This European winter I decided to take an 18 day vacation in South Thailand. Not being a big fan of the cold weather, some relaxing time in the sun was my Christmas gift to myself for 2014.
The itinerary set for my trip was taking the flight from Oslo with Qatar Airways to Hamad International airport in Doha for a 13 hour layover, followed by a direct flight to Phuket.
From Phuket the plan was to do some Island hoping in this order: Phuket ► Krabi ► Railay Beach ► Koh Lanta ► Koh Ngai ► Ko Phi Phi ► Phuket
I had never been to South Thailand before so this itinerary was purely based on light research, and my adventurous ambition to discover new holiday spots. Having New Year’s Eve in Phuket would be the kickoff for my Thailand adventure.
After the short layover in Doha, I arrived in Phuket at 1830 on the 31st December 2014.
Now there are several key important tips one most know before traveling to Thailand:
1. Same Same but different:
This goes for pretty much everything in the country. So if you have a ferry travelling from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi, tourist agencies will print different pamphlets with different prices. However the actual ferry is the same ferry used by all the agencies. The same goes for organized excursions, transfers, and services. So buying online tickets is not recommended for any service oriented activity as it is a marked up price. The best procedure here is to buy on location when you are in the country.
2. Always bargain:
So continuing from above when purchasing on location, always bargain. The vender or service provider like a tuk tuk driver will throw you a price, and you counter offer that price till you reach agreement. Supply of services exceed demand in most service areas here so you will have the bargaining power. For example petrol cost is 40 Bhats per litre, so paying 100 Bhats for a short taxi ride is okay but you can get away with paying half of that. All product purchases can be negotiated and you can get 20-50% off on the price.
3. Everything runs on Island time including International Airline flights:
Don’t expect anything to run on time. Take a scheduled time for an event and add an extra 15-30 minutes if you are lucky. This is how it operates in most islands across the globe, growing up on Fiji I know all about Island time so relax and just go with the flow.
4. Lose your normal accent and switch to Thai accent:
English is not the main language here so a fast speaking American accent, or strong British or French accent will do very little for your communication. So adapt to speaking “Thai-glish”. How to learn this? Observe and imitate.
5. Always repeat the keywords in a sentence:
So if you want the taxi driver to wait for you, you would say in Europe or America: “Please keep the meter running, I will be back shortly”. In Thailand you will say, “Wait wait, I come back fast fast.”
6. Learn the Key Words:
Like any foreign country learning the keywords such as “Thank You”, “Hello”, and “How are you?” among others helps break the ice and makes the locals appreciate your effort of trying.
7. Insect Repellant:
The wildlife is quite beautiful here and if you are lucky you might see some spiders, snakes, scorpions, and some exotic birds. The guaranteed sightings will always be monkeys and mosquitoes. The Mosquitoes are all over the place and love the tourists. So invest in a repellant. Local organic product Citronella is a good choice which you can purchase there.
8. Carry Cash:
Cash is king. When doing a cash out, go big and take out 20k bhats while you at it instead several small transactions along the way. Most stores as modern as they look may not cater for cards so cash is needed. Once you in the smaller islands good luck finding an ATM. Carry cash with you and lock it in the safe, so you take what you need on each outing.
9. Hit and Miss:
This is the theme of South Thailand with all services. For example a Thai restaurant at a 5 star resort will serve the worst Thai food you would have on your tour because it is run by Non Thai cooks. A foot reflexology massage ends with your shoulders being massaged. You order one dish and you get something else. So communication and following recommendations here are important.
10. Keep it private:
All excursions and transfers are best kept to a small group. Island transfers are best done in speedboats or private long tail boats depending on distance. Avoid large ferries and groups as this is a disaster waiting to happen. Overcrowding on such ferries is common and makes for a very uncomfortable ride. So spend the extra dollars and go private.
11.Stay clear of the day trippers:
The day trippers are common around the world when it comes to locations with beautiful Islands. They will stay on a bigger island with resorts where comfort is guaranteed and wildlife is at a minimum, hospitals are close by, translators and tour guides are with them, and hotel staff are there to help in all kinds of small emergencies. Good on them for travelling and discovering the world, however they are quite annoying as they often travel in packs. Their objective is to see locations and the tour guides mission is to throw them on boats and get them out there. Information such as sea sickness, what to wear is not discussed so expect to see them throwing up in the ferries, and running around in denim when the temperature is 30 degrees Celsius. They are prone to appear in tourist trap locations and are guaranteed photo bombers in your background. Stick to rule 10 and avoid them in boats. As for locations such as Maya bay in Phi Phi, you will need to get there earlier than the big boat loads of tourists.
12.Lady Boys (Kathoey):
Lady Boys (Kathoey): This term refers to either a transgender woman or an effeminate gay male in Thailand. They are also known as the third gender. Anyway they have Cabaret shows in the bigger cities and can be found all over Thailand. They are living life as normal individuals and you can refer to them as females when communicating. There is no need to fear them as they are friendly just like any Thai person you meet there.
13. Pollution:
Unfortunately in this paradise rubbish dumping has become common practice. Walking along beaches you will find lots of plastic bags, plastic bottles and other sort of Rubbish washed up on the beach. Now our travel group made an effort to clean up several beaches but this is a much larger job than several individuals. So try to educate someone not to throw rubbish into the ocean and hopefully the Thailand government starts a campaign to help clean up the beaches. Tourist and locals are equally guilty in this dumping of rubbish into the ocean as witnessed on this trip.
