Tune Hotels

I recently wrote an article detailing my opinions of the low cost airline Air Asia. The low cost carrier business model where customers only pay for the specific services they require is very common in the airline industry. The founder of Air Asia Tony Fernandez has now established a range of hotels which are based on the same business principle as his hugely successful airline. 

The concept is certainly interesting and the company is having good success, increasing its portfolio of hotels in a wide range of countries. I have personally used tune hotels twice once in Hat Yai, Thailand and once Ipoh, Malaysia. Much like Air Asia the customer pays a low cost for a basic service which is the use of a hotel room and all additional services the customer requires will be charged on top of this price. The good thing is that both of the tune hotels I have stayed in had large spacious rooms with excellent beds and fantastic hot water power showers which was all included in the basic room price. The room also comes with a fan that can be used free of charge, if you don't wish to purchase the use of air conditioning as an additional add on. If you do require an air conditioner for the room then you can purchase it and it's actually not that expensive in comparison to the room. You will choose how many hours of air conditioning you require and then the unit will be set so that you are limited to the amount of time that you purchased. The customer will also have to bring their own towels and toiletries unless they wish to purchase a toiletry kit, which if purchased you will receive at checkin in a small red bag as well as an air-conditioning and television remote if you have purchased these as add ons. It certainly is a unique way to enter the hotel room with a little red bag and a handful of remote controls. 

(Tune Hotel in Hat Yai, Thailand)

Tune hotels is clearly aimed at budget travellers who still require a certain level of comfort in their accommodation. I have seen the word 'flashpacker' coined on the internet and I think this is the most likely group of people who would use Tune hotels in this part of the world. The basic cost of the room would be a little too much to make backpackers consider staying here especially when there are better value guesthouses out there if you are willing to make some compromises on comfort. Business travellers and western tourists on a set holiday will most likely choose to stay in a full service hotel because there are some beautiful hotels and resorts in this part of the world which are available at bargain prices. I would recommend that anyone who values the hotel highly at part of the travelling or holiday experience to NOT stay at Tune Hotels and instead choose a local hotel where the customer service will probably be more personalised and you can take full advantage of all the amenities the hotel has to offer. 

I would consider myself to be part of the target market Tune hotels is looking to attract. I value comfort and a hotel in a good location but I don't actually spend that long in the hotel room because I am usually out exploring. I don't usually watch the TV and only require limited use of amenities such as air conditioning so it makes more sense for me to only pay for the services which I require. I usually find that hotels in the same price range as Tune are old and usually fairly run down but then they obviously have unlimited use of services such as air conditioning, TV, WIFI etc. On both of my stays at Tune hotels I have purchased the comfort package which is a toiletry kit and the use of air conditioning for 24 hours. I felt this was enough to give me all the comfort I needed and that the modern room, great shower and extremely comfortable bed would rival any other local hotel in its price range. 

Below is a full list of prices from the Tune website for Hat Yai in Thailand. It is worth remembering that Hat Yai is an extremely large city in the south of Thailand and is very popular with Malaysian tourists so the prices are obviously in accordance with demand. 

Select Room(s)

Step

1 2 3 4 5

  
Please specify your Room requirements.

Hotel	Room Type	Description	Price	Qty
Tune Hotel - Hat Yai	Double Room	Double Room (1 Double Bed)	THB 870.00	0  1
Tune Hotel - Hat Yai	Twin Room	Twin Room (2 Single Beds)	THB 870.00	0  1

Double Room #1
Package Type	Price	Required
Cozy Package 24hr A/C + 24hr TV + 24hr Wifi + Towel & Toiletries (TH)	THB 370.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Comfort Package  24hr A/C + Towel & Toiletries (TH)	THB 280.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Addon	Price	Required
Air Conditioning (24 hours credit)	THB 230.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Towel Rental + Toiletries Kit (TH)	THB 120.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Entertainment Package (24 hr Cable TV) (TH)	THB 120.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
WIFI Internet Connection per device (24 hour period)	THB 80.00	No  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Early Check In (from 11.00am)	THB 120.00	No  1
Late Check Out (up to 2.00pm)	THB 120.00	No  1
Breakfast Set (for 1 set)	THB 150.00

Teaching In Thailand: Agency vs. Direct Hire

If you have decided that you want to come and teach English in Thailand then one of the first questions you will ask yourself is how will I find a job? The internet is awash wish job listings and the general consensus seems to be that there are more then enough jobs to go around. If you look carefully at these job listings though you will see that many of them have been posted by one user who is usually an agent connecting schools with foreign teachers. 

