Beware of scams....

While we may be in a pleasant and welcoming country, there are a number of warnings that I would like to point out here that will prevent you from being ripped off or embarrassed.

For the one who arrives in Thailand for the first time, it is certain that some things can surprise, and I agree that it is not always easy to detect.

• Some examples:

Keep in mind that you should always ask for the price of any service before accepting anything. Agree on the price before! Then, once the price is set, no one goes back, what is said is said. This is valid for all kinds of services: tuk-tuk, taxis, various excursions, massage parlours, even a girl met in a bar etc...

It is absolutely necessary to define the price before any act, it is very important.

Jet Ski: This scam, well known by regular tourists in Phuket, consists in claiming a large sum of money from you by the strong and dissuasive way for imaginary damage you would have done to the rental jet ski. The cost of repairing your freedom and not getting beaten up by 15 Thai mafia is to pay a sum of 10,000 to 50,000 THB.

Do not seek help from the corrupt police who are usually in cahoots with unscrupulous landlords. A good advice: avoid renting a jet ski in Phuket, avoid renting a moped from small independents but rather (and always) from large structures (renowned hotels, major specialized service providers, etc....). A common scam in Thailand is to ask you the name of your hotel and then go there to pick up the moped. Then you are accused of losing it and asked to pay 50,000 THB.

Always keep your passport in a safe place. A passport can be worth up to 100,000 THB on the black market.

Never leave your passport with a moped rental company or other. If there is no other solution, go to another rental company, but as mentioned in the previous point, go to a larger structure instead, if you want to buy something outside the department stores, always negotiate lower prices (and not just a little). The best way is to let a Thai friend do it for you and stay away while the trading is going on, and in busy places, always keep an eye on your portfolio. This is especially true when children are playing around you because some of them have become very good pickpockets, so don't buy gems in Thailand, especially if the deal seems incredible to you. Taxi drivers have agreements with shops, gogo bars and restaurants of all kinds. They receive a commission if they take you there (and of course these establishments are most often expensive). Conclusion: never listen to a taxi driver; he is there to drive you wherever you want, not to talk and play guide to place his friends.

Do not buy Viagra or similar products on the street because they are fake drugs that can cause you serious health problems. Even in pharmacies, I advise you to avoid anything out of the ordinary as a simple preventive measure.

Avoid ATMs (DAB) that are not at the level of a brand known as a bank, a 7/11 or a Big C.

When driving, if you take gas, make sure that the pump counter is set to zero. It is one of the greatest classics in Thailand: often small gas station attendants have just served for 200 bahts the previous motorcycle. If you are not careful, you will miss this amount in your tank (i.e. about 6 to 7 litres) but it will be beautiful and well in the pocket of the unscrupulous pump attendant.

Do not participate in any street surveys. In tourist areas, it is 9 times out of 10 a scam which consists in actually selling you time-share accommodation services. In Thailand, timeshare sellers have no qualms about scamming tourists. They work for a travel sales company that offers dream holidays at discounted prices.