Bangkok Shopping Tourist refund Thailand

Bangkok Shopping Tourist refund Thailand

TIP: Save all of your receipts and make sure you get the VAT refund slip from the sales clerk. http://www.asiatraveltips.com/VATRefundsforTouristsinThailand.shtml

Bangkok shopping can be exhilarating, humbling, frustrating, and profitable. For many tourist it can be overwhelming. If you go into the Bangkok shopping scene blind, you’ll be eaten alive. I have a few thoughts on what to do, not do, and look out for, ahead of your experience. A few things to be clear on up front:

You’re Going to Overpay. Get over It. You are a foreigner. You will pay more than Thai’s and you will pay more than the vendor bought the item for. Get over it. Best bet is to have a Thai friend go with you. Sure, you can haggle down a bit but the premium “deals” will always go to Thai nationals. And please don’t get upset when you hear what others paid.

Don’t Expect to Get Amazing Deals. Bangkok shopping is exceptional. Some of the best in the world. But you aren’t going to find a real Rolex for $100. You won’t find an Ipad for $25. Some items are significantly cheaper than the west (clothes and electronic accessories) while some really aren’t (generally electronics like phones and computers). Having realistic expectations are important to having success in the Bangkok shopping scene.

Respect is Key to a good experience. Respect is VERY important in Thai culture. Hell, in all cultures. I’ve found that my best negotiating tools are my smile and charm. Being nice, asking about their culture, trying to speak their language. Respecting their customs. These go much further than any dollar sign.

Remember, this is Business not Personal. If you and a vendor can’t come to some agreement don’t take it personally. It’s business. Thai people are some of the warmest and kindest in the world. Merchants are usually the first people you interact with in a country. And tourist are usually the only people they get to meet from other countries. Represent your home well.

Purse at MBK mall. Bangkok Thailand

Purse at MBK mall. Bangkok Thailand

Sneaker store. Bangkok Thailand

Sneaker store. Bangkok Thailand

Womens clothing. MBK mall. Bangkok Thailand

Womens clothing. MBK mall. Bangkok Thailand

BANGKOK SHOPPING TIPS AND TRICKS

 

  • Learn Thai shopping terms

Settle down. It’s not that hard. Learning ten terms is easy. Especially when it saves you money. Many Thai merchants speak passable English. These are usually the ones that deal with tourist regularly. Bargains are found with Thai’s that don’t. The basics of black market negotiations work in Thailand the same as they do in the “hood” (or anywhere really) back home. Negotiations tends to be the same. Open with a casual greeting. Inquire about the price. Inspect the quality. Negotiate a different price. Decide if you want to buy or not. A few basic Thai phrases will go a long way. It not only shows respect but a desire to openly negotiate. I find that Thai’s respect/expect negotiation. Speaking some Thai is essential to finding deals in the Bangkok shopping scene.

– How much (is this) ? = (UnNee) RaaKhaa Thaorai Krab/Ka  (Krab is male and Ka is female speaker)
Too Expensive = Phaeng Mark Pai

Can you lower the price?Lot La Ka Dai Mai?
– Can you discount (for the price) ? = Loht (RaaKhaa) Dai Mai Krab/Ka
– Okay = Dai
Do you have smaller/bigger one ? = Yai/Lek Gwaa Nee Me Mai Krab/Ka
Can I try on ? = Long Sai Dai Mai Krab/Ka
No thank you – Mai Ow
Thank you – Kaa Poon
– And you may hear this asked in regards to money.  
 how much do you have= thèā h̄ịr̀ khuṇ mī

– Here’s a link to numbers. LEARN NUMBERS!!!! http://www.thai-language.com/ref/numbers

Thai Bucket. Liquor Shopping. Full Moon Party Thailand

Thai Bucket. Liquor Shopping. Full Moon Party Thailand

  • Start at 25% of the asking price

This is a general “range”. If the price is 100baht then I say 25baht. Everyone has different tactics and every vendor is different but this works for me. We usually end up somewhere in the middle. I buy most things from merchants at somewhere between 40-60% of their original asking price. It truly depends on where you are and what the item is. In a tourist area for example they might not bite. It’s more difficult the more people around. Bangkok shopping merchants don’t want everyone to know they’ll drop their prices (even though most of us know).