Don't be put off by going through an agency certainly at the beginning. The truth is that most schools don't advertise on these websites and will find their teachers either though an agency or from candidates who have personally contacted the school either prospectively or through word of mouth. If you are new to the country and don't feel confident or comfortable hitting the streets with your CV in the the blaring Thai heat then an agency might well be the way forward for you. There are of course good agencies and bad agencies and I have come across some absolute horror stories in my time of agencies literally stealing thousands of baht from it's employees. I have worked for two agencies in Thailand and have been very lucky that they are both reputable stand up operations who have their teachers best interests at heart. 

The role of the agency is to find it's clients (the schools) employees who are reputable and qualified to teach in their organisation. The agency makes its money by taking a percentage of the salary from the employee which they have placed at the school. The most common remuneration package for government schools in the south of Thailand is that the school pays 35,000 baht per month and the agency takes 5000 baht leaving the employee with 30,000 baht. The fact that the agency is taking money every month from the salary leaves them with a duty of care to the employees they have placed in the schools. The best agencies will offer full support with settling in for example help with finding accommodation and transportation etc and then provide ongoing support while you are working for them. Most agencies will employ coordinators whose sole job is taking care of the teachers and dealing with all the paperwork which is involved. My agency is very good at this and the coordinator who lives in town is very approachable and eager to help.

(My first school was very rural)

30,000 baht per month is the most common salary for employees at government schools even if they are direct hire and there is no agency involved. The main difference is that the schools which hire their staff directly will invariably pay for the total cost or the work permit and one year visa and do all of the paperwork involved with this. The truth is however that the paperwork involved with hiring a foreign worker legally and attaining a work permit is colossal and requires quite a good knowledge of the system. Many schools either have problems with the paperwork, don't have the required knowhow or simply 'forget' to apply for the work permit leaving the employee forced to do border runs every three months and working illegally. Most schools in the city know exactly how the work permit process works but if you are going to work for a school directly make sure that they are going to apply for the work permit and that they have actually done it before!

The agency will take care of your work permit and visa but you will usually have to cover the costs of these yourself although some agencies are now starting to cover the work permit costs themselves which is good to see. If you work for an agency you should remember that while you technically work for the school, you actually for all intensive purposes work for the agency. This means that most of the time they will be the ones you deal with if you have any problems at work. I actually think that one of the reasons Thai schools like to use agencies is because they don't like conflict. In the west we are used to a culture where we can talk directly to our superiors in a firm but respectful manner about any grievances or problems we may have. In the west if we had a problem with our salary we would go ahead and talk directly with the head of finance who is responsible for our salaries but in Thailand you would have to go through a bizarre chain of command in order to have your problem dealt with or someone might loose face!. The schools feel comfortable that the agent can talk to the teacher and then address the matter with the school in a respectful 'thai' way. If you work for the school directly you are more likely be thrown into the Thai bureaucratic system at the deep end without any support mechanism which can leave you feeling helpless. 

(Transport from my first agency - it was a small town) 

The schools also like to use agencies because they can easily change teachers at the end of the year without having to have too much dialogue about performance etc. The schools know that the agency will send them a brand new native English speaking teacher next year and so the process continues. Most agencies know the value of a native speaker in Thailand and as long as you weren't sacked for gross misconduct or were a terribly poor teacher they will find you another school because they usually have lots on their books. Another potential problem with working for an agency is that if they were to fall out with the school then they could simply employ a different agent, which means that you would have to leave regardless of how good you were at your job. It is very rare to be offered a direct contract from a school which you have worked at as an agency worker and I imagine the most clued up agencies would have clauses in their contracts with the schools which prohibit this unless compensation was paid. 

