【Thailand Self-driving】Is it OK to drive in Thailand? Don Muang Airport car rental, preparation before the trip / car rental company / self-driving precautions.

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JEFFY and ALLIE both have driver's licenses in Taiwan, but they don't drive very often. Speaking of this self-driving in Thailand, it can be said that a little bit of energy and stupidity can be completed successfully?? This article will talk about how we rented a car in Thailand. , matters needing attention when renting a car, and whether it is safe to drive in Thailand!

👇Our 5 days and 4 nights in Bangkok, Thailand + Kanchanaburi video full record👇

Self-driving in Thailand｜Preparation before the trip

Change your international driver's license before departure

First, go to the Supervision Office to apply, bring your ID card, valid driver's license, two-inch half-body license (two-year recent license), passport, and apply for another international driver's license. The fee is 200 yuan. If the person concerned is unable to go in person, he or she can also entrust someone else to do so. The other person can bring their ID card and the above-mentioned items. Special attention: ordinary light driver's licenses cannot apply for an international driver's license.

Book a car online

In Taiwan, you can book the car you want and the time to rent the car online first. There are many car rental companies in the terminal, and you can pick up the car as soon as you get off the plane, which is very convenient. It is easy to get traffic jams near Bangkok Airport, and the road is more complicated. It takes dozens of minutes to get around if you make a wrong mistake. Therefore, it is recommended to reserve more time when booking the return time to avoid delays. Many car rental companies can choose where to rent a car and where to return the car, or A to borrow B to return, because we want to go to Kanchanaburi and Ayutthaya for two days and one night and then return to Bangkok, so we choose Bangkok to borrow and pay back.

Take that credit card to Thailand

The car rental company will keep a photocopy of your credit card, and will also check whether it is the same as the Roman phonetic spelling on your passport. Because the English name of Jeffy’s card is a bit different from that of your passport, we took a while to explain it to them, although it went well in the end. I have rented a car, but I remind everyone to pay attention before brushing it. Try to find a credit card with the same pinyin as your passport, which is more convenient.

Driving in Thailand｜Precautions

JEFFY has driven in Okinawa before. Although it is the same as Taiwan, the left and right driving are opposite, but in contrast, the speed of Okinawa is slower and gentler, and Thailand is more difficult! If Allie rarely drives in Taiwan, it is not recommended to drive in Thailand. After all, the cars in the downtown area are cluttered, and there are also many large trucks. It takes some time to get used to it. If there is an accident, it will not only delay the journey but also lose money. , it is not cost-effective, in this case, it is more recommended to charter a car. (Allie also only drives a short distance in the suburbs with fewer cars in the morning)

Not every car has GPS, if not, you need to use Google Map for a long time, and the power bank should be sufficient.

For example, the car we rented this time is relatively bright and does not have GPS installed, so we use our mobile phone for navigation throughout the journey (the mobile phone is in Chinese, which is more convenient). Everyone should remember to fully charge the mobile power beforehand, so as not to get lost. The predicament!

The airport is prone to traffic jams, and the navigation is messy and incomprehensible

Don't just catch the plane after returning the car without reserved time, because it will be too late! Driving time in Thailand is not easy to grasp. The closer you get to the airport, the easier it is to get stuck in traffic, and the roads near the airport are very complicated. We, who are very good at using navigation in Taiwan, also spent a little time exploring the road there. We feel that it is safer to return the car at least an hour earlier.

Unlike Taiwan, you can turn around at any time, you must find the turn (U turn)

Driving in Taiwan is very convenient. If you accidentally drive too far, just turn around. In Thailand, it is different. You must drive carefully. If you want to turn around, you have to find a U turn or a U-turn bridge. In the countryside, each turn is also separated by a certain distance. Another few minutes passed. At this time, the navigation skills of the co-pilot are super important!

In the countryside, the speed of the car is fast, and there are animals rushing out from time to time.

For example, this time we drove to Kanchanaburi and Ayutthaya. When we got out of the downtown area, everyone's speed was very fast. The roads in Thailand are very large, there are few cars, the scenery on the side is very broad, and the speed of all cars exceeds 100. Be extra careful when driving, there are often wild dogs running out of the side, and sometimes there will be animals accidentally hit by the car on the side of the road (seeing a lot along the way is only a little distressing). In addition, their motorcycles are also very fast, so they have to be especially careful to avoid them quickly.

Drive left and right in the opposite direction, be careful that the turn signal turns into a wiper

Unlike Taiwan, Thailand is a right-hand drive, and the wipers are opposite to the direction lights. It takes some time to get used to it.

Ways and types of refueling

Don't worry about what fuel you should add to refuel. If you forget to ask the rental car company, there are signs in the car's fuel tank. As long as you drive to the gas station, the staff will help you read it. Our car rental company is full of gas to pick up the car, full of gas to return the car, just fill up the gas before returning the car!

​Self-driving in Thailand｜Don Muang Airport Car Rentals Chic Car Rent

This time we are looking forChic Car Rent, After arriving at Don Mueang Airport (DMK), go all the way to the domestic terminal (Terminal 2), you will see many car rental companies in the lobby, we have been looking for the yellow chicken all the way, and finally found it near the exit!

Then the service staff will explain all the precautions and charge a deposit of about NT$5,000. This deposit will be returned to the credit card after the car is returned in about two weeks, but it should also be paid in cash. Then, after filling in the information, the service staff led us to the car. The car was parked in the exclusive parking space (with a flag) of Chic Car Rent at Don Mueang Airport. Because Don Muang Airport is very, very confusing and complicated, it must be First ask the service staff, where should you park when you return the car! If it's a Chic Car Rent, it's a good idea to stop back where you started!
Before handing over the car, the service staff will inspect the condition of the car, but it is also recommended that you take photos or record videos to protect your rights.

The car we rented is Nisson's Almera, which is very useful for young couples like Jeffy and Allie to go out, and the price is about 1000NTD/day. If you need to charter a car for some remote itineraries, it is indeed very economical to drive by yourself. . Also because the luggage is put on the car, it is much less labor-intensive to carry luggage around (removing JEFFY's irritability). The car rental company will also explain in great detail before departure. If something is broken, how much will you pay, and ask you to sign. If there is a contact number in Bangkok, contact them before returning the car, they will help you move out of the parking space, and if we don't have a phone, we will remove the obstacle and park in by ourselves. Everything is ready, you can drive the car and go!

Before you hit the road, you can write down your contact number. After all, if an accident happens, you can call the company. In addition, before leaving Bangkok, be sure to remember to exchange enough Thai baht! Bangkok is very convenient, there are places to exchange foreign currency everywhere, but everything becomes very primitive once you leave Bangkok, and you can only find a bank to exchange. There are not many bank branches, and they close very early (about 3:00 p.m.), which is not very convenient. At that time, we spent a lot of time looking for the bank to exchange money. Would it be more convenient to change it first next time?

Finally, after this driving experience, I found that driving in Thailand is not easy! There are more three treasures than Taiwan (holding the north nose while talking on the phone and riding a bicycle to 100km?), and the speed of the country is also faster than the Taiwan highway! Traveling is really scary. If you want to play Kanchanaburi easily, you can also consider buying transportation in Taiwan and take the shuttle bus directly from each airport. If we go to Thailand again, we may choose this way. After all, driving for a long time is very tiring~

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