If you notice the " beware of pickpockets" signs in some areas, you automatically feel your pocket for your wallet/ ( and alert the local thiefs where you keep the goods._

makes you wonder who put up the sighs

What would U expect in the Patpong district? Duh
A large % of the children there are homeless and thinner addicts.

Many of the tourist ripoffs have been operating for years and years.
Why?
The Police run them.
Now you know.

I always keep my wallet in my front pocket whereever I go, pretty hard to steal that without alerting my attention.

I am traveling to bangkok next month and plan on using a money belt along with keeping my wallet safe

I recommend a splitting up of money between all pockets and the money belt, money shouldnt really be kept in one wallet even if it is in your front pocket, takes just one lucky picker to pick and get all your cash.

This also applies to money kept in your room which should be split between room safe , locked suitcase, shoes, handy secret place in bathroom etc etc so if some is stolen you still have some money left.

Never let the chance of having no money whilst in a foreign country happen, not a pretty scenario!

Credit cards should be treated the same way, have seen so many people carry one wallet with all their spending power in it and the german guys have the man bag things with all their stuff in, passport, tickets, credit cards, cash, the lot.

Just needs one to turn their back or leave the bag on their seat somewhere and they are in deep trouble.

You will have to remember were you put everything. One day you will forget the money in the bathroom. My grandmother used to do so. Years after she died my mother still every once in a while found money in the strangest places. A result of advanced paranoia. For my mother it was like winning the lottery every once in a while. Probably the hotel cleaners have the same lucky experience every once and a while.

The poor woman didnt even trust bankers!!! The most reliable people in our capitalistic world!!

Never forget when it comes to money :)

I do Yesterday forgot my wallet in the gym. Got it back. Your advice is good, but a lot of people sooner or later forget the cash in the bathroom.

the front pocket idea is great, having velcro closures helps too, very hard to open undected.

also, if you have an atm card, keep very little in the account, transfer in money as you need it from another account ( with card and access at home(


if your card is :missing: from the travel account, you can still access it with a 2nd card, and transfer all the money out of it asap.

works faster than trying to close the account ( especially if you have a thai bank account)

I have travelled to Thailand 34 times I buy good quality shorts with two front deep pockets either zip or velcro seal.I use the hotel safe to store all main ID and credit cards, I only use ATM's then straight back in the Hotel safe with my card. Carry a maximum of 5.000.00 BAHT and account for it that evening use Metered Taxi's only no tuk tuk's Never use credit cards for purchase. and have 1,000.00 BAHT in twenty's and hundred's for Tips etc. no one ever has change for 1000.00 Baht I have many more tips.

Clive, I live here and I woul NEVER use a hotel safe, and that includes good quality hotels. I certainly wouldnt leave Cred cards in the hotel safe, people mut be aware of the scams, many people have gone home having had their credit cards cloned from the hotels they have sayed at. You were lucky. ATM's can be dangerous as well, better to trave with travelers cheques and get them exchanged inside of a bank. Bureau de changes have been know to pass on!

also, never confide when you are leaving thailand ( if they clone your cc, they will use the time you are in transit to try and run up charges)

Yes you are right there Mikey, thats why I keep one card with a low amount on it, so if it is scammed then I havent to worry too much but I see we now have a nice police officer in the forums willing to help which is wonderful lol

Seen recent reports of ATM machines being rigged to steal your PIN number.
I imagine the Thai Police are looking into ways to take over this scam.
Be carefull and don't trust Thai Police.

carry a fully set rat trap in your back pocket - that might deter the ratbags!

Khun issan you make a good point in regard to hotel safes i must have been lucky, I usually stay at small reputable hotels where I am known. They seem to value my custom a bit but I think. I will take your advise next time and take a debit card with limited funds, and use travellers cheques at the bank. PS
I never go to the ATM at night or alone and always check it for scaming add ons like cameras and entry add on's, as well as observers.

A hotel safe will keep the honest maid honest.
A criminal working there will get into it they want to.

Cliv, yes its worthwhile to make that a point. I know that TC cost more but for theft/loss, at least it is recoverable. Good you have found a good hotel, refreshing to find honest staff, and of course not everyone is a thief but the inconvenience, distress caused that little extra is whorthwhile. ATM machines over here can be a "pain in the backside" 5/6 times I have inserted card for say 6,000B and nothing has come out. Generally these ATM machines are either downstairs from the bank or away from the actual bank, the slip tells you you have received the monies and you havent, now that is an exercise to get it back from your Bank, takes months and months, yes to be careful of scams at ATMs as well.

M. Smith. Yes there are honest maids, but why cause distress to your business trip/holiday by having goods stolen, prevention is better than the cure!

Here's a scam I fell for in Wha Hin bought a bus ticket to Phuket at travel office 1200.BAHT got receipt was told to wait at main clock Tower for bus and an opperater would arrive with ticket. All good bus arriveslovely lady in flash SUV gives me ticket for receipt assures me bus is going to Phuket were off in a flash wake up in Phuket town ? check depo check ticket says 900 BAHT phuket town. Depo lady says operater bad and when I get to Phuket in taxi 350 BAHT later, to sure report to tourist police. Not me i'm not supplying there lunch time laugh's. So Photo copy receipt and check ticket price and destination Boys.

I was told the Police are doing the ATM scams now.
Go directly to a Bank.

