Bangkok (Lonely Planet) - Andrew Burke [220]
Internet Phone & Phonecards
The cheapest way to call internationally is via the internet, and many internet cafes in Bangkok are set up for phone calls. Some have Skype loaded and (assuming there’s a working headset) you can use that for just the regular per-hour internet fee. Others might have their own VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service at cheap international rates.
CAT offers the PhoneNet card, which comes in denominations of 200B, 300B, 500B and 1000B and allows you to call overseas via VoIP for less than regular rates. You can call from any phone (landline, your mobile etc). Quality is good and rates represent excellent value; refills are available. Cards are available from any CAT office or online at www.thaitelephone.com, from which you get the necessary codes and numbers immediately. See www.thaitelephone.com/EN/RateTable for rates.
That table also displays rates for CAT’s standard ThaiCard, a prepaid international calling card selling for 300B and 500B. You can use the ThaiCard codes from either end, eg calling the UK from Thailand or calling Thailand from the UK. These are better value than Lenso cards, which are used from payphones.
Skype aside, these options are all more expensive than the right prepaid SIM card…
Mobile Phones
If you have a GSM phone you will probably be able to use it on roaming in Thailand. If you have endless cash, or you only want to send text messages, you might be happy to do that. Otherwise, think about buying a local SIM card.
Buying a prepaid SIM is as difficult as finding a 7-Eleven. The market is super-competitive and deals vary so check websites first, but expect to get a SIM for as little as 49B. More expensive SIMs might come with pre-loaded talk time; if not then recharge cards are sold at the same stores and range from 100B to 500B. Per-minute rates start at less than 50 satang. Calling internationally the network will have a promotional code (eg 006 instead of 001) that affords big discounts on the standard international rates. If you’re using an iPhone then the number of open wi-fi connections in Bangkok should keep the costs down. The main networks:
AIS (www.12call.ais.co.th) AIS offers wide coverage across Thailand; One-2-Call is the prepaid option.
DTAC (www.dtac.co.th) Lots of options, including Happy (www.happy.co.th) for prepaid SIM.
True Move (www.truemove.com) Probably the cheapest of the lot, with the Inter SIM offering international calls to many countries for 1B a minute, and cheap local calls too. The network is not as good outside Bangkok.
If your phone is locked, head down to Mahboonkrong (MBK) shopping centre Click here to get it unlocked, or to shop for a new or cheap used phone (they start at less than 2000B).
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TIME
Thailand is seven hours ahead of GMT/UTC. Thus, noon in Bangkok is 9pm the previous day in Los Angeles, midnight the same day in New York, 5am in London, 6am in Paris, 1pm in Perth, and 3pm in Sydney. Times are an hour later in countries or regions that are on Daylight Saving Time (DST). Thailand does not use daylight saving.
The official year in Thailand is reckoned from the Western calendar year 543 BC, the beginning of the Buddhist Era (BE), so that AD 2011 is 2554 BE, AD 2012 is 2555 BE etc. All dates in this book refer to the Western calendar.
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TOILETS
If you don’t want to pee against a tree like the túk-túk drivers, you can stop in at any shopping centre, hotel or fast-food restaurant for facilities. Shopping centres typically charge 1B to 2B for a visit, and some of the larger shopping centres on Th Silom and Th Ploenchit have toilets for the disabled. Toilet paper is rarely provided, so carry an emergency stash or do as the locals do and use the hose (an acquired skill). In older buildings and wát you’ll still find squat toilets, but in modern Bangkok expect to be greeted by a throne.
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TOURIST INFORMATION
Bangkok has two organisations that handle tourism