Thailand has world-class accommodation which is probably unsurpassed in terms of attentiveness, courteous service and affordability.

Major tourism destinations such as Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai and Phuket and thriving commercial centres such as Hat Yai, Khon Kaen, Lampang and Nakhon Ratchasima offer modern first-class hotels with every conceivable convenience and internationalstandard convention facilitics for groups numbering from 200 to 2,000 and upwards.

Family-style hotels, bungalow complexes, guest houses, houseboats, hostels, motels, spartan but clean Chinese-style inns and hotels, and beachside huts complete a range of accommodation costing anywhere from a few dollars daily to hundreds of dollar a night.

Current listings of accommodation and rat are available from Tourism Authority of Thailand's local offices in Bangkok.

Some 50 airlines maintain offices in Bangkok. A complete listing may be found in the English edition of the Bangkok Telephone Directory's Yellow Pages.

Tourist information is available at the Tourism Authority of Thailand head office in Bangkok, local offices in 22 major cities (listed in the back cover) and the TAT information counter in Bangkok Airport and at every airport where there is a TAT local office. They provide maps, brochures and useful information on tours, shopping, dining and accommodation. All TAT information offices are open seven days a week from 8.30 AM. to 4.30 PM.

Rail

Train tickets of all classes may be purchased 90 days in advance at principal stations and at the Advance Booking Office (in Bangkok Bailway Station) during 08.30 AM. - 06.00 PM. on weekdays and 08.30 AM. - 12.00 AM. on Saturdays, Sundays and official holidays. Some major travel agents in Bangkok also provide train reservation services. To obtain further information, please contact the Bangkok Advance Booking Office Tel. 2233762, 2247788, Telex: 72242 SRT BKK TH.

Air

Plane tickets can be reserved through any Thai Airways International Ltd. office in some 40 cities around the world, or through any authorized THAI travel agents.

Most commercial concerns in Bangkok operate on a five-day week basis. Government offices are generally open between 8.30 AM and 4.30 PM with a noon to 1.00 PM lunchbreak, Monday through Friday, except on public holidays. Private businesses maintain much the same hours - - perhaps 8.00 AM to 5.00 PM, with certain exceptions. Many stores open 12 hours a day, seven days a week.

Business Centres

Certain major hotels provide fully equipped business centres for visiting executives. Services customarily include secretarial work, typing, photocopying and fax facilities, conference rooms and reference libraries.

Those possessing valid International Driving Licenses may prefer to hire automobiles. English-language road signs and maps are commonplace. The Bangkok Yellow Pages list local and international automobile rental companies. Visitors are advised to shop around since most companies offer different conditions. Selfdrive and chauffeur-driven automobiles are widely available.

international car hire companies such as Avis and Hertz also operate in Pattaya, Hat Yai, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Samui Island.

Christian churches are found in Bangkok and most provincial capitals. Services are mostly in Thai, with certain services in English, French and German. Local English-language newspapers provide comprehensive listings of services in Bangkok.

Light, loose cotton clothing is best. Nylon should be avoided. Sweaters are needed during Cool Season evenings or if visiting mountainous areas and remote national parks. Jackets and ties are required in certain restaurants and nightclubs.

The electric current is 220 Volt AC (50 cycles) throughout the country. There are many plugs and sockets in use. Travellers with shavers, tape recorders and other appliances
should carry a plug-adapter kit. The better hotels will make available 110 Volt transformers.

Major international film manufacturers maintain excellent photofinishing laboratories.

Instant developing can be done within one hour. Popular films are available countrywide at reasonable prices.

Still photagraphers are free to shoot almost everything. Movie cameras are not allowed without permission in Bangkok's Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha Chapel complex. Photography is also prohibited in certain branches of the National Museum.

Thailand's English-language newspapers, the Nation, the Bangkok Post and Thailand Times keep readers abreast of local and international events. Major English language magazines and newspapers such as International Herald Tribune, Wallstreet Journal, Newsweek, Time and Asiaweek are readily available at hotel newsagents, supermarkets, department stores and leading bookstores.

Some 50 countries maintain embassies, consulates or legations in Bangkok. Most are concentrated around the Sulkhumvit, Phloen Chit, Witthayu and Sathon Road areas. A complete list of such missions is featured in the Yellow Pages of the English edition of the Bangkok Telephone Directory.

Polite behaviour is welcomed everywhere, and what is considered polite in other countries is probably considered polite in Thailand, too.

However, there and a few cultural pitfalls, mainly social and religious taboos, the breaking of which can cause offence:

- For example, Thais revere their royal family. Even social malcontents who ignore legal and community standards refuse to tolerate a faintly implied slight on the Thai monarchy.

