BKK first night

[vinapu]

2 hours ago, macaroni21 said:

..... place that once gave me about 300 baht change from a 500-baht bill (drinks were cheaper then) all in 10-baht coins. The hope was that I'd leave most of the coins in the bill folder as tip. However, especially as they went over the top with the coins, I deliberately took my time picking each and every one up, inspected them for genuineness and with great ceremony put them in my coin purse

 

one more point to head to the bars with lots of change.

in case like yours I'd give them benefit of doubt ( small chance they really did not have a change although even I don't believe in what I'm saying ), tip them my regular drink tip of 20 baht  with note IO always have handy and like you , pocket all  change counting it carefully. 

[Patanawet]

1 hour ago, vinapu said:

that's rude, I'm not saying undeserved but still rude.

 

Indeed it is rude but no more rude than the driver taking me for a mug.

Actually having said that,  I have rarely had drivers take me for a ride (no pun). Maybe  I just live somewhere convenient for them to get a further fare OR maybe the nice smile I give them at first (really).

[reader]

11 hours ago, t0oL1 said:

Tried to give tout 100 bt to get rid of him after 2 bars he said give me 100 more. As my hand emerged from my pocket with 300. bt folded over he grabbed it all and took it. Plus he was getting my change from each of :2 bars skinning it for 50 bt. Then he kept asking for “drnnk for me?”     “NO cannot”

It's one thing to be engaged by a tout outside the venue he represents. Some are informative, entertaining and they'll never forget your face. But letting a tout take you off the soi is not a journey that will end well. Count yourself lucky that you lost no more than you did.

But it's a lesson that will serve you well in the future.

 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Patanawet said:

Indeed it is rude but no more rude than the driver taking me for a mug.

I have some sympathy with your approach, since if the taxi has "TAXI METER" displayed on the top of the taxi and he refuses to use the meter, then he is also being rude by refusing to honour the advertising on his vehicle & is therefore & wasting your time.  However, something like "NO" would be better than "Fuck Off". 

Since the introduction of the BKK airport rail link several years ago, I think I have been a metered Bangkok taxi just the once.   That was mainly due influence of the high spending company I was with (Christian & Vinapu).  

[t0oL1]

Back to Super A last night . Stunner boy not there-10 other boys mostly thinks.

. On to Pattaya via taxi tomorrow.

Been such a long time since my last vacation- 7 years.

[vinapu]

3 hours ago, t0oL1 said:

 

. On to Pattaya via taxi tomorrow.

 

make sure you don't pay more than 1200 for the privilege although I have no personal experience with taxi to Pattaya, I prefer bus from Ekkamai or Swampy. I rather spend money on boys than taxis as stated before

[Boy69]

Taxi in BKK is still very cheap in comparison to the west, never take taxi drivers whom waiting near the bars they will rip you off better to stop one at the road .

[Londoner]

And avoid those parked outside hotels and tourist spots. I remember being told that Tarntawan to Babylon was 200 bht. The metred cost is about 70 bht And when there's a row of them, prepare for a cartel.  

[ggobkk]

Agreeing, as I usually do with Vinapu, 1200 for a Bangkok to Pattaya taxi is what I paid in May.  

[anddy]

On 7/29/2019 at 4:47 PM, spoon said:

I had that done to me, change with lots of coins, in old freshboys. Being an avid user of bts, i need those changes in coins lol

If you were a TRULY avid user of the BTS, you wouldn't need those coins because you'd have a rabbit card  

[Guest]

18 hours ago, vinapu said:

make sure you don't pay more than 1200 for the privilege

If consistent with previous episodes of this yarn,  we're probably going to hear about a 3000 fare......

 

1 hour ago, anddy said:

If you were a TRULY avid user of the BTS, you wouldn't need those coins because you'd have a rabbit card  

Is it really worth getting a Rabbit card for someone who is an AVID user of the BTS when in Bangkok for just a handful of days per year ?      Also, as far as I can tell, they botched the card, so it works on the BTS, but not the airport rail link or the MRT.   If they fixed this issue, it's certainly not clear on the Rabbit website.  

 I don'thave a Rabbit card either, but I do have a London Oyster card & a Tokyo Pasmo card.     The Pasmo is particularly impressive for working on everything in the greater Tokyo region.   The London Oyster card is somewhat redundant with contactless bank card payment, but way ahead of the Rabbit.

[spoon]

3 hours ago, anddy said:

If you were a TRULY avid user of the BTS, you wouldn't need those coins because you'd have a rabbit card  

Yup. As z909 pointed out, we arent staying in bangkok, but having experience super long queue at certain stations to buy tickets, i can certainly see the appeal of not having to queue. However, if ill be using more than 4 times (average of 40baht per ride) id be buying the unlimited daily card instead for 140, while rabbit card provided no discount afaik.

[anddy]

Yes of course the BKK system (or lack of it lol) is WAAAYYYY behind other major cities for not having a single card for all public transport options. As @z909 points out, in some places even these single cards are now redundant through contactless bank card payment, e.g. in Singapore (if you have a local bank account, not sure it works with foreign cards). The indeed impressive PASMO card in Japan actually doesn't only work for the greater Tokyo area but even in Osaka and Kyoto and Odawara/Hakone, so I am guessing maybe even nationwide. I've used it in those places so can tell for sure only for those.

 

Anyway, back to BKK: I would totally get a Rabbit card to avoid the sometimes horrendous queueing at the BTS station, often TWICE for change AND then the machines (which is in itself an absurd system). What's to lose? The fee for the card itself is negligible and WELL worth given the avoided queueing hassles. Discounted daily cards may be nice, but require advance knowledge of your travel plans to know if it's worth or not AND need to be purchased every day anew (I believe?). With the Rabbit you're good to go at all times and can reload the card with an appropriate credit whenever there are no queues. No discount on rides, but MAJOR discount on hassle!

[joshhb]

Don't forget to bring your passport when you first buy a Rabbit card. Its something to do with money laundering prevention, apparently.

[reader]

If you're paying with baht on the BTS or MRT, and will be returning from the same station as your destination, purchase your return tickets before you leave your destination station.

Queues at the ticket machines tend to clog up at rush hour and on weekend afternoons.