Thailand and poker

1stimpressions

I was thinking of moving to thailand in the new year for an indefinite time but roughly one year. Anyone played poker (online) in thailand. What are the major things to know about it, legality/broadband etc..
I know google is my friend and i have been doing a lot of research but i would like to here from someone who has experience and it would be much appreciated.

Grafter

Ianmc38 is yerman

sickpuppy

There is a mega thread on 2plus2 dunno how to link it but IanMc has live din many parts of Asia the last few years sign up for rake back at his site rakeback ftw and he may ship soem advice your way:pac:

ianmc38

What part of Thailand are you planning on living in? Gambling is illegal in Thailand except for horse racing and some state run lottery (thats afair). If you ever tell a Thai person what you do they will think you are in the Mafia, so usually best to keep it to yourself.

That said its easy to play poker and all the poker rooms allow players to login from that country. One small problem when I was there is that Neteller was not available to people living in the country, so make sure you have some other form of access to your funds.

With regards Broadband, again this is going to vary hugely. The main areas like Bangkok and Phuket are going to be the most reliable though outages are still common in both areas. If you go to the islands, the best bet is to use an internet cafe.

if you have any specific questions, let me know

1stimpressions

Thanks very much for the info. I figured its going to be Bangkok for broadband reliability alone but down south in Phuket would be cheaper to live i gather.

The neteller thing surprised me but i use MB so that should be ok.

The funny thing is i really dont mind where it is so any recommendation in particular where to live would be considered i.e what part of Bangkok/Phuket etc.

ianmc38

I prefer Bangkok for nightlife and general living as there is more diversity. Sukhumvit is the area where most expats live inc the poker players. If you post on 2+2, you'll find a lot of players there whoa re living in Bkk.

If you're looking for somewhere a bit more relaxed with beaches etc, then Phuket is probably a better option.

DeadMoney

ianmc38 wrote: »

If you're looking for somewhere a bit more relaxed with beaches etc, then Phuket is probably a better option.

I'd honestly pick Phuket last as a place to live in Thailand as I feel there are way nicer islands to live on. Phuket is just too heavily invaded by tourists and if you are looking to 'get away from it all' I don't think this would be the best place. Northern Thailand has some amazing scenic towns also and is very different again from down south. If I was going to move out there I would definitely live in Cambodia before Thailand. Both amazing countries but Cambodia definitely won my heart more plus it is far cheaper to live. Actually I'd say Bangkok would be really cool to live in also but some people hate it. It depends if you are a big city person I guess. When I was there last summer the idea of living there and playing poker entered my head as you could have a great quality of life making what is considered as a very small poker income here. If I did live out there I think I would have to do something a bit more active tho such as teaching english. Poker is certainly a good way to get around though. Enjoy your time away.

The Snapper

The best of luck with it, I'm green with envy.

Two good threads on 2p2

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/102/marketplace/more-rooms-rent-baller-house-bangkok-thailand-poker-house-temp-price-drop-491072/

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/102/marketplace/rooms-rent-baller-house-bangkok-thailand-399218/

1stimpressions

DeadMoney wrote: »

I'd honestly pick Phuket last as a place to live in Thailand as I feel there are way nicer islands to live on. Phuket is just too heavily invaded by tourists and if you are looking to 'get away from it all' I don't think this would be the best place. Northern Thailand has some amazing scenic towns also and is very different again from down south. If I was going to move out there I would definitely live in Cambodia before Thailand. Both amazing countries but Cambodia definitely won my heart more plus it is far cheaper to live. Actually I'd say Bangkok would be really cool to live in also but some people hate it. It depends if you are a big city person I guess. When I was there last summer the idea of living there and playing poker entered my head as you could have a great quality of life making what is considered as a very small poker income here. If I did live out there I think I would have to do something a bit more active tho such as teaching english. Poker is certainly a good way to get around though. Enjoy your time away.

Yes i have thought about breaking up the grind with teaching English as i have a degree in a related field, if only for the social aspect.

