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Travel advice for thailand

In my passport photo I had long greasy hair and a beard which contrary to my hair colour is bright red, I get "randomly selected" for pat downs every time I walk through an airport. My old man must of been right when he said I looked like a drug mule when I got the photo done.
Anyway in Thailand my brother got his drink spiked with what I'm guessing was some sort of benzo, after which he jumped on a scooter with a lady boy who he thought was a taxi driver who took him to the bush and robbed him. Watch your drinks over there kids haha
 
As for shots etc, if you're in Sydney then I recommend The Travel Doctor.

If you're not in Sydney then I'm sure there are similar places in other capital cities.

Of course you can always go to your GP but the doctors at this place are right up to date with not just the shots but also info about insect plagues, locations where particular fevers etc have started to concentrate etc
 
sir pacman said:
Going to head to thailand by myself in late may and was thinking about just relaxing on a beach and was after some advice:

where to stay?
whats it cost?
should I book something or just rock up there and look for ?
whats worth a look?
any tips?

thanks in advance.
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Firstly, there is a HUGE thread devoted to Thailand in Second Opinion: http://www.bluelight.ru/vb/threads/362427-Thailand?highlight=thailand

:)

Regarding beaches, I've been to Phuket (Patong, Kamala and Coral Beaches), Koh Yao Noi (a small island in Phang Nga Bay) and Koh Samui. If you're after a more of a run amok, then Patong is your place. The beach is teeming with activity and it's like the town doesn't sleep. For something more chilled, Kamala Bay is gorgeous - easily one of my favourite beaches - There is a fantastic resort just across the road too, called Print Kamala - if you book on agoda.com, it was really cheap - you're heading in the almost low-season, so you should get a good price for accomodation wherever you stay. Koh Samui is lovely, and you have easy access to Koh Phangan and Koh Tao (best diving spot). On Koh Samui, Chaweng and Lamai are the biggest and most touristy towns - you're spoilt for choice as to where you stay. Lamai is a little more quiet but you can easily get to Chaweng from there.

Koh Yao Noi is tiny and there are only a few resorts on the island. The beach isn't particularly nice but the view is amazing. It's definitely a far more low-key place to go. If you want Sunsets and beautiful ocean, definitely the west coast (phuket, etc). You could head to Koh Phi Phi too - i've not stayed there but have visited and it took my breath away. Maya Bay (where The Beach was filmed) is gorgeous, but so very touristy, it's worth a visit though.

If you're going in the low season - i'd maybe book a few nights online before you go, and when you get there, you can easily negotiate a corker discount on accomodation - maybe visit a few beaches and see where you like?

Don't fret about street food - just be a little careful of food that hasn't been cooked in front of you - i ate heaps of street food, things like chicken on a stick - but picked pieces that were cooking and asked for those when they were ready.

Make sure you barter, but always with a smile - if the vendor doesn't come down to your price, just smile and walk away - if you haven't bartered too low, they'll come running to you and you'll get your price.

Also, if you're after serious bargains, go to the markets when they first open - the first sale of the day is very special to the Thai people, and you'll notice that if you are the first sale of the day, the vendors will touch their wares with the money as a sign of good luck. I found that you can get great bargains when markets first open.

As for cost, food is really cheap, as are items from the mini-marts (water, etc), don't be afraid to eat at places that don't look like Western restaurants - the most delicious pad thai i've ever eaten was in a little shack called Duck Spicy in Kamala Bay. 2 pad thai, a beer and a sprite cost us approximately $3 :)

Are you interested in going to the northern regions? Chiang Mai is probably in my top 3 of towns i've visited in the world. It's just wonderful. A far more relaxed and chilled environment, the markets are way better, and the vendors are not aggressive. You'll find really aggressive vendors in Patong - they'll grab you and try to pull you into their stores. Thai people are some of the most friendly souls i've ever met - however in Patong, you'll find many rude locals - but that is ONLY because we westerners generally treat the locals like crap. Seeing some of the behaviour, I was quite ashamed to be one. If you're friendly, you'll find friendly faces.

One more thing i wanted to say was wherever possible, don't support the captive animal businesses - such as men who walk around with little monkeys wearing nappies, asking if you want a photo. The animals look terrified :( If you want to go on an elephant trek, research beforehand to make sure they treat the animals well. It's a huge problem in Thailand (and in a number of other SE Asian countries). We visited an elephant rehabilitation centre just north of Chiang Mai - with an elephant hospital <3
 
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Hey mate. been to Thailand 3 seperate times (as well as other places in SE Asia) for a total of about 3 months all up.

