newnative

Or, why not make all the visas free.

No great loss if the party disappears. Far too many parties already.

And, well it should. Absolutely disgraceful behavior. Seems we are only hearing about the accident, which happened Dec. 8, because Taiwan has stepped in wanting answers. Really no excuse that something like this still happens. Let them be slammed. As others have said, the penalties are way too weak and should be strengthened.

This just gets more and more ridiculous. It's really just so simple--send him back to prison, where he belongs. Not to the army--or anywhere else.

Agree. I've made the same argument when posters have discounted the Asian market because the spend is less per tourist--not to mention the tiresome argument that none of the tourist revenue stays in Thailand. Thailand will continue to draw more of its tourist numbers, and revenue, from regional Asian countries. Which actually is pretty normal--the top seven countries visiting France are its regional neighbors. Thailand is fortunate that the 2 most populous countries in the world are short plane rides away, not to mention Indonesia at #4. My spouse and I were in the Hunan province of China last week and the plane ride was less than 4 hours from Bangkok. Things may be slow now but these Asian numbers will return. One thing I found interesting from the 2015 to 2019 stats was that visitors from the US increased almost 35%. In comparison, the European countries that were tracked increased by only around 5 to 13%, except Russia. Even with USA's big increase, the 2019 figure for visitors from America was only 1,168,000. There are 339 million Americans vs. just 68 million in the UK, yet the UK's 2019 numbers were close to America's, at nearly a million. Looking at the comparison between the US and the UK, it would seem that TAT has an opportunity to tap the American market and increase the visitors from that country. The 35% increase from 2015 to 2019 shows that more Americans were willing to make the long trip during that period--and, as an American, I can vouch that it is a long trip. Now that the world is opening up again, TAT could see about improving the American numbers. Given the population size, I think they should be higher.

The majority likely came in the first quarter of 2020. The country was still open in the first quarter, flights were suspended on Apr. 4.

I, for one, don't see much of a need for TAT. I've said before that my spouse and I have never decided to visit any country because of anythng done by any country's tourist department. We've been to China 3 times--never seen a single ad or promotion for China. We want to visit, so we do. Same for Europe, Australia, Japan, etc. If we want to learn about a country or an area of a country, there are usually plenty of Youtube videos. If you held a gun to my head and forced me to choose, I'd look at the 2015 to 2019 tourist data. Asian numbers expanded qute a bit in those years, western numbers mostly made just modest gains, with Australia and Singapore dropping slightly. I think the Asian numbers will take care of themselves. Since I think its a good thing for a tourist country like Thailand to have a diverse tourist demographic, and it's perhaps a harder sale to attract long distance tourists, I'd concentrate the budget on those countries, with perhaps some of the budget used for untapped markets.

Horrible this happened. Yes, investigate this hospital and set an example with a huge fine. Hopefully, other private hospitals will take note.

Pitiful showing by Nissan--they couldn't even outsell Isuzu. Very skimpy product selection. They really need to step it up majorly, they're being left in the dust.

The number of visitors tells just part of the story. European visitors, including the UK, spend 68,000 baht per tourist vs. around 41,000 baht for ASEAN tourists. Smaller numbers but larger spending. They also stay longer. Of course, larger numbers, even with smaller spends, are going to be the most important--no argument there, and I've said just that a number of times. 10 million Chinese spending 49,000 baht each in 2019. Easy to see why Thailand wants this market back. Obviously, some markets are going to be much more important than others. I think its inaccurate, though, to say, as you do, that the UK's contribution in 2019 of 1 million tourists to Thai tourism is so small it's 'not part of the equation'. Using your reasoning, in 2019 only 2 countries would actually qualify to be 'part of the equation', China and Malaysia. All the other countries sent less than 2 million visitors, numbers too small to, apparently, bother with. Except, the numbers do add up, and the spending. In 2019, Asian tourists, not including China, spent the most money in Thailand, 677 billion baht. China was next, with 543 billion. In third, Europe, including the UK, with 461 billion--not the most but certainly not nothing. Perhaps even 'meaningful'. It's a bit like my stock portfolio. I have 30 dividend stocks, paying varying percentages in dividends, some more, some less. Together, they earn me about $11,000 a year. Some, of course, make a more important dividend contribution but all of them are 'part of the equation'.

I think nurture plays a part but it's mostly nature. Some examples from my life. First, I'm gay, and I was born gay. Nurture had nothing to do with my sexual orientation. I have 5 siblings, all straight, all brought up with the same nurture I had. I knew I was gay before I even knew what gay was. Nature, not nurture. I also have what is called mixed-handedness, which is somewhat different from being left-handed or ambidextrous. In my case, I use my left or right hand depending on the task. I eat and write with my left hand--except, if I'm writing on a blackboard, I use my right hand. Play sports right-handed. When I am painting, I use a paint brush with my left hand and a paint roller with my right hand. Use tools and scissors with my right hand. It's not a conscious decision to use one hand or the other, it just happens naturally without any thought. Nature, not nurture. Recently, I was diagnosed with a very high calcium plaque score (CAC) for my heart arteries. Since 2010, my partner and I have lived together in Thailand. Neither of us smokes and we both rarely drink alcohol. Both go to the gym 2 or 3 times a week. He works at home with his job and we have eaten practically the same diet for the past 13 years, with some exceptions when we eat out--but even then we often order 3 dishes and share. Eating about the same diet for years, my CAC score very high, his very low. Nature, not nurture.

avenue.co.th

My partner and I use 5% and we list our properties with as many agencies as possible. That has worked well for us. If 3% and a small number of agents involved works for you, that's great.

