You can rent a car. No problem about that. If you are Citibank Gold card member, you can get up to 50% discounts on Avis Rent-a-car.

But the main question is: Are you confident in driving around in Thailand? I did experience driving out of Bangkok, and lucky I had my honey with me to navigate around. It can be very confusing, especially when most signs are in Thai. Even though I'm able to read some amount of Thai confidently, it is hard when you are actually driving and trying to read the signs.

Do prepare yourself with a proper map if you intent to do so.

The rates for car rental can range from THB1,800 per day for a decent Toyota Vios. Of course, there are other surcharges, which you have to pay (such as insurance and other stuff).

Check out the following sites if you are interested:

http://avisthailand.com/home/index.php

http://www.budget.co.th/

Hi Chen Bee Hansern, I'm also thai here but mix chinese and same like u la I'm thai malaysian. Really wish that I'm real thai and live in Thailand. I've been there also a few times. My mom's hometown is in Surin, North Thai. Really wish to visit Chiang mai coz I love the cooling environment. But most importantly, I wanna visit Sukhothai during "loy krathong". It's an old city of Thailand. But my mom recommend you guys to go during the end of year coz

1. You can celebrate new year there. (It's more happening & merrier there. Not to say Malaysian is not happening la..;P)

2. This is the time when the "elephant soccer" festival will start (If not mistaken it's between Sep or Oct in North Thailand which is Surin my mom's hometown)

3. You can celebrate "loy krathong" there without any worries (feel free to make a wish and hopefully it will come true) that your "krathong" will terbalik like PD there (coz they said that the more far the krathong goes, the higher probability it will come true!! Haha!!

4. You sure didnt want to travel to a country that is hotter (I mean weather ) than Malaysia rite?

5. Most important of all= Money$o$ = Affordable la!! haha!!

thanks again dude!
so where u normally stay when u travel there?
any good hotel recommendation? especially in the sukumvit area? coz lots of my frens call me to stay at that area
wish to get those less than 1000 baht per night with good condition one(coz 6 nights), but can try those price range from 1000 - 2000 baht too...
actually, as long as the security is good, then it's fine, coz most of my time will be outta hotel, jz wanna keep my belonging safe n a bed to sleep (might sleep on the pub or street if too drunk)

This post has been edited by wk_wong: Nov 18 2006, 10:34 PM

Thanks sunbeams for your prompt reply.

Now my only concern is place to stay. Wanted to book Samran Place.. but its fully booked. Moreover its 29Dec06-1Jan07.. so difficult to book a hotel..

i'm here when i'm in bangkok (click the link) -> Palazzo Bangkok. It's in Rachadapisek Road, it's a bit off Sukumvit but not that far. 7-11 is just across the street, Underground station is about 10/15 minutes walk so does Robinson & Carrefour. taxi and motocycle taxi all lepak there at the doorstep so no problem with transportation. the landmark would be Emerald hotel which almost every taxi driver knows, Palazzo is beside Emerald but further down the soi/street. Security is good and won't ask anything if you bring a friend/friends back. they'll help you to your room just in case you're too drunk to walk....

The internet booking rates for single room is currently TBH1300 per night which is almost as good as their corporate rate. It's not bad for the price seriously, if i were to rate it, 2/3 star hotel. if i'm not mistaken, they will give you a double/twin for single room as they don't have a room with a single bed (does this makes sense?). can't recall if they have a safe in the room. internet access via 2 PC at the lobby - not free - or at the business centre.

anyone with good hotel along Sukumvit that can compete with the price please share with me, i would love to check it out too.

another one that i stayed before is this one -> Bangkok Suite, cheap and clean since it a new hotel BUT quite far from everything else. if you're on a tight wallet, this one is cool, and the food is pretty nice. long and confusing walk to the nearest Skytrain station and slightly harder to get taxi.

i've pass through an area called Ramintra which has lots of sport rims shops and maybe body kits, but not sure if that's the place. i find that there's no specific place that puts everything in one area. one word to described it best would be "bertabur".

