If you are coming to SF this year (and I really hope you are,) I sincerely hope you stay a bit before or after the time of the actual events taking place in Bangkok. There are a ton of wonderful things to see and do in this country and one of the things that you are extremely likely to encounter while visiting is the opportunity to expand your horizons and experience "unseen" place by virtue of your own rented scooter. This can be a wonderful experience and one that I highly recommend, but only if it is done correctly. Hopefully my decade + of experience in this country will be of some use.
Tip 1 - Bangkok Dangerous
That isn't just a relatively crap Nick Cage film, it is a sound piece of advice.
The traffic actually functions in a very sensible way here and is safer than other parts of the country because I don't know how to explain it but it just kinda works based on "rules" that are not part of any sort of law structure. However, this is not something that you are going to know and attempting to join it will almost certainly end badly. Take advantage of the very efficient and useful BTS (skytrain) and MRT (underground train) as well as the GRAB app on your phone for easy getting around while you are here. I can not stress this enough - this is not a good place to rent a bike.
my stats on cars and taxis are completely made up
Tip 2 - take pictures of the bike when you rent it
...And make sure the rental agent sees you taking pictures of it as well. Rental bike scams are relatively rare these days thanks to social media and review sites and what not, but it is better to be safe than sorry. I haven't heard of anyone getting ripped off from fabricated motorbike rental damage in a few years but since we all have HD quality cameras in our pockets these days, this can be a wonderful source of evidence should you end up being one of the unfortunate few.
If an unscrupulous bike renter sees you being very careful about the state of the bike before it leaves the lot, there is a good chance they will move on to an easier target rather than even bother with you.
Like I said, this almost never happens anymore, but it is better to be prepared.
Tip 3 -Big cities need international driving permits
The bike rental places wont tell you this but many of the larger cities such as Phuket and Chiang Mai are having a "crackdown" on people driving rental bikes without an international driving permit.
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they vary from country to country
This is obviously a cash grab on the part of the police, but it doesn't change the fact that they have caught you "red handed" if you are driving a bike and don't have one since it is technically a law here (as well as any other country for the most part.)
In smaller places or islands, this "law" is extremely unlikely to be enforced but yet again, it is better to be as prepared as possible. If you are coming here and know you want to rent a motorbike while you are here and want to be completely prepared - most western countries can issue you this permit for little to no money (it was free for me in Virginia, USA.)
Tip 4 - Wear your friggin helmet!
This country has very loose laws on helmets outside of major metropolitan areas. On the islands and smaller areas it is unlikely to be enforced at all. However, I can't understand why people try to not wear the one thing that is going to save their lives in the event of a crash.
My own head met the pavement around 6 years ago in an accident that was not my fault and resulted in me breaking 3 bones in my leg. I was knocked unconscious and it was an overall horrible experience, but why did i survive???? because i was wearing a friggin helmet!
Your body can take a tremendous amount of damage except for one particular part of it... your head. So even if no one else is wearing a helmet (a likely scenario on the islands) wear yours anyway. Your head might just end up thanking you for it.
I realize that it seems as though I am painting a terrible picture here but that is only because I am identifying the worst-case scenarios. A vast majority of the people who come here and rent a bike experience no issues, even if they drive like a jackass, rent from a horrible shop, and have no license. I just don't want any of us to become a statistic.
Renting a motorbike (outside of Bangkok) really opens up the areas for you for mass exploration and can be a great, eye-opening experience that you will not regret. It gives so much more freedom than being restricted to the tourist path. Just be sensible about it. I hate for any fellow Steemians to end up getting burned.
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by the way, tailpipes are super hot, so be aware of this when stepping off the bike.... it is very common over here for visitors to end up with the very painful "Thailand tattoo."