Stay alert and guard those hands! This is all too good to be true — is Lady Luck finally shining her face upon you? Photo via Richard Barrow in Thailand When it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Some people have even been locked inside the shops until they cough up money to buy things! This scam is carried out in a pretty ingenious way — did you know that there are separate entrances for Thais and tourists at the Grand Palace?
The touts hanging around the area trick tourists into going through the door for locals, and when the guards stop you in Thai , they lie to you that the palace is closed. Take note of the official operating hours for all the major tourist attractions that you are planning on visiting MBK, Khao San Road, etc.
The Grand Palace is open from am to pm daily. While it is true that the palace is sometimes closed due to a royal procession, please check with a guard or official in that case. The gem scam This scam is somewhat of an extension of the previous one, and actually sounds like it could be part of an espionage drama.
You could resell those gems in your country for a huge profit — or so he says. How to avoid this: Refer to Scam No. Be realistic. If there really was such a great money-making opportunity available, why would Temple Guy share it with a complete stranger that he met at a temple?
Also, no, there are no government-operated jewellery stores that open specially for tourists. Meters can actually be modified to jump at a faster rate than regular ones 2Baht per m , or start at a higher rate than the usual 35 Baht! This may sound like an exaggerated conspiracy theory, but taxi and Tuk Tuk drivers often work in cahoots with local businesses hotels, restaurants and gem shops, as you already know to cheat you of your money.