- Outward expressions of anger are regarded as crude and boorish. The visitor who remains calm and smiles appreciatively will find all sorts of doors open to him.

-Visitors should dress neatly in all religious shrines. They should never go shirtless, or in shorts, hot pants or other unsuitable attire.

- Shoes should be removed when entering private Thai homes; chapels where Buddhist images are kept; and any of the Islamic community's mosques.

- Each Buddha image, large or small, ruined or not, is regarded as being a sacred object. Never climb onto one to take a photograph or do anything that might show lack of respect.

- Public displays of affection between men and women are frowned upon. Westernised Thai couples may hold hands but that's as far as it goes in polite society.

- It is considered rude to point your foot a person or object.

-Thais regard the head as the highest part of the body, both literally and figuratively. Therefore, they do not appreciate anyone patting them there, even as a friendly gesture.

In 1982, the Tourist Police was set up to coordinate with the Tourism Authority of Thailand in providing safety for tourists. Its responsibilities are receiving and acknowledging claims and complaints-, to conduct investigations and acting as co-ordinator of tourist security protection. At present, some 500 tourist policemen are stationed in major tourist areas such as the Grand Palace, Pat Pong and Lumphini Park.

Bi-lingual Tourist Police are attached to Tourism Authority of Thailand offices in Bangkok, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Pattaya, Kanchanaburi, Nakhon Batchasima, Udon Thani, Khon Kaen, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Son, Phitsanulok, Nakhon Sawan, Surat Thani, Phuket and Songkhla to provide speedy assistance to visitors.

In case of emergency, contact the Tourist Police Centre, Unicohouse Building, Soi Lang Suan, Phloen Chit Bd., Bangkok Tel: 6521721-6

All tourism destinations and provincial capitals have hospitals and clinics staffed by well-trained doctors and nurses. In case of emergencies, ambulances can be summoned from any private hospital.

Welcome to Thailand. Every year, more than 8 million tourists visit this country as one of their travel destinations. Many arrive with insufficient health advice which often results in bounts of illnesses that spoil a good part of their journey. The information provided in this page will help you come up with appropriate protection against some common illnesses and promote enjoyment of your happy stay in Thailand.

Malaria
Bangkok and most provinces in the central region as well as major tourist resorts such as Chiangmai, Phuket, Hua-Hin and Koh Samui have been free from malaria for decades. Now all cities in Thailand are malaria free. However, tourist destinations in rural neighbourhoods, especially those in the mountainous and border areas are still at certain risks.

Chloroquine and most other chemoprophylactic drugs have proved to be ineffective against falciparum malaria in Thailand. Tourists visiting these endemic areas are rather recommended to take general precautions against mosquito bite. After sunset, they should stay in screened quarters or mosquito nets, wear longsleeve shirts and pants, and may apply mosquito repellents. Those who develop fever within two weeks of entry to risk areas should seek prompt medical examination and treatment.

Japanese encephalitis
This viral infection of the brain, is contracted through the bite of mosquitoes that prevail in rural agricultural areas. It is found in many Eastern and Southeastern Asian countries, primarily in the rural and suburban areas. Similar to malaria, the disease can be prevented by avoiding mosquito bite during the night time. Travellers who plan to spend their time exposing to rural environment in these regions for over several months are recommended to take Japanese encephalitis vaccination before entry.

Dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever
These diseases are endemic in Southeast Asia. They are caused by dengue virus from the bite of aedes mosquito that lives in the houses and their neighbourbood. This mosquito bites during the day time. Dengue infection in local people, mostly children, often results in fever with bleeding in the skin and other organs (dengue hemorrhagic fever) which is sometime fatal; but for travellers from non-endemic areas, the infection usually minifests as fever with rash in the skin, severe headache and muscle and pains (dengue fever), which is usually non-fatal.

Dengue infection is common in the rainy season (approximately May to September in Thailand) when aedes mosquito is abundant. Travellers visiting local households or their vicinity, especially in the rainy season, should be using mosquito repellent even in the day time. Ones who are ill with symptoms suspected of dengue infection should seek medical consultation to establish the cause of the illness.

Rabies
Rabies can be found in many animals especially dogs and cats. Although Thailand has been working toward elimination of the disease and the situation has been much improved, travellers are recommended to take prevention if their travel itineraries allow possible exposure to animal bites. Those who plan walking sight-seeing in local communities should consider having pre-exposure rabies vaccination before starting off. Three intramuscular injections of cell-culture rabies vaccine are required. In case of exposure to animals without prior vaccination, the pose-exposure vaccination is usually effective if it is initiated without delay. However, for those who have had pre-exposure vaccination, if they are bitten, they should also seek prompt consultation with the physician for evaluation and consideration for booster vaccination.