(Apartment from my first agency)

I would recommend that unless you personally know people in the area that you want to live who can help you find a school then you should use an agency when first coming to teach in Thailand. I would also recommend those who are coming to teach English in Thailand as a sort of 'gap year experience' use an agency too. The agency will help you with settling in and take care of the work permit and visa situation for you so you can concentrate on teaching and enjoying yourself. If at the end of your contract you decide that you would like to stay longer then you could then use the contacts you have made as a teacher on the ground to search for a new job which is direct hire. If you decide to search for a direct hire job after working for an agency try your best not to burn your bridges because you never know when you might need them again, they do have a large number of schools remember. 

Air Asia

Love it or hate it the fact is, that if you live in Asia you will at some point probably use Air Asia. Air Asia is a Malaysian airline which was founded in 1993 by Tony Fernandez. They are the equivalent of Easy Jet and Ryanair in Europe and provide budget flights throughout Asia. 

I personally have no problem with the service provided by Air Asia and am grateful that their existence allows me to visit places I perhaps wouldn't if cheap flights weren't available. I love the fact that I can leave work on a Friday evening head straight to the airport and be in Bangkok in one hour for a maximum of 1,500 baht. This gives me enough time to enjoy myself in the big city and return refreshed and well rested on Sunday evening ready for work on Monday. 

The problem people have with Air Asia and all low cost carriers is that they are sometimes not exactly entirely transparent with all the additional charges which will be added to the final bill. The business model employed by these companies is that you pay a low cost for a basic service (a flight) and that all additional services you require will be charged on top of this price. It is an interesting business model and allows Air Asia to proclaim quite rightly that 'now everybody can fly' unless of course they have a bag or more importantly they haven't read their bill correctly before paying. 

Let's start with baggage. Air Asia requires you to purchase baggage space under the aircraft but does allow you to carry on 7kg as hand luggage however the usual airport rules will apply so no liquids etc. This seems fair to me and although the baggage charges are perhaps high in proportion to the original ticket price it still usually works out cheaper then the full service airlines. The fact that you are not required to purchase baggage space within the cost of the ticket means that local tourists or people on weekend getaways can get cheaper tickets and travel more which is always a good thing. 

Most of the add ons available from Air Asia will quite honestly be of no need to the average traveller so their absence will also be of little matter. Add on's such as an inflight comfort kit and an inflight meal have little value because the flights are usually so short in duration. The cost of the inflight meals are naturally inflated dramatically and the quality is little better then the microwave meals you get at 7-11. The red carpet treatment is also available as an option but I don't know why anyone would want to 'hire' a red carpet to walk on when they are travelling on an economy flight for an hour.

The add on which I do have a problem with is the seat selection. I have no problem with them charging extra for their 'hot seats' which are the seats at the very front of the plane and the seats in the exit rows which provide additional leg room. I do however find it unfair that you are required to pay an additional fee to select seats so that the whole of your party is travelling together. The fact that you're away from your friend for an hour isn't particularly that big of a deal for adults but if a family is split this could cause problems. I am sure that if you were in the situation where you needed to sit next to your children then fellow passengers would be courteous enough to facilitate your request but the fact that Air Asia makes us pay to guarantee this privilege is a slight dour point. 

(Seat Selection on Air Asia)

The other add on which sits a little uneasy with me is the 'Air Asia Insure' insurance program. I have no problem with them providing an insurance program which protects against lost baggage and delayed flights etc and offering it as an additional optional service, in fact I am all for it. The thing I don't about like about it is that it is not presented to the customer as an option to include, but rather presented to the customer as an option they must remove. The 'Air Asia Insure' insurance policy WILL be included in your bill right up until the last screen where you have the option to remove it. The option to remove it though is not clear at all and i'm sure many people have purchased the policy without any knowledge of having done so or if they knew they had purchased it without the knowledge that the ticket could have been bought without it. It's these little additional charges as well as the administration fees which are charged to certain methods of payment which can turn that cheap getaway into an expensive trip. 

