A guide to safety in Thailand and travelling safely in the Kingdom

Safety in Chiang Mai Thailand

Thailand is a relatively safe destination and you can, in almost all areas, relax and feel comfortable with your surroundings, as a male or female. Of course, those new to the environment should be a little wary of safety in Thailand until they have become more familiar with their situation.

This doesn't take long here, and you'll soon realise that almost all Thai people are friendly and willing to help. Although there are scams preying on the naïve, there is very little duress or violence to contend with. Apart from hustlers at tourist markets, pushy girls in bars or irritating tuk tuk drivers, you can enjoy a hassle-free holiday, particularly in Chiang Mai.

Safety in Chiang Mai is good, it’s a calm provincial town with few incidents of violence, theft or harrassment. The tourist police do a good job of maintaining the safety in Chiang Mai.

Credit card fraud: is problem in Thailand, and many banks worldwide have blacklisted Thailand, meaning a replacement card cannot be sent here. Although you are generally safe in respectable establishments, never let the card out of your sight and do not sign the slip unless you have seen it come from the machine.

A common trick is to run off several debit slips and then forge your signature on the others. Due to poor law enforcement, fraud proliferates here. When in doubt, paying by cash eliminates this problem, and regularly checking your statements (internet banking) helps keep this in check. In general, the reported cases of this are few.

Drugs: aren't tolerated in any quantity in Thailand. This includes marijuana, opium, ya-baa (amphetamines), and all recreational drugs. A widely publicised 'war on drugs' in 2003 resulted in some serious human rights abuses, and the police attitude towards offenders (and suspects) hasn't changed. The lightest sentence you can expect is a 10,000 baht fine (or bribe), time in custody, a suspended sentence and deportation for possession of even a small quantity of marijuana.

Several foreigners are languishing with life sentences in appalling conditions in Thai prisons for their involvement in trafficking or selling drugs. While 'smoking dope' continues in some of the more bohemian places such as Pai and Koh Pha Ngan, police raids continue, and care should be taken. Smoking of opium while trekking has faded in popularity and it is now difficult to come by. Lately the police in Pai have become draconian in trying to catch ‘hippie backpackers smoking dope’, and we’ve received reports of people being hauled off the street for improptu blood tests!.

Gem scams: are a common blight on Thailand's tourist copy book, and unfortunately naïve visitors continue to fall prey to these simply scams. The ruse involves duping people into believing they are buying smuggled Burmese gems which are considerably cheaper than market prices.

The dealers are very convincing; of course, by the time you discover they've sold you fakes, the little shop has disappeared and there is little the police can do to help you recover your money, even if you paid by credit card. Simple solution, don't be foolishly greedy, thinking you can score something for nothing. The problem mostly occurs in Bangkok.

Hustlers and touts: are more of an annoyance than a threat, and it is common to be accosted outside train stations by touts. They are only trying to make a living and although they can be quite affirmative, you can usually shake them with a firm 'Mai ow krap/ka' (no thank you). Tourist areas are full of them and, although they may appear innocently friendly, their motives are usually always financial. How far you decide to go along with this is up to your own judgement.

Tuk tuk drivers can be pretty persistent and even follow you down the road sometimes. Avoiding initial eye-contact or ignoring them is usually effective. One popular scam is to offer you a 'free tour' or cheap ride, which involves a time consuming detour to gem shops and tailors and this becomes quite uncomfortable when you oblige by 'window shopping' and then fail to buy anything. If you find them to be aggressive, raising your voice and calling for the Tourist Police makes them back down.

TIP: Getting vocally irate is considered quite rude in Thailand but as a last resort is quite effective in causing sufficient embarrassment to shake off a hustler. Use it on pestering tuk tuk drivers and the like, but not on anyone else.

Pickpocketing and theft: is reported regularly in tourist areas, however, muggings and grab-and-runs are uncommon in Thailand, as it is very uncharacteristic of people here to openly rob others. In general, you can safely move about Chiang Mai without constantly keeping your wits about you. There is no need to tuck your valuables away in a money belt, but be careful with bags while in busy tourist areas. However, there are regular reports of snatch and grabs from youth on motorcycles, so hold onto your bags.

Road safety: Thailand unfortunately has a high road death rate and, while the casualties are seldom visitors, those who are driving or riding here should be extra vigilant against reckless, careless and ill-disciplined driving. Laws aren't strictly enforced, signs and lights are frequently disobeyed and irresponsible overtaking is common. Drunk driving is a chronic problem around about midnight when many bars close.

Fortunately traffic moves slowly in urban areas but accidents on northern Thailand's winding, mountainous roads are a problem; additionally, emergency services are unreliable. If you are renting a motorbike, always wear your helmet and ensure you are confident and aware. More...

Terrorism: Thailand is a peaceful country that has managed to steer an even keel between Western allies and its Muslim regional neighbours. This Buddhist country has few enemies, and with the exception of violence among renegade Muslim groups in the southern three provinces there is little risk of terrorist activity to your safety in Chiang Mai.

While all holiday destinations frequented by Westerners remain vulnerable, the Thai police have been ruthless in guarding their country's tourist industry from potential threat. So far, there have been no cases of attacks or plots uncovered.

Violence: is uncommon in Thailand, and Thai people have a reputation for passiveness, tolerance and keeping cool. However, if you fail to reciprocate and continue to take liberties of their cultural manners they do occasionally snap and can become extremely fierce in avenging their damaged honour. This could be your part-time girlfriend throwing a tantrum and wrecking your hotel room, or a wiry Thai kickboxer in a drunken brawl - either way the results aren't pretty.