Would Phnom Penh be as cosmopolitan as Bangkok with equivalent infrastructure. Also leaving Thailand every 90 days might get annoying. (ah then again a couple of excuses for holidays).

DeadMoney

1stimpressions wrote: »

Yes i have thought about breaking up the grind with teaching English as i have a degree in a related field, if only for the social aspect.

Would Phnom Penh be as cosmopolitan as Bangkok with equivalent infrastructure. Also leaving Thailand every 90 days might get annoying. (ah then again a couple of excuses for holidays).

Yeah I think for the social aspect alone teaching is a great route to go down. Even working in a bar or something a few nights can be great for meeting friends. To be honest I don't know too much about Phnom Penh as I only spent a week there and I was staying with all the hippy back packers down on the lake side. It is a very build up city however and there seems to be a big enough expat scene. I preferred Sam Reap to Phnom Penh and is a lot smaller too. Sihanoukville Province is amazing too. Only spent 2 weeks in Cambodia at the end of my trip so didn't really get to travel much but I definitely want to return there and see more of the country. If you don't move there I would certainly recommend visiting it. As for finding out info I think you would get way more feedback on your questions if you look here.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=925

Best of luck!

jpr1973

I did a two month stay in bangkok 18 months ago on the way back from oz and brought the laptop with me so I could make 50 squids a day playing poker which would be a very nice daily budget in thailand. However the problems I encountered were

1. didn’t have an apartment but stayed in middle of the range hotels with wifi access and found them to be an absolute joke every where I went unless you played from 4am to 7am when everyone was asleep. Countless times I was all in with the nuts and the connection died on me. I ruled hotel wifi out after that, plus kinda surprised I didn’t break the laptop in anger I was so tilted.

2. I ruled internet cafes out as I was paranoid some poor thai person would dob me into the cops for a few quid as I couldnt find a place where I could play privately with the monitor to the wall (except for Phuket actually which had a really good connection but that place would wireck your head after a week)

Your best bet is to get an apartment and organise a LAN connection as its more secure and faster than wifi. I believe some apartments down there will hook up the broadband for an extra few dollars a month. I remember looking into getting a short term apartment but they were a bit out of my budget at the time plus I knew I would only be there for 2 months and it wasn’t worth the hassle for that short a period.

On the way to oz I stopped in vietnam for a month and I used to play in the internet cafes there. I used to have the locals looking over my shoulder fascinated wanting to know how much money I could win and actually one fella told me he knew someone from europe who was living in vietnam who would ring up his friend back in europe and play at the same cash table cheating. He didn’t know which site though.

I would defo think of heading to vietnam to play as they also allow betfair through(not allowed in thailand) so I was able to do some sports betting as well, plus if your after some teaching work, there is loads going down there and it may be easier to get a visa and not have to come in and out of the country every 30 days like in thailand.

I thought the internet connections in Cambodia and Laos were pretty bad to be honest but again maybe if you paid more you could get some good connections.
Some craic down there though so you should defo go and do it and get out of this sh1t hole while ya can..

Mullicker

I am also planning on doing this, i've got a couple of friends in oz and i am going to spend some time in thailand before heading to oz, at least 3 months. I hope to be heading sometime in January. Was thinking about Chiang Mai, its much cheaper and i don't know if i could handle a big city like bangkok for a long term stay.


Something like this is what i was considering:
http://www.houseinchiangmai.net/condo/rent/Studio-with-Pool-View-Hillside-4/C217.aspx

10k baht pm = €200 pm for rent, and according the guys on 2+2 you can negotiate better deals directly than through online agencies.