I am on the whole a huge fan of Air Asia's service because most of the time they suite my needs perfectly. I very rarely take heavy luggage with me on my trips and I find that having the option to carry on luggage for free is making me actively pack lighter, which is always a good thing.  I like the fact that I can pay for my flights at the local 7-11 and still take advantage of the web promos and discounted prices you may not find if you went through a travel agent. And most importantly I like the fact that I can take short trips to places I would never be able to if Air Asia didn't exist. 

Air Asia Tips

• Try to keep your luggage below 7kg and carry it on as hand luggage to save on baggage fees. Of course you can't take liquids on but you can always buy your shampoo and things at your destination and most of Air Asia's destinations are cheap. 
• Check the additional extras you have selected carefully before paying and decide beforehand whether or not you want to purchase insurance.
• The prices on Air Asia's website change almost daily so if you see a ticket to a place you want to go at a good price just go ahead and book it, but remember once its booked there is no cancellation with these web promo tickets.
• Sign up to Air Asia's email newsletter because they regularly have sales which are advertised on there.
• For a consistently competitive price book really early, before Air Asia have the means to evaluate demand and alter their price accordingly.

Phang Nga

I recently decided that I would take advantage of a cheap Air Asia flight and head to Bangkok for a week with my girlfriend. The returning flight a week later was however not part of their discount range so I was forced with a decision to either pay the full fare or return home on an alternative form of transport. The decision was made that we would return by bus however the thought of sitting on a bus for up to fourteen hours filled me with dread. We therefore decided that we should make a stop off for a couple of days en route and explore a southern province which we didn't know much about. 

(Phang Nga Town)

The province of Phang Nga is situated on the west coast of Thailand on the Andaman Sea bordering the provinces of Ranong, Surat Thani, Krabi and Phuket. The provincial capital is Phang Nga town and this is where we decided to stop off for a few days on the way back from Bangkok. The night bus from Bangkok took a whopping twelve hours and to say the ride was slightly uncomfortable would be an understatement but at 600 baht each it served its purpose of getting us back down south.  We arrived in Phang Nga town as the sun was rising and my first impressions were how beautiful it looked. The town is surrounded on all sides by beautiful mountains which are a joy to behold. For anyone with an interest in either photography or the natural environment this town is absolute bliss. 

The first thing I wanted to do once I arrived was rent a motorcycle so that I could explore the area with a bit more freedom. Peculiarly the tour guides at the bus station had little knowledge of motorcycle rental and one even told us that it was not possible in Phang Nga. There is quite a bit of information on the internet about places where you can rent a motorcycle in Phang Nga so I'm guessing that they just wanted to sell us some tour rather then tell us where we could rent bikes. It didn't take long for us to find numerous places to rent a motorcycle and within the hour I had done so. All of the places that rented motorcycles wanted to keep hold of my passport as a deposit which of course I was less then happy about. The compromise in my mind was to rent the motorcycle from my hotel and leave the passport with them. I felt more comfortable with this because at least I would not be leaving it at a random place, and not be able to get hold of it in the case of an emergency. 

(Suzuki Smash)

We stayed at the Thawesuk hotel which is situated right in the middle of the town and cost 700 baht per night. I am guessing that the hotel has been renovated within the last couple of years because some of the pictures and reviews that I checked out on the internet (after we had stayed there) didn't look too great and certainly didn't correlate with the experience we had. The best thing about this hotel is the staff who were very helpful throughout our stay and spoke perfect English. The staff were able to find me a manual motorbike after initially being told that only automatics were available and it only cost 200 baht per day. The staff also let me park the bike in the reception at night which I thought was pretty cool. The rooms at the hotel were basic but the bed was comfortable, the hot water in the shower worked perfectly and the wifi ran smoothly. My only real complaint was that the wooden floors were extremely creaky to the point where it almost felt like you had to tiptoe across the room to avoid being heard downstairs. 

