bongoz

Correct me if I am wrong but is there not or was there a Japanese only Soi next to PatPong? caters to thai ladies for Japanese only. If anyone else goes there they will not serve you.

Haha, true that. But its apples and oranges I think. Soi Thaniya is not exactly a "public service" sector, although it may seem like it!

Sorry I don't understand apples and oranges. If it is not a public service sector what is it?

Isn't it apples and bananas...

The first thing one does in developing a marketing strategy is to ask yourself "What do my customers want?". So ask yourself "Why do tourist come to Pattaya? What do they want? What are they seeking?" Once you have answered those questions (and the answers should be obvious for a town with Pattaya's reputation), then feed that demand with high quality and high quantity at a reasonable price. If necessary, the local government should step in with subsidies if necessary.

Yes, 1/2 price for short time, and daily discounts for long time services!

What about a frequent visitor card, after 10 'visits' get one free!!

Makes you wonder what's in the street food served up in Thailand, doesn't it?

Just gotta take a dig at Thailand, don't you? Well this happened in Japan. But I'm sure if this had happened in Thailand, the haters would be out in force to attack the Thais for lack of food safety. How come no comment about food safety in Japan?

What an utterly stupid comment from an ignoramus who has no knowledge of my posting history, which is largely defensive of Thailand and its ways.

The tooth has been planted 100%

Just like your post

"Kobkarn attributed the decline in tourist arrivals and revenues to the political crisis in Thailand during "the first half of 2014," in which parts of Bangkok were paralyzed by street protests that aimed to topple the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra." Quote

Of course it has nothing to do with the fact that delivering a third class product and charging for first class??

Tourists are not stupid, and have finally started to vote with their feet!!

Must be hard for the Thais to realize, that there are better and cheaper options to LOS!!

Such as?

Cambodia

Some of the comments here already are quite gormless.

Do you people not realise that Thailand has a tourist industry and that anything criminal, of any nature (however bad) affects the desire of people to visit?

Sitting in your ivory towers you must feel very self-satisfied.

Do you realise that by not allowing the reporting of and thus not allowing scrutiny of any police action is a form a censorship.

All the checks and balances are thrown out the window!

How many tourists are victims of corruption? The RTP are such model examples they enhance the reputation of Thailand

But TIT

Siem Reap welcomes over 100,000 visitors during New Year celebration

Siem Reap population 174,265 (2008)

Bangkok population 8,280,925 (2000)

Cambodia - Siem Reap

These are the same figures as released mid 2014. There has been no new release of these statistics - they are released mid year!

Why is the 'Government' advertising such a negative result? Do they want Thailand to fail as a holiday destination (besides the fat it already has)...

I don't know how far / wide / fast local news travels, but on the basis of this website and the proportion of news items about Pattaya of a negative nature and with a negative impact on farang residents and visitors, I can't say I'm in a desperate rush to come for a visit.

You haven't lived until you have been to sin city...

deep, dark, mysterious and scary and that's during the day!

Good god, what a monkey! How the fark do you hit a child that you have just dropped off???

By being untrained, stupid, and lacking in a single iota of common sense.

OH! and Thai...

remember the fire trucks? probably still sitting in a field somewhere...

the majority suffers so a few can benefit.

Tell us about the fire trucks please. I'm curious.

They are sitting in a field somewhere...

Apropos

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/20/burmese-murder-accused-british-backpackers-thailand

The pair, who were arrested a fortnight after the double murder and face a possible death penalty, passed the Guardian an open letter addressed to the victims’ parents.

Handwritten in Burmese, and with their names signed in English, it reads: “We are really distraught about the loss of your children, and we share your grief. But we want to stress to you that we didn’t do anything wrong, and this crime was nothing to do with us.

“In order that the truth can be revealed, we want to ask for help from all of you to ensure that we get access to information that the British government has. We would like this information to be shared with our lawyers so the truth can come out. We really want to express our thanks for your help.”

Very damning news story in The Guardian (link above)...

Very good that it has once again been brought into the headlines.