Have anyone stay in Ibis Siam Hotel b4? is it ok?
How far is it from the Hotel to Skytrain?
How about First House Hotel?
I want somewhere which is near public transport..

and erm.. any recommended place to hangout on New years' eve?

hmm.. since palazzo is nice.. i'll book palazzo then..
is it far from pratunam/chatuchak/siam?

i heard its near MRT.. so i have to change to BTS if i want to go to the above places is it?

i don't think u will have any problem with this, your problem would be how much money you have in your wallet. check out the english papers - Bangkok Post - for any special events. it also depends on what you're looking for....music, crowd, location wise, etc.

tell me what you think of Palazzo....
Palazzo's nearest MRT station will be Huai Khwang station.
bangkok has 2 train system, the SKYTRAIN and METRO SUBWAY. i always imagine the 2 lines forming a mirror image (terbalik) of a cent sign. the straight line is skytrain and the C for the subway line with 2 points of contact. the middle contact will be in Asoke where you get off and move on to the other metro areas like pratunam, siam, mbk, central and basically the whole of Suk (Sukumvit) via skytrain or by foot. up north to JJ (Jatujak) you stop at Kampheng Pet station that takes you straight into JJ instead of Skytrain's Mo Chit station that requires you to walk for around 10 - 15 min across a non-smoking public park. you can also stop at Chatucak Park station but i have never stop there before.

check out the Skytrain link above to get a better visual idea of the track layout and station's location. hope this helps.

edit --> typos.

This post has been edited by dude: Nov 21 2006, 01:45 PM

ah.. ic.. thanks for the info dude..

i've just booked palazzo.. i hope its not a fcuk joint since its near red light district.. but heck.. too late to regret now..

i booked for RM119 incl breakfast.. i'd say its quite a good deal.. i booked thru www.hotels2thailand.com

have anyone been to Sirocco @ state tower??
http://www.thedomebkk.com/sirocco/sirocco_home.htm

will definately go there 1 night..

i have to say the clientele are usually business people from MY, SG, JP and TH. ratchada is a high class red light area and so they usually come from the 5 star hotel area in Suk.
wow...119 incl breakfast is a good deal! the breakfast is ok, a bit dissapointing for me, maybe because a lot of it are pork based, but there's quite a selection. hey, free coffee, juice & toast is good enuff for me.
report back will ya...

For those of you who are planning to spend Christmas season here in Bangkok, do check out their X'mas decorations. You'll find the city pretty nicely lit up with lights all over the place.

Don't confuse yourselves though. With 90+% Buddhist, X'mas isn't exacly an auspicious event here. The reason why the month of December is fully lighted isn't because of Christmas, but more due to the fact that it's the King's birthday (5th December), which is known as "Father's Day" here.

Also, the first few weeks in the month of December will usually come with cool weather (winter winds blowing south from China). So the nights can be very romantic and soothing. Take a walk at night and you'll definitely enjoy it.

how abt the weather in bkk end of dec? ehhehe.. cooling as well?

The cool period is usually in the begining of December. Towards the New Year, the weather starts to heat up again. But it really depends though. This year for example, we did experience an unexpected cool weather in February.

At the moment (as I'm typing), the weather in Bangkok is EXTREMELY HOT! El Nino is at it's nasty deeds once again

Things that I'm worrying currently
- Is it a safe place after the military took over the government?
- Traffic jam...grrr
- People there might not have good command of English. communication can be a problem (faced a lot of communication barrier with local people in Jakarta before even I can speak a little bit Indonesian)
- Not enough Thai Baht This is the most important hehe. Wondering how much should I bring for a two week trip?

This post has been edited by samurai1337: Nov 25 2006, 01:53 PM

The new government has been established, and martial law is no longer in active enforcement anymore. Even though so, during the military rule few months ago, life was completely normal, with the exclussion of a few army tanks on the streets.

As for traffic jams, there are plenty of alternative forms of transportation. The mass transit system (BTS Skytrain, MRT Underground) covers most of the strategic locations in the city. In addition to that, you can always use the motorcycle taxi for a cheap price

Language may be a problem. Although not many can speak English, they will try to understand as much as they can. When communicating with them, make sure you speak English slowly and clearly.

For two weeks, I would say RM2,000 equivalent is enough (THB20,000). In case you forsee a need for more, most ATM machines here are able to accept ATM cards with Plus system. Maybank has this facility, so if you're a Maybank account holder, make sure you inform the bank that you wish to make overseas withdrawal. There might be a transaction charge attached to it.

thanks for the hotel info, dude!
now still browsing for more hotels, cant really make decision yet. really headache
but i think need to act fast as the time im there is peak season...

I'm going to Bangkok this coming 7th Dec. Will be there for 5D. Is RM1000 enough? Will be staying at my friend's place, so lodging expenses are covered.

RM1,000 - That would depend on how big a spender you are. Since you friend is taking care of accommodation, I will assume he/she will take care of most of your transporation / food problems too (at least that's what I do when my friends / family come over to Bangkok).

When my sis came over, she spent an average of RM500 per day (actually, she was spending my money). I also had a Singaporean friend who spent RM3,000 per day. So, what kind of spender are you?

Remember to save at least RM100 (THB1,000) for the last day, cause airport tax is THB500, and taxi to airport might be near THB300.