Staying Connected

Telephone Tips

Major hotels in Thailand feature convenient but pricey international direct-dial (IDD), long-distance service, and fax services. Hotels charge a hefty surcharge on local and long-distance calls, though, which can add up to 50% in some cases. 800 numbers, credit card numbers, or collect calls may not be readily available from your hotel phone; or if they are, a big fat service fee may be added to your bill. Check first.

Most major post offices have special offices or booths for overseas calls, as well as fax and telex service; they're usually open Monday to Friday 7am to 11pm. There are also overseas telegraph and telephone offices (also called OCO or overseas call office) open daily 24 hours throughout the country for long-distance international calls and telex and fax service. In addition, many Internet cafes, guesthouses, and travel agents offer long-distance calls using very affordable net-to-phone connections of varying quality.

Local calls can be made from any red or blue public pay telephone. Local calls cost 1B (3¢/5p) for 3 minutes; add more coins when the beeps sound. Blue public phones are for local and long-distance calls within Thailand.

Yellow TOT cards are sold in denominations of 300B and 500B (US$9-US$14/£5-£8) and are specific for domestic or international phones that are clearly marked as such. Hatari PhoneNet offers a variety of phone cards that are a great value and are available at convenience stores everywhere. All cards can also be purchased at Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) offices

To call Thailand: If you're calling Thailand from the United States:

1. Dial the international access code: 011.

2. Dial the country code: 66.

3. Dial the number. So the whole number you'd dial for Bangkok would be 011-66-2-000-0000.

Important Note: When making domestic calls to Thailand, be sure to omit the "0" that appears before all phone numbers in this guide (thus you will only dial eight digits after the "66" country code).

To make international calls: To make international calls from Thailand, first dial 00 and then the country code (U.S. or Canada 1, U.K. 44, Ireland 353, Australia 61, New Zealand 64). Next you dial the area code and number. For example, if you wanted to call the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., you would dial 00-1-202-588-7800.

For directory assistance: Dial tel. 1133 or dial any hotel concierge or operator (even if you are not a guest, they can help).

Note: In smaller towns throughout this guide, I've left out phone numbers for bars/clubs that don't have permanent phone lines.

Cellphones

The three letters that define much of the world's wireless capabilities are GSM (Global System for Mobiles), a big, seamless network that makes for easy cross-border cellphone use throughout Europe and dozens of other countries worldwide. In the U.S., T-Mobile, AT&T Wireless, and Cingular use this quasi-universal system; in Canada, Microcell and some Rogers customers are GSM compatible, and all Europeans and most Australians use GSM.

If your cellphone is on a GSM system and you have a world-capable, multiband phone, such as many Sony-Ericsson, Motorola, or Samsung models, you can make and receive calls across most First World nations and many developing countries, from Andorra to Uganda. Just call your wireless operator and ask for "international roaming" to be activated on your account. Unfortunately, per-minute charges can be high -- usually $1 to $1.50 in Western Europe and up to $5 in places such as Russia and Indonesia.

That's why it is important to buy an "unlocked" world phone from the get-go. Many cellphone operators sell "locked" phones that restrict them from using any other removable computer memory phone chip (called a SIM card) than the ones available locally. Having an unlocked phone allows you to install a local, pre-paid SIM card (sold at Telewiz, True, or DTAC stores in Thailand). Show your phone to the salesperson; not all phones work on all networks. You'll get a local phone number -- and much, much lower calling rates. Unlocking an already locked phone can be complicated, but it can be done; just call your cellular operator and say you'll be going abroad for several months and want to use the phone with a local provider. In Thailand, head to Mah Boon Krong (MBK; tel. 02217-9111), near the National Stadium BTS in central Bangkok, for assistance with unlocking cellphones at any cellphone vendor.

For trips of more than a few weeks spent in one country, buying a local SIM card becomes economically attractive, as Thailand has a number of cheap, pre-paid phone systems such as 1-2-Call by AIS. For less than 800B (US$23/£12), you will be given a Starter Pack, which includes a SIM card and virtually instant Thai mobile phone number, plus some free calls. Call costs depend on the package you opt for; some systems offer free off-peak messaging (SMS). With most plans, though, incoming calls are free.

Wilderness adventurers, or those heading to less-developed parts of Thailand, might consider renting a satellite phone (satphone), which is different from a cellphone in that it connects to satellites and works where there's no cellular signal or ground-based tower. You can rent satellite phones from RoadPost (tel. 888/290-1606 or 905/272-5665; www.roadpost.com). Satphones are still outrageously expensive to buy, so unless you're a Rockefeller, don't even think about it.

Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP)

If you have Web access while traveling, you might consider a broadband-based telephone service (in technical terms, Voice over Internet protocol, or VoIP) such as Skype (www.skype.com) or Vonage (www.vonage.com), which allows you to make free international calls if you use their services from your laptop or in a cybercafe. Check the sites for details.

Internet Access Away from Home

Travelers have any number of ways to check their e-mail and access the Internet on the road in Thailand. These days, the latest appliances like e-mail-capable mobile phones, Wi-Fi-enabled laptops, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), or electronic organizers allow travelers to stay in touch almost anywhere. But bear in mind there's a very real risk while traveling in poor countries that any luxury electronic items, including the trendier mobile phone models (unaffordable to poorer Thais), may get stolen. If staying wired isn't a major part of your holiday, it's better to leave the hardware at home and check e-mail at cybercafes.

Without Your Own Computer -- Thailand's Internet cafes stay open late, they're affordable, and you'll pretty much find them everywhere. Bangkok's Sukhumvit, Surawong, or Khao San roads and the country's main beach destinations are all chock-a-bloc with Internet cafes. Many hotels have business centers that also offer Internet access, but they are much pricier. However, hotels do normally offer broadband, which is much faster for downloading big files; work out what's better for you, speed or frequency of access.

Cybercafes charge upwards of around 60B (US$1.71/92p) per hour and most city connections now use high-speed lines (ADSL) and offer cheap overseas Internet calls on systems such as www.skype.com. Outside of the cities, look out for local cybercafes (usually full of schoolkids playing online shoot 'em up games); most offer acceptable, albeit slower, dial-up service.

The departure terminal of Suvarnabhumi International Airport has an Internet access booth close to check-in counter W, to the far right side of the departures terminal. Once inside the terminal, state-of-the-art, touch-screen Internet and telephony lecterns are available that use Thai coins and credit cards.

With Your Own Computer -- More and more hotels, cafes, and retailers in Thailand offer free high-speed Wi-Fi access (or charge a small fee for usage). Most laptops sold today have built-in wireless capability. To find public Wi-Fi hotspots in the country, go to www.jiwire.com; its Hotspot Finder holds the world's largest directory of public wireless hotspots. You'll also find wireless services at many Starbucks branches -- or look out for signs marked with the Thai brand "True" in malls such as Siam Paragon and Central World. Most luxury hotels here do not offer Wi-Fi service free of charge; even if you are a guest, you will have to buy a pre-paid access card from around B400 (US$11.40/£6) per hour. Some hotel executive lounges may include this service in the room rate.

For dial-up access, most business-class hotels offer a special plug, or dataport, to fit most laptop modems. Contact your hotel in advance to see what your options are.

Major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have local access numbers around the world, allowing you to go online by placing a local call. Check your ISP's website or call its toll-free number to find out more. Thailand has its own popular ISPs, called SAMART or CS Loxinfo, which use dial-up. You can buy handy pre-paid cards at 7-Elevens.

Wherever you go, bring a suitable travel adapter, phone or digital camera chargers, and a spare Ethernet network cable -- or find out whether your hotel supplies them to guests.