The fact is that when [...]]]> Most travelers will experience some level of difficulty when dealing with foreign currency. It’s no different in Thailand. Everyone has hard time at first when making the switch between currencies. Thai currency looks strange. It’s written in a different language. Sometimes you hear it referred to as “funny money.”

The fact is that when you’re in Pattaya, out on the town, buying lady drinks, and generally having a good old time with the Pattaya girls, it’s easy to lose track of what you spend. Worse yet, it’s easy to mistake one denomination for another, especially in the dim surroundings of a Pattaya go go bar.

In a dark room the 100’s appear similar in color to the 500’s. It’s even worse mistaking a 1000 baht note for a 20 baht note which is real easy. Some unscrupulous bars always try to game you on the 1000’s. So what can you do to avoid overspending and being short changed?  Here’s a short course on Thai money.

• First off you should know that there are 5 denominations and each denomination is slightly different in size. The denominations are 1000, 500, 100, 50, and 20 baht notes. One side is printed entirely in Thai, but the other side has English numbers printed in the corners.

• Before you head out in the evening for some serious bar crawling, take the time to arrange your Thai bills so that the side with the English numbers in the corner is facing up. Arrange your bills by order of denomination.

• Don’t carry 1000 baht notes. That way you don’t have to even think about the difference between 1000’s and 20’s.

• If you do have a 1000 baht note and you want to pay your check bin, do what a lot of experienced Pattaya punters do. When it comes time to pay, always hold the 1000 baht note up in the air so that both the hostess and you can see the note and you both acknowledge that it’s a 1000 baht note before she takes it away.

• When you’re tipping the girls that do the banana act or the ice cube trick or any one of the many delightful things that the girls can do, take a moment to look  at the number on the bill. Those shows are very distracting and your eyes and mind is definitely not on your money. I’ve seen many a drunken sailor mistake a 100 for a 500 only to realize it too late after the bill has been tucked up into the nether regions by an experienced Pattaya show girl.

• Always remember that the King’s picture is on each bill, so don’t do something stupid like trample on a bill on purpose. When you’re in Thailand, always respect the King and his image.

The cheapest public transportation for getting around Pattaya is the Baht Bus or Songthaew as it’s called in Thai. The baht buses are those blue pickup trucks that you see driving around Pattaya with people riding in the back. The cost to ride a baht [...]]]>

The Pattaya baht bus only costs 10 baht

The cheapest public transportation for getting around Pattaya is the Baht Bus or Songthaew as it’s called in Thai. The baht buses are those blue pickup trucks that you see driving around Pattaya with people riding in the back. The cost to ride a baht bus is only 10 baht. The only transportation in Pattaya that’s cheaper than a baht bus is to walk.

I don’t know exactly how they came to be known as baht busses. That’s a term that is only used in Pattaya and Bangkok by “farang” (foreigners). I’ve never heard them called that in other parts of Thailand.

The Thai name for the baht bus is Songthaew and I do know where that comes from. The word “song” is the number 2. The word thaew means “seat”. A songthaew is a two seater, literally. Take a look in the back of one of those pickup trucks  and you’ll see that, indeed they have two bench seats in the back, one against each side of the truck.

The most useful baht bus route for the visitor to Pattaya is the circular route that starts From Pattaya North Road and heads south on Beach Road all the way down to the entrance of Walking Street; turns left onto South Pattaya Road and continues east, one block to Pattaya 2 Road where it turns left again and heads back north all the way back to Pattaya North Road.

So, you can catch a south bound baht bus anywhere on Beach Road or a northbound baht bus anywhere on Pattaya 2 Road. The songthaew travel this circular route 24 hours a day.

To get on a baht bus you just have to hail it much like you would hail a taxi in any western country. Just waive your hand, palm down, at the truck as it approaches. Now, it’s important that you only hail the moving baht buses. Those are the ones that are on the regular route that will only charge you 10 baht.

If you try to get on a baht bus that is parked, then the driver is going to start negotiating a price with you which will be much higher than the normal fair. There are plenty of baht buses on the regular route that are moving, so there is no need to pay more than the 10 baht fare.

When the baht bus stops for you, just hop on in the back. There is no need to talk to the driver. In fact, it’s probably a good idea not to talk to the driver. He will only see that as an opportunity to negotiate a higher price for you. Just hop on the back and sit down.

Once you’re seated on the baht bus, look around the interior for a small button that looks much like a doorbell button. There will be several such buttons placed throughout the interior. They are usually located on the ceiling of the cab. Sometimes they are also located above the windows.

When you want to get off, just press the button. You should hear a bell ring or a buzzer sound when you press this button. This is the signal for the driver to stop.

Now let’s talk about the songthaew that are parked. Baht buses can also be chartered just like a taxi. They will take you to any destination within Pattaya on a “private” charter. The fare for a private charter is completely negotiable. Most drivers will start at 100 baht for just about anywhere within Pattaya. With a little bargaining you may be able to get them down to 50 or 60 baht.

If you’ve negotiated a private charter then the driver will take you directly to your destination without stopping to pick up other passengers. At least that’s what they’re supposed to do. Some unscrupulous drivers will stop for other passengers regardless.