(Beautiful roads in Phang Nga Province)

The plan for the first day was to take off on the bike on a bit of a road trip and explore the province. The roads I encountered were absolutely breathtaking with fantastic scenery and were extremely twisty which is a dream for all motorcyclists. I would really love to take my Honda wave out on these roads because as good as the roads were it was difficult to enjoy them fully on the little Suzuki Smash. The smash is incredibly light and very easy to control but you can really tell that it was designed to be used in a city at relatively low speeds and not thrashed on long distances. The small villages I passed were typical of those commonly seen throughout the south of Thailand with warm friendly faces shouting 'hello' as you pass. I passed through the small town of Takua Pa where I had my lunch and planned my route down to Koh Lak. 

(Beautiful Blue Seas at Koh Lak)

I had not planned to visit Koh Lak and actually only did so because it was on the route I wanted to take around Phang Nga. Koh Lak is situated on the west coast of the province facing the Andaman Sea. The area is a full on tourist area and the majority of people I saw there were foreigners. I was only in the area for a couple of hours but the beaches that I did see looked very beautiful and the waters perfectly clear. The main things I noticed were the amount of Russian tourists in the area and the high prices. The prices for food in Koh Lak's restaurants are about the same as nearby Phuket which means they are at least double Phang Nga town. I decided to wait until I got back to town to eat but I did decide that I wanted to visit the area again in the future because it really is beautiful and is perfectly set up for foreign tourists. 

The objective for the second (and last) day in Phang Nga was to see what the town area had to offer. The town of Phang Nga, like a lot of Thai towns comprises of one single road with various soi's leading off of it. There are a number of caves in the town to look at the pick of which was probably the 'heaven and hell' cave. I have found out that if you climb the steps before the cave you can get some magnificent views of Phang Nga Bay and the surrounding mountains but I hadn't done my research on the cave properly and missed it. This is a lesson that you should always do at least some research on tourist attractions before visiting them rather then just heading off with a map like I did. I am a sucker for a nice quiet park with a lake so I really enjoyed Somdet Phra Srinagarindra Park. The park is very tranquil and is home to not only the obligatory pack of stray dogs but also quite a few monkeys. I enjoyed the park so much I decided to get my lunch as a take away and eat in it in the park. There are also a number of caves at the park which were nice to explore but obviously nowhere near as big as the other caves in Phang Nga town. 

(Somdet Phra Srinagarindra Park)

I really enjoyed my little stop off in Phang Nga town and it has definitely given me the inspiration to return to the area again in the future. The town itself is not a tourist hotspot and nearly all of the hotels are family run guesthouses rather then upscale tourist resorts. I think for people visiting Phuket this would offer a nice change of pace for a couple of days and certainly allow your money to go a bit further, unless of course you are in Koh Lak. The town of Phang Nga is very liveable as an expat although it is very small and doesn't have as many western conveniences as other local provincial capitals such as Krabi or Trang. Phang Nga is however only 85km from Phuket which has every western convenience under the sun. I will definitely be coming back to the area to explore the Koh Lak area in more depth and I would also like to visit some of the islands to the south around Phang Nga Bay. 

Satun

It is the school holidays here in Thailand and with a full six weeks off I took the opportunity to spread my wings and do a little travelling to Malaysia and Singapore. The most common route taken into Malaysia is through Songhkla at either the Sadao or Padang Besar border crossings. I have crossed these borders a number of times in the past so I wanted to use a different border crossing this time. The alternative border crossings are in the provinces of Narathiwat, Satun and Yala. I didn't feel comfortable attempting the borders of Narathiwat or Yala as a solo traveller due to the ongoing political conflict at this time so my only other option was Satun. 

The town of Satun is situated in the deep south of Thailand on the border with Malaysia. The town while hardly a 'big ticket' tourist hotspot does see a steady stream of tourists, most of whom view the town as a transit point for their travels to either Langkawi or the southern Thai islands. I could have simply passed through the town in this manner but I decided that I wanted to stay for a few days and explore. 