  • Shop around

I can’t advocate this enough. Bangkok shopping is very “same same” as they say. It’s entirely normal to find 5 vendors selling the same exact thing at different prices LITERALLY right next to each other. I’ve seen prices run the range of 40 baht to 1500 baht for the same item within days of each other. The consumer has the power in the Bangkok shopping scene. Don’t forget that.

  • Carry a calculator/Smartphone

The Bangkok shopping scene’s primary form of communication are calculators. Numbers talk. I’ve had entire conversations with purely numbers. Smartphone’s have made the “game” easier. You can not only use it as a calculator, you can look up the price of items back home.

Rolls Royce shopper. Siam Paragon Bangkok Thailand

Rolls Royce shopper. Siam Paragon Bangkok Thailand

 

TIP: You should get your phone unlocked and buy a sim card with data in Thailand. Comes in very handy and saves a ton of money. I use Dtac but I hear True is good also. http://www.dtac.co.th/en/prepaid/products/Happy-internet-package.html

  • Be willing to walk away

This is the hardest thing to do and I see this with a lot of you ladies (no offense). There are countless merchants selling the same thing. Imagine how you’ll feel when you see that same thing you just bought three times cheaper. Walking away is an old school tactic. The Bangkok shopping community is fully aware of the competition around them. They are in business to sell. They want to sell to you. They need to sell to you. With that said, you’ll sometimes run into a brick wall. Just like you have your bottom price merchants have theirs. If you’re stuck for more than 5 minutes at a price point you don’t like WALK. Either they call you back or you find it somewhere else.

Siam Paragon Rolls Royce Bangkok Thailand

Siam Paragon Rolls Royce Bangkok Thailand

Siam Paragon Fendi Valentino Dolce and Gabbana Bangkok Thailand

Siam Paragon Fendi Valentino Dolce and Gabbana Bangkok Thailand

Siam Discovery Bangkok Thailand

Siam Discovery Bangkok Thailand

  • Get toiletries at home

Not only is your favorite brand not likely in Thailand but if it’s there you may have extra ingredients. Thai’s have a fascination with “whitening” products. They put it in everything. From sun screen to tampons………yes…….tampons ladies. Toiletries also tend to be a bit pricey in Thailand for some reason. Just bring them from home.

  • Thai sizes are smaller than yours

One drawback to Black travel is we tend to be larger than most peoples. This is especially difficult when dealing with the Bangkok shopping community. Particularly in regards to Shoes, Bra’s and pants. Black women have far larger breast and behinds than Thai women. And black men tend to have huge feet. I wear a size 12us (45eu) which isn’t large for a black man. It took me almost a week to find a pair of sneakers in my size I liked. They stock what sells. Thank god custom clothes are relatively inexpensive.

MBK mall escalator. Bangkok Thailand

MBK mall escalator. Bangkok Thailand

Pantip Plaza. Bangkok Thailand Electronics.

Pantip Plaza. Bangkok Thailand Electronics.

Bangkok Shopping Shoe Store

Bangkok Shopping Shoe Store

  • Check the current exchange rate for that day

The Baht has hovered around 32-1(Nov 2014) against the dollar for the last couple years. This is a good mental note. The rate has been pretty steady but take a look at it. If it shoots up a few baht you may want to splurge a bit or get a quick exchange. They add up quick. Find out what each of these is in baht. $1,$5,$10,$20,$50,$100. You memorize those and your golden.

 

  • Ship home dirty clothes

Say you hit the Bangkok shopping scene like a champ and discover you can’t fit it all into your bags. No worries. Shipping is easy. BUT, there have been stories of packages not making it to their destination and some being opened. What I do is ship back my dirty/old clothes. This has two functions. The first being, if it’s lost or stolen then it’s just dirty/old clothes. And two, the likelihood of customs issues becomes nonexistent. Anything I value always travels with me. Including clothes and gifts. Use Thailand Post. Very reasonable.

Jaspal Display. Siam Discovery Bangkok Thailand

Jaspal Display. Siam Discovery Bangkok Thailand

  • Eat/get a massage/relax

Most Bangkok shopping locations have food courts or vendors close. Eat something to keep your energy up. Also some places have massage places. It’s important to stay loose, fed, and relaxed. When you’re hungry and stressed you make bad decisions.

