Guest Posted July 20, 2001 Report Share Posted July 20, 2001 People in Chiangmai know that when you stop a songtaew (red bus communal taxi), you tell the driver where you want to go, and if he nods, you get in and pay 10 baht at your destination. Sometimes the driver will ask for 20, 30, or more baht when you tell him your destination, and you have the option of saying no and waiting for another songtaew. Several times I have had a driver nod yes when I told him my destination, and then, at the destination, suddenly demand 20 or 30 instead of 10 baht. This is breaking the rules and undoubtedly it's something they only do to falangs. My question is, what do you do when this happens? Last time it happened I just handed him 10 baht and walked away, but I've heard Thais can get very violent over petty money things and wonder if they might pull out a gun. Any opinions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhordPhan Posted July 20, 2001 Report Share Posted July 20, 2001 In Pattaya I had a similar problem, on occasion. They would pick up my wife and me near our hotel in N. Pattaya and drop us somewhere on Beach Rd. Ususlly had no problem with 10b per person. Sometimes they would say 40b. I would say no, 20b, 10b per person. They would say no, 20b per person, 40b. I would make a big deal of reaching into my pocket and extracting another 10b. (I, too, had hear stories of the pissed-off Thais). I would hand it to the money-collector, say 30b, no more! and walk off. Never had a problem... PhordPhan Cheap barsted P.S. I couldn't help it, but I would always cringe inside with the thought of dickering over US 25 cents. But it was a matter of principle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soongmak Posted July 20, 2001 Report Share Posted July 20, 2001 Bungy, If there's no doubt about the deal you've made, I would just pay the agreed price and ignore the man and walk away. The guy is just trying to scam you out a couple of baht and hopes that you just pay him of instead of kicking up a fuss. i just refuse to do that. It could be that I will end up getting smacked in the face, but I am willing to take that (IMHO very small) chance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chanchao Posted July 20, 2001 Report Share Posted July 20, 2001 >Several times I have had a driver nod yes >when I told him my destination, and then, >at the destination, suddenly demand 20 or >30 instead of 10 baht. This was for normal in town distances during the day? I find that later at night the remaining Songthaew drivers turn into Tuk Tuk drivers. :-) Nobody's going to pull a gun on you (or even leave his vehicle), trust me. You're right in that a nod at your destination implies the regular price. One thing you could do to make sure is to raise your index finger, gesturing '1' (=10). Similar to when taxi drivers make the V sign if they want twenty, or three fingers for 30. Don't actually wait for an answer to the '1' gesture-question, just make the gesture, raise your left eyebrow slightly in a pseudo-question, smile at the assumed affirmative answer and get in. Perhaps also you wait too long when giving the money. Do as the Thais do: Give the money, nod and say 'khob khun khrap' while walking away. Note that NO destination in town during the day can be 30. Any distance can be cut up in to two 10 baht trips if you have to. Cheers, Chanchao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whosyourdaddy Posted July 21, 2001 Report Share Posted July 21, 2001 [a few years ago stickman and I were on holidays in central thailand and we had a similar problem where the guy wanted more than the barganed rate and would not leave us alone. He got quiet upset and I nearly took off his head. But a quick call to the police straighted him out when we explained to the man in brown the situation. farang 1 thai 0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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