(Welcome to Satun)

My first impression of Satun was that it had a very different atmosphere and feel to most of the other southern Thai provinces which can be explained by the people who live here. The vast majority of residents are ethnic Malay Muslims as appose to the Thai Buddhists who make up the majority in most other provinces. The people I met here were very friendly but I did find the level of English spoken was extremely low even in tourist areas. The people were thankfully able to speak Thai so I was able to communicate but it is clear that many of them are native Malay speakers and this can be heard throughout the town. I found that there was a sizeable number of Thai Buddhists in the downtown area but this filters out dramatically as you leave the city limits. The restaurants owned by the Thai Buddhists are the only places you can get a beer with your dinner so I'm sure you will find them. 

The province is very safe and does not have any of the political problems which have plagued the other southern provinces with a muslim majority. You will hear the muslim call to prayer throughout the day which adds a certain ethnic atmosphere which I really enjoyed. Satun central mosque is the most impressive of those found in the city and is worth a quick visit.

(Satun Central Mosque)

I knew that my impending trip to Malaysia and Singapore would be expensive so I decided that this leg of the trip must be done on the cheap. There are a large number of hotels and guesthouses in the town all of varying quality. It is very difficult to find information or reviews about these places because the information just simply isn't out there, at least in the English language. I decided to take a risk and just choose a hotel off the Satun wikitravel article which was in my price range. I could have stayed in a fan room for under 200 baht a night but I decided that I would 'splurge' on a 400 baht a night room with air conditioning, hot water and free wifi. I stayed at the Satun Thani Hotel right in the heart of town and was generally very satisfied with it. Yes of course it was old and a little bit rough around the edges but for the price I payed it was more then adequate for a two night stay. The hot water worked, the wifi stood up well and the location was perfect so I would recommend the hotel to anyone who is on a budget and doesn't require a luxury experience. 

I spent most of my time in Satun exploring the town on foot. I personally enjoy walking so this was fine for me but there are motorcycle taxis available everywhere and the prices quoted certainly didn't seem like a rip off. I took a motorcycle taxi to Tammalang Pier for 80 baht and it is a fair distance outside of the city. I usually try to avoid motorcycle taxies and use the public Songthaews to get around. The Songthaews in Satun are bright orange and it is very easy to get to grips with the way they work because they travel up and down the main road through the town. You can hop on and off at any point and the cost will always be the same. The main long distance bus terminal is situated to the south of the town just outside the city limits so a motorcycle taxi will probably be required if you want to get there. Long distance busses run to the usual destinations such as Bangkok and Phuket but most destinations are served by minivans. The minivans run to a large number of destinations in the south and although they are extremely bumpy you do have the added convenience that you can specify exactly (within reason) where you wish to be dropped off (if you can communicate this to the driver). The trip from Trang to Satun cost me 100 baht in a minivan. 

There are not a great deal of tourist attractions in the city but their are some small museums which are worth a look and only charge nominal entrance fees. The Satun national museum is probably the pick of the museums on offer and it gives visitors an insight into the history of the province and the traditional lives of the Satun people. I think the best attraction Satun town has to offer is its public park which is commonly referred to as monkey mountain. I have actually visited the park on a previous trip to Satun and the place has always been very quiet, with the exception of a handful of teenagers hanging out in the caves or the occasional passing car viewing the monkeys at a safe distance. The whole park is easily walkable but I think it would be nice to hire a bicycle to ride around on but I am not sure if this is possible. The monkeys are fantastic and it really is a great experience to be able to see them up close in a natural environment. The monkeys are very confident and didn't appear to be phased at the people milling around and were mainly interested in acquiring food from the people around. I spent about three hours in all walking around the monkey park and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone who is coming to Satun even if only for a short period. 

(Monkey Mountain)

My next port of call after Satun was to be Kuala Perlis in Malaysia in order for me to get their I would have to take a long-tail boat from Tammalang pier. Tammalang Pier is situated about 8 kilometres south of the city and is best reached by motorcycle taxi. Most people using the port will be on their way to the Malaysian island of Langkawi on a commercial jetty there are however smaller long-tail boats which run to the mainland town of Kuala Perlis. The immigration officials are very relaxed at this border and the atmosphere appeared much more chilled then at the other border crossings I have taken into Malaysia probably due to the sheer amount of visitors seen at the crossings in Songkhla. The ferry terminal itself has the normal array of tour operators and convenience stores selling goods at inflated prices to tourists but there didn't appear to be that many touts and again the atmosphere was very relaxed and the people very friendly and helpful. My motorcycle taxi driver even escorted me to immigration which was a nice touch. 