Diarrhea
Diarrhea is mostly caused by ingestion of food and drinks contaminated with bacteria or viruses. To prevent diarrhea, avoid uncooked food and drink only boiled of bottled or carbonated water. Food served at street vendors should be considered at risk. Fresh vegetables and fruits should be adequately washed with clean water. Fresh salad should be taken only from a salad bar or a restaurant of hygienic standard. Tap water in many Southeast Asian cities is claimed to be safe for drinking, but it is still advisable to stick to safety precautions.

Danger from diarrhea primarily is the result of the loss of water and electrolytes from the body. If you happen to have diarrhea during your travel, the most helpful remedy is drinking electrolyte solution to replace the loss. Therefore, it is always useful to keep some electrolyte solution packets in your first-aid kit. If your diarrhea gets worse or does not improve within 12-24 hours, consult the physicians for proper investigation and treatment.

Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever has become uncommon among Thai people. However, travellers should not neglect taking prevention against this food and water borne disease. Precaution measures for diarrhea, as mentioned above, are effective for typhoid as well. It is also recommended that the travellers receive typhoid vaccination, in injectable or oral form, before start of the journey. However, those who need initiation or booster vaccination can find the service at most hospitals and clinics in Thailand.

Sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS
Urethritis remains the most common treatable sexually transmitted disease (STD) among tourists to Asia. Gonorrhea from Southeast Asia is frequently multidrug resistant. While syphilis become less common, HIV/AIDS is spreading at worrisome speeds in most Asian countries, resulting mostly from unprotected sexual contacts.

Promiscuous sex anywhere can be dangerous. For travellers, local sex workers, either of explicite or concealed types, are potential sources of STDs and HIV/AIDS. All casual sex should be avoided or strictly protected with the use of condoms. Danger from intravenous drug use with sharing of needles and syringes cannot be overemphasized. However, blood transfusion at all medical centers in Thailand is considered safe as intensive screening of donated blood for HIV, hepatitis B and syphilis is implemented nationwide.

Viral hepatitis
There are two major groups of viral hepatitis. Hepatitis spread by contaminated food and water, hepatitis A and E, are endemic in many parts of Asia. Most local people are immune to these types of hepatitis through natural infection, but travellers from better hygienic environments can be receptive to infection. Therefore, travellers are recommended to practice prevention measures against food and water borne diseases, as suggested for diarrhea. An alternative protection for hepatitis A is the immunization with hyperimmune serum or hepatitis A vaccine. Consult with the physician at an established medical service for the immunization.

Another group of hepatitis; hepatitis B, C and D; are transmitted through contaminated blood and sexual contacts, or passed from infected mothers to their babies at the time of birth; similar to the ways HIV/AIDS is transmitted. This group of hepatitis can be simultaneously and effectively avoided if precautions against HIV/AIDS are strictly taken. However, for those who require immunization, effective vaccine against hepatitis B is available at most medical services.

It is not necessary to tip cinema ushers. It is customary to tip porters and hotel personnel who have given good personal service. A 10%15% tip is appreciated in restaurants, particularly where service charge is waived.

AM radio is heavily commercial - - there are some 200 stations nationwide - - and appeals to popular taste. FM radio offers popular music, classical music, jazz, English-language news broadcasts and the original sounctracks of certain imported filmshows shown on local television's five channels. Leading hotels have colour televisions in each room, offering either video features, satellite and / or cable television or tourism-related English-language programmes.

The Temporary Import of a Vehicle for the Purpose of Tourism
1. Valid International Driving Licence and passport or equivalent documents are required.

2. Vehicle registration or, in the case of a borrowed vehicle, authorization documents from the owner are required.

3. Cash guarantee or bank guarantee or selfguarantee is required. If vehicle is brought in through Bangkok or Klong Toey Port, cash guarantee or bank guarantee is essential. If entry is via land across the southern border then it is acceptable to guarantee oneself by completing the customs form, giving necessary details to the customs officer and signing the record.

4. Permission is granted for a 6 month period from the date of entry.

5. In the case of having requested to bring the vehicle in for a period of just 5-10 days and then wishing to extend the length of stay, a renewal can be granted free of charge by the Customs Department.

6. Procedure:

(i) Contact the customs office at the relevant border.

(ii) Customs officer will complete an additional incoming form and at the same time check documents as in No.2 above and also fix
the self-guarantee.

(iii) In the case of cash or bank guarantee, the customs officer will evaluate the price of the vehicle according to its condition plus 20 %