Comments on: Why I’ll Never Ride a Scooter in Southeast Asia Again

By: Marcel

Marcel — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 07:42:14 +0000

In reply to Alex.

Yes I have seen crashesh many times in SE Asia but I still ride a scooter whenever I can.

It is simply no place to learn how to drive.
You have to feel comfortable and have enough experience from your own country in case of emergency manouvers.

Especially if you have a passenger!

I think it’s a great way to explore SE Asia but still in some places I’ll just won’t do it.

Please also bear in mind afternoon sun will make you sick after an hour of driving

By: Anon

Anon — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 08:55:27 +0000

The problem comes when inexperienced people such as yourself think they can 1) drive a scooter and 2) drive a scooter within Asian street laws

By: Larissa hall

Larissa hall — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 13:39:10 +0000

I wish I read this article before my accident 3 nights ago… I was the silly minded girl, with my “learner” rider licence in australia.. that makes you experienced .. right ? Pfft very similar story to the one above… I took myself and a pillian passenger around langkawi, Malaysia. The roads were fine, the traffic was minimal and the day was great. 5 hrs into it though we crashed. As I turned around a bend and straightened up I could feel the weight difference and the front wheels wobble.. next I knew we were in the gutter. My friend sustained a few lacerations and brushing. And I sustained a sprained ankle, with chin laceration, ankle laceration. And now remain on crutches with a badly wounded ankle .. non weight bear for 2 weeks and risk of infection. Definitely not how I planned my holiday… But note to self … I’m minimally walking, talking and still have a heart beat so this is all fixable.. But I now will think before I jump on one of those bloody scooters!

By: Victor

Victor — Mon, 19 Nov 2018 07:34:37 +0000

Horrible. Yeah people, you better not touch scooters or anything on 2 wheels with an engine and nott just in SEA. Lived in SEA for 6 years.

By: Jack

Jack — Thu, 05 Apr 2018 13:33:16 +0000

The above comment just highlights the problem – inexperienced riders. Alex, you did precisely the wrong thing. You should have maintained your speed or even slowed down. I have a full licence and a 600cc sportsbike at home. I see 18 year old kids in SE Asia hop on a scooter here and tell me it is easy. Yes, it is easy going on a straight line on a nice, sealed road. Yet, whenever a bend is met, or someone pulls out unexpectedly, you see the panic and indecision kick in. People trying to corner way too fast, sitting bolt upright as they try to fight physics and corner the scooter going 50 kph.

Furthermore, most travel insurance policies do not cover motorbike usage unless you hold a full licence in the country of issue of the policy. If you survive major trauma with your rice-ball ‘helmet’, no protective clothing, gloves, boots etc….you will be faced with a $20,000 aeromedical repatriation bill.

I would love to know why people behave so stupidly on holiday? Seeing grown men putting their toddler child on their lap and driving about in flip-flops. I bet if they saw someone doing that in Germany/US/UK, they would be on the phone to the police.

By: Alex

Alex — Tue, 15 Aug 2017 23:51:02 +0000

This is an old post, but I experienced a crash in Bali back in December 2016. I won’t go into great detail regarding the crash, but basically, an idiot driver in a truck was driving extremely closely behind my scooter. It was so close, I felt extremely uncomfortable and scared that he’d ram into me from behind if I stopped to even make a turn or slowed down just a tinsie bit. I tried to create some distance away from him for about 5 minutes but he’d be behind me the entire time. The road was too narrow and there were too many swings for him to overtake me, and even if he did, I was 100% sure that the truck’s back end would hit me if there were to happen.

I ended up speeding up extremely much to the point where I wanted to create some distane so I could hit the breaks and stop off-road so he could pass by. I did just that.. And I lost control of the scooter. I had too much speed coming off road and I ended up falling off my scooter. Thankfully, it was grass that I fell on and not solid pavement or worse, a cliff. I escaped with some scratches and minor wounds.

It’s 6 months now since it happened, and every now and then I think of how even more badly it could have turned out if I lost control in front of a speeding car heading towards me, or on a bridge. I do intend to return to South East Asia in the future, but whether or not I’ll use the scooters, I honestly don’t think so.

By: bravebettytravelbra

bravebettytravelbra — Fri, 23 Sep 2016 17:40:09 +0000

I have visited Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam ,Cambodia an Singapore – and I have to say it never once crossed my mind to drive a motorbike in any of those places! ( well I did rent a regular bike in Hoi An, ). The sheer amount of them jostling for road space and the close proximity they operate to each other was scary enough. Having said that I do agree they would be a very convenient way to get around, providing you are someone with a great deal of experience beforehand. I remember riding in a tuk tuk in Hanoi and someone came by so closely on a motorbike our knees touched! Ya, not for the slightly nervous driver!

By: Michael

Michael — Sun, 04 Sep 2016 15:52:40 +0000

In reply to Helen. Hi Helen! How long will you be in SEA for this time around? how are you enjoying Vietnam?

By: Helen

Helen — Fri, 02 Sep 2016 04:03:33 +0000

A really good article to read. This is my second time in SE Asia (currently in Vietnam), and on both trips I haven’t rented a scooter/motorbike. I can’t even legally drive a car! Driving on roads I don’t know with limited knowledge of scooters isn’t for me. I’ve met a lot of people who tell me I should and that it’s really easy, but I feel like I’d be so nervous that I wouldn’t enjoy it. I’ve also met a lot of people with stitches/bandaged feet etc..

I’ve taken plenty of day-trips and tours on the back of motorbikes, with Vietnamese drivers who know the roads well and do it often, I feel much safer and can enjoy it loads. Granted, it is more expensive, but I’d rather be safer!

The buses are also super cheap to travel from place to place. Horray!

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 08:58:03 +0000

In reply to Gillian Hamnett. Really good advice at the end there Gillian! We should "hire" you to write lots more =P