Russian tourists, going to Thailand, often put huge amounts of money on their phones and turn on expensive roaming in order to keep in touch with their homeland, without even realizing how cheap local cellular communication will be. The most profitable way to call Russia from Thailand is to buy any local SIM card.
Communication in Thailand
The land of smiles has three of the largest mobile operators, AIS, True Move and DTAC. On average, it is cheaper to call from each of them to Russia than to call from a cell number to a home number in Russia.
The only problem with Thai operators is that it is usually quite difficult to understand what they are trying to tell you. All service alerts and websites are available in Thai only. It even happens that on websites, instead of letters that you can still try to translate with the help of an online translator, you see pictures with Thai inscriptions. Even an automatic translation will not work.
You do not need a passport to connect to a local cellular operator. But if you are going to stay in Thailand for a long time, then it is recommended to register your SIM card with the operator. To do this, you need to come to the office with a passport or enter personal data via the Internet. Only in this case you will be able to restore the card after the loss.
Where to buy a local SIM card
The easiest way to get a SIM card is to take it at the passport control counter. It's free, moreover, you will already have some amount of money in your account. SIM cards are also sold in hypermarkets and stores of the 7Eleven or Famyly Mart chains, they are available everywhere. You can also top up your card in these stores. The sellers usually speak English, but if you don’t speak, just show your phone and give the cashier a 100 baht bill or more: he will do whatever is needed. To buy a local SIM card, you can show the seller your Russian SIM card, he will understand what you need.
How to call Russia
To make calls even cheaper, it is recommended to use the capabilities of IP-telephony, it will cost even less, you just need to change the number prefix.
For the DTAC operator, use the code 0047, and then the Russian number without 8 and without +7. Balance check on this operator: * 101 * 9 #. You can find out your own number using the command: * 102 * 9 #.
For the AIS operator, use the code 0067, then the Russian number without 8 and without +7. To check the balance, dial * 121 * 1 # (call) and * 121 #. To find out your own number, dial * 545 #.
True Move is the most popular operator among tourists, since it is his SIM card that usually lies at the passport control counter. To call Russia, you need, as in the previous case, to dial 0067, then the Russian number without 8 and without +7. Balance check: # 123 #. You can view your own number using the command * 833 #.
All operators in Thailand have in common that the cost of one SMS is several times more expensive than the cost of a minute of conversation, both for calls to Russia and for local numbers.
