Limousine Sightseeing Tours are they worth it and who are they for?

Limousine Sightseeing Tours are they worth it and who are they for?

What is a Limousine Sightseeing Tour?

There are many companies offering limousine sightseeing tours to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and to Kanchanaburi’s world famous sites, the Tiger Temple, the Bridge over the River Kwai, Hellfire Pass and the Death Railway. But what is a limousine tour. The first impression we get when we here the description limousine tours is a peaked capped chauffer dressed in a uniform chauffeuring us all over Bangkok’s neighboring provinces in a stretched limousine with a mini-bar stocked with champagne.

But actually a limousine tour is more of a private tour in a prestige car for example a new Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord with plenty of leg room, picking you up from your hotel and taking you around the usual sightseeing spots in Central Thailand at your own pace. Allowing you as much time as you need without having to neither wait for nor be rushed along by the usual tour group made up of hung over beer louts and un-bathed Khaosan Road travelers, complaining because 20 baht noodles cost 40 baht in a tourist area.

Who are Limousine Sightseeing Tours For?

The targeted market for limousine sightseeing tours is the un-budgeted tourist who for them comfort is priority. They are very popular with the following types of people:

• Honeymooners who cannot be separated from the hip.
• Families who would like to sit together in a luxury vehicle rather than be split up and cramped into a second class minivan.
• Business travelers who have some private time to spare to see the sites while they are here for a conference and the like.
• The retiree who wants a unique first class sightseeing tour experience.

What are the Benefits of Going on a Limousine Tour?

Unless you book a tour with a company that operates in the Sukhumvit area of Bangkok then it is unlikely that you are going to get picked up from your desired pick up point, however if you book a limousine tour then you will be picked up wherever you want to be picked up whether on Sukhumvit or not. Another great benefit as was mentioned earlier is the fact that that these are private tours and move to the beat of your own drum giving you as much time as you need in each place as long as it doesn’t conflict with the basic schedule.

Are these Limousine Tours Free from Scams?

The answer is a simple yes. You get what you pay for and what your paying for with these tours is a secure , safe, luxurious and comfortable private tour with your own private driver and because of the price that you pay on these tours you are well taken care of any scam merchants on the prowl are steered quickly away. Another factor is that most companies that run these kinds of tours are western companies so setting their customers up for a scam doesn’t even come into it.

What about Limousine Tours for Larger Private Tour Groups?

Larger tour groups of four or more passengers with companies such as Tiger Temple Thailand get a luxury very spacious, leather seated minibus which can sit up to fifteen passengers and the more the passengers the less expensive the tour is.

Can I Book a Limousine Tour Online?

Limousine tours can be booked online and should be booked in advance as they getting more and more popular even in today’s economic climate. It’s recommended that you book this type of tour a few months in advance; however some companies will push the boat out to try and free a car for a last minute booking.

The Tiger Temple Kanchanaburi Thailand

The Tiger Temple Kanchanaburi Thailand

History of the Tiger Temple

Abbot Pra Ajarn Phusit has been taking care of the abandoned Tigers and other animals in Kanchanaburi's famous Tiger Temple since 1999, when he found some abandoned tiger cubs in the province’s nearby forest, and brought them to the temple to take care of them.

Pra Ajarn (meaning monk teacher or head monk in Thai) is a kind, inspirational man who doesn’t mind posing for the tourists’ cameras and it’s easy to see how closely bonded he and the tigers are with the way they respond so lovingly to him.

The First Visitors to the Sanctuary

During the first few years of the animals being there, the monastery was very low key the monks being the tigers only handlers and the occasional tourist or expat making a visit and roaming round the grounds and taking photos of the tigers and other wildlife at their own risk.

Recent Development

Lately with the visits to the temple being more structured and more carefully supervised and with animal conservation volunteers getting involved the tours have become a lot safer for visitors and also popular and more commercialized.

In 2008 world renowned animal trainer Jachinthe Bouchar visited the monastery for her second time spending 2 and a half weeks there, teaching staff animal training techniques. A planned new animal enclosure will be used for training clubs to fend for themselves, giving them the necessary skills to survive in the wild.

