The possibility of a reenactment of my previous visa run experience, where my fellow passengers argued and actually physically fought, filled me with dread and prompted me to look into alternatives.

The recent introduction of various low-cost airfares to neighbouring countries has brought with it hope for change and of a different way for foreigners in Thailand to get a renewed non-immigrant B visa. So when I received my booking flight confirmation number, I smiled.

Previously I had gone by night bus to Penang, Malaysia and this had cost 6,500 baht including one night in a hotel. It was relatively cheap but extremely stressful and not in the least bit enjoyable.

When I returned, I resolved to never do it again. My negative experience forced me to adopt an optimistic outlook: surely it could be done without resorting to such a method. I took it as a personal challenge to try and do it ‘differently’ but still relatively cheaply. I therefore set myself a budget of 10,000 baht, this figure I believed was achievable, I knew that if I spent any more then this would tarnish many of the benefits gained from travelling in comparative luxury.

One needs at least two full days in a foreign country if one wishes to apply for and receive a non-immigrant-B visa. You drop off the visa and fee (220 ringits Malay/2,200 Thai baht) on morning one. Then you return to the Thai embassy on the afternoon of day two.

Step one was to organise a flight to Kuala Lumpur; which I managed to get for a very reasonable 4,500 baht return all inclusive.

As I sat down in the plane seat, I was beaming that I did not have to contend with an overly gregarious drunk foreigner eager to pass the time, because the time it took to reach KL from Phuket was a mere hour and twenty minutes.

No sooner had I sat down and observed the air hostesses point out the emergency exits to me than we arrived at KL. With a trusty overnight bag, I jumped up with a smug smile embossed with the knowledge that had I been on the visa run bus, we would only have probably been in Phang Nga province, and one smoke break into it, in fact the bus would probably only have had to contend with one embarrassing outburst/argument so far.

Bag slung over my shoulder, I winked at every passenger as I offered an ‘after you’ to each and every one of them. Hell, I had time to kill.

It was then that fellow passenger, Joe Sutherland, who had been on no fewer than 15 such
‘visa runs’ since arriving seven years ago, said “Are you ready for the hour and half bus
journey into the city?”

Aaaaah! I thought, and “no I wasn’t” was my response.

Contrary to popular belief though, you can take a bus from the airport into the city for a very reasonable 8 ringits (80 baht). The bus drops you off at KL Sentral, which is the, as the name suggests, central and largest train station in Kuala Lumpur.

I took the late flight so by the time I arrived at the station it was about 1 am, if it had been earlier, trains into China town, which is the budget area for accommodation and food would have been running, each journey around the city costs between 1 – 3 ringits (10-30 baht).

As the trains weren’t running I took a taxi. An interesting revelation that my travelling companion and I made was that, no matterthe time of day or destination, the taxi drivers will always initially try and charge you 20 ringits (200 baht). Although they have a metre, they don’t use them.

“It’s late” It’s peak time”, “It’s very early.” “It’s very quiet.” So bear with the haggling charade and you should get him down to an acceptable 15 ringits or (150 baht) in no time.

Upon arriving in China Town, I have to say that my initial impressions as I stepped over numerous drunks who had settled for the night among the warm glow of neon and the interesting aroma of urine and spicy food was not a positive one. I managed to find a room for 78 ringits (780 baht) for my first night, but then moved to a more acceptable 25 ringits (250 baht) room on my second night.

Both hotels are located on Jalan Petaling (nearest train station: Pasar Seni). But as little Annie says, when the sun inevitably rose the day later, everything looked much better. Passport clutched in my hand, I made my way to the Thai embassy located on 206 Jalan Ampang (Ampang Park), again I participated in a ‘how much?’ ‘come on’ ‘It’s only five minutes’ ‘15 and let’s go’ dialogue with the taxi driver, and was dropped off at the door.

The Thai Embassy opens at 9.30, so a sludge of ‘slightly nervous’ foreigners were queuing up and I joined them. You take a number ticket and wait patiently for your turn.

About an hour later, I had relinquished both my passport and a substantial weight off my shoulders. It was 10.30am, I was relatively refreshed and in an exciting city.

All I had to do was kill some time before I returned at 2.30pm the next day.

And herein lay the most wonderfully luxurious difference between the visa run to Penang by bus and the visa run to KL by plane. On day one, you invariably have much more energy owing to the fact that the travelling took only a few hours and you could sleep in a hotel room as opposed to a cramped mini bus.

In KL, there is also much more to do than in Penang. There are the Kuala Lumpur towers (KLCC train station) and the huge shopping malls complete with air conditioning, shops, restaurants and a large cinema complex. Perfect activities to wile your day away.

I watched a movie, drank coffee and walked zombie like looking at things I had no intention of buying.

And if the mall is not your idea of a holiday activity, there are plenty of cultural things to do and visit, including a street which houses a Buddhist temple, a Christian church and a Muslim mosque, the inclusion of all in such close proximity perfectly encapsulates the rich and diverse mixture of nationalities that live in KL.

With Malaysia being a Muslim country, alcohol is very expensive, so for the night of day one when I went out to sample some KL nightlife it definitely took a huge chunk out of my 10,000 baht budget. However, I sincerely believe that no trip, whether whistle stop or not, is complete without a night out.

It was expensive but good fun and there are some snazzy bars and clubs. However beware those who wear the Phuket farang uniform of beer vest, shorts and flip flops that you will probably not be allowed in, so bring a change of attire and shoes.

I had a leisurely day the next morning wandering around the Indian quarter and sampling delicious roti and ‘pulled tea’, I then sauntered over and and picked up the passport without any problems.

I took the train back to Sentral train station and took a bus to the airport. All very leisurely, very calm, very civilized. With a glint in my eye, I put my bag in the overhead locker and watched the air hostesses point out the emergency exits to me, and I smiled. That wasn’t a visa run, I thought, that was more like a visa saunter, a visa jaunt or visa stroll.