cyborg22

Good to see it is not you George....after all the inappropriate comments on the red/vs yellow news in the news section

Thanks for your kind words haha

This is why it's important for george and his crew to police this site to the best of their ability.

But it's not only them that are responsible, It's up to us as well to report anything untoward. The admin and mods cannot be everywhere at any one time.

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok was also voted Asia's best hotel by the readers.

This is the result of the survey where questionnaire developed by the editors of Travel + Leisure in association with Harris Interactive, an independent research firm, was made available to readers at tlworldsbest.com from January 15, 2009, to March 29, 2009. In the February and March 2009 issues of Travel + Leisure, readers were invited to participate. A select group of readers also received invitations via e-mail. Respondents were permitted to complete the survey only once.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07/13...ss_30107276.php

I never understand this about the Mandarin Oriental. Surely there are better hotels in Bangkok, let alone Asia?

Yes there is a few but as another poster said it's classy

I have never read so much CRAP in all my life resolved in 4 months who are they trying to kid, 4 years more like and thats if they are lucky

Defeatist attitude brings forth defeatist results.

You bet they have, If every stopped doing things for a month, just protest, you watch what happen!

Most people in Thailand are poor and don't have that choice.

Yes and Farangs don't have one either

Yes they do, Farang can leave 99% of thai people cannot and have to live with it.

The exchange rate for the baht is horrible.

The prices for lodging and services is becoming outrageous. $100 a night for hotels in Thailand. Please

Thai Air is probably one of the highest priced airlines going in th world right now.

ANd then there is the problem of gaining a visa, dual entry, just not conducive to the tourist.

The exchange rate is bad for farang admittedly, But isn't that the same the world over?

As for lodging as you put it, a friend of mine from uk stayed in a plaza hotel less than one month ago (not sure which one) in bkk for bht1500 a night double room and he was well pleased. Not only with the service but the hotel and staff.

May be you look with eyes closed.

What a bunch of whiners most of you are.

Complaining of expensive hotels how about you try and travel around a developed country and pay less than $100 a night for a hotel with a pool and breakfast. To be honest I rarely have to pay $100 for this but obviously most of you don't know how to find a deal. Why are you paying so much when there is so much available for much less??

150 baht ATM charges. if this 150 baht is the difference on your three week vacation how did you ever afford the plane ticket.

15 day visas? What the hel_l are you talking about? On entry most visitors are given 30 day. Which can be extended by 7 days or you can simply go to any border crossing and get another 15 days. My assumption is that most people with jobs back home don't need more than 5 weeks for the visa. The rest of you are trying to stay here on a long term basis on a tourist visa. So deal with it.

Double pricing. Get real you make more and the double pricing is so easy to get around in most cases it is a non issue. Once agian bitching about a hundred baht here or there is ridiculous.

They don't treat you right. Fake smiles. Lived her for three years and still haven't had many problems such as the ones you describe. You must be one of those farangs that bitch about everything. No wonder you get fake smiles.

The exchange rate isn't as favorable as it should be for little old me. What kind of load of shit is this. Go back to the early 90's when the Baht traded for around 28 baht to the US$. It is now 35 and you still bitch. I know it once was near the mid 40s but this was after the 97 crisis and it isn't probably the best time period to gauge what it should be on a long term basis. Currencies fluctuate all the time for a multitude of reason. If the once strong pound is no longer so strong don't complain to the Thai government it isn't their problem that the economy in England it shit or for that matter Japan, Korea and many other places in the world.

Lastly, it is so dam_n unbearable go home. Nobody I mean nobody will miss you. But I can bet you will miss Thailand. So stop your bitching and deal with the small problems. Life isn't perfect.

Well said and applauded

I will be so happy to go back home to Thailand next week.

May be then i won't have so much time on my hands, Which in turn means i won't be getting so many headaches by reading some of the posts on here.

Especially the ones that shout Mr Perplexed. Or should i say cecco

Tourism hit 49-year low

BANGKOK: -- The tourism industry has hit a 49-year low and is expected to plunge by 22 per cent this year, according to the Tourism Council of Thailand.

This is to say that they have never had a 22% drop before in 49 years

Besides the global economic crisis, the country's continuing political turmoil had contributed to the sharp decline in tourism, Tourism Council of Thailand chairman Kongkit Hiranyakij said on Thursday.

The expected number of tourist arrivals had been reduced from 14.1 million to 11, he said.

Expected to be 11 million this year, Not that it was 49 years agoThe A(H1N1) flu outbreak could make tourism contract by three to four per cent, causing the country to lose up to 200 billion baht of tourism revenue this year, he said.

This is a contrubuting factor but not the underlying cause

Last year, Thailand gained 540 billion baht in tourism revenue.

"If the government can solve its political problems and is able to host the Asean meetings successfully, tourism should be revived by the end of this year or the beginning of 2010," Mr Kongkit predicted.

