Backpacking in Thailand

The South East Asian region of the world - especially Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos - has become increasingly popular as a destination for those travelers seeking a more adventurous holiday than can be had merely sipping fruity, ice-cold drinks at your typical beach resort.
The jumping-off point for most backpackers is Khao San Road in Bangkok. Here you can find travel agents, cheap guesthouses, bars, clubs, very cheap internet cafés and many restaurants serving a variety of food, from Indian to pizza.

Thailand gets over 11 million tourists visiting a year. It may be a developing country, but you can buy just about anything you want here, and cheaper than at home (assuming your first stop is Bangkok). As such, only bring a few items of clothing with you; you can buy tshirts, shorts, bikinis, jackets, trousers etc by the armful for very little cash when you first arrive. Same goes for sunscreen, sunglasses and the contents of your toilet bag. Getting laundry done is cheap and easy. Plus, given that it’s a tropical country and you’ll be pretty active, you’ll probably want to ditch your clothes after every couple of months anyway.

Some words for the start

Sawaidee Kap (said by men) - Hello
Sawaidee Kah (said by women) - Hello
Sabaidee Mai - How are you?
Kap kun Kap/Kah - Thankyou
Hong Dee - Nice room
Aroy! - delicious!
Mai pen Rai - Never mind

Thailand some tips for a good holiday

Be prepared to barter for items on street stalls and at markets. It is considered the norm and will be expected. But don’t get angry or raise your voice. Just smile and agree a deal.
You'll read this everywhere, but just to confirm. DO NOT insult the King or the royal family. The King is well respected by all Thais and they will not tolerate any insults towards him. This includes anything bearing the King's image like a stamp or a coin, so be careful!
Shoes have to be removed when entering the chapel where the principal Buddha statue is located. bring cheap ones also in Thailand are thiefs
Do not wear shorts around The Grand Palace or in religious shrines, and women definitely shouldn't parade themselves in a bikini top.
Outdoor footwear is also removed when entering Thai homes,and you should avoid pointing your feet at people when sitting on the floor; it is considered rude.
If a Buddhist priest is to receive anything from a woman,it is first passed to a man, and then to the priest.
When greeting Thais it is customary to press the palms together in a wai, or prayer-like gesture
Never touch a Thai on the head, this is considered the highest point of the body in a very literal sense.

The Thai way to drink is to order a whole bottle of whisky (their preference is a 1000 baht bottle of Johnny Walker black label - an instant status symbol). At the bottom end of the scale is Sangsom (rum) and Mekhong (whisky) for a 100 baht a bottle, and quite lethal.
Get a free copy of What's On Magazines, available for Pattaya, Chiangmai, Samui, South Thailand (Phuket) & after dark activities. The same publisher also publish Thailand This Week. Available at selected hotels & restaurants. Free maps, tips & tons of ads !

Avoid annoying a drunk Thai as Thai boxing is much more fun under alcohol...
Look out with DRUGS, the penalty is very high!!

Eat & drink at food market or small local restaurants :
beside being tasty and closer to the people, you shall get plenty of cold purified water to drench your thirst for free.

Travel on fan buses on short to medium distances.
If you leave early in the morning, the air will be cool enough anyway and usually more "healthy" than the dirty air cond system.

Travel on 3rd class trains.
It takes a bit longer than on AC buses but there are more distractions on board, you travel with local people and it is the cheapest way to move ! For example, Khorat to Bangkok cost B50 on ordinary 3rd class train (6 hours), B78 on ordinary bus (5 hours) or B139 on AC bus (4 hours).

Hitch your way around!
With so many helpful people traveling on pick-up trucks, it takes never too long to get a ride. But not everywhere nor all the time : if you wait next to a bus stop or if the local know that buses are available, it should require more patience.

Drink with moderation : beer is expensive in Thailand ! A 660ml local bottle basically cost half the price of a guesthouse room (about B50). But maybe this means that rooms are cheap...

Travel with someone to share the cost of the motorbike (usually B250 per day)

Read the local English newspapers for bargains on flights and big discount on hotel prices

Send parcel at the "slow air" (SAL) rate : it is half the price of regular Air and usually take much less than the 1.5 months delivery time announced, in particular if you register it (an additional B25) and stick an "air mail" sticker on the envelop...

Be careful with taxis : There are a lot of rip off around here ! To start and since the meter is not always used, always clearly bargain for a price. You will have better chance of a discount by stepping a bit outside of the hotel, bus or trains stations and avoiding the queuing taxis. Refuse also to be taken to another hotel than the one you specified and bring small change for the fare. Altogether, the best advice to save money & (maybe) temper would be to stick to the public transport...

But remember that enjoying a trip is sometimes or from time to time worth a little bit more... Backpacking is more about the bag than the money !

DAILY BUDGET in THAILAND -
The main unit of Thailand currency is the Baht - Baht notes available are 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 Baht notes.
Believe it or not US$16 - 20 a day will cover costs nicely in Thailand, and give the backpacker a decent time, and for US$31 daily, comfortable hotels and good restaurant food is available, outside of Bangkok, that is, where costs are about double that.