(Tammalang Pier)

My overall impressions of Satun town were very positive and while there aren't a lot of tourist attractions in the city itself it's overall atmosphere and charm is an attraction in itself. After visiting the Malaysian town of Kuala Perlis which is situated just a few miles over the border I would have to say that Satun is far more like Malaysia then Thailand both in aesthetics and character. Everything from the shop fronts in downtown Satun to the language being spoken on the street both screamed Malaysia which was very interesting to say the least. I would thoroughly recommend people to give Satun a try even if you only stay for one day because this would be enough to take in the atmosphere and maybe even head to the monkey mountain. The province of Satun has a number of national parks and of corse the islands off the Andaman coast are considered 'big ticket' tourist attractions particularly Koh Lipe so you may very well find yourself down here if you visit Thailand. As an expat I think this would be a very interesting place to consider living but you would need to research it thoroughly because it really is so different to the rest of Thailand. I was so impressed with the town that I now consider it in my top five places places that I would consider moving too in Thailand. 

Household Bills in Thailand (Rent)

This is a two part post which covers the cost of renting a house or apartment and paying for utilities in Thailand

I've heard many an argument in my time about the cost of living in Thailand. The truth is that cost of living depends entirely on your lifestyle and the things you choose to spend your money on. If your the type of person who enjoys wearing designer clothes and eating lavish meals in upmarket restaurants then the cost of living is likely to be very similar to that of most countries. I think one of the main reason Thailand is so affordable is that the 'big ticket' expenses are REALLY cheap.

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Part Two (Renting Accommodation)

In Part One of this post we talked about the typical costs of utilities such as electricity, water and the internet in Thailand.

The vast majority of foreigners in Thailand rent their accommodation from a private landlord. There are specific laws relating to the ownership of land which prevent foreigners from easily purchasing properties in the kingdom. There are ways to purchase property but most people will simply choose to rent especially in the beginning of their stay. 

The cost of renting accommodation in Thailand can either be really cheap or really expensive depending on a number of factors. Accommodation situated in tourist resorts or 'farang' ghettos will typically command a higher monthly rental then areas which are populated by local Thai people. There are some truly stunning apartments and houses for rent in Bangkok which would rival anything in the west and are available at a fraction of the cost. Once you leave the big city and enter the provinces your accommodation options start to become more limited and it is important to realise that some sacrifices may have to be made. 

When I first moved to the south of Thailand I rented a newly refurbished 'thai style' apartment close to the centre of the city. A 'thai style' apartment simply means that it's a single room with an en suite bathroom much like you would find in a hotel. This means that there is NO kitchen and the area that you use for eating, working, exercising etc will also be the area that you sleep. 

(My first apartment in Thailand)

I really liked my first apartment it was simple, clean and close to everywhere I needed to get too. The apartment cost 3,000 baht per month (£60) and included free wifi and the use of a very basic shared kitchen area. The balcony was absolutely huge and perfect for enjoying a cold beer at the end of a long day. The apartment also had air conditioning which was very important to me at that time because I was not fully acclimatised to Thailand's climate. The first sacrifice that I had to make was that this apartment didn't have hot water but I can honestly say that you soon forget about it because the water is always at least lukewarm because the sun heats the pipes. I have never had hot water during my time in Thailand but I do still enjoy having a hot shower when I go to hotels.

I would recommend these little 'thai style' apartments to anyone who is still finding their feet in the country and perhaps doesn't know how long they will be staying. These apartments always come with basic furniture e.g. bed, cupboard, desk etc so there is no need to invest in household appliances although some investment can make your stay a little more enjoyable.