This should read they should see some sort of revival by the beginning of 2010 not totally revived.

However, he said Thai tourists would help generate 430 billion baht in revenue this year.

This should also read Thailand tourists (farang visiting Thailand)

Just pickup a copy of the newspaper in thai and get a farang that can read Thai to interprete it for you. If they do it good you will see it in a different light.

Forgot to say not my translation, as not seen the thai version. but that of a farang lawyer friend in bkk

I have found the solution to this problem. It's only Thai banks charging this. Find a foreign bank like Citibank, Standard Charter, UBS or HSBC ATM. None of them are on the screw the foreigner bandwagon.

Since this fee was charged, I've gone to all of the four aforementioned banks and have never been charged.

For a start hsbc do charge a fee for foriegn withdrawal, So do the likes of yorkshire bank/barclays/nat west/loyds to name many others, Including nation wide who have just recently introduced the charge.

As i said before a Thai bank charge will be shown in Baht not Euro.

Well; not really sure WHO get's this fee but it's not my bank. If I'm picking up money within the group i'm free of charge. According to what i've read here, it ought to be the foreign bank (or the clearing site).

If it was a Thai bank it would show you were charged in Baht not Euro,

So it is a farang bank that charged you.

Whether I like it or not, Thais will always be charged more for most things in farang countries than farangs will be charged for similar things in Thailand. It's not up to me. What is up to me is the maintenance of my spiritual condition. With the right attitude, one can be very happy in Thailand; with the wrong attitude, one can be quite miserable.

Sukeroku

That is a product of the cost of living in any given country and nothing to do with being scammed.

And we are so fortunate that we can take advantage of the cost of living differences due to the gratiousness of the Thais allowing us to live here. Unfortunately, very few Thais are afforded the same priveleges in our home countries. Let your gratitude roar, brothers!

I find that very hard to understand.

In reality thai people have more priveledges in the uk than vice versa.

huskerpr, agree with your comments, I also think the Bank scam of 150 baht for using ATM machines is keeping tourists away. It's been well publicised and is an unnecessary expense for someone on a couple of weeks vacation.

...

Thais have to pay when they withdraw money from an ATM overseas, so why should a farang be the exception when withdrawing from a Thai bank ? Thais get charged 100 baht in most countries, at least most countries I have been to anyway. I never seen the 150 baht ATM issue on BBC/CNN/ABC.. this was not even regarded as news.

You've got it, dude.

Very common to be charged 1 time. But now they charge me 2 times! Check your accout report and you'll find out there's a fee for using the foreign ATM as ever:

27.04.2009 THB 20150,00 Rate 46,706510

- AT 24.04.09 15.18 BANGKOK BANK THA EC-GA CARD

[b]FEE EUR 5,99[/b] EUR -437,41

The Big Scam is there's no chance to get some money back as long as there's NO Receipt for the additional fee!

That last figure is that not what your countries bank has charged you? Not a thai bank.

Whether I like it or not, Thais will always be charged more for most things in farang countries than farangs will be charged for similar things in Thailand. It's not up to me. What is up to me is the maintenance of my spiritual condition. With the right attitude, one can be very happy in Thailand; with the wrong attitude, one can be quite miserable.

Sukeroku

That is a product of the cost of living in any given country and nothing to do with being scammed.

My guess is the Thai's have finally got sick to the back teeth of obnoxious western tourists. I don't know what took them so long ?

I can understand all the complaints from people who live in hel_l holes like Pattaya and Phuket, but spending most of my day to day life in Chon Buri and trips into Bangkok with the wife and kids at weekends - it's fun loving, respectful Thailand as normal for me

I'm a Brit and have been away from the UK for 7 years and go back rarely. If you are a soccer crazy, celebrity loving, designer brand wearing property tycoon, then I'm sure it's England as normal for you, but for me it has deteriorated beyond repair. You can keep your car thieves, hoodies and "single-tier" pricing - I will raise my young family in Thailand any day.

WOW

At last a sensible non racist post from a newbie farang. Can't you just smell that breath of fresh air?

Unbelievably I've read a couple of PRO-THAKSIN comments!!!?? I MEAN REALLY UN-F######-BELIEVABLE. He SO doesn't care about Thailand AT ALL. Grrrrrrrrrr, makes me so angry. Oh hang on...yeah; "yai yen yen, mai ben rlai"...that's better, now I'm thinking like a Thai!

Sounds like someone has been drinking Sondhi's right wing elitist drivel...

Right on man! Cos Thaksin isn't elitist at all, he cares for the people, not himself at all, he just wants to help the poor ...HAHAHAHAHA...!

sarcasm is supposed to be the lowest form of wit, But it's fun isn't it?

Many farangs already left Thailand, and many more will follow ! And still they wonder why..... silly bunch of apes !

I would guess with such a crass statement as yours, that apes are indeed more intelligent than yourself. Take your racist stereotyping elsewhere.

