Guide without a licence arrested at Wat Paknam in Bangkok

Contents of this article3 sections

A check in the middle of the tour
The trail leads to a booking platform
Before your temple visit

A check in the middle of the tour

On Saturday, 24 October, inspectors at Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen in Bangkok arrested a Thai woman who was guiding a group from Belgium through the temple at the time. Taking part were the office that registers tour companies and guides in central Thailand, the tourist police and representatives of a tour operators’ association. There had been complaints beforehand about guides without a licence, at the temple and in restaurants nearby.

When asked, the woman could not show a guide licence and admitted working without one. She knew that this is prohibited and had kept accepting jobs anyway. She had already been at Wat Paknam with guests at least five times before. She was reported under the Tourism Business and Tourist Guide Act of 2008 (amended in 2016) and taken to Phasi Charoen police station.

The trail leads to a booking platform

The woman got her jobs from a Thai company that works as a subcontractor for a well-known international online travel platform. Which platform it is has not been made public. The authorities are now examining how the company assigns its tours, whether it uses other guides without a licence and whether it will be charged itself.

What this means for you: even a tour booked through a big platform may in the end be run by a local partner you do not know beforehand. Anyone who guides visitors in Thailand needs a guide licence, and that is exactly what the inspectors demanded here. You are welcome to ask your guide about it at the start.

Before your temple visit

What to wear in the temple and how to behave is covered in the temple etiquette guide. The common scams around tours and excursions are collected in the guide Scams and safety, and you can find more about the city under Bangkok.

Sources: The Thaiger and Bangkok Through My Eyes (October 2026).