Tips for DTVers once they’ve arrived. Long but I hope this helps somebody.

eSIM:

I use AIS. Got a “AIS LUCKY TOURIST SIM, Internet 2 Baht/MB. Call any network 1 Baht/min. VDO Call 2 Baht/ min. SMS 3 Baht. MMS 5 Baht. (VAT excluded)” and stopped by a booth at BKK and had them help me activate it. This also gives you a local Thai number.

Originally got a 30day unlimited data pkg. Don’t need a voice package because the sim allows local calls for 1B/minute. The other charges don’t really matter because it’ll use data. Didn’t see a long term unlimted data plan after my 30 days so I opted for “Net Marathon Max! 2,750 Baht (VAT included), 100GB/month Internet at 15Mbps speed. valid 12months”. Never came close to using 100gb/month and speed was plenty fast for me. 2750B for the year!

VPN:

Comes in handy. Connect to stream stuff in your home country.

QR code/scan to pay:

You need a Thai bank account for this. Which DTVers can’t get. Or…Use the TrueMoney app. Sign up then apply for the “Advanced Account”. Once approved it gives you 30 personal scans/mo free. After 30 it’s a nominal fee per scan. I’ve never gone over 30. You can easily add money to the account at 7-11 (and other not as easy places). 7-11 limits you to adding 3000B at a time but yesterday I added another 1000 right after. So not really a limit I suppose. Paying at bigger established merchants do not count to towards the 30.

You can also tie the app to Grab which makes life easier. Auto-pays for rides, food, etc. Does not count towards the 30 scans. Just make sure you have a big enough balance.

I also recommend getting their virtual credit card within the app. It’s a Thai issued credit card which comes in handy. No fee (I think) and deducts from your normal balance. Might only be an advanced account feature.

Streaming services:

As long as you have a Thai number, everything is cheaper subscribing in Thailand. (Except for Google AI Pro, what’s that all about?). Netflix was easy to tie to a credit card. Through my AIS eSIM I got a Prime Video and HBO package. That is being deducted from my AIS balance (which I top off with a credit card through the app). YouTube premium had to be charged to a Thai credit card. I used my TrueMoney virtual card. 🙂 That’s as far as I’ve gone so far.

The virtual card also came in handy when I had to pay for extra baggage on Thai Air. Over the phone they wouldn’t take a US Visa or MC. I did have to run to 7-11 and top up the balance first.

Getting around:

Bolt is usually cheaper than Grab. Grab is auto deducted from my TrueMoney. Bolt is cash but I usually scan to pay. Everyone has a QR code. Ive taken a bunch of rides from each platform. Sometimes the driver will cancel but I’ve never had any scam issues you read about.

Bangkok specific getting around:

BTS I got a “Rabbit” pass at the ticket booth and added money to it. Just tap at entry and exit. Don’t need to worry about individual tickets. Need a passport to sign up though.

MRT you can tap your credit card (even US ones) at entry and exit if it has the touchless chip.

Bus I use Google Maps to get the route. Pay attention to the bus numbers as they approach and flag down the right one. Board and the ticket taker will come to you. Show/tell them the stop and pay them. Coins and 20s here. Don’t use 50s or 100s. Hit the buzzer when your stop is approaching.

I think that’s about it for now.

How are you all making QR code pay transfers?

It increasingly looks like the DTV Visa is the way to go for me. One of the things you don't get is a bank account, so my question is, what is the benefit of a bank account?

I know that I would save some money when bringing in cash but what else?

For those with no thai bank. What is a good app to pay from the phone and not carry money with you ??

Coming across more than a few establishments that do not accept credit cards. Only PromptPay and Other Apps like that. But what ones can foreigners actually use?

What is the best app to scan and pay in Thailand ? Please share your honest experiences!

Thailand Day to Day Payments Query

Hello all. I thought having Truemoney verified for advance will be enough. I would pay everyone using QR, so much convenient that I don't have to carry cash/ change. But today I got notification from Truemoney that I have done 30 QR code transfers and a fee will be applied on more this month.

What else I can use to easily make QR code payments without worrying about limits?

Ok, you have the DTV, what about the lack of a bank account. Someone mentioned the K bank TAGthai card or ewallet. A quick look at there site basically said visit a branch of the bank with cash and deposit into your TAG. The exchange rate looked a little light on and having to carry cash for the purpose, in my mind, defeats the purpose. How have others worked this out. Cheers Wazza

I unlocked advanced features of TrueMoney using my DTV, so I can make personal QR code payments. Does anyone know if there’s a limit on the number of free payments each month?

I know there's a lot of discussion surrounding bank accounts. My friend and I both got our DTVs at the same time but the difference is that I already had a BKK Bangkok so he decided to explore Tag Thai and the experience wasn't good.

I'll share what happened in case anybody else is thinking about trying TT.

Both landed at Swampy and straight to Kasikorn booth where you can see heavy advertising for TT. "No hab". After 2 more attempts found one land side but it seems the staff really have no interest in this card and each time try to put us off using it or seemed to be just tired of people asking about it.

The booth that did have it, the lady really did not want to have anything to do with it and pleaded with another colleague to set it for my friend. Overall I find this quite strange again giving the heavy promotion.

I was about to get one as a backup in case my bank acc got frozen and had my baht ready in hand but here's the major downfall of this card. You can only load it by converting foreign currency into Thai baht at a Kasikorn booth. You cannot load it directly with THB which is totally bizarre. So basically outside major cities without a Kasikorn exchange you're screwed.

He also had huge difficulty paying and scanning as well as the app constantly crashing. Finally he withdrew the baht and binned the card. Waste of time.