Visa Run

[petercr]

Whats the best opion for Ranong visa run if you are travelling by car and intend staying for one night. I have seen the Andaman Club mentioned but if I take that option is it easy & safe to leave my car in Ranong overnight. Alternatively I could book a hotel in Ranong and day trip to Burmah.

Thanks

[Wanderlust]

petercr,
There is a large car park at the Andaman Club (Thai side) so if you were planning to spend a night at the AC then I don't think that would be any problem. Equally if you are going to spend the night in Ranong itself, whichever hotel/guesthouse should have nearby parking if not their own car park, so I'm not really sure what your concern is - you don't need to stay at the AC overnight to do the visa run, but if you want to see the bit of Burma accessible from Ranong (not the AC which is a separate island) and stay overnight there then I can't answer your question about safe parking, although I can't imagine there would be much risk parking in Ranong. From what I have seen of the town on the Burmese side you can probably see all you need to in a day trip but others may have more info as I have never spent the night over there.

[lomuamart]

I've been down there maybe 50 times and occasionally have stayed overnight.
For what it's worth, I'd say the following: The Andaman Club is a nice hotel, but apart from gambling and spending 1,600 odd Baht, I never saw the point of staying there overnight.
The Burmese town on the mainland is a mess really. OK for a few hours, but overnight? Again, I've never done that but have spoken to plenty of people who have. There's nothing to do really. Town closes about 10pm and you'll be plagued by touts/secret police all the time.
As far as a night in Ranong is concerned, I have stayed there on a few occasions. There's a hotel in the centre of town called The Asia - pronounced "ACR". It's OK at about 500 Baht a night and you're close to the night market for food. Ranong has some karaoke bars and hot springs - the latter being worth a visit in the evening as there are decent restaurants there and it's pretty laid back.
Other than that, I've never come across anything else in Ranong to hold me there for a night. Just my opinion.

[margaretcarnes]

Agreed with Lomu there about the AC. Its a lovely hotel but certainly no attraction ever for me to have stayed overnight, although the evening menu could be good, and if you are into fruit machines it would be heaven!
Victoria Point over in Burma itself is a different thing altogether. As a veteran visa runner there every month for over 2 years I love the people, the food, markets, and little alleyways with their gem dealers.
True the power goes off early. And it goes off frequently in the heat of the day as well. You are really confined to Victoria Point town itself, and any trips outside it are by taxi only, and limited. But I've always wanted the chance to stay over and never had the opportunity.
Ranong - different again. Have stayed there in a very small guest house near to the hot springs, which was very cheap, clean, and had lovely owners. There is a good market in Ranong as well, with a slightly different range of fruits etc than you would find further North, and some good little bars/restaurants. Personally I like the place, in particular the more muslim architecture and more layed back feel. I wouldn't bother to book a hotel in advance, but go on local recommendation. At the end of the day it's like anywhere else in LOS. If you don't like it it's easy to move on. If you do like it it's easy to stay a bit longer!

[petercr]

Thanks for all the feedback, I'm travelling next week and will find mainland accommodation in the Ranong area for this run.

[sandman67]

does anyone know anyone who has ever stayed in that orrible looking Hunny Bear Hotel in Victoria Point (the Burma side)?...is it, as I suspect, a knocking shop in mufti?

Mate, 30 minutes in Burma seems like a lifetime. The town looks like the Lebanon on a good day, the people are dirt poor and so the hassle level is high, and you get followed by plain clothes cops most of the time.....as a sightseeng venue its right up there with Moghadishu.

[Onlyme]

Three friends and I once stayed overnight at the Honey Bear Hotel. Neither a knocking shop nor a great hotel, we had a good time in the evening going round the various bars, the locals were very friendly.
Onlyme.

[margaretcarnes]

Well the OP Peter has opted for mainland Ranong. Probably a good choice for a first trip down there anyway.
But I'm puzzled by anti Victoria Point feelings, and thanks to Onlyme for giving some positive feedback about the place!
Yes of course the people are very poor, even by Thai standards, and the kids beg unrelentingly. The few baht for the reliable ones though was always rewarded by total reliability.
I was once invited by the 'Papa' of the gem traders family there to see his own stock of jewellery, which was accompanied by some ceremony of laying out a rush mat to spread out the gems. There was no sales pitch at all. He was just proud of his collection - with some justification.
So it could be argued that the few rich people there don't care for the poor ones, and maybe that's the case. It might also seem strange that, compared to Thailand, the women keep a very low profile. Its just different, and for many of us provides the only tiny glimpse we will get into a very oppressed country.

[hhfarang]

I've only been to Burma (Myanmar) once on a day trip into a border town at Three Pagoda Pass north west of Kanchanaburi. It was obviously poorer even than a lot of Thai communities but apart from that, the people were all friendly and smiling, especially the children, several of whom I became instant friends with.

We went there for shopping and most of the shops were run by women and no one looked destitute or even unhappy in any way. I guess they don't see enough westerners to be tired of us because all I saw were smiles all day, kind of like Thailand used to be...

[barrys]

A few years ago, myself and a friend also spent a day and a night at Victorial Point, also staying at the Honey Bear Hotel.

Not a great hotel, as Onlyme rightly says.

We hired a couple of motorbike taxis. One of the drivers had worked in Bangkok for a few years and could speak reasonable Thai.

They took us to all the respectable and not so respectable places and we had a great night out.

[lazerlab]

Whats the best opion for Ranong visa run if you are travelling by car and intend staying for one night. I have seen the Andaman Club mentioned but if I take that option is it easy & safe to leave my car in Ranong overnight. Alternatively I could book a hotel in Ranong and day trip to Burmah.

Thanks

I went to Ranong one day ago. I recomend you to go to the Andaman Club. It will cost you 200 bath extra, but it is well worth it. You can park your car safely at the Andaman Club car park ! The trip took me only 13 hours from Hua Hin and back. It can be a little bit tricky to find the Andaman Club, so do not forget your map !

[petercr]

I have just returned from Ranong and a successful visa run. In the end I took my wife so we played safe and booked a room at the Andaman.

My observations are:
The Andaman Club is reasonably easy to locate, just follow the signs as you approach Ranong

Book through an agent for the best room rate, we paid 2,200 Inc breakfast & taxes

They do not accept credit/debit cards of any type and request a cash deposit (2,000 baht) at check in

The Club is there for gamblers and unless you are into gambling it is a pleasant but uninteresting place to stay

Beware of being overcharged as you check out. We were given calculator printout which simply stated we had been charged 1,645 Baht for drinks, food etc and that the balance owed from our deposit (2,000) was 355 Baht. We were also asked to sign a blank receipt form for the balance of returned deposit. After requesting the signed bills in support of these charges we found that 400 Baht had been added.......No surprise!!