THEIRISHMOB

I'm currently in Bangkok running a poker club. If you plan to stay a year try 6months in Bkk and if you don't like it then head for Phuket. But the reason I prefer Bkk is there is so much more to do here and if you need a break its only a few hours on a train/bus and your at the beach. Only problem is Visa to stay here. Try and sort out someone to share a apartment with for 6months before you arrive. should get something nice for 600 a month. can live a very good life here cheap unless you want fine wine and 5star meals. everything else is SO cheap. you can play any sites you want as long as you got your banking sorted out. Pm me if you need any info.
Ian

www.thailandpokernights.com

cokedrinker

GRINDHOUSE!?!?! Im thinking of heading early in the new year also. Thailand is lethal, can't wait to get back there for a prolonged stay! I was only there 2 weeks last year and didnt get to do too much in that time

Mullicker

To THEIRISHMOB

Would $1000 a month be enough for food+rent+bills+nights(2-3 nights pw) in BKK?

shoutman

Was in Thailand during the summer, BKK is nice, Phuket is to be avoided imo, way nicer places such as Koh Phi Phi.
It really is dirt cheap and the street food is very decent.


Enjoy.

ianmc38

DeadMoney wrote: »

I'd honestly pick Phuket last as a place to live in Thailand as I feel there are way nicer islands to live on. Phuket is just too heavily invaded by tourists and if you are looking to 'get away from it all' I don't think this would be the best place. Northern Thailand has some amazing scenic towns also and is very different again from down south. If I was going to move out there I would definitely live in Cambodia before Thailand. Both amazing countries but Cambodia definitely won my heart more plus it is far cheaper to live. Actually I'd say Bangkok would be really cool to live in also but some people hate it. It depends if you are a big city person I guess. When I was there last summer the idea of living there and playing poker entered my head as you could have a great quality of life making what is considered as a very small poker income here. If I did live out there I think I would have to do something a bit more active tho such as teaching english. Poker is certainly a good way to get around though. Enjoy your time away.

Everywhere in Thailand these days is overpopulated by tourists. Phuket is a good choice because of it's infrastructure. Living in the islands is great, but it will be extremely difficult to get reliable internet connection setup in most of them, where as Phuket is extremely easy.

ianmc38

shoutman wrote: »

Was in Thailand during the summer, BKK is nice, Phuket is to be avoided imo, way nicer places such as Koh Phi Phi.
It really is dirt cheap and the street food is very decent.


Enjoy.

Good god. Phi Phi is one of the most miserable places on the planet. I cant imagine a worse place to go in Thailand. It's also tiny, has little to no expats living there and on both occasions I visited, was full to the brim of the same moronic crowds. I actually dont know one person who enjoyed Phi Phi.

Im interested to know how much of Phuket everybody here has seen. Im guessing everyone went to the main strip and that was it. Phuket is huge and there is a lot more happening than the main strip. I lived there for the best part of 2 summers in a friends house and it's a great place with loads of stuff to do when you know where to go. Having a car is essential though.

shoutman

ianmc38 wrote: »

Good god. Phi Phi is one of the most miserable places on the planet. I cant imagine a worse place to go in Thailand. It's also tiny, has little to no expats living there and on both occasions I visited, was full to the brim of the same moronic crowds. I actually dont know one person who enjoyed Phi Phi.

Phi Phi was definitely my favourite place, could of just been cause of the activities (Diving/rock climbing)

As opposed to Phuket which was mostly populated by sex tourists, that said, i'm sure there are the nicer parts of the island, but I met countless numbers of travelers who also hated Phuket.

dvdfan

Mullicker wrote: »

To THEIRISHMOB

Would $1000 a month be enough for food+rent+bills+nights(2-3 nights pw) in BKK?

Depends on what you call living, you can probably get a room with no air conditioning for less than 100 a month, alot less probably but youd go nuts without the air conditioning.

When i stayed in chang mai you could get a nice meal for €2-3 less if you eat at the street stalls which can have excellent food btw. Beer wasnt much more than €1 in most places, but if you visit the touristy places like Irish Bars or bars geared towards tourists you could pay 3-4 times that. Transport is cheap too, IIRC it was only about 40 baht (less than €1) for a tuk tuk into town and that was 3-5mins away, you could rent a bike fairly cheap but id take out life insurance first.:p

Bangkok id say you can add on 60-80% onto the above prices but i couldnt stay longer than 2 days in Bankgok without feeling closterphobic, its noisy, smelly and hectic. Saying that there is plenty to do and maybe i just dont like city living. Chiang Mai is very laid back, plenty to do there, fresh air comapred with bankok smog only downside is theres no beaches, as i said been a couple of years so prices may have increased but id say youd struggle with $1000 a month if you like a bit of partying or spoiling yourself

ianmc38

shoutman wrote: »

Phi Phi was definitely my favourite place, could of just been cause of the activities (Diving/rock climbing)

As opposed to Phuket which was mostly populated by sex tourists, that said, i'm sure there are the nicer parts of the island, but I met countless numbers of travelers who also hated Phuket.