I lived in my apartment very happily for six months and other then the occasional argument with the landlord over the electricity bills I have absolutely no complaints about my time there. As much as I liked my apartment it was very much like living in a hotel room, which long term isn't really feasible. Once I decided that I would like to stay here longer I became anxious to have a bit more space particularly as the room was becoming very small for all the 'things' I had acquired.  

Finding a comfortable apartment in Thailand is easy but finding a house with enough western amenities for a basic level of comfort can be difficult. I think the process would be close to impossible without the use of someone who speaks Thai because there doesn't seem to be any form of estate agents to help you with the process. I imagine that in Bangkok it would be possible to hire an estate agent but in the provinces word of mouth is key. I looked at quite a few houses and some of them were absolutely shocking with concrete floors, 20ft sheer drops from the stairs and electricity wiring that would scare you to death. 

I certainly was realistic in my expectations and went in with only a few basic requirements.

1. The house must be tiled and generally clean
2. The house must have working electricity and consistent running water
3. The house must have a western toilet*
4. The house must be in an area which can receive broadband internet

* I will always stand by my requirement of a western toilet but it is easy to purchase one for about 1000 baht (manual flush) and I am sure that the owner would be happy for you to make the 'upgrade' if you needed it.  

With the help of my work colleagues I was extremely lucky to find a house which is very close to my school and fitted all four of my main requirements, and the best thing of all was the price. 

(The living area and bedroom of my house)

My house is a two floored terraced house with two bedrooms and two bathrooms and it is absolutely huge. The living area is nearly double the size of my previous apartment and my bedroom is about the same size. The house has a kitchen area and even has a covered drive to park the bike safely. The house is extremely clean and had only recently been retiled prior to me moving in.

When I moved into my apartment I made my first sacrifice of no hot water and have honestly not missed it once. This sacrifice to move into this huge but cheap house was to be far greater, I would be giving up air conditioning. (I will write a full article about my experiences of living without air conditioning in one of the hottest countries on earth in the future). I have obviously had to make adjustments and while it's perhaps not as 'comfortable' then if I had air conditioning I feel that the positives outweigh the negatives. The truth is that if I were to rent this same property but it had two or three air conditioning units the price would probably double and thats before electricity consumption is taken into consideration. 

(Garage Area)

The cost of renting this house is 3,500 baht (£70) per month. Let's put that into context for a minute I used to pay 3000 baht (£60) per month for my old apartment which is about half the size of the living area in my new house. I think the lesson to be learnt from this is that if you are prepared to alter your expectations slightly then you can get a lot for your money. I think that an apartment is a better option for people who intend to only stay for a short amount and don't want to invest in household items which they will inevitably have to sell for a loss when they leave. 

The one downside to renting a house is that they typically come with no furniture whatsoever. It is possible to rent fully furnished houses but these tend to be VERY expensive. I was shown a fully furnished two bedroom house with modern amenities but the price was 12,000 baht per month. If you rent a house in Thailand with no furniture you will obviously need to make these purchases yourself. The good news is that furniture is quite reasonably priced. When I moved into this house the 'big ticket' items I purchased were

• Bed (7,000 baht) including mattress
• Fridge (5000 baht)
• Sofa (3000 baht)
• Various Tables (2000 baht) 

You can see that the process quickly becomes expensive which is why I would only recommend renting one of these unfurnished houses if you plan on staying here mid to long term. A two bedroom house can obviously be shared by two people which would cut these costs in half. I have lived with a couple of different people during my time here but now find it more comfortable to live alone and this still works out at a lot cheaper then my old apartment. Rent is payed monthly to the landlord and there is the usual two month deposit required at the beginning of the rental period. My landlord lives in a different province so I simply pay him via bank transfer each month. This suites me because I don't like the pressure of having to tidy in anticipation for his arrival. 

The costs described in this article relate to renting accommodation in the city of Trang. I know for a fact that if you rent outside of the city perhaps in one of the small towns in the province then the costs are even lower but the choices available will obviously be far fewer. I think the costs described here are fairly indicative of all of the southern provinces with the obvious exception of Phuket.

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