BANGKOK GUIDE BANGKOK GUIDE MONEY Currency: 1 baht (THB, ) = 100 satang (almost As a tourist, expect to be overcharged regularly Essential Information worthless) and for practically everything – it is good to get Money 3 a general idea about prices in advance, bargain The easiest way to get local currency is from the heavily and double-check your change. Communication 4 The 'City of Angels' is one of the most-loved ATMs. There are also many moneychanger kiosks Meal, inexpensive restaurant – 75 THB tourist destinations in Southeast Asia. There that readily accept euros and dollars for the best Meal for 2, mid-range restaurant, three-course Holidays 5 are many good reasons for this. With its sky- rates. The banks offer reasonable rates too, but – 640 THB the actual exchange may take significantly more Big Mac – 85 THB Transportation 6 scrapers, convenient public transport, broad- walks, huge shopping malls and cosy hotels, time. Bottle of water at supermarket – 8 THB Food 9 the metropolis is easily accessible, comprehen- Domestic beer (0.5 liter, draught) – 60 THB sible and similar to the Western world. All the major credit cards are accepted at places Cappuccino – 60 THB Events During The Year 10 At the same time, there’s more to it – the catering to tourists, including the shopping malls Souvenir t-shirt – 100 THB Thai mentality is distinctively different and the and better restaurants. Using them is not ad- Gasoline (1 liter) – 40 THB 11 Things to do concrete jungle is thus a lively hub of activity vised, though, because card fraud is common – it Guesthouse (average price/night) – 150 THB you won’t find anywhere in the West – amaz- is best to withdraw and pay with cash. 4* hotel (average price/night) – 1500 THB DOs and DO NOTs 12 ing night markets, traditional temples that are Car-hire (medium-sized car/day) – 1200 THB Activities 17 always packed with locals, and people living Tax Refunds practically on the street. Tourists departing by air are eligible for a VAT re- Tipping . Bangkok is a busy city with an unbelievable at- fund if they spent more than 2000 baht per ap- Tipping is not customary in Thailand. Some mosphere and surprises awaiting you at nearly proved store in a single day, with a minimum of restaurants will add a service charge of 10% to every corner – just be open to new experiences 5000 baht in total. The shops must be part of the your bill or the waiter may keep the small change and don’t let yourself be fooled by the illusory VAT refund network. You must fill in the appro- from a larger bill. Tipping in taxis is not expected, Emergency Contacts urban facade. priate forms and present them together with the but appreciated – just round up the bill. If you goods upon your departure. The VAT is usually are satisfied with the services of a hairdresser, Police emergency number: 191 Time Zone Medical emergencies: 1554, 1669 7%. masseur or tour guide, appreciate it with a 20 to Fire emergencies: 199 ICT (UTC/GMT +7 hours), no daylight saving 100 baht gratuity. Tourist emergency (police): 1155 time. Prices Contacts There’s a striking difference between prices in Bangkok and the rest of the Thailand, tourist ar- Tourist Contacts eas excluded. At first sight, it might seem quite ex- Safety information (police): 1672 pensive, but it is possible to cut costs significantly Official tourist information: +66 2225 7612-4 by sleeping in dorms and eating on the streets. Tourist Authority of Thailand: +66 2 694 There are also numerous markets where you 1222 can get various goods and clothes very cheaply if you’re good at bargaining. Expect to haggle for everything on the markets and even in some shops where price tags are lacking. 2 3 COMMUNICATION HOLIDAYS Electricity ually increasing. You just need to register at 1 January – New Year's Day The standard electricity supply is 220V/50Hz with www.mict.go.th prior to using the service. Magha Puja (Full moon of the 3rd Thai lunar the American and/or European two-pinned plug. month) Internet cafés are abundant and inexpensive, al- 6 April – Chakri Memorial Day Languages though you might want to avoid the touristy ar- 13 April – 15 April – Songkran Festival (tradi- eas. Most hotels and restaurants also offer Wi-Fi tional Thai New Year, the most important hol- Unsurprisingly, the official and most widely spo- internet connection. iday) ken language is Thai. Luckily, the public signs are 5 May – Coronation Day often in Thai and English, sometimes even in Chi- Internet Resources Royal Ploughing Ceremony and Farmer's nese and Japanese. Young people can generally Day (Arbitrarily declared date in May) speak English better than the old, but not many Thailand Tourist Website (www.tourismthailand. Vesak (full moon of the 6th Thai lunar month) are fluent. Expect communicative level of English org) Asalha Bucha (full moon of the 8th Thai lunar in the tourist industry, but don’t expect too much. Bangkok Tourist Website (www.bangkoktourist. month) The other languages sometimes spoken are Chi- com) Beginning of Vassa (first waning moon of the nese, Japanese and German. Bangkok Information Guide (www.bangkok. 