Well your Hua Hin trip was a slight scam, they are everywhere Clive. Personally, after having luggage stolen from under the bus on quite a few occasions ( sometimes the co driver sleeps under the bus!!) and removes your valuables. I smile ironically, I was working on the islands near Trat, and got so tired of my luggage being stolen, I used to have to buy an extra seat next to me going to BKK just for my rucksac. "The Rucksac" was given the usual bottle of water, slice of cake etc and it caused many a laugh. I express concern at the safety of the buses now, how long the driver has been awake etc, is he fit to drive etc etc. so where possible I take the train.On the train use your luggage as your pillow, there will always be the one person eyeing up your goods!
M. Smith, yes ATM's are progressively becoming more hazardous, this scams tere was largely instigated by our Russian and east block brothers but being practiced by the locals now. Personally for in hours banking I would like to see more in house ATM's.

Yeh the ATM scam is becoming a problem in Perth now so that tells me its hotting up in Thailand
probably since we were warned off handing over our cards because of card swipers. I'm going to go for full travellers cheques and good old cash not to much of that either. I think ATM's are getting way to insecure and having been warned I couldnt stand looking at a receipt and no Dough Aghh.

if you just can't stand Thai ways, why not just stay home and spare yourself all the misery?

Thailand will be short about 4 million visitors this year.
Very bad for the few honest Thais that depend on tourism.

It just means Mr Lambert that all the scammers will concentrate on the few farangs left over. You, may be?

1. this guy offered me for a show ina bar for only 100 baht. but there was no show. after 5 minutes when i tried to leave with my partner few ladies covered us and forced us to pay 2000 baht on knife point as a charge like 200baht for looking to girls, 1000 baht for show, 500baht for 2 cans of coke, 300 baht for ticket. we were so scared of our lives that we threw 2000 baht and ran away from there. this happened on 25th january 2009.

never go to patpong night market. even police is not there.

2. i hired personal taxi for full day 7.30am till 9pm for 1800 baht. he forced us to take a speed boat at floating market for 2000 baht although we never wanted to take one because you can go to floating market by road as well. we were not part of a package tour but still he didint listen. the baotman refused to stop at floating market to get us down for shopping and was angry why we are talking to other tourists. he wanted to bring us back in 1/2 hour. we were being robbed again.

lambert

"Thailand will be short about 4 million visitors this year.
Very bad for the few honest Thais that depend on tourism."

yes, too bad for all 6 of them/


sorry, I just could not resist making that comment

Kevin......If you are travelling for the first time to Thailand how do you know" if you can't stand Thai ways, why not just stay at home and spare yourself all that misery" You need the experiences to make a judgement surely.

i just got back from bankok .......
i hear what you people are saying but it isnt as bad as what ive just read.
just be sensible ,i went round pat pong at night on my own and common sense told me if it didnt smell right ,just move on...
and the hotel safes are fine ,believe me thats all rubbish ,the safe have codes of which you input the number and they aint any one going to go in them ,,trust me

Oliver, what happens if you forget the safe code? Will you have to buy the hotel a new safe, naaaaaaaa, the safes have an overide code! Sorry Oliver, I certainly won't trust you.

Oliver wrote...
"the hotel safes are fine ,believe me thats all rubbish ,the safe have codes of which you input the number and they aint any one going to go in them ,,trust me"

///

Oliver is wrong.

Every hotel room safe has a master key.
Sometimes it is a real metal key, sometimes it is an electronic box.
But it can open every safe in every room in the hotel.

Some hotels have tight security on that master key.
But in many hotels, it just sits in a drawer behind the reception desk.

I live in hotels.
I don't mean I travel a lot, but I actually live in hotels.
It happens that I forget my combination, or that the safe malfunctions.
Then I watch to see the procedure.
Usually casual -- one of the supervisors just gets the master key, or the electronic controller, and in a moment the safe is opened.

Do I trust hotel room safes?
Not for a moment.

-- Peter
Thailand

most of the low end hotel safes ( keypad types) have a reed relay ( magnetic switch) under the skin, holding a magnet in the right area it will open the safe.

its a failsafe so to say.

JUST DONT GO TO PATPONG!!! EVERYTHING IS 8X THE PRICE, THERES PLENTY OF PLACES IN BKK TO GO TO WHERE HONEST THAI PEOPLE ARE WHY DO PEOPLE GO THERE? MAYBE THE KOETOYS!!!

BEWARE OF PICKPOCKETS.....

I had my wallet and my cell phone stolen on Silom and I did not feel a thing. They are professional, they are quick and they are out there waiting for you.

Hm.... I'm off to Thailand tomorrow. I hope nothing like this happens to me

@Belle, there are more then enough stories on this site to make you indestructible to any scam in Thailand, I hope?

Headed to Bangkok in a couple of days- after reading the posts, what is the best way to travel with four months worth of travel money? travelers cheques ina money belt? several accounts at a USA bank? Also, my rucksack is fairly fancy looking. I'm thinking i need to switch to a smaller uglier bag that'll make me look a bit poorer. Any americans out there with extensive bussing experience in thailand that might be able to offer me a bit of advice? This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

@Jess, get your ma to sew in an extra pocket into your boxers (hope your not a Y front man/women?), don't use hotel safes. Most importantly, be on your guard (sorry, but even Americans will rip you off) and don't ever lose your TEMPER, smile instead. Just read up as much asyou can on this site, its great and enjoy your vacation.

I was in BKK last Sept. I went to Patpong several times. The worst thing that happened to me was being harassed by touts and barfining a girl who couldn't perform because she was not healthy. One girl attempted to break onto my room safe while I was out buying condoms, but was not successful. The management brought the electronic master key and opened the safe the next morning. I'll take enough condoms next time and won't go back the the King's Bar where the non-performer came from.

The prices being asked are not the price you pay, just walk away if you don't want to buy at the offered price; most of the time the price drops substantially when they see your back.

I saw few ladyboys in Patpong. Saw a lot on Koh Samui.

Take some of the advice here, but don't go overboard or you won't have any fun.

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