Apaches and that other bar, Hippies or something more like IMO!

1stimpressions

cokedrinker wrote: »

GRINDHOUSE!?!?! Im thinking of heading early in the new year also. Thailand is lethal, can't wait to get back there for a prolonged stay! I was only there 2 weeks last year and didnt get to do too much in that time

Maybe thats not the worst idea! The value of a few people pooling the internet to have a double back up would be worth it, as the have done in the house posted above from 2+2.

Lao Lao

ianmc38 wrote: »

Good god. Phi Phi is one of the most miserable places on the planet. I cant imagine a worse place to go in Thailand. It's also tiny, has little to no expats living there and on both occasions I visited, was full to the brim of the same moronic crowds. I actually dont know one person who enjoyed Phi Phi.

When were you on Phi Phi? I was there in 2002 and it was my second favourite place in Asia (1st was Hoi An in Vietnam) I know the sunami pretty much wiped the island out, so maybe it never got back to the way it was, but back in 2002, it was such an amazing place.

Don't really know why you would be giving out about little to no expats. When I go to a foreign country, the last thing I want to see is loads of Irish and English people

jbravado

Yeah wild horses wouldnt drag me back to Phi Phi-spoilt beyond reprieve. If you were doing this Id much prefer to stay in Vietnam or if I was going to stay in Thailand Id stay in Bangkok which is a pretty amazing city if you dig a little deeper.

Mullicker

Started vaccinations today. Doctor recommended the following:

Tetnis, Diphtheria, polio (1 shot)
Typhoid (1 shot)
Hep A & B (3 shots)

Came to €215.

sickpuppy

Mullicker wrote: »

Started vaccinations today. Doctor recommended the following:

Tetnis, Diphtheria, polio (1 shot)
Typhoid (1 shot)
Hep A & B (3 shots)

Came to €215.

He reccomended all them cos hes getting a nice price for them:pac:

jimbling

I love thailand and this is something I've strongly considered before. I reckon I could make enough each month to pay my mortgage here and live comfortably over there.

I would imagine that your best bet is to get a good location in a heavily populated area (due to infrastructure requirements) and then head off to the other, more beautiful locations in your spare time.
The great thing about poker is that you can play for a week then feck off down to the islands for a week. Or even do it month by month. If you have a good month you could take a few months off etc etc.

So, Bangkok is the obvious choice. I hated Phuket as well, but as Ian pointed out I was one of those people that got in, stayed one day and night then left again. It just disturbed me. I probably should have given it more of a chance, but every one of us felt the same and there are so many other places to see.


I'd probably do a dive masters course as well while over there.... feck, would love it...... almost hoping for my company to go bust :rolleyes:

Mullicker

He reccomended all them cos hes getting a nice price for them

Ya i thought the hep A and B ones were only ones necessary but better safe than sorry.

jpr1973

I think you may have got ripped off for the vacinations. Same happened to me when I got them. I went to the usit office on the quays in town for them, but then I heard theres a medical clinic on carysfort avenue in blackrock which does it for nearly half price..

Iago

So can anybody give a reasonable real-life insight into what's required in €'s per month for a comfortable living in either Thailand or Vietnam?? (will read the 2+2 threads later as they're blocked in work)

I'm considering taking an extended (possibly 1year+) break in one of the two and I'm trying to figure out what i'll need. Would ideally like a decent broadband and cable tv service where I'm staying although it may be too much to ask

Mullicker

$1500 a month sounds like a pretty good number from what i have read on 2+2, depends on where you want to live and how much you want to live it up. You could get by with a lot less. $1000 seems like the minimum.

