1. Learn some easy Thai Phrases. Turn left, turn right, and stop are words that will definitely come in useful.
- leow sai – turn left
- leow kwaa – turn right
- jort tee nee – stop here
Drivers will also appreciate your attempt to speak Thai, even if your pronunciation is not correct. They will also help you to learn a few new phrases.
2. Carry a map or business card from your hotel. Many hotel cards are have both English for you and Thai for the driver. Most cards even have a small map and directions for the drivers. Another way to assure your arrive at the right destination, especially if you don’t speak any Thai, is to ask the one of the hotel staff or your Thai friend to tell your driver where you want to go.
3. Remember your taxi. When you take a taxi, make a mental note or jot down the number of the cab, along with the colour of the taxi. If you have any issues during or after the taxi journey you can email us. The taxi driver will always give his or her name, ask them if they haven’t told you, most of our driver speak good English
4. Be aware of scams. All Pattaya 4 Leisure drivers are trained before they are put into service, no driver is permitted to take passengers to anywhere other than there required destination. At no point will our driver ask you to change vehicles, we have heard many stories of other companies asking passengers to change vehicles just outside the Airport, normally to an inferior vehicle to the one they originally hired.
5. Avoid taxis waiting near tourist areas. It’s always convenient to walk out the door of a local club or the lobby of your hotel and take the first cab you see. You don’t really know if the driver is reliable, the vehicle is reliable or if the driver will try one of the scams mentioned above. Book your taxi online, we will come to your hotel and collect you without you having to worry about whether the taxi will be reliable or take you to somewhere you did not request.
You can book here – www.pattaya4leisure.com/taxipattaya.html
Lastly, please treat the drivers with respect. All our drivers are honest and are truly concerned about your comfort and well being. If you do have a conflict with a driver raising your voice or arguing with them goes against Thai ways of communicating and it generally won’t help your cause. It’s much better to be level headed and to talk to the driver calmly or have a Thai person, preferably one with some authority try and solve the situation for you.
Even better – give your cabbie the benefit of the doubt along with a ten or twenty baht tip. They might just be having a bad day and why not cheer them up instead of making their day worse.