I believe he was referring to the farangs that have left Thailand as a silly bunch of apes. In that case, I'd have to agree!

No he most certainly was referring to thai nationals.

Many farangs already left Thailand, and many more will follow ! And still they wonder why..... silly bunch of apes !

I would guess with such a crass statement as yours, that apes are indeed more intelligent than yourself. Take your racist stereotyping elsewhere.

Is it any wonder that farang are treated as they are, With comments like that?

Maybe you should follow those leaving and keep racist comments to yourself.

Now heres a thought if you left thailand you wouldn't have anything to moan about, give it some thought please.

22 per cent is a steep decline, but not the catastrophic end to tourism most of you guys seem to want to justify your views on the minor hassles of being a falang here.

Anybody have any comparitive data for other tourist destinations. I suspect they will be of the same order for longhaul.

the jet set goes to marrakech Morocco. it's an other destination

You ever been Marrakech and see any Jetset

That really depends on where the 22% drop originates from.

If it comes from the higher end of the tourist market, ie from EUROPE/USA (the bigger spenders) The incoming revenue is going to drop markedly.

Anyone who knows anything about Thailand knows that the entire tourism industry here is geared for the "foreigner" tourist. How this Kongkit guy can claim that Thai tourists can generate 430 billion bht is beyond me. From hotels charging per night what the average Thai makes in a week or more, to "farang" prices vs. Thai prices, the tourism industry here is for, and from, the foreign traveler, not the local Thai tourist.

Such myopic thinking only exacerbates the bad situation....without foreign tourism, and the revenues it brings that support things like BTS and fancy shopping malls, frankly what's the difference between Burma and Thailand? There is not much of other industry to speak of here...last time I checked the only thing I found that said "made in Thailand" were some fancy leather wallets(!)....sorry to say....

Try walking through the clothing section of M&S in the Uk and you will see on most labels made in Thailand.

Even in the food hall many fruits product of thailand.

Cut the value of the baht by at least 25%, so we are

back to normal again. Than we can start to talk about

tourism.... People look more for money than for any

dam_n red shirts.

Glegolo

You are talking a load of rubbish.

For one thing the Baht is not strong, It is just the other currencies that are weaker in relation to it.

Cut it's value by 25% and what happens? The cost of living goes up in thailand and most likely farang will be worse off than they are now.

It really is about time some of you woke up and faced the real world. If you are finding it difficult to support yourselves then i suggest you go home to mummy and stop whining.

Is it any wonder you are thought of in a bad way with mentality like that?

Well said Geriatrickkid the fact remains that it is a holiday resort and it is not acceptable to say its thais shooting thais if something isnt done a tourist will be caught up soon its a fact. I live in the uk but i have been comeing to patong for six years i helped clean up after the tsunami so i know what im talking about. The governer, the police are not in charge the mafia is. Like 1 poster said give it a few weeks and it will blow over, this seems to be the attitude of the locals there mai pen rai attitude. What has happened about the locals protesting about crime the other month have they noticed a change, from the latest attacks it would appear not. Its ok saying crime is worldwide and yes we have a gun culture here England. In places like Blackpool we dont have shootouts in front of tourists or in Skegness. When is action going to be taken to try and pull patong back, and drive out the greed, the scammers, the mafia, the double pricing. Why does the new governor not act on these problems or is his attitude mai pen rai also.

Its about time you contacted the mayor directly and force him to accept the truth that the paradise that was Patong has gone and what is he going to do about it. The time to act is now while the major security officials are gathered there for the summit.

The truth is there in no one with enough conviction and the guts to try and change things. I would love to see it happen in Thailand,(the mafia fall flat on it's face). Find me a man thats willing to stand up to them and risk his life and that of his family in doing so. Don't think you will find one, Unless he's a p...ed up Farang with more booze than sense.

I have just cleaned out a few more posts that have moved too far away from the original topic, or non Thailand related, or just trolls.

Save your money and go to Singapore to see how a zoo or birdpark should really be run. Zoos in Thailand are all about putting on shows, conservation & education are non existent.

Never a truer word spoken

The place I saw was off the main lamai beach road on the actual road to the beach on the left a fairly sizeable place. I think they were advertising a pool also although I can't be sure on that one (might be a pond). Not been inside the place but for that price on the beach??

If it is the one i am thinking of, Your right it is a sizable place. But you don't get all of it for that price only an annex of it. There are several rooms contained within it.

I spoke to a few friends. No one seems to be worried about the flu. So why is the government suggesting closing the borders? Don't quite understand too.

The government did not suggest closing the borders, In actual fact the government were opposed to closing the borders.

It's too late now anyway, it's here and here to stay for a long time.

I spoke to a few friends. No one seems to be worried about the flu.

You should be worried seriously worried it's not going to stop as it is.

The word flu have become a household name and in reality it was wrong to call it a flu.

This is going to be something much more dangerous (or should i say deadly) than common flu.