What is the definition of a scam? 1. A fraudlent business scheme (noun) 2. Deprive of by deceit (verb) There are certainly different levels of scams. Some where they will trick you to pay a few baht more. Others where they will trick you out of thousands of baht. The amount doesn't really matter. It is the fact that they are defrauding you of your money by deceit. In Thailand, this is often seen when they write the real price with Thai numerals and then another inflated price in Arabic numbers.

The two priced system is quite common place in Thailand. Many foreign tourists, and even expats, complain about it as being fraudulent. However, other countries do sometimes have two prices with a discount for locals. Though the difference is that they don't try and hide this practice. Our stand on this matter is that tourist attractions are welcome to charge foreigners 100% more if they like for admission, however, they should do it in such a way that there is no deceit. It should be made clear what the different prices are so that foreign tourists (both rich and poor) can have the right to choose .

We don't really want to dwell on the two price system. It happens and there isn't much you can do about it other than walk away. For ourselves, we no longer visit national parks in Thailand as we don't believe that they offer value for money. The admission fee is 40 baht for Thai people and 400 baht for foreigners. It doesn't matter if it is a small waterfall or a massive mountain range. It is the same price. We also won't visit Siam Ocean World. Their foreigner's price is now the same as world class aquariums in America and Australia. And their small aquarium is in the basement of a shopping mall in Bangkok! Who are they kidding? Some people are just greedy.

What we want to concentrate on here are the scams where a small minority of Thai people, and also sometimes foreigners, try to trick you out of your money. One of the most commonest scams is the Tuk Tuk Scam. If you are walking near the Grand Palace, someone will come up to you and say that it is closed at the moment for a ceremony. They then suggest you take a speciall tuk tuk ride for only 20 baht to the nearby Big Buddha and Lucky Buddha. If you fall for it, they end up taking you to tailor shops and gem shops where the tuk tuk driver gets a nice fat commission. Some people have reported that the pressure is high to buy and that the products are often overpriced. If someone tells you that a tourist attraction is closed, don't believe them. Go and see for yourself. If a Thai person comes up to you and starts speaking excellent English then be suspicious. Normally Thai people are shy and wouldn't do something like that. However, we please ask you not to be rude if you are in doubt, as this person might genuinely be trying to help you!