Choosing your camp: the questions to ask before paying

Ask them in writing and keep the answers: they are worth more than an online review.

1. 1Are your prices published, and what do they include (classes, lodging, VAT)?
2. 2How many students per trainer on the pads?
3. 3Is there a separate beginners’ group?
4. 4Is sparring compulsory, and from when?
5. 5Do you issue the confirmation for the DTV visa, and in what form?
6. 6What happens if I leave early (written refund policy)?

1. Prices and what they include

A price only compares with its content: sessions per day, access to other disciplines, lodging, tax. Some camps list prices before VAT, others count per session, per week or unlimited. Get what the price includes in writing.

2. Students per trainer on the pads

Pads are the heart of the session. The more students a trainer has, the less he corrects you. No camp in our survey publishes this ratio: how the camp answers tells you as much as the answer itself.

3. A separate beginners’ group

Starting among experienced trainees is possible, but a group by level makes learning safer. Our Tiger Muay Thai listing mentions groups by level; for other camps, ask.

4. Sparring

Sparring is an opposition exercise. Ask whether it is compulsory, from when and with what protection. Sumalee camp, which publishes its customs, describes sparring as light and technical by default.

5. The DTV visa confirmation

For the Muay Thai route of the DTV visa, the official note asks for a confirmation of participation in the activity. Ask the camp whether it issues one, and in what form, before paying.

6. Leaving early

An injury, a camp that does not suit you: ask what is refunded in that case, and get the rule in writing.

Not publishing prices is not a fault: many camps in our directory do not, and for two well-known Bangkok camps we found no official website. What should alert you is several signs adding up:

• –no written price, and pressure to pay fast or upfront;
• –no written answer to the six questions, or answers that keep changing;
• –a group size nobody will tell you;
• –no written refund rule;
• –a “visa service” offering to file your application anywhere other than the official portal.

The camps below are listed on our site as DTV-compatible; confirm in writing with each one.

• ✓Start with a session, a day or a week: several camps sell them (see the prices page).
• ✓Long plans cost less per month at Tiger, Bangtao, Fairtex and Santai, but only if the camp suits you.
• ✓A deposit may be asked: Khongsittha (Bangkok) asks for one on its monthly stay.
• ✓Keep a written record of what you pay and what it includes.
• ✓Do not pay for several months without knowing how long you are allowed to stay: see the visa guide.

• Prix des camps

  Published rates, recorded and dated

• Guide visa DTV

  Staying longer