Tiger Temple Tours

There are several different scheduled tours for temple from a full day tours where you arrive at the temple at 7’o clock in the morning and have breakfast with the monks to half day tours where tourists arrive at around 3 p.m. just in time to see the adult tigers being walked down to a rock canyon which they use as their playground. Visitors are advised to walk behind the tigers.

Touching the Tigers

Visitors on the Tiger Temple Tours can walk amongst the tigers once they are in the canyon and have their photographs with them (you will see a lot of these photographs on the web). The tigers do seem to be unnaturally docile, however one should remember that tigers are ‘big cats’ and being so are nocturnal animals so they sleep through half of the day.

One unwelcome question that pops up from time to time is ‘are the animals drugged’ and the answer is undoubtedly no! The foundation’s website http://www.tigertemple.org/Eng/ has all the information you need to know about the tiger temple and will answer uncomfortable questions and will clear your conscience before you book your trip.

Tiger Temple Tour Companies

There are many companies offering Tiger Temple Tours on the internet, some cheap and some relatively expensive. However before you decide which company you would like to go with it is very important that you first check the company’s reputation and in this type of tours management is very important. One company that we know of is Asia Tours Center Ltd which is a western company with western agents who together with their website www.thailandtourcenter.com is very informative. Other websites that run tours to the tiger temple in Kanchanaburi are www.tigertemplethailand.com and www.hellfirepass.com .

The Budget Travelers Approach to Sightseeing in Thailand

The Budget Travelers Approach to Sightseeing in Thailand

The most popular way of sightseeing and traveling in Thailand is the budget travelers approach, the budget traveler travels through Thailand as cheap and as fast as possible. He gets to see as many places as possible in as least time possible buying cheap sightseeing tickets and not reaping the benefits of a quality trip.

The Budget Travelers Mission

The budget traveler knows exactly what he wants to do and that’s make his money stretch further to make his travels last as long as possible, he usually comes here on a 3-12 months return ticket or on a round-the-world trip and his goal is to get to see as many famous places as possible so he can get back home and tell his friends, that he’s “Been there! Done that! And bought the t-shirt!”

Khaosan Road

However! The budget traveler’s first destination is the commercial backpacker area of Khaosan Road Bangkok and that’s where the vultures and cheap fly-by-night travel agents are waiting for him. On Khaosan Road he can pick up a 3 in 1 day tour for less than a grand which will take him to the world famous Damnoen Saduak floating market, the Bridge over the River Kwai and the Kanchanaburi Tiger Temple in 1 single day.

3 in 1 Day Tours

1 Single day! Is that really enough? An 8 o’clock start from Khaosan Road on an hour and a half long journey to Damnoen Saduak floating market takes him to 10.30 am he then firsts gets tempted into buying things he doesn’t want in a tourist trap for 30 minutes and then a 30 minute boat ride before he even gets to the market and then lingers around for an hour eating or looking at fruit and vegetables before his next connection which takes him on a 2 and a half hours journey ride over to Kanchanaburi where he realizes that he his day is nearly over and he has another two or three venues to get to.

Not a Good Day Out After All

The budget travelers way of thumb is definitely cheap and fast for sure, but it leaves you with a sour taste in your mouth, and thinking “Is this all there is to it?” and “Are Thai people just after taking me for a cheap ride?” and cramped in a cheap and small minivan with no leg room for 6 hours can do that to a person.

Western Tour Companies in Thailand

Arguably the best way to see the Kingdom of Thailand with its many historical sites and beautiful provinces is to plan your trip from the start and preferably book a private trip with a reputable company preferably a western managed tour company, and there are a few about. The benefits of travelling with one of these companies are priceless, you get to spend quality time in the best places with the best service and travel there in comfort and style in transport that was designed for the length of western legs. Other benefits are that you’re not waiting around for people on a morning or at the tour destinations and therefore not getting worked up over wasting valuable time.

When sightseeing in Thailand we also recommend a maximum of 2 destinations in 1 day or three if they are close by. Two western run company that we recommend are www.tigertemplethailand.com and www.hellfirepass.com who are very well managed with excellent modes of transport and great trip schedules.