Starting a motorbike tour business

[andreas islinger]

My wife and i want to start a motorbike tour business, organising and conducting adventure bike tours in South east asia and india.

She is Thai citizen

I am australian, 1 yr Non o marriage visa. I don't have a work permit as yet.

we want to register the business here in thailand.

what is there to consider?

How can i be involved as a foreigner. Am i legally allowed to be involved in this business, e.g. as a tour guide?

we have little budget, just want to buy a few bikes and take people to myanmar, laos etc.

any advise would be terrific. How should we go about. Should we set it up as a company or just register it as a small business?

we live in Bangkok.

[WonnabeBiker]

While I'm an avid biker and potential customer, I would like to make some suggestions:

a) Reduce fixed costs and overhead - form an alliance with a motorcycle rental business or

move to Chiang Mai.

c) There are some such operators and I'm not sure how they are all doing. The low rent is a killer. Personally, I wouldn't touch the motorcycle rental business! What does your marketing research reveal?

[andreas islinger]

While I'm an avid biker and potential customer, I would like to make some suggestions:

a) Reduce fixed costs and overhead - form an alliance with a motorcycle rental business or

move to Chiang Mai.

c) There are some such operators and I'm not sure how they are all doing. The low rent is a killer. Personally, I wouldn't touch the motorcycle rental business! What does your marketing research reveal?

we own a house and space in bangkok which could be potentially good for us...please refer to my latest post.... to me its not just about creating an income through mortorbike tours...

its more a lifestyle issue...

i have a number of friends who come every year...

so my q's is why not do something together...

[PoorSucker]

Tour guide is a profession reserved for Thai nationals only.

[WonnabeBiker]

Okay, OP - go for it. (I meant well warning against buying a string of new bikes to rent them out, that's all. I think letting your customers sort out this part by themselves would dramatically reduce the risk in your business).

[Aree Wongwanlee]

Form a company with your wife as the main shareholder. Have the company employ you as a manager. Now you are legal to do business in Thailand.

Anyway that was how things were when I last checked a few years ago. Maybe things have changed. (Do things change in Thailand?)

[waynethor]

I assume you have A LOT of travel experience in India, Myanmar and Laos if you're going to take people on motorcycle tours through those counties. If somebody wants me to pay them to ride around with them, there'd better be a considerable amount of value added to the ride. I would expect that my tour guide would have important connections in those countries, know how to get around situations involving the police, and have very very good information about where to go but more importantly where not to go in those countries as there can be some extremely dangerous situations. I'm not trying to discourage you or challenge you. Just realize that you're basically asking people to trust you with their lives, so it's not the type of business venture that should be taken on lightly. It's about 1000 times more complex than opening a noodle stand.

[onthemoon]

My suggestion: Take a tour with a competing company, if such exists, to see where you want to go.

In any case, make a tour by yourself, and feel the problems, especially when crossing borders. Or if you don't speak the local language.

Talk to insurance companies. You might also want to talk to lawyers for the documents your customers will have to sign.

Company registration is a formality. Yes, you need 2 million Baht and 4 Thai employees for your work permit, and you yourself cannot be the official tour guide. But that's just the Thai paperwork. What happens (legally) when you cross a border?