Renting Motorbikes in Thailand

MilkyJoe

Hello everyone,

I am planning a trip to Thailand this December and was hoping to rent a Motorbike to do the Mae Hong Son Loop at some stage.
My problem however is that my Irish driving license only covers me to drive a car and I was wondering if this will be a problem over there.

I am finding it quite difficult to get any sort of information about this matter so any help would be much appreciated!

Whitehawk

when you rent over there all they will want to see is passport, they will also want to hold on to your passport while you are renting the bikes so you bring them back to them, after that i have never heard of someone been asked for anything else. - if worst comes to worst just buy em and then sell em back to someone at the end of trip!

tuff1

They're very lax about driving licences in Thailand. When we were renting a jeep on Koh Samui I told the woman in the rental place that I had a full
Irish licence (which is true) but didn't have it with me and I asked her was this a problem. She said it wasn't and if any of my friends wanted a go at driving then it was grand! Be warned though, if you damage the vehicle then you will pay through the nose for it.

MilkyJoe

Excellent, thats exactly what I wanted to hear! Yeah, from what I gathered already they do seem very lax about renting vehicles in general.

I have also been assured that the policing of driving licenses is quite different but I will cross that bridge when I come to it...

Whitehawk

you know you get try get a International Driving Permit from the AA as its an other price of paper to throw at them, its easy to get in a AA office.
btw sry for the bold it wornt turn off!!!

Ideo

Don't want to spoil the party but I think its a REALLY bad idea renting bikes in thailand. Some of the roads can be really bad and if you havent even got an irish drivers licence then your bike driving mightn't be up to scratch. Also, if you're involved in a crash im nearly certain your insurance wont cover you so you'l be pretty ****d. Seriously, I'd really think twice about it

MilkyJoe

Yeah, I was planning on getting an international license too just to be sure.

Ideo, yes insurance cover is the other problem I would have. The odds are stacked against me it seems! On the other hand it seems to me that hundreds of people rent motorcycles without licenses over there annually.

I suppose the best thing to do would be to wait until I get out there and then decide. If I can afford it I would go ahead and rent a car but they are quite pricey in comparison and not as much fun. And if I could, I would sit the motorbike test here before leaving but I don't think I would have enough time to do that.

killbillvol2

I did the Mae Hong Son loop in a car - it was pretty tiring. It would be madness on a bike. A lot of climbing, miles and miles of hairpin bends, slow moving trucks and regular p1ssing rain. That said, it's an interesting trip.

You should be able to rent a car for about €25 a day. Forget about the bike option unless you're a masochist (or have a death wish).

MilkyJoe

killbillvol2 wrote: »

I did the Mae Hong Son loop in a car - it was pretty tiring. It would be madness on a bike. A lot of climbing, miles and miles of hairpin bends, slow moving trucks and regular p1ssing rain. That said, it's an interesting trip.

You should be able to rent a car for about €25 a day. Forget about the bike option unless you're a masochist (or have a death wish).

Fair enough! Actually out of interest did you have an international driving licence with you when you done it?

killbillvol2

MilkyJoe wrote: »

Fair enough! Actually out of interest did you have an international driving licence with you when you done it?

I think so, but couldn't swear to it.

beagle001

Milkyjoe,
I have done this lop sveral times on a bike and you are in for a treat,amazing scenery and in December the weather will be great for a trip.
I rent of an English lad,his name is Tony and he has English mechanics.The bikes are looked after and if you have a problem they wil drive up and fix it or offer a replacement bike,happened to my mates bike.
His shop is Tony`s Big Bikes,gogle it and you might get a number as in peak season a lot of his bikes get boked up.
He wont hassle you for a license but if you are taking a big bike,its a challenging route but well worth.
I would recommend anything from a 600 up as the 400`s struggle a bit with the hills and if you have a pillion passenger its no harm to go a little higher.
Great spots to stop off and rest on the way,he has proper lids as well and would take your big backpack off you and put it in storage for your safety,provides bungy cords and will tune the bike before you head off.
I have to disagree with an earlier post the roads up that way are fantastic,if you do the full loop you power along amazing highways with long stretches perfect to open it up a bit.
ust be careful of buses and trucks really but if you tip along at a good pace they should not bother you
I wish I could do it again as it is so much fun,best of luck

killbillvol2

beagle001 wrote: »

Milkyjoe,
I have done this lop sveral times on a bike and you are in for a treat,amazing scenery and in December the weather will be great for a trip.
I rent of an English lad,his name is Tony and he has English mechanics.The bikes are looked after and if you have a problem they wil drive up and fix it or offer a replacement bike,happened to my mates bike.
His shop is Tony`s Big Bikes,gogle it and you might get a number as in peak season a lot of his bikes get boked up.
He wont hassle you for a license but if you are taking a big bike,its a challenging route but well worth.
I would recommend anything from a 600 up as the 400`s struggle a bit with the hills and if you have a pillion passenger its no harm to go a little higher.
Great spots to stop off and rest on the way,he has proper lids as well and would take your big backpack off you and put it in storage for your safety,provides bungy cords and will tune the bike before you head off.
I have to disagree with an earlier post the roads up that way are fantastic,if you do the full loop you power along amazing highways with long stretches perfect to open it up a bit.
ust be careful of buses and trucks really but if you tip along at a good pace they should not bother you
I wish I could do it again as it is so much fun,best of luck

I really don't think renting a 600cc bike would be a good idea for someone inexperienced on bikes. To put it mildly.

beagle001

He never said he was inexperienced,just because he does not have a license he may still be well able to ride a bike.

magentas

I had no license whatsoever when I was there and had absolutely no problem renting a bike, hadn't planned hiring one just thought it'd be fun...and it was!

however I was used to driving at home (not on roads) and my dad and brother have bikes and used to driving them so a 125 was no bother

If you have no driving experience whatsoever think carefully about driving over there for others and your own safety

IMO it makes no odds not having experience driving on irish roads before doing it in thailand cos it's completely different
If it was then it'd be a legal requirement to hold (any type) of drivers license but it's not so just use common sense and have a blast!