 

Bangkok Thailand Khaosan Road Thai Massage

Bangkok Thailand Khaosan Road Thai Massage

Street Food vendor. Chatuchak Weekend Market. Bangkok Thailand

Street Food vendor. Chatuchak Weekend Market. Bangkok Thailand

Street Food @Chatuchak Weekend Market. Bangkok Thailand

Street Food @Chatuchak Weekend Market. Bangkok Thailand

 

SCAMS

  • Gem scam

There are quite a few things you can get in bulk at a huge discount. Rubies and diamonds aren’t some of them. Well at least not if you aren’t a train jeweler/gemologist with years of experience. This scam has been going around 20 years. Here’s how it works. You (the mark) are presented with the opportunity to buy discounted gems from a “reputable” jewelry shop. This is usually done by a Thai tuk-tuk driver (more on them in a second) or a western scammer that is used because they clearly speak English and know how to play you. Do a quick internet search. You’ll find countless examples of this scam. The moral of the story, DON’T BUY GEMS IN THAILAND!!!

Gold and Gem Shop Bangkok Thailand

Gold and Gem Shop Bangkok Thailand

Khao San Road Night Shopping Bangkok Thailand

Khao San Road Night Shopping Bangkok Thailand

  • Tuk-Tuk driver scam

I’m going to get a lot of flak for this. DON’T RIDE IN TUK TUKS directly off the street at Bangkok shopping venues and tourist destinations. I hate to make a broad generalization but most Tuk Tuk drivers will try to “scam” you. It gets old. People are going to say, “ohhhh. but it’s part of the Thailand experience”. Whatever. The best way to avoid a scam is to not put yourself in the position to be scammed. Drivers run several scams. A couple popular ones include the Gem Scam and the city tour scam. The city tour scam is a fairly simple one. Tuk-Tuk are lined up outside of Bangkok shopping establishments and temples (Wats). They then offer you a “free” tour of the city or a ridiculously low fare. Once you’re in they take you to some secluded shop somewhere in the city. Usually in an area not frequented by tourist. They and the shop owner then pressure you into buying something. The driver gets a cut. This isn’t a new scam at all. For example, they do this regularly in the Dominican Republic. It’s less of a scam and more of a hustle. If you do get into a Tuk-Tuk NEGOTIATE A FAIR PRICE BEFOREHAND and make it clear that you don’t want to stop anywhere. Just your destination. A Tuk-Tuk ride of a decently short distance shouldn’t be more than 100baht. MAYBE. Just remember, with little traffic you can make it from one side of Bangkok to the other for around 300baht. To be fair, some taxi’s try the same scams as Tuk-Tuk drivers but not nearly as often.

Tuk-Tuk Bangkok Thailand

Tuk-Tuk Bangkok Thailand

  • Bait and switch scam

This is an International scam. You’ll visit a shop (usually electronics) and decide what you want. Upon purchase they have to take it to the back or under the counter to box it up for you. When this happens, they switch your item for a different/broken one or something of similar weight like stones or books. Although rare it happens. Don’t allow the purchase out of your sight. And if you do, check it again. When you catch them don’t go crazy. Calmly point out they are busted and get your money back. If not, contact the police.

 

  • Fake vs real

Bangkok shopping is anchored by knock-offs. Many merchants like to pass of their wares as the real thing. They aren’t. Don’t get me wrong. Some places have the real deal. EVERYTHING in Siam Paragon is real (and you pay for it). Almost everything in MBK is fake (maybe not everything. lol). The real question is, Do you care if your item is fake if you’re buying it 75% cheaper? Personally I don’t care. If it does what it’s supposed to do then I’m all for it. BUT it’s important to keep an eye out for fakes if you’re into the authentic. Stick with established brick and mortar places like Siam Paragon or MBK. Do your research on the real thing at home or Google “how to spot fake……” on your Smartphone. Compare photos of the real and the fake. Some are harder to spot. Where do you think the real’s are made? Asia. This is a personal choice. But going to Bangkok to buy all authentic items is a bit of a waste to me especially when they are the same and in some cases higher in the price department.

  • Discount with dollars scam

Another international “scam”. A merchant will tell you they’ll give you a discount if you pay in dollars. This will usually happen when a Bangkok shopping merchant realizes you don’t know the conversion rate. They normally won’t overcharge you too much. It’s enough though. And you won’t get U.S./EU change back. Take more baht than you plan to spend. You can always find an ATM near shopping.

Bangkok Shopping Pickpocket Warning Thailand

Bangkok Shopping Pickpocket Warning Thailand

Money Cat in Bangkok Thailand

Money Cat in Bangkok Thailand