RasTa

Sure about that? I wouldn't spend that in Ireland.

1stimpressions

Iago wrote: »

So can anybody give a reasonable real-life insight into what's required in €'s per month for a comfortable living in either Thailand or Vietnam?? (will read the 2+2 threads later as they're blocked in work)

I'm considering taking an extended (possibly 1year+) break in one of the two and I'm trying to figure out what i'll need. Would ideally like a decent broadband and cable tv service where I'm staying although it may be too much to ask

From the research ive done. $1000 is definately doable. The average wage is like $450 a month so work up from there. From the forums ive seen some westerners make do with that alone! The western-type area of bangkok rents start at E150 a month. If you want decent cable and internet and most likely a shared pool and gym its can be had from E200. These are internet prices from sales agents so actually doing a deal out there is quite possible to get a better deal. (This is my own plan as renting a hotel room for a week or so will be pretty cheap.) Now this is bangkok and from as far as i can see this is the highest cost of living in thailand and probably Vietnam too.

If you plan on getting ****faced 5nights a week, constantly eating in the dearest restaurants, or want to live in a mansion then that will obv. cost you more. It depends on your general kevel of degeneracy.

craigb

im planning on living off 2.5keu for 3 months in phuket but thats with acc covered and also stickin to strict diet due to training... i fly out sunday at 4pm:D:D:D back in time for the io:)

jpr1973

I spent nearly 7k eur in 3 months travelling asia but that includes everything including losing /replacing cameras and phones a few times and drinking two days on/two days off for the 3 month duration. If you go on a proper irish style drinking session over two days you will end up spending about 160 euro, more depending on what city your in, vietiene cheaper than bankok, bangkok cheaper than kuala lumpar etc.

spectre

Damnit, I'm so tempted to feck off back to Bangkok and live it up on the backs of the online small stakes donators.

latenia

As others have said, the broadband in hotels is tilt inducing. My best piece of advice is to not play at all for several weeks after you get there-even going as far as using the self-exclusion feature on sites to make sure you're not tempted. Get the acclimatisation, time zone and crazy benders out of the way first and get yourself settled into a routine.

1stimpressions

Just a thinly veiled ... update. I convinced a couple of mates along so heading to Bangkok for at least 3months, hopefully much longer.

The visa takes a few working days from the consulate in Dublin.

The vaccines i got costed E170 all-in. I used the TMB.ie who specialise in vaccinations and had the vaccines on site around the country. Recommended. I plan on hotelling it to start and have a place after a week or so. Anyone in the area can buzz me here if they want and il try to give some info on living in Thailand.
Il be arriving on the 20th of January.

Thanks for the info in this thread and any more would be much appreciated. gg Ireland.

dK1NG

shoutman wrote: »

Was in Thailand during the summer, BKK is nice, Phuket is to be avoided imo, way nicer places such as Koh Phi Phi.
It really is dirt cheap and the street food is very decent.


Enjoy.

Gotta disagree with IanMc - Phi Phi was one of my fav spots. Was there in 2004 (3 wks before Tsunami hit it), although admittedly it was a backpacking holiday. I dont think it would be a good spot to set up house, but for a visit for a week or two you cant go wrong imo!


Doing English teaching, or some other job, would also be a great idea as s/o suggested above! Best of luck with it!

Mullicker

Heading tuesday, can't wait:D. I don't think i'll be staying long term in bangkok though, only booked 5 days in a hotel to start, probably head down to Phuket for a week and then to Chiang Mai, thinking of staying in Chiang Mai long term but won't decide for definate until i have seen each place. GL in Bkk.

The Snapper

Gl guys and keep us updated

RoopeHattu

Hi guys! I've been in Bangkok for 6 days now. Internet connection has worked here perfectly so if you want to play poker here I would recommend Sourire@Rattanakosin Island.

I'm planning to go to the islands on Sunday. Koh Phi Phi interest me most. Please tell me how can I play poker there. I really don't want to stay in Phuket

latenia

I don't know about Phi Phi but on other islands you'll be using satellite internet which is almost unworkable in terms of reliability and cost.