Some prices

Guesthouse:	150 baht (with private bathroom)
Western breakfast:	50 baht
Noodles for lunch & iced tea:	40 baht
Motorcycle rental:	150 baht
Afternoon massage (1 hour):	100 baht
Green curry dinner:	70 baht
2 quarts of beer:	100 baht
Snacks and refreshments:	70 baht
Exchange date 10-5-2007	100 baht = £1,55/$US3,08/€2,28

One thing to remember, if you stick with the tourist crowds and in the tourist areas, then invariably you'll have to spend more money. But also remember that cheap doesn't always mean good value and quality here is dodgy.

The official tourist agency is called Tourist Authority of Thailand (TAT) and has offices where you can go for information. They also have offices abroad where you can pick up brochures and ask questions before you go. They can give you information on organised tours, location of public swimming pools and tennis courts, and public holidays and local festivities. They are involved in tourist development and planning.

Dangers: Some theft and druggings, not that common, loads of little scams and crimes of opportunity due to large tourist numbers. Theft of passports and credit cards is reported as a major problem. Oh, and watch out for those lady boys!
The southern provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Songkhla of late have been considered unsafe due to militant activities, explosions and government fire fights. So check the situation before you go and don't hang around any hot spots unnecessarily.

Embassies can help with problems with lost passports, if you get arrested, accidents, robbery and other problems. Keep photocopies of your passport and visas and keep receipts for travellers' cheques in a separate place from your travellers' cheques.A good tip is to send it to your E-mail address as a Photocopy in case you lost everything.

Staying healty

FCO guidelines:
There are excellent international hospitals in Bangkok but they can be expensive. Ordinary hospitals and clinics in Thailand are not always up to UK standards. This applies particularly to the coastal islands and many mainland districts outside of Bangkok, where hospitals and clinics are not equipped to deal with major trauma.

Seek medical advice about endemic diseases before travelling. Dengue fever is on the increase in Thailand. The dengue-carrying mosquito is most active during the day and you should consider using insect repellent.

Thailand has an epidemic of HIV infection and AIDS. Heterosexual transmission accounts for most HIV infections and HIV is common among prostitutes of both sexes.

WHO guidelines:
Yellow fever: A yellow fever vaccination certificate is required from travellers over one year of age coming from infected areas. The countries and areas included in the endemic zones are considered as infected areas.

Malaria: Malaria risk exists throughout the year in rural, especially forested and hilly, areas of the whole country, mainly towards the international borders. There is no risk in cities and the main tourist resorts (e.g. Bangkok, Chiangmai, Pattaya, Phuket, Samui). Recommended prophylaxis (anti-malarial) in risk areas near Cambodia and Myanmar borders: doxycycline.
Select your travel agent carefully. Some are approved by TAT and proudly display their certificate. Others are recommended by backpackers. In any case, use caution, accept to pay a deposit only and never sign any disclaimer. Scams do occur.

Tips for Vegetarians

As long as you stay in the touristy areas (kao san, the touristy islands, the north-west) you have plenty of things as a vegetarian. Of course its a bit of frustrating to see all of those chicken/sea foods all over, but you can easily find vegetarians dishes (vegetarian pad Thai, 10 bahts is the favorite). In addition most of the people know some English in these areas so they will understand your "no meat" request. If you have a bit more money or you want to spoil yourself you can easily do so with baguettes, Italian meals or even the "pizza hut"...

In the less visited north east, though, you have a problem as a vegetarian while people don't really speak English and are completely not familiar with the concept of "vegetarian". I must admit that accidentally I ate there a duck or two after ten time asking "no meat" in all kind of forms. Of course, the best advice for vegetarians (always) - is just to memorize "no meat" in the local language. Another possibility is to run to the seven-eleven and buy some groceries, but that might be a bit expensive.

How to shop on visa for neighboring countries ?

Laos Visa ? It is possible to get a one month visa in one working day. The cost, if you go yourself to the embassy at 8am and collect it in the afternoon should be B1350 (for most western nationalities, cheaper for Asian & Israeli people, more expensive for Canadian, American, Japanese or German). But considering that the embassy is very remote and tricky to get to (Bus No60 B3.5, then taxi B20), you will be better off to leave the work to an agency for a commission of as little as B100-150 (check around). A one month visa should cost B1500 and a 15 days visa B1000.

Myanmar (Burma) Visa ? For this one, most honest agencies will advise you to arrange for the visa yourself as you can get it the same day while this would take them two days. The Myanmar Embassy is in the south of town at 132 Sathorn Nua Rd (boat to Tha Oriental or Tha Sathon then 15mn walk east). Open Mond to Frid 8:30 to 12 and 14 to 16:30. You usually have the visa ready in the afternoon by 15:30. It cost B800 + 3 ID photo for the basic 4 weeks tourist visa to use within a month from the date of issue.

Last up date 12-05-2007