Archive for the 'TRAVEL' Category

Aug 27 2009

Driving in Thailand

Published by First Time Visitors under TRAVEL

Driving in Thailand

 

Driving in Thailand for the first time can kill you, unless you prepare yourself with our travel tips. The accident statistics in Thailand are frightening: about 20,000 death Thai drivers due to road accidents. Only if you are a confident driver and you are aware of the driving conditions in Thailand, then driving is a great way to travel around the country and will give you the freedom to really explore.

 

Car Rental Thailand

 

There are plenty of reputable car rental firms in Thailand like Avis, Budget, Hertz, Via and Braun. A typical rental car in Thailand would be a Toyota Soluna at around 1500 to 2000 baht (about 50 to 65 $) for a day.

 

Cheap car hire can be found by the beach side renters. Just don’t leave your passport as collateral for your rented vehicle, give them a photocopy instead. And be assured you won’t be well insured…

 

Which fuel to use when driving in Thailand

 

The main vehicle fuels in Thailand are:

 

  • 91 (octane output of the fuel), advisable for motorbikes
     
  • 95 (a little more octane and is a little more expensive than 91), advisable for car rentals
     
  • gasohol (90% gasoline and 10% ethanol: introduced in Thailand to reduce rising fuel import costs) and
     
  • diesel.

 

How to survive driving in Thailand

 

  • be smart and aggressive, otherwise you will never advance an inch
     
  • obey driving rules when you can but expect Thai drivers not to obey rules
     
  • drive on the left hand side of the road and be prepared that Thai drivers will ignore this rule if it helps them get to their turning quicker
     
  • respect the speed limit: 60 km/h in town from 90 to 120 km/h on country roads and expressways
     
  • expect Thai drivers to be unpredictable
     
  • always look everywhere and remember: westerners due take driving conventions for granted, some Thai drivers just don’t!
     
  • be prepared for motorbikes flying towards you like… well, like flies to a pot of honey. Unlike flies, don’t hit the motorbikes as they will also try their best not to hit you. Help them a bit because some of them just don’t try hard enough…
     
  • do not drive drunk
     
  • if a car flashes at you, it means he won’t change lane but expects you to do so
     
  • when the traffic light turns green, don’t zoom away, as you might hit motorbikes that are zooming through the opposite red light
     
  • when overtaking a bus or truck :
     
    • their right hand indicator warns not to overtake as there is oncoming traffic
       
    • their left hand indicator signals that it is safe to overtake OR that the car is turning!

 

One good thing about driving in Thailand is the overall Thai cultural habit of not getting angry in public. So when the Thai do get angry, you can rest assure that your driving is not at all up to Thailand’s standards!

Technorati Tags: car driving, car rentals thailand, cheap car hire, driving in thailand, hertz car hire, rental car in thailand, rental car thailand, rental cars thailand

No responses yet

Aug 21 2009

Medina Tunisia

Published by First Time Visitors under TRAVEL

Medina Tunisia

Travel to Africa and enjoy strolling around in Tunisia’s oldest city center: the Medina Tunisia. Medina is the Arab way of naming the old city center.

 

When during your Africa vacation you travel to Tunisia, Morocco or Egypt (Algeria and Libya are a bit more off the beaten track), do make sure to stroll around in the old ‘medinas’.

 

And with old we mean very old: the Medina Tunisia for example was built 700 years before the birth of Christ. These ‘medinas’ are built to keep the sun out of people’s home, so they are a bit dark at places yet they are cool without using air conditioning! Traveling to Tunisia without visiting the Medina is like taking a shower without water…

 

Visitors who travel in Tunisia’s Medina will step back in time through the maze of narrow, winding streets to barter for souvenirs with the locals. Tunisia vacations are only complete when you bring home a colourful hand-made carpet or easier to carry hand-crafted jewellery and exotic spices.

 

Things to do on your vacation in Tunisia

 

When you stop by in Tunis during your Tunisia vacation, do visit:

 

  • Souk el Attarine
    the perfume makers’ Souk el Attarine
     
  • Zitouna mosque
    the ninth-century Zitouna Mosque: Zitouna translates to "Olive". The Zitouna Mosque yard can be visited every morning, except Fridays.

 

Main thing is to stroll around in the old Medina Tunisia and breath in an ancient civilisation that’s still vibrant when you walk through it today.

Technorati Tags: africa vacation, medina, medina tunisia, old city center, travel to africa, travel to tunisia, traveling to tunisia, Tunisia, tunisia vacation, tunisia vacations, vacation in tunisia

No responses yet

Aug 15 2009

First time visitor to New York

first time visitor to New YorkIf you are a first time visitor to New York, there are plenty of "must-see" places. New York has always been considered one of the best cities in the world and it is a vibrant and exciting place to be.

One of the most beautiful parks in the world is in New York and it’s the Central Park located right in the city centre in Manhattan.

No responses yet

Next »

More first time visitors travel destinations :