1stimpressions

So im three months in Thailand. Ya that playing poker went out the window for a few months as i saw the country but im grinding away the last few weeks.

Bangkok is an amazing city to live in and because of the cost and ease of transport to the rest of the country (flying) id say it would be an ideal place to base yourself for most people. If you must live near a beach then that is different. Chaing Mai is far more relaxed and certainly cheaper than Bangkok. I spent only a week there but it made a nice impression. Phuket or possibly Samuai are your only options if you want GOOD internet connections long term. Transport is not cheap on Phuket because of a cartel so a mode of transport would be a must in the long term. Whereas in Bangkok taxis are extremely plentiful and extremely cheap. Im also living near the cleanest subway ive ever seen in the world and a skytrain which are both efficient.

There really is an amazing amount of stuff going on in this country. If you are interested check out the 2 + 2 forums. There must be hundreds on that site alone living here.

Im going to stay at least another three months so if anyone wants any up to date info i will do my best to help them through PM or here.

Mullicker

Been here 4 months, i'm in chiang mai, love it here, but will be movin on to oz soon. Chiang mai is cheap, my apartment is really really f nice, and for roughly 200 euros a month, i have a scooter for getting about, for about 80 euro a month, after that have electricity and water charges, which is depends mostly on the amount of aircon around 1000 baht on avg, spend about 300euros a month on food, eating out a ton. After this it depends on how much you like to spend on yourself, entertainment and shopping and doing tourist stuff. 40 euro a month internet. I trained at muay thai gym once a day 5days a week for 80 euro a month, done this for 2 months, but gave it up because i wasn't playing much poker when doing this.

I'd say you would want 1k euro a month here at least. The idea of living here is to get more living for your money. You could get away with less staying in cheaper apartments, eating exclusively thai food or cooking for yourself, going out once a week etc. Sorry for my costings in mix of thai baht and euros, also the exchange rate has gone from 1euro=45baht, to 1euro=40baht since i've been here.

1stimpressions

Mullicker wrote: »

Been here 4 months, i'm in chiang mai, love it here, but will be movin on to oz soon. Chiang mai is cheap, my apartment is really really f nice, and for roughly 200 euros a month, i have a scooter for getting about, for about 80 euro a month, after that have electricity and water charges, which is depends mostly on the amount of aircon around 1000 baht on avg, spend about 300euros a month on food, eating out a ton. After this it depends on how much you like to spend on yourself, entertainment and shopping and doing tourist stuff. 40 euro a month internet. I trained at muay thai gym once a day 5days a week for 80 euro a month, done this for 2 months, but gave it up because i wasn't playing much poker when doing this.

I'd say you would want 1k euro a month here at least. The idea of living here is to get more living for your money. You could get away with less staying in cheaper apartments, eating exclusively thai food or cooking for yourself, going out once a week etc. Sorry for my costings in mix of thai baht and euros, also the exchange rate has gone from 1euro=45baht, to 1euro=40baht since i've been here.

I got almost 49 baht for the euro the day i arrived i think! Just over 40 today. Thats a big swing! its not the strength of the baht as such but the euro that is diving. Wish i changed a lot of money in January Ya the money still goes pretty far though. Quality of life is pretty good when compared to Irish costs of living.

Royal Irish

The strength of the Baht is mostly due to the trouble in Greece and the eurozone in general. I would expect the Baht to lose some strength against the Euro come june/july as thats the second rice harvest of the year, the last one being in January. It usually lowers to help rice exports as rice its Thailands biggest physical export. If you look over the years the Baht usually goes in a W shape with High season for tourists and rice exports.

Hopefully I will be able to catch the tail end of my expected good rates come september as I will be in Bangkok for 2 weeks.

I also heard a rumour that the Thai central bank were keeping the Baht high to add extra cost to Thaksin pumping money into the country for the red shirts. I dont buy into that at all.

5Aces

what is the weather like june-august in Bangkok?

Royal Irish

Not too hot, but expect alot of rain.