The Realities of Living in Thailand as a Foreigner

I have lived in Thailand for six years. When I go visit relatives in California I can't wait to get to Thailand.

Bad driving. Extreme humidity and heat. Flooding. Treated like a forigner. Well, I've lived in Florida for 40+ years, so I should be ok.

Left CA after 30 years 1987-2017. Been married to my Thai wife for 14 years, live here now for six years in Chiang Mai and have a ten fold life compared to San Diego! Everything you said is spot on, altho my retirement visa I do yearly is never a problem and I do my 90 day report online..No desire to ever return to U.S.

All valid points that I have heard many times, both in watching you tube videos and living in 5+ years. Here are my observations for what they are worth A. There is a visa service in every major city in Thailand. You can pay to get your retirement visa and so the whole criticism about visa is moot. You have the money you can get a long term visa. B. The smoke is a real issue in the north. They burn sugarcane and rice fields and it miserable. That said, if you live near Sacramento, CA you will experience the same issue. Thousands of rice field that need to be burned near the state capitol. Last I googled it Sacramento ranked near the top of world’s worst air quality during the burn season. C. Motorcycles are inherently more dangerous and most people ride motorcycles in Thailand. It stands to reason there are going to be more accidents. Is the traffic worse here than other places. That depends on what you are comparing it to. Bali has the worst traffic of any country I traveled to. D. Is it safe? That question comes up a lot. An short anecdote might be amusing. I met my girlfriend on the main beach street in Patong, Phuket. We are 1 block from the Bangla (bar district), arguably not the best neighborhood. We go across the street to eat Indian food and she leaves her suitcase in the middle of the sidewalk. We have dinner, cross the street, pick up the suitcase and go home. Where else in the world would you feel assured that your bag was going to be there when you got back. E. People are poor, barely have enough to eat but you rarely see homelessness. On the other hand, homelessness has reached disastrous proportions in CA. F. Safety- you either believe that laws and police are going to protect or you take responsibility for your own safety. Sure it cuts both ways. You don’t depend on a crosswalk to protect you in Thailand while crossing the street, but it is your life and your responsibility to protect it. That means you have a heightened sense of the dangers around you in Thailand. I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing. In my experience, people become complacent when they think a law is going to protect them. G. That you are always perceived as a foreigner. That is the same anywhere. When my family moved to another city in CA., we were still outsiders after living there 25 years. The video has many valid points, but it has to be put into context of other countries and cultures.

I lived in Thailand for 32 years. I read, write, and speak good Thai. I have lived in Indonesia since 2014. I prefer Indonesia.

I lived in Thailand for 9 years with my Thai wife. I finally left because of the visa nonsense. I had to jump through hoops every year, no guarantee I would get a new visa, despite being married to a Thai. During the pandemic, the government said Thais could return from abroad. They forgot to include foreign spouses. As a result I was separated from my wife for 5 months, as were more than 5000 other spouses. Woooo. Driving is very dangerous, Thailand has the highest traffic fatality rate in the world. Yes, there is a higher foreigner price. I lived in Koh Lanta where it was extreme. Foreigners were charged double for virtually everything. From street food, to car repairs to rent to hospital visits to government documents. Scary. I left Chiang Mai after 1 year due to the pollution problem. Chiang Mai has an extremely high rate of lung disease. Government corruption is rampant. From the lowly civil servant demanding a bribe to stamp my simple document, to the government minor official demanding a bribe to issue my marriage license, to my immigration man demanding a bribe to complete my visa, to the majority of the upper levels of government. Very tiresome environment to live in. Almost every household appliance you buy in Thailand will self destruct within 6 months to 1 year. Planned obsolescence in the extreme. And yes, you will always be a foreigner in Thailand. No matter how hard you try to bridge the culture gap. Excellent report.

We live cross the border in laos and often drive over to thailand for a dose of modernity. Compared to Laos, I find the driving in Thailand refreshingly good - people use lanes, use indicators, don’t tailgate at 100kph, and mostly aren’t so drunk they can’t stand up. Try driving in Vientiane for a week and you will feel a lot better about driving in Chiang Mai!

Been all over Thailand dont think its to bad on the roads,you need to go to India thats absolutely crazy driving to the extreme,

The Thai Elite visa (I have 20 years visa) only goes for $25k USD. Divide that my 20 years and the fee is minimal. Each Immigration update is managed by third party at no additional expense. Airport fast-track, limo service (to/from), discounts on many items like golf, all included. Bank account opened - with no minimum balance required. For the money - Thai Elite visa is a great deal. Regarding safety - compare anywhere in Thailand to Chicago, NY Shitty, Lost Angels, etc ... Think about it!

Ex Pats Don’t own the property or the land its built on, When you buy a Property you actually only own 40% of it and your not allowed to own the land just like in the Philippines… You have to have a Thai Wife or Business to own a Property , But you will Never own the land .. So don’t buy Property Rent It …

It's great to hear how moving to Thailand has personally made you happier. Coming from your perspective that's meaningful to me because I find myself agreeing with your take on a lot of the "issues" of living there. I like your style and appreciate your videos. Thank you!

Wow you’re really courageous and I command you for telling it like it is!! Bravo 👏👏👏Nearly no one on YouTube dares to tell the truth and list the cons to any destination in fear of backlash. All they’re willing to expose are the positive aspects and how wonderful and perfect a destination is. If you’re an adult we all know that there’s no perfect place on this planet. You giving us the true facts both positive and negative is equivalent to us reading a contract before signing it. We can examine the terms and decide for ourselves if the advantages outweigh the disadvantages or vice and versa. Thank you so so much! Keep up the excellent work. Love your channel.

the biggest issue is Chiang Mai is the smoke, for many months a year it is a dangerous place to live, very bad for your health, this is the reason I would never live in Chiang Mai. Sad really, SE Asia has a huge problem with crop burning, it needs to be resolved through countries cooperating and working out a solution, it is getting worse

This is an excellent take on things in the land of smiles. Very helpful to many, thank you.

I lived in Thailand for ten years. In 2014 I moved back to the USA. My wife(Thai) and two daughters (Thai) and I will be moving back to Thailand next summer full time. To each his own.

I've lived in Chiang Mai for 18 years now. An aspect of the "non confrontational Yes" that is humorous (until it happens to you!), regards asking for directions. If you ask a local where something is located, and they've never heard of it, they'll just tell you they don't know; but, if you ask them where something is located that they feel they should know - such as a famous temple, for instance - they may feel that not knowing would cause them to "lose face". So, they may pretend to know where it is, and confidently give you directions - probably figuring, in part, that they'll never see you again! I'm also surprised that no one has pointed out, there may be tax advantages for Americans who retire to Thailand, because of a tax treaty between the US and Thailand. It mostly applies to long time permanent residents who have certain types of income: large pensions, or tax deferred assets, such as a 401(k), annuity, or an IRA, for instance.

This is the template for no nonsense informative videos, thank you

I wanna leave the US, just searching for the right place to move to. Thank you for explaining what to expect💯

Thankyou so much. I am at the point of making a life decision to move from Canada to Thailand. Was there in Dec/Jan. not for everyone, but I loved the vibe, the people, just the way of life. I think always being a foreigner, is the same as in any country, people moving to North America will always feel a bit of a feeling of , not prejudice, but not a local. Anyway, some very good points.

I've had fantasies about living there. I think the food alone is reason enough to just visit there. I think the hot weather would drive me crazy though.