Where to stay: seems you have already decided on phuket. personally havent been there as I have spend time on the islands on the other side of the peninsella (Ie. koh phagnang, samui and tao).
whats it cost: depends on what sort of a holiday you want. if your going in low season things will be cheaper. if your willing to stay in a backpacker or cheap hotel, eat street food or eat in cheaper resturants frequented by locals (some of the best food is on the street or in these resturants), and dont go crazy on the booze and avoid hookers, then under $500 a week is quite manageable. obviously if you are wanted to stay in nice hotels, eat at more expensive resturaunts, and have sex with prostitutes then things will get more expensive. but unless your staying at really expensive places, or sleeping with a different girl every night, then you should be able to keep it at $1000 to maybe a little over.

Whats worth a look: if your only there for 8 days you might as well just check out phuket, phi phi and krabi.

As for your passport, I wouldnt worry about the photo looking old, if the passport is still valid then keep it.

For money: I just got back from 7 months of travelling the Americas (US, central and south america) and I just used credit cards and VISA debit cards. easiest and cheapest ways to get cash out (open an account that doesnt charge currency conversion fees, or foreign withdrawal fees). otherwise your right, banks do charge expensive fees to withdraw cash overseas. i think it is around $5 a transaction, with a 1% foreign currency conversion fee.

I wouldnt recommend taking a huge amount of australian currency. 1) if it gets stolen or lost, then you've lost alot of money and cannot reclaim it. 2) money exchanges often charge really shitty exchange rates. 3) the US dollar is the best to have overseas because it is more likely to be accepted, however, in Thailand you will pretty much be using baht the whole time.
 
I think most of people's fears of Lady boys just comes down to homophobia and prejudice. yes you will see lady boys, and yes some will proposition you. but if you treat them with respect and are polite to them (as you should be) then your not going to have any trouble. It is the guys that get all freak out and end up punching one who find themselves surrounded with pissed off lady boys armed with knifes.

In terms of safety, Thailand is very safe. Robbery is very rare, as is pickpocketing in my experience (though it can happen, so dont carry important things in your wallet). violence on the streets is quite rare too. there is a good chance of getting ripped off and overcharged, but this happens in most third world countries. There are a few scams. there is the well known gem scam in bangkok. and in phuket there is the scam with jetskies. pretty much a person will rent a jetski and will not give it a thorough inspection. then when they return it, the operate will point out some scratches or minor damage, and the tourist will be threatened with the police or violence unless they pay a large amount of money.

anyway, thailand is a great place, and i suggest the OP eats lots of great food, and enjoys himself thoroughly.
 
Samadhi is right on with Koh Yao Noi for a chill spot. THere are also some great chill spots on Kao Tao and oh Pan yang but you need to get away from the crouds if you want the desolate beach thing. Also there are a few less visited islands with a predominant Muslim population that are the absolute tops. Very few if any foreigners and a great relaxing time. You can't go wrong there. Basically everyone stated what to avoid, so use your judgement and have a blast.

Also, there is this cough syrup that comes in an orage box with a tiger on it and it has opium in it. If you can find it, but it. It's nice for a relaxing sleep. Various pharmacies sell it in Bankok. Have fun.
 
Thanks for the advice everyone. And will give that thread a better look when I get some spare time samadi.

Got flights booked as mentioned in and out of phuket but don't plan on spending all my time there. Thinking will spend a few nights there and then go check out a few of the islands.
 
I only touched on these areas (didn't stay) but head further north on the western coast - Nai Thon and the beaches up there are SPECTACULAR. It would be relatively simple to do with a bike or car, or even by bus. Very chilled, and while there are a lot of high-end resorts up there, there is also reasonably priced accommodation.

If you want some rainforest action in the region - check out Khao Sok national park. I spent a day on a canoeing/elephant trek, and had a ball. Most importantly, the elephants are very well-treated. We started by canoeing down the Khao Sok River, through spectacular gorges, then had lunch at the eco-resort - they used a lot of produce grown by themselves, and the food was delicious. We then went on a trek through the forest on an elephant. You can just spend the day canoeing though, and there is a white-water rafting option. :) The national park is amazing, though...
 
I've been. It was fun. Nothing I was worried about ahead of time was much of a worry once I was there. I never had travel insurance, I never got any vaccines (I don't get them in general), I just went... up to you how much you want to "prepare"... everyone had ganja over there, it didn't seem to be a big deal but I never went around buying it from random people either, friends just shared with me mostly. I found it pretty easy to get mushrooms and other psychedelics over there too. I think my favorite of the islands was Koh Tao, I had all my most beautiful experiences there. But overall, it was all good. :) I'm glad that I went by myself, it's an experience unlike any other. I love Thailand. :)
 
Thanks friends i was also looking for this advice and thinking to make a thread for this help but after read out all the posts from this thread i have no problem and get the solution and i think i have also no need to make a new thread for this problem this is good and informative thread....
Thanks again...
 
pattaya is the place to be over 1000 bars it has walking street (witch is like 1-2km of just bar after bar after bar and no taxis so u dont need worrie about gettin run over) pattaya beach is awsome too you have to catch a boat over to it tho.n watch out for those nasty sea snails they have there my dads life almost ended on that holiday!plus the chemists are super chill there if u get what i mean ;)
 
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