beginning.

Are you going to raise the prices when it's getting harder and harder to find any customers?

What other alternatives do you have?

It's called digging your own grave.

[craigt3365]

In Chiang Mai, the Tuk Tuk rate is 80B to most anywhere within a few KM.

I must say I am surprised at how many people are siding with the Tuk Tuk drivers in this debate.

Count me as one not supporting them. I was in Hua Hin three weeks ago and found it safer and more convenient to rent a car. When I have been there other times, I walked.

I am in Phnom Penh as I write. The Tuk Tuk fare is 1-2 USD all over town. Some try to get more, but if you had them the money, smile and say Akun Trang (Thank you very much), no problem.

If you try that in most large,Thai cities with a high tourist population, the Thai driver will most likely get upset, curse you out or worse.

From my years of experience, most are ok, but their ranks are tainted by greedy, dishonest, drunken and violent thugs.

Unfortunately, this is the experience many tourists have here in Thailand. Reports of ripoffs abound. I think it's horrible the way they treat tourists here. I see them jammed into songthaews near where I live. Some hanging on for dear life on the back. This is the route from the Ambassador into Pattaya. The ones who do the normal route from Sattahip to Naklua are not allowed to stop to pick up the tourists at the Ambassador. Only the ones sitting there and overcharging are allowed to do so. Thus, many tourists walk some 200M+ up the road to avoid the scam. And if a driver is caught doing this, they could get beaten up by the mafia.

Why is this allowed? Corruption and greed. Again, a horrible way to treat tourists coming to your country to spend their hard earned money. You could easily do a nice bus service along Sukhumvit. It wouldn't be much more and it would be much more comfortable and safer.

[KamalaRider]

The "quality" tourists are now here in force

150 baht OH NO ITS TOO EXPENSIVE

What do you want a free ride to the bar where you will no doubt spend a couple of grand

Please go back from where you came

And you should get a grip on yourself, not all tourists and expats spends their whole time in bars.

You didn't use your grey cells when you wrote that comment, did you?

IT IS BLOODY TOO EXPENSIVE for most tourists if they want to get the most of their holiday, 1200 TBH from one side of Phuket to the next one way,

300 TBH from one side of Patong to the next, maybe 3 Km, that's 100TBH /Km.

In Sweden we have damn high taxes for petrol, staff and vehicles (taxis), so that price is comparable to Sweden, do you understand now then?

You really think that most people in need for a taxi are people going from one bar to another, the quality tourists will vanish, the families and couples in their mid thirties.

I'm fumed right now so I have to quit writing before I write something really offensive.

[JimHuaHin]

Some interesting posts here on this issue.

In Hua Hin, I have noted, however, that when some local Thai friends have recently gone shopping and brought enough to fill up a shopping trolley, and thus forced to get a tuk tuk home, they were charged about 1/4 to 1/3 what Thai and foreign tourists are charged to travel the same route by tuk tuk.

Tuk tuk prices also vary by pick up location and time of day ... expect to pay double after about 2200 until early morning.

And finally, for what it is worth, over the years I have also found that most of the local tuk tuk drivers are reasonable; many of the peak season blow-ins are not only rude, but also very unsafe divers, whom my local Thai friends avoid as much as possible

[KamalaRider]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

There are no alternatives and they take advantage of that. No other choice than to take their 150 thb ride or walk. I would be curious to see what the reactions would be once a 35 thb metered taxi charges you 150 thb instead...

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

That has been happening a lot lately in Bangkok. Taxis refusing to use the meter and charging more.

Easy fix for that, just take a pic with your mobile and report them.

[KamalaRider]

The 'mafia' is an over ued word here, local bullies is more apt

You didn't know that the money goes all the way to the top in BKK?

[noodle]

Clearly plane travel is cheaper per mile:)

[KamalaRider]

Clearly plane travel is cheaper per mile:)

Yeah, it's quite odd that you can get a plane ticket for 2500 or less from BKK to Phuket and when reaching Phuket they charge more than half of that for a cab ride a couple of Km?

[budda]

We all need to make a living.

yes, but not the way by overcharging. 150 bh for 1km sure over charging.

[NoshowJones]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

I would say that anyone who deliberately overcharges people are cheats or "cheaters", whether it's Tuk tuk drivers or people serving in a shop.

[NoshowJones]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

There are no alternatives and they take advantage of that. No other choice than to take their 150 thb ride or walk. I would be curious to see what the reactions would be once a 35 thb metered taxi charges you 150 thb instead...

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

That has been happening a lot lately in Bangkok. Taxis refusing to use the meter and charging more.

No it hasn't, there are, however, a tiny minority of drivers who do this.

I would say that the majority of taxi drivers, tuk tuk drivers and motorbike taxis in Bangkok I have used or intended to use have tried to cheat me. I stopped using them years ago.

[NoshowJones]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

There are no alternatives and they take advantage of that. No other choice than to take their 150 thb ride or walk. I would be curious to see what the reactions would be once a 35 thb metered taxi charges you 150 thb instead...

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

That has been happening a lot lately in Bangkok. Taxis refusing to use the meter and charging more.

Easy fix for that, just take a pic with your mobile and report them.

Yes, and as soon as your camera clicks, out comes the baseball bat from under the seat.

[ljd1308]

I don't see what the bid deal, as a business owner of course they are going to maximise profits. If they can charge more they will.

In Sydney it costs around 60c to make a cup of coffee and yet you can pay up to $5 for it. To catch a cab from Sydney airport to the city it will cost you around $50 which is a lot shorter distance than across Phuket.

Why should they reduce their profit margin for you? They haven't tried to cheat or deceive you, you asked how much a service cost and they told you....take it or leave it.

If at some point there business becomes unviable due to charging too much it is then up to them to either reduce the cost to the consumer or look at other ways to generate an income.

If you had a business you made good money with would you drop your prices cos some people thought they were too high?

[thejcb]

We all need to make a living.

If "you" all need to make a living then...............

So why don't Thai's charge Thai's same price ?

Why in other parts of Thailand is it cheaper ?

[Dannyboy6]

Please explain why you called them 'Cheaters' ? They gave you a price and you have the choice - what is your problem ?

There are no alternatives and they take advantage of that. No other choice than to take their 150 thb ride or walk. I would be curious to see what the reactions would be once a 35 thb metered taxi charges you 150 thb instead...

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

That has been happening a lot lately in Bangkok. Taxis refusing to use the meter and charging more.

No it hasn't, there are, however, a tiny minority of drivers who do this.

BS... What are u talking about in the Tourist Districts it is very prevalent, they refuse to use meter and dump ur bags on the street, many times, after asking them to use meter, what a clown or apologist for Thai Taxi Mafia...

[thejcb]

150 baht isnt that bad, what people are forgetting is that prices of basic foods and petrol have doubled in the past few years...if it was 400 I would agree with you but 150, you really need to get upto date on prices in Thaialnd...what did you expect to pay 30 baht???

No, people expect to pay the going rate for the job in the country they are in.

[thailandbeachisland]

All these tuk tuk should be metered because they are the same brainless scumbags as taxi drivers ! Everywhere in Thailand !

[thejcb]

The "quality" tourists are now here in force

150 baht OH NO ITS TOO EXPENSIVE

What do you want a free ride to the bar where you will no doubt spend a couple of grand

Please go back from where you came

Almost $5 USD for only 1km of travel... that is without doubt, a total rip off and too expensive.

Those of us who actually have money usually keep it by being a little more frugal than the tossers who drove up the price in the first place.

I like this, I really do, yes, I agree, the originator of this drivel really is a tosser