Car or bike hire in Thailand. Probably almost everybody hired a vehicle on his holiday abroad. It is not that bad and riskly than seems to be, even if you can not speak any other language than English. As for Uk citizens, Thailand roads may look similiar but it is not the same to the tourists from US and other countries. And this is not only the question of road direction in Thailand.
Prices for car rentals, bike rentals and petrol are so low, that everybody understands that it maybe much cheaper to hire a car and drive all over the Thailand on it, than take a taxi. Really, if you trust yourself, you can hire a car but I do NOT advice you doing that and here are the reasons:
Thailand roads. In general Thailand roads are good enough for driving all types of cars. Though I noticed that car rental offices offer good choice of offroad cars ( guess why ) , smaller roads are not good at all. Especially at night it is very dangerous to drive in Thailand. Deeper to the nature you go by car, worse the roads are.
Thailand people. Thailand people have some special kind of car and bike driving. They even seem to have different road rules. Even if you drive well, it will not protect you from some Thai man, hurring somewhere.
Thailand car insurance. Unfortunately, when a foreigner in Thailand have an accident, in most cases , he is said that it is his fault and nobody other’s. Be ready for that. Be ready that you will have to pay a lot of money even if it is not your fault at all. What can you do? Check car hire insurance policies very carefully. Use only trusted big car hire companies that follow the policies, you must be sure that policy will cover all the expenses and you will go home on time and with your money still on your credit card.
Thailand bikes. Though bike accidents are often met all over the world, Thailand has much more than others. If you are a biker, it is ok for you to hire a bike in Thailand, but, if you drove a bike only 2 times in your life ( for example, once on your 18th , and once on your holiday in Turkey ) then forget about hiring a bike. It maybe too dangerous for you.
Travel insurance. After all this if you still want to rent a car or a bike in Thailand, buy a good travel insurance for you and your family. Health insurance in this case maybe even more important than car hire insurance because it is the question of you and your family members lives. Do not forget about some good Thailand map, with detailed roads and islands included. Try not to drive at night and do not drive at high speed.
