Please report all your scams while on holiday in Thailand. We will either send our undercover team to investigate or report directly to our contact in the Tourist Police if we think that there is already enough evidence to prosecute. With your help, we can make a difference.
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14/Aug/2008 – the scam continues
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TukTuk scams, taxi scams, lies, thefts |
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Written by Niels
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Friday, 27 June 2008 |
I just returned from a trip to Thailand and although it was quite nice, I doubt I'll be going back there any time soon - at least not to Bangkok.
We've been scammed with the taxi's, paid 200 baht to get from downtown to Khao San (before we knew what taxis where supposed to cost), later one guy took a 'scenic' route that took 45 minutes and cost us 157 baht for a trip that had cost us 70-80 baht on other occasions. After that we just walked out of the tourist areas whenever we needed a taxi and got one there - they always turned on the meter without problems.
We got scammed with the TukTuk, a guy in an official looking suit who spoke quite decent English was standing in front of the grand palace and told us it was closed until half past one, because the king's sister had died. Since we thought Thai people respected their royal family we doubted he would lie about something like that - after three weeks in Thailand we are innocent no more. In any case, he got us an 'alternative route', conveniently hailed a TukTuk for us and after visiting the standing budha (which was actually quite nice) we went from shop to shop. I got scammed into buying a suit. I had actually been thinking about getting one made, but probably would not have done so if it weren't for the scam. Luckily my suit turned out pretty decent although a bit overpriced, so I like to think I got away with it. We later met a British couple in Kanchanaburi who got scammed by the exact same guy, appearently he told them the same story word for word :)
Even outside bangkok people think of you not as a person, but as a wallet with legs. For instance, when we tried to book a daytrip at a little shop the lady told us the one we had picked out wasn't available anymore ('company finish!'), and recommended a similar one. We pressed on, because we really preferred our initial choice, and she even pretended to dial a number and although she didn't even talk into the horn she hung up after a while and said ('yes, company finish'). I told my girlfriend (in Dutch) that I thought she was lying, and told her we'd think about it. I got up to leave and suddenly she produced yet a third brochure, seemingly out of nowhere that was about the same as our initial choice. We took it as it offered what we wanted to do, but I think she wanted to sell us the other one probably because she gets a higher comission for it.
My girlfriend got pickpocketed in Bangkok (4k baht), I had money stolen from me that I foolishly had lying around in the hotel (100 dollars australian) probably by the Hotel staff (the door was locked, no forced entry).
I hear Vietnam is the new Thailand :)
A tip if you decide to go to Bangkok, go to MBK on the first day and get some cheap linnen pants and matching shirt if you're a guy, or a cheap skirt if you're a girl. Pick something out that really looks like it was made in Thailand. Many scammers will think you've been in the country for at least a couple of days and leave you alone. It's not by any means a foolproof disguise, but it alleviates the hassle a bit.
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