MarttaTravelWorldPassport

've been in Bangkok twice. After my first visit I said I would never go back there again. Ever. I hated Bangkok from the bottom of my heart. Until last year... when I discovered sightseeing from a public transport. Taking a bus (a public bus) in Bangkok is an adventure itself. But for sure it's something I can recommend you highly. You get a chance to see places you wouldn't normally see.
I understand people who hate Bangkok, but I also know that if you take a step back, take a deep breath and give it another chance you may actually fall in love with that crazy city just as I did.

dsquared37

An excellent first post.

Welcome to FT.

forumpersona999

Yep it is that bad. GPS that a taxi driver can afford (the Garmin/TomTom "stick-me-on the dash with a suction cup") kind of units are completely useless downtown. Only the embedeed systems that you find factory-installed have a fighting chance because they have proper antenna and a gyroscope and link to the car's speedometer to fill in the blanks when GPS signal is degraded. I have tested a few Garmin units (the 200 dollar suction cup quick install type) and sometimes I can drive all the way from Asoke to Lat Phrao and I may only just start to get a satellite fix when I am just about to arrive. Drove a Benz with an integrated system and it performed a bit better but you know the taxi operator won't wanna pay anything for GPS and the driver won't have the means to buy his own unit, at least not one that will handle the conditions in downtown BKK.

Another thing that will make traffic worse is that the government had lots of strange policies to buy votes. One was a huge tax credit for individuals who buy their first car. Now they have received about 1.2M applications (nationwide). So... yay! A few hundred thousand more cars will be on BKK roads this year.

The "not using the meter" crap around tourist hot spots, especially involving night life even effect Thai people. The really bad apples don't discriminate.

yosithezet

I have this impression because everyone I know that is an infrequent visitor to Bangkok and stays at the ROS complains that it is hard to get around BKK. The shuttle isn't exactly and on-demand mode of transportation. I agree that Saphan Taksin is very convenient for getting to the Grand Palance and whatnot and it is quite easy to get to Saphan Taksin by BTS.

Why rely on taxis? I never rely on taxis since I started staying along the BTS route. I can use the BTS/MRT to get close to my destination and then use a taxi for short extensions if needed. The jams on Suhkumvit aren't really round-the-clock, but are frequent. Regardless, there is little reason to get a taxi on Sukhumvit most of the time since you can hop on the MRT/BTS to get closer to your destination.

I agree that it is easier to tell the driver to go to Robinson's Asoke or Soi 19 than to ask them to go to the Westin. But even so, pronouncing Westin as "Weh-tin" often gets a better result than Westin. But to say that locals don't go there? I guess all those people attending the weddings of the people with quite long multi-syllable names are Europeans?

I do realize that my experience is quite limited, but I would posit that Healthland, Lavana, King & I, and Baan Dalah MindBody Spa are not very sketchy at all.

This policy seems less about buying votes and more about finding a way to keep the car manufacturers from fleeing Thailand after the floods

dsquared37

It's about both and also about creating problems, ridiculous traffic, that they can subsequently come back and attempt to solve while involving themselves in unbelievable graft.

soarer

I almost always take the bus , its ends up in the same traffic jam as a taxi anyway but its cheap 8 baht - 15 baht and its sits higher so you get a better view

From Sukhumvit the 40 or 48 bus will take you to Chinatown after first going past MBK and the other shopping centers

the #2 bus will take you to Central world , Pantip and continue to the backpacker area ( forget the name ! )

Maybe we need a bus rider thread ......

forumpersona999

Fine, we buy the votes by doubling the minimum wage for the factory workers then keep these factory owners around by polluting the city more with tax inventives for cars.

To me, what I enjoy in Bangkok is...

The excitement of being in a developing country where there are still business opportunities that are not to be found in developed markets..

The food, not just Thai food. All the food we have here. Bangkok is a food hub because there is so much tourism from all around and because Thais themselves are crazy about food. Not just their own cuisine. We really have "everything" here and at OK prices.

The location is also cooodnvenient. Two major financial centers are less than 3 hours flight away. In a nutshell:

1) I will go with the cliche F&B thing/cost of living
2) biz opps you get in developing economies
3) favorable location (Singapore/HongKong/Myanmar/ASEAN). It is all happening here. ^

But yeah, there's burnout. I could fill 20 pages complaining about various issues that are totally BKK.

soarer

a GPS no name model with Thai maps is less than 3000 baht now , but that is still a lot of money for most taxi drivers ,

We have gotten the iPhone map out to show a taxi driver where to turn when we went to an out of the way place ,

But its best if you are going a long distance to have your hotel write simple directions to show the taxi driver , many will not want to go very far as they make more money with short 35 baht fares ,

Once you are close a smart taxi driver just pulls over and asks the local taxi guys for the last few KM directions,

I must say if BKK did NOT have all these taxis at the low prices it would not be as much fun to go see interesting places on the outskirts of the city....

mario33

Those people you spoke to probably didn't bother to explore the options available.

Leaving the hotel ROS to BTS Saphan Thaksin station, I find the shuttle very convenient I just leave my room 5-10 minutes before the scheduled departure. Coming back is a bit more tricky since you have no control of the train schedule, but the River City next door also run their own shuttle and there is also the ferry service.

And for those staying at the ROS, you don't need to go to Saphan Thaksin to board the ferry to Grand Palace. The jetty is located between the hotel main building and the garden pool. Just take the lane to the right of the hotel as you exit, its a mere 2 minute walk.

privacylawyer

'nuff said.
what I didn't like was buying liquid bathgels in Bangkok and then connecting through Narita and losing them at Narita security. (you have to go through security again when arriving!)

mario33

Not to say no local go to the Westin at all, but I believe there are/were many going to the Robinson (or used to before the larger malls were built). And since most taxi passengers are actually locals (which is my point here), the drivers would be more familiar with Robinsons rather than 'weh-tin'

As for those people with multi-syllable names attending weddings at the Westin, majority would be driving or chauffeured there & many in 'European' cars.

rathin100

My GPS works fine. It's attached to the Bangkok traffic control system in some way.

AlwaysFlyStar

and Saigon and Hanoi and NanNing. I hate those d@mn bikes everybody has! But still, the nitty gritty is one of the endearing things about Bangkok, because once you see the buildings, you notice that it is really so clean compared to SEA.

dssxxxx

Patpong I & II

MAN Flyer

Wow, been "everywhere" in the world including many, many Asian cities...but not Bangkok. A rare breed indeed.

Nice to see a discussion about Bangkok away from the Starwood board still manages to have it's own discussion on their properties in the city, like there's not enough on that board already.

It's the free booze at the Starwood properties that keep me wanting to go back.