8th Thai lunar month) com) 12 August – HM the Queen's Birthday Mobile Phones 23 October – Chulalongkorn Day The standard mobile network (GSM/GPRS/3G) 5 December – HM the King's Birthday has quite good coverage except for some rural 10 December – Constitution Day areas. Check the compatibility of your phone 25 December – Christmas and services if coming from a non-GSM standard 31 December – New Year's Eve country. If coming from America, your phone If the holiday falls on a weekend, the following might not be compatible with the local network – workday is considered non-working as compen- check with your operator in advance. sation. The system is rather chaotic, but as a rule of thumb, expect the offices to be closed. The To avoid high roaming costs, it might not be a bad larger shops usually don’t observe all the holidays idea to buy a local sim card – you can easily get it and sometimes stay open. in any local 7-11. All cards are usually pre-loaded with 99 baht and there is not a considerable dif- Opening Hours ference between the operators, the coverage is The official business and office hours are from 8 comparable and the prices too. Again, you need a.m. to 5:30 p.m. during the week and 8:30 a.m. to check your phone in advance to see whether it to 12 p.m. on Saturdays. The larger shops and is not locked. shopping malls usually stay open until 10 p.m. Internet The tourist sights and museums generally oper- Connecting to the Internet is very easy in Bangkok ate 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but not the whole week and – there is an impressive network of free hotspots the opening days can vary – always check in ad- situated at bus stops, in main streets, in tourist vance. areas, even in the parks and the coverage is grad- 4 5 TRANSPORTATION TRANSPORTATION Public Transportation from the map and by matching the color of the Always try to hail a moving taxi from the road and six bunks in the compartment. The third class is It is easy to get around Bangkok by public trans- line and the bus number. The fare is collected on avoid the aggressive touts offering you taxis on the cheapest way of traveling in Thailand – there port! The whole system is well-connected but it is the bus. Always have your coins ready and keep the street – this is as much as you can do to avoid are only hard seats and just about enough space not integrated, unfortunately – you need to buy the receipt. scams. Or you can walk outside of the tourist area for your legs. specific tickets for particular means of transport. and get a taxi from there – your chances of finding Chao Phraya Express Boats – the cheapest way an honest taxi driver increases significantly. The BKS (Baw Khaw Saw) – government-run bus If you don’t feel like being adventurous, avoid the to travel on the river. You pay for the ticket from official taxis are equipped with meters – always company connects every province in Thailand. buses – they can be really tiresome sometimes. the collector on boat and the fare varies accord- insist on using it and walk away if the driver sug- There are various lines and levels of comfort, The three train lines are comfortable though, and ing to the distance and type of the boat (10 to gests a flat fare or says that the meter is broken. It from regional buses to first class. Always take they connect all the important sights and hubs in 40 baht). There are several lines that are distin- will come in handy to have the name or address BKS buses and avoid other options as they usu- the central city. guished by the color marking of the boat. of your destination printed down in Thai so that ally run “scambuses” aimed at tourists where you can show it to the driver. thefts and breakdowns are almost a rule. BTS Skytrain – its two lines cover the downtown Saen Saep Express Boat – two lines serving the with interchange at Siam. Tickets can be pur- canal. Phone numbers: Driving chased at vending machines accepting coins. The BTS Skytrain (www.bts.co.th) 1681: Taxi Radio Driving in Thailand is a very adventurous expe- fares vary according to the zones traveled from Bangkok Metro (www.bangkokmetro.co.th) 1661: Siam Radio Taxi rience.