Tuk Tuk Scam

The tuk tuk from hell...

We have been SO good about avoiding the various scams here in Bangkok, at least up until today.  We had read over and over in our guidebook about the various touts who spot tourists to tell them the Grand Palace is closed, only to entice them onto a tuk tuk that will take them to other sights around town, where they will also be taken to gem shops and tailor shops against their will, in hopes that they will buy something.  The tuk tuk drivers get some sort of commission for bringing tourists to these shops. We knew all about it, and yet somehow we fell prey to them!

This morning we actually were heading to the Grand Palace, having moved to a hotel that was within walking distance.  We knew it would get crowded so we left early, hoping to see it while it was fairly quiet.  At the first main intersection we pulled out our map to look at it (our first mistake – it’s like a flag for these guys!).  A nice Thai gentleman “happened” to be walking by and asked us politely if we needed help. We told him innocently that we were headed to the Grand Palace.  He gave us directions and then told us that the Grand Palace was closed due to the Chinese New Year – they were having festivities there only for the Thai people and it would be open in the afternoon.  He went on to say that for the Chinese New Year the government was sponsoring a special for tourists, where they could hire a tuk tuk for only 20 baht (about 80 cents) for a three hour tour of some of the city’s sights, but only for today.  He asked to look at our map where he circled some of those sights for us.  He said only certain tuk tuks were participating, the ones with two particular flags on them.  Lo and behold, one of those tuk tuks just happened to pull up!  He hailed it down and talked to the driver for us, telling us again we shouldn’t pay more than 20 baht – he even yelled at the driver “no more than 20 baht!” like he was protecting us and helping us – we totally fell for it!  It helped him that we had just come from Chinatown and saw that it actually was Chinese New Year and that it was a big deal, so we truly thought there might have been something special going on. 

Tall standing Buddha

Anyhow, the tuk tuk driver took us to a tall standing Buddha, which was fairly impressive.  The tout had advised us to go to the TAT office (Tourist Authority of Thailand) to buy our bus tickets for Chiang Mai, so the driver said he’d take us there next.  Great, except he took us to some travel agency instead (can’t trust them from what we’ve read – you’re better off booking your own bus tickets).  We asked a couple of questions, one of them being “what time does the Grand Palace open today?” because we were pretty sure we’d been hoodwinked.  The answer was “Probably around 11:30,” which didn’t help (and made us think that everyone was in on it!).  Feeling suspicious, we didn’t buy any tickets from them.  The tuk tuk driver took us to the Lucky Buddha next, which strangely isn’t on our tourist map of sights (should have been another red flag!).  We walked into a very nondescript place and a nice man approached us, told us he worked there and that this place is usually closed to tourists, but today it’s open for them because it’s Chinese New Year (oh geez, we are SO gullible!).  He told us he just now opened it up and how lucky we were to see it with no one else around on such a grand occasion (should have been another clue!).  He told us the tiny Buddha enclosed in the dirty plastic container was solid gold (neither of us believed that one!).  He went on to give us the same exact story as the first guy, that the government was supporting a program for today only for tuk tuks at 20 baht for three hours, etc.  At this point Daron and I were starting to think it might be true!  Two seemingly unrelated people told us the same thing, how could that be unless there’s some truth to it!

Unlucky not-solid gold Buddha

Onto the next stop which happened to be a tailor shop.  Uh oh.  Daron got a hard core sales pitch for not one, but two suits, two shirts, two slacks, ties, you name it.  We eventually got out of there with all of our money, only to be taken to a gem shop next.  We were ushered through the store by some very nice ladies who wanted to show us everything:  “you can try,” “very cheap.”  We made our way through the maze of cases to escape out the back, still keeping all our cash.  The tuk tuk driver said “one more stop,” a tailor.  Daron told him firmly NO MORE TAILORS, but he persisted.  It's tough because our driver was such a nice older gentleman, who smiled and laughed a lot, and seemed to be trying hard to make us happy (we’re such saps).  We both felt for him (he didn’t look like he’d had an easy life) and didn’t want to hurt his feelings.  So darn it, we went to the second tailor.  When they offered refreshments Daron ordered a beer, which, surprisingly, they brought out to him!  When the conversation inevitably turned to suits Daron jokingly told them he’d always wanted a white suit.  By this time they know he’s not a serious customer (just a serious drinker!).  The sales guy told us that the tuk tuk driver gets a coupon for free gas for bringing us there (good to know!).  We hung out long enough for Daron to drink his beverage, then left. 

View from the Golden Mount

We asked the driver to take us to the Golden Mount next, as that was on the agenda, and we were ready for more sights and less sales.  So he did and we walked up to the top for a great view of Bangkok – the view almost made this trip down the rabbit hole worth it.  By this time we know we’ve been had, and are ready to end our tuk tuk tour and head to the Grand Palace.  We went down to meet our driver and lo and behold, he’s gone!  We wandered around and waited and waited and still no driver.  I can’t believe he left us – we never even paid him!  We started looking for someone else to take us to the Grand Palace so we could complete our original plan.  We were approached by a nice woman who told us she would have her brother take us to the Palace for 10 baht if we did her one favor by going to a tailor shop first.  ERG!  We had to politely decline and eventually found someone else who would take us to the Grand Palace for 50 baht, with no extra stops. 

At the Royal Palace

We got to the Royal Palace only to discover it was never closed for Chinese New Year (not a surprise by now).  It’s been open all day.  We’ve been had!   We paid the entrance fee and spent a couple of hours there before it closed; us and 1,000 other tourists (there goes the plan of being there before everybody else!).  The Royal Palace was quite the place – everyone has to be dressed properly in order to enter:  long pants or a skirt, and no tank tops.  They will rent items to you so you can cover up if you come wearing inappropriate clothes.  As with all of the temples we’ve visited, visitors must remove their shoes before entering.  The grounds are huge and the buildings are very ornate.  The famous emerald Buddha (which is actually made of jade) is kept there, in his very own temple.  We went to see it and were surprised to see this little tiny green Buddha (he’s 30 inches high but seems much smaller), dressed in gold clothes, on top of a large pedestal of sorts.   In another building you can see his royal wardrobe, that they change him into depending on the season (we saw him in his winter wear).  It is Thailand’s most celebrated image – so much so that they won’t allow pictures to be taken in the temple.  It is said that the statue bestows good fortune on the kingdom that possesses it.  



The grounds of the Royal Palace were a good place to wander and calm down after all the drama with the tuk tuk scam.  I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was not a happy camper.  Truthfully, the scam was harmless, it didn’t cost us anything but our time (which is more valuable than money).   Now I feel like we’ve been officially initiated.  During the rest of our time in Bangkok we were able to spot the touts and watch other folks get hijacked by them – there are a ton of them and they are EVERYWHERE!  We’ve talked with other folks who went through the same thing we did – it’s good for a laugh.  We still get approached by them but now we’re wise – we just tell them straight out we’ve been on the tuk tuk tour and we KNOW what they’re up to.  That’s enough to get them to walk away.  I still can’t believe that the scam was so elaborate – the guy at the Lucky Buddha shrine was in on it, along with the guy at the corner, as well as the tuk tuk driver.  In hindsight I think the tuk tuk driver abandoned us because we weren’t purchasing anything (gems, suits, etc) – I figure he must get some sort of commission if we buy something.  Otherwise, it’s hardly worth his time to cart us around for so long.

Oh well.  As Daron kept telling me when I had steam coming out of my ears, it’s all an adventure…. J