You’ll notice a bunch of parked baht busses right at the entrance to Walking Street every night. As you leave the Walking Street area they’ll be shouting at you, “Taxi, taxi”. Some of the more aggressive baht bus drivers will get right up in your face and try to direct you to their awaiting cabs.

These sharks are there to take advantage of the horny punters who want to speed right back to their hotel rooms with there new-found Pattaya girlfriends. I have heard fares quoted as high as 300 baht for a ride no further north than Central Pattaya Road. I’ve also seen idiots who have accepted this price.

All you have to do to get a baht bus north from Walking Street is walk another 100 feet down the street to Pattaya 2 and there are plenty of moving baht buses passing by at the 10 baht rate. They’re just as fast.

Now, one thing about the corner of Pattaya 2 and South Pattaya Road is that there are baht buses that also queue up there that only charge the 10 baht fare. They will wait until they have a full load before they take off. You can still ride for 10 baht but you’ll have to wait until all seats are full. You’ll see other passengers patiently sitting in the back of these songthaew. They will be mostly foreigners.

If you don’t want to wait for the next baht bus to fill, just ignore the queue and catch one of the moving baht busses that are passing right by on the outside of the queue. That’s what the Thai people do.

There are other routes besides the popular north/south route. There are baht buses that travel up and down South Pattaya Road, Central Pattaya Road, North Pattaya Road as well as Soi Buakaow. They all charge the 10 baht fare. You can switch baht buses at all major intersections if you have to go a different direction. Of course, you have to pay the 10 baht fare every time you change songthaew.

If you want some cheap Pattaya sightseeing just hop on any baht bus and see where it takes you. You can always catch one back to where you started.

This is the Bell Travel sign to look for on Level 1 in between Door 7 and 8

All of the international flights arrive at the main airport which [...]]]> I’d like to tell you about the easiest and cheapest way to get from Bangkok to Pattaya if you’re flying into Thailand from overseas.

This is the Bell Travel sign to look for on Level 1 in between Door 7 and 8

All of the international flights arrive at the main airport which is named Suvarnabhumi Airport. Once you clear customs you’ll be stepping out into what can best be described as chaos. You’ll be overwhelmed with “helpful” hucksters trying to hustle you on to your next destination. You’ll be like red meat to a hungry lion.

Most of these “friendly” tour guides will try to steer you to an awaiting taxi that will be happy to take you the 90 minute trip down to Pattaya for around 1,500 baht.

The service I’m about to tell you about will take the same amount of time, is just as comfortable, and will only cost you 200 baht. Save the extra 1,300 baht for your Pattaya girl, she’ll appreciate it a lot more than a taxi driver, and will show you a lot more love.

The best way to get down to Pattaya is to use Bell Travel Service. They run large air conditioned buses right out of the airport down to Pattaya and they will drop you off right at your hotel doorstep.

To find Bell Travel just take any escalator down to Level 1 and make your way to the end of the concourse to Door 8. If you’re standing inside the airport looking toward the outside, then you need to go left to get to Door 8.

Look for the Bell Travel rep in the pink shirt with the clipboard

Bell Travel is located at the kiosk that is just to the right of Door 8. It’s a ticket counter. They share this counter with the public buses that also go to Pattaya.

The public bus only costs 125 baht, but the problem with the public bus is that they drop you off in Pattaya in the middle of the street on Sukhumvic Road. Then you’re stuck there with your luggage sitting by the side of the road.

The nice thing about the Bell Bus is that they take you right to the front door of your hotel, so I think its worth the extra 75 baht. Make sure that when you go to the ticket counter, you get a Bell ticket.

Busses leave every two hours direct to Pattaya. They run at 08.00 – 10.00 – 12.00 – 14.00 – 16.00 – 18.00.

You can book a reservation in advance on Bell’s website. That’s probably the best idea, since sometimes the bus fills up. Nevertheless, even if you don’t have a reservation you can still get on the bus if there’s room. The last time I came in from Suvarnabhumi, I didn’t have any problem getting on with no reservation.

The Bell Travel rep will ask you for your name and will also ask the name of your hotel. On the way down to Pattaya you don’t pay until you get off of the bus. It costs 200 baht, that’s it.

When the bus arrives in Pattaya, they will stop at the main bus terminal where they transfer you into minivans for the final trip to the door of your hotel. They’ll be using several minivans to make the trips to the various parts of town quicker. You will pay the 200 baht when you get off of the big bus.There is no additional charge for the minivan and nobody even tips.

What could be easier than that?

The last time I road down with Bell, I got an added bonus. I sat next to a Pattaya girl on her way home. We had a great conversation and I wound up seeing her later in the week. Granted, that doesn’t happen every trip, but it’s a possibility.

Bell Travel also offers return service from Pattaya to Suvarnabhumi. Just go on the internet or have your hotel call them in advance. They pick you up right in front of your hotel and then it’s just the same trip in reverse. The only difference is that on the return trip to the airport they charge you in advance of boarding the bus and they actually issue you a ticket.

The buses back up to the airport run at: 06.00 – 09.00 – 11.00 – 13.00 – 15.00 – 17.00 – 19.00

They drop you off right at the departure gates. For 200 baht you can’t beat it. Ok, let’s see. You save a total of 2,600 baht. What can you and your Pattaya girl do with that? Enjoy your trip!