Wat Phra Keow is never closed !!! and other Bangkok, Thailand Warning Or Danger Tips

When it comes to precious stones, there is no such thing as a discount. In this industry, what you pay is what you will get. These scam artists will try to convince you otherwise.

They commonly operate at these places:
1. The Grand Palace entrance
2. Wat Pho
3. Wat Saket
4. Lately, Wat Paknam

What they will tell you:
1. The Grand Palace is closed for a festival.
2. There is a gemstone DISCOUNT only for FOREIGNERS at the Gemstone Export Centre (a non-existent entity) and it's the last day for discounts.
3. The Grand Palace will be opened later, but because we're palace officials, "Take this tuktuk for a day tour at "other tourist attractions and the Export Centre" and the tuk tuk bring you back when the palace opens in 3 hours."
4. The gemstones could be sold to a jeweller in your country of origin for a tidy profit.

You will then be met by a so called expatriate Thai (another scam artist buddy) at another location where the tuk tuk has taken you and you'll be told exactly the above. He'll then show you a receipt from a dodgy thai jeweller (where you are to go soon) for a large carat blue sapphire at a reasonable price. He'll often quote big name jewellers from your home country eg. Mappin & Webb, Aspreys, Tiffany's, Soo Kee etc. where he's "sold" his sapphire which paid for his European / American / Singapore holiday.

The scam is indeed a very elaborate and well planned endeavor to fleece alot of money off you. Many who've bought from these scam jewellery shops will find out back home that instead of buying something they were told to be undervalued, are after all genuine but low grade corundrum (the scientific name of sapphire and ruby) that have been treated with beryllium (a technique developed by the Thais themselves) to ARTIFICIALLY enhance or change its original colour, rending them undesirable and unsaleable to a jeweller. Refunds are often hard to arrange and even if successful, you will only get 80% of what you've paid plus sleepless nights and days off from work.

Continued...

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Website: angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/Scams/Sapphire.shtml
Other Contact: Tourism Authority of Thailand

The take home message here are:

1. Never trust anyone that tries to befriend you in the streets. Thais are friendly, but they won't go all the way to such extremes of friendliness unless there's something to gain from you.
2. The Grand Palace is NEVER closed. If it is, then thousands of other visitng locals are wrong too.
3. The official looking friendly guy claiming to be a "palace official" isn't what you think he is (an official). He's one of the scammers operating at the palace gates. Expect him to give you the whole spiel mentioned above.
4. If it's too good to be true, it probably is. Exercise utmost caution.
5. And lastly, read the 2bangkok gem scam website before going to Thailand. Its database has an extensive record of anecdotes and quests for money back by the victims of these incorrigible gem shops. It is regularly updated with the names of questionable shops (with photos) and the methods used to lure unwitting buyers.

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Website: angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/Scams/Sapphire.shtml

It's quite unfortunate that I should start my Bangkok page with warning tips. Mind you, it's a great place and one where I don't mind going back over again, but it's the dishonest people prowling the streets of Bangkok targeting tourists that gets on my nerves. BKK is one of those places where the "once bitten twice shy" proverb doesn't hold true. On one memorable trip there with my family, we got scammed not once, but twice in two days. This taxi-restaurant scam happened on our first evening in BKK at the Asia Hotel where we were staying.

We couldn't decide where to eat on our first evening and made the mistake of asking an Asia Hotel limosine driver if he knew any good seafood restaurants. He said he knew of an "excellent" seafood restaurant near our hotel that was "patronised by celebrities", and would drive us there for only B20 if we were interested. We took the bait easily. Mind you, this was the day before the bigger gem scam we were yet to fall for.

What we saw at the restaurant (can't recall name) was a huge wall menu, with glass and concrete tanks on the ground outside the restaurant. Prices were EXHORBITANT. B200 for a plate of mixed vegetables was the cheapest on the huge menu. Dad was still in a pretty good mood, so he ordered us a grilled lobster. Once seated inside, we noticed 2 other groups of families eating quietly and the atmosphere was pretty sullen. They must have realised something we had not. Anyway, the bill for the 4 of us was quite expensive - food quality wise, nothing to shout about. We were all simultaneously thirsty after dinner due to the MSG. Anyway, to cut the long story short, if unsure, get your friends to recommend any restaurants they've tried or even splurge abit more at those restaurants you read about on the THAI inflight mags because what we experienced was certainly not worth it. You might notice the many local restaurants that are chock full of people, as Asians tend to congregate wherever food is good. Walk right into those rather than relying on a taximan.

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