The first choice of means of transport on Koh Phangan is the rental scooter. Every year, especially in the high season, numerous accidents occur. The WHO estimated the number of road fatalities 2018 in Thailand at just 22.500 people. We would like to give you some tips so that your dream vacation does not become a nightmare.
It starts already with the driving on the "wrong" side, which is simply getting used to - in Thailand is the left-hand traffic, In addition comes the road conditions, There are furrows, potholes and unpaved banquets, garnished with sand, coconuts and palm fronds, flanked by stray dogs. But what bothers us the most is the "Creative" driving style our hosts. You always have to count on everything and you should never rely on traffic rules. There is a stop sign? Nice! But that does not mean that others really stop there.
Gladly is abbreviated when turning on the wrong track. You're waiting at a crossroads and suddenly a vehicle is in front of you, the driver looks at you completely puzzled, according to the motto "Why are you standing there now?" And you start thinking immediately if you did something wrong. Knowing this, one approaches intersections with more foresight.
Slow down
Cause of accident number 1 is over the speed limit, The vast majority of situations can be overcome if you adapt your speed to the prevailing conditions. In fact, the average speed is 40 Km / h. This may sound like a snail's pace, but you'll find that it's enough and that most road users are not traveling much faster.
Apart from that, you also see a lot more of your surroundings than when you are racing full throttle over the island. At night you will be more often Vehicles without lighting If you are too fast, you can not react anymore if you finally take it out.
The helmet
We know about the temptations under blue skies, enjoying the "total freedom" of driving in tropical temperatures. BUT - wearing a helmet makes quite undeniable sense, In addition, in Thailand, the helmet is also mandatory and this has been increasingly monitored on Koh Phangan for some time.
Driving without a helmet costs you at least 500 baht. If in this context even after a valid in Thailand Driver's license is asked, the whole can be more expensive.
Do not drink and drive - stay alive
At every party location are the whole night Taxis ready. If you're going to party, it's best to put your money in a trouser pocket for a taxi ride if necessary. You are not familiar with the locality, you do not know the route well, you are dealing with bad road conditions and you have to drive on the "wrong" side of the road. In the end, you might have saved a few hundred baht but lost your life or taken another.
Deceptive signalers
One thing we do not know about our countries is that Abbiegeverhalten the Thai. In our examples, we always stay on the left: The driver in front of you sets the turn signal to turn right. Unsereins now assumes that he arranges right to the center line to wait there for oncoming traffic, and continues to drive on the left. In fact, with the turn signal on, the driver drives to the right but to the left edge to wait for both flow and oncoming traffic. That was already bad clashes.
In general, a turn signal can be deceptive. Especially novice drivers it happens constantly that they forget to turn off the turn signal. Now you want to get into the flow traffic, see the approaching vehicle flashing and assume that it turns. Again a guarantor for nasty clashes.
The Lichthup to is used in Thailand in exactly the opposite way to our habits. If someone gives a light signal in our country it means “come on, I’ll let you drive”, but in Thailand it means that “Stop, I’ll go first”.
In our latitudes is the horn rather negative. Here the horn is used to warn, for example about blind curves or difficult-to-see exits. It simply says “Attention, I’m driving here too”.
self-endangerment
Men and women of all ages often arouse the desire to ask, "My goodness! Where did you get your driver's license? "There is still outdated in spite of timely set, right turn signal and Einspuren to the center line, people stay with the bikes directly in the bend next to each other to ask on the phone Google Maps, it will be without regard to the behind Travelers suddenly struck hooks without a signal, and some say they could ride like the Thais with three or with heavy loads, but sit here for the first time ever on a two-wheeler. Mindless behavior is life threatening!
Also interesting:
Where you should not drive
If your moped rental company or experienced Koh Phangan bikers tell you that you cannot go there or there by scooter, please believe them. Unless you are an experienced off-road driver, then we wish you a lot of fun - you will love it. We strongly advise against any attempt to go to Haad Yuan or Lost Paradise (Haad Yao East) yourself. These are not halfway flat gravel roads with a few potholes, this is off-road as you normally only see it on TV. We ourselves have picked up a couple with a 4 × 4 pickup, who was traveling with a large Honda PCX, in the middle of the jungle. They never came back or forward, so they were in a very precarious situation. In the middle of the forest there is often no cell phone network to call for help and it is unlikely that others will come by by chance.
Insurance
A valid abroad accident and / or health insurance saves you in case of the case a lot of grief and worries. In the humid, tropical climate of Thailand even grazes have to be professionally treated and treated. The risk of infection here is blatantly higher than in our home countries and you risk life and limb if you take injuries lightly.
A foreign health insurance is not expensive! Our recommendation: Reiserversicherung the alliance.
And if something happens: What to do in case of accident, injury or illness
A word at the end
Please do not stop now to explore the island by bike, which is the nicest thing you can do on Koh Phangan. Drive carefully and with foresight, always think for the others too, adjust your speed and take a taxi if you have drunk or feel insecure at night.
In any case, very good tips that every visitor should follow! Right now you can see too many accidents.
I would also mention here that you should also watch out for dogs on the side of the road that suddenly run onto the street. Unfortunately, I also had a collision with a dog (luckily at a not too fast pace), which suddenly - instinctively controlled - ran across the street to other dogs. Unfortunately, no quick reaction helps. So it's best to slow down a bit and always pay attention to the behavior ...
Regards
Marcel