Sounds fair enough - it's not like it's going to affect them much, after all.

Impressive display of miserable replies already though. Well done chaps. Your crown as 'most depressing forum on the internet' is surely safe for another year.

Have you never heard of 440 in Cambodia?

Why do they need to survey tourist that are already in thailand, it's not like they have a choice once they have landed on swampy. Instead they should survey those that are planning their holiday......

That's just too hard for a Thai company / university. OH! and the results would be.....

Please þ

oWorse

oBetter

"And 12.7 per cent said Thais should improve the English speaking skills to communicate with foreign tourists."

Just as they learn a variety of foreign languages at home for all visitors to their own fair lands.

I think it is widely accepted that English is the international language?

Also many other countries do in fact employee native speaking tourist staff - they don't have the same biased laws as Thailand.

Human trafficking problem in Thailand, Nah no problems here UNHCR

Busted... boggle the minds how people prey on you when you're the most venerable...

or when common sense is non existent...

if it's too good to be true and all that.

"...both vehicles were going in the same direction,... when the motorcycle sped in an attempt to pass the cement truck."

"At that moment the truck turned abruptly into Phuket Cement Co, across the path of the bike."

Meaning, the bike was trying to pass him on the right side.

I've had morons do that to me countless times while I've had my signal on.

I don't see any mention of the truck having it's turn signals on, only that it "...turned abruptly...". So what side would you suggest the "moron" use to pass?

Are you for real pee paub???

About 75,000 tourists a day does anyone really believe thailand has the capacity/capability to process that many tourists. Thats assuming they arrive at equal times. If high season is busy that would be closer to 100000 a day.

how do you get these numbers? and process them where???

if you mean the airport they day 8 days each, which mean across all the airports in Thailand it's laround 9,000 People per day.... not really that many spread over Chiang Mai, Phuket and two Bangkok airports.

25,000,000/365= 68,495 per day (sorry original math in my head) seems like lots of immigration officers needed. Or am i missing something?

They may well count transit passengers

You can hate him all you want and despise his past, however what he is fighting for is admirable as all people, local and foreigners get extorted and robbed by police one way or another on daily basis and it goes unpunished and blunt.

And if the RTP get away with it yet again, it just reinforces there illegal corrupt ways are still working and nothing will change...

No not really any better. I don't know how long you've been in Thailand or if you've been to Phuket? I arrived in Phuket in 2001 but had visited many times previously. The massage girls and the sunchairs had always been on the beach. They paid rent and probably thought they were legit, in fact in a civilzed World they would have been according to land rights and rights of occupation. In the beginning when they had contracts with the municipal government they probably were legal - in fact, the local government are now inviting masseuses back to the beach on the proviso they are local people from the area, so it would seem these people are being harassed because they're not from the area, not because it was illegal. Please tell me, oh sanctimonious one, do you think it fair that these people who have been there for 15 years to my knowledge are made to be criminalized and move out and a month later, local people are allowed to take up their spots? One law for one and another law for locals but the point is, it CAN'T have been illegal can it, if they are allowing others to come in and do what they just said WAS illegal. For one it's illegal and for another it's not? How did they "gamble their future away" going for big bucks? These are masseuses not high rolling poker players or mafiosa leaders in a prostitution ring. People like you make me barf

"One law for one and another law for locals"

One price for Thais and another for farangs...

same same but different ... welcome to the REAL world

TIT

So a doctor relays information to the general public(some who might not read the Times, some who might not be able to read English), does not claim to have made the discovery...and the TV grumpy, old, cynical brigade can even find a problem with that. Unbelievable. Well, you know what they say: TITV

"Thiravat said that he had learned about this from Prof Dr Michael V Callahan of the Harvard Medical School when he visited Thailand in September, and the report would be published in a world-class medical journal soon."

Can I ask you why has this Thai professor jumped the gun and released the results of "Prof Dr Michael V Callahan" study before it has been published?

Is the Thai prof attention seeking, big noting himself?

Is what he has been quoted as saying actually accurate?