I hate haggling. Fortunately, in the U.S., we don’t have to do it much. Buying or selling anything second hand, or buying a new car are the exceptions that come to mind. When I was preparing for my nomadic adventures, I had to haggle a lot of the prices of items I was selling. But typically, in America, it’s not a concern. The price is the price.
Not so in Thailand. Haggling in Thailand is common, as it is in much of Southeast Asia. Depending on what part of the country you’re in, you’ll have to negotiate for the price of different products and services. The price of souvenirs, for example, should always be considered negotiable. So on a recent trip to Chiang Mai, I brushed up on my negotiating skills and gave it a go.
Tuk Tuk
One of the fastest and (potentially) cheapest ways to get around Chiang Mai is by Tuk Tuk. Also known as an Auto Rickshaw, it is essentially a three-wheeled motorized golf cart with a tiny 2-stroke engine that drives loud and smells bad. But a skilled driver will weave in and out of traffic quickly and get you where you’re going in a hurry.
While it’s possible to get a metered taxi in Chiang Mai, you’re much better off with a Tuk Tuk. As with all bargaining, it pays to know two things: how much it should cost and how much you’re willing to pay. Of course, how much it should cost is relative. In my case, I knew the trip from the airport to the hotel was 550 baht ($17 USD). The distance I was asking to be driven was about the same, a little but less but it was starting from the city center with all the traffic so I figured the total time was about the same. Good rule of thumb I’ve heard is that a Tuk Tuk ride should cost about half the price of a taxi. So that would put it at about 275 baht. With that in mind, I was ready to approach the first Tuk Tuk driver.
Now, my case was a bit unusual. Typically, you’ll use a Tuk Tuk for getting around the city center, from one temple to another. But I was going back to the resort, about 10 miles outside the city center. And these guys are old school, showing them a map on your smartphone doesn’t help them much. So I gave him the number of the resort and he talked the owner who presumably told him, make a left after the Esso station, then follow the signs for the resort.
But the distance and relative effort to find the resort put me at a disadvantage and I knew it. If you’re just going to the next temple you can get a price right away and if you’re not happy with it just talk to the next driver (they’re everywhere in the city center). So because of the distance I had to go and the hassle of waiting for every driver to call the resort, I was willing to pay a little more. The driver got off the phone and quoted a price of 300 baht, which seemed pretty close. I offered 250 but he wouldn’t take it. “Too far!” Okay, so we agreed to 300 and we were off.
Next day I had a very different experience. I had just returned from dropping off a motorbike I’d rented the day before. The shop was outside the city center a bit and not an area frequented by Tuk Tuk drivers. Most of them just sped quickly by when I tried to wave them down. So I walked to the Maya shopping center, where I knew there would be drivers waiting for tourists. I was a little suspicious when a group of drivers seemed to approach me at once. I told them where I was going, showed them the map from the resort and ultimately gave them the phone number which they called to get directions. They were taking their time, which I knew was part of their strategy, making it seem like it was harder to get to than it really was. Then one of the drivers looked at me and held one hand out flat with the other showing 3 fingers. “Eight hundred,” he said.
Because I knew what a fair price was, it was clear how badly he was trying to gouge me. I’ll admit I broke the cardinal rule of bargaining, which is to never get angry. “Eight hundred??!!” I yelled at the driver. “I paid 300 yesterday!” I get it. Thailand is a poor country and these guys don’t make much. Overcharge me a little and we’ll negotiate. But when you start at three times the price, I feel disrespected. Does this guy really think I’m that stupid?
But it wasn’t so easy to get to the next driver so I tried a little bit. Next offer was 600. I turned and walked away, which is what they tell you to do but I was actually angry at that point and was ready to leave. They called me back, I said 300 was all I was willing to pay. They talked among themselves again for a minute and then said, “five hundred.” I turned away again and started walking away when the driver finally called me back again saying, “Okay, okay. Three hundred!”
So I climbed in and he took me back to the resort. When I got out I handed him three 100 baht bills with a big smile. He smiled back. No hard feelings.
Tuk Tuk ride in Thailand.