It's meaningless to use 2020 stats. Those are covid numbers. In 2019, UK visitors were about 1 million. Less than the US at 1.16 million but more than any other European country except Russia. In numbers UK, came in at #11. I don't think it's correct to say that UK is economically irrelevant to Thai tourism. Even in your above recent totals, UK is at #8, and very close to USA at #7. Obviously, neither country is sending tourists in numbers to match the numbers of China, India, Malaysia, etc., and likely never will. But both are in the top 10 and do contribute to Thailand's tourism.

That's a list of possible double pricing but it's not evidence that double pricing has any impact on tourism. There was double pricing in 2019 when 39 million foreigners visited.

Thanks for your message. I will be in your same boat when my debit card expires in 2026--my brother-in-law is moving back to Thailand in 2024. Maybe let your sister cool off a bit and then see if she might send the cards and check with DHL or Fed Ex. She wouldn't be dealing with the US or Thai post offices.

I retired at age 53 after 30 years at a rather low-paying USA state job. Got a reduced state pension, which I supplemented by working another 5 years part-time before moving to Thailand with my Thai partner. Took Social Security as soon as I could, age 62. Absolutely no regrets with any of the decisions. In your shoes, I would work another 10 years and retire at 50, with a bigger retirement income--better to have more than enough than not enough. As others have mentioned, I think you need to do some thinking about how you plan to spend the next 40 years. Good luck.

'. . . when, coincidently, he will be pardoned and make a miraculous recovery.'

As a fromer CEO of Sansiri, you'd think the PM would not be thrilled, either.

Lock him up already already.

Totally agree. I would also add that there are a lot of well-off expats in Pattaya, as well, despite anecdotal evidence some posters seem to rely on by reading Asean Now regularly. Expanding a bit on my earlier post, I think the lower income expats in Pattaya tend to make the most noise on AN, perhaps leaving the false impression that those types are the only expats in Pattaya--or the vast majority. They post about this or that bar or go-go; the state of bar girls these days (apparently fatter); the price of this or that going up at the grocery store and how expensive it now is to live here; threatening to leave every other month due to this or that now impacting their life here; boasting about the bargains they secured on condo rentals, while often slapping down posters who seemingly did worse; complainng about this or that vs. their home country; debating the calibre of expats living at Nirun or Flybird; describing in detail the horrors of dual pricing they have experenced; cautioning repeatedly at the drop of a hat about all the awful pitfalls of buying a property here-even though the poster has usually not asked for their opinion on buying vs. renting; posting ad infinitum about always having a suitcase packed and standing by the front door. And so on and so on--just scratching the surface. Add to that, the large cadre of posters endlessly commenting, usually incorrectly, on absolutely everything relating to Pattaya, while having either never lived here at all or only briefly visted, often years ago--I call them The Can't Quit Pattaya Fan Club. Meanwhile, there are large numbers of expats who are financially comfortable living in Pattaya, likely posting less on rather trivial matters--but most of them will not be found living in the touristy areas which garner many of the posts. They're in Jomtien or Cosy Beach. Pratumnak or Wong Amat. Other points south and north, and many are living on the Darkside--which has some very nice estate projects, with more being built every day. Despite all the negative posts on AN regarding real estate, every expat my partner and I knows in Pattata owns the place they live in, including several who own more than 1 property. If you only read AN, anecdotal evidence would suggest that only a very tiny fraction of expats, variously classified on AN as fools, suckers, dimwits, stupid, dumb, insane, etc., would ever even entertain the terrible idea of buying property in Thailand. Which doesn't square with the facts but when has that ever stopped anyone in posting false information. Fun fact, usually overlooked: Many Pattaya expats have the means to pay cash for the properties they buy and don't use mortgages. An interesting trend I have noticed is the higher price points of some of the new Pattaya projects either recently completed or under construction--some new projects are definitely going upmarket, although there have always been a number of them over the years. Major developers are not stupid. Before a project is launched, they study the market carefully. Is there a market for homes starting at 15MB on the Darkside? How about a home for 60MB? If I bulld it, will I find a buyer? Down the road from my former house by Lake Mabprachan, a new house project has started. About a half-dozen homes, starting around 25 or 30MB. The trend is equally evident in condos. Several of the newest projects are, indeed, pricey. Arom, in Wong Amat, under construction, has 2 bedrooms, running about 81 sqm, for about 15MB. Arom, by the way, launched their new project, complete with a fancy sales office, during the very darkest days of covid. They have since started a new project in Jomtien, also pricey. Recently saw 46.5 sqm condos at Copacabana listed on Hipflat for 9MB. I guess the one I saw listed on FB Marketplace for 7.5MB was an absolute bargain. As my Dad used to say, too rich for my blood. But, Pattaya has a wide variety of well-heeled residents these days, with enough of them to support a number of luxury car dealers--and, pricier property projects. It's not the small, sleepy place it was years ago--although too many posters still seem to think of it that way. A deluded AN poster recently stated that prostitution contributed 100% of Pattaya's income. 100%! He and the equally deluded poster who claimed Pattaya is responsible for 90% of the crime in Thailand should do lunch.

I do hope it works and it is expanded nationwide. I remember my Thai mother-in-law having a hard time scheduling dialysis treatments back in 2019--I think all the slots were taken at her hospital on record. If I remember, the family had to hire an ambulance to take her to a private hospital for the treatments as, by then, she was bedridden.

I moved to Thailand in 2010 with my then partner, now spouse. At that time I owned a 1 bedroom condo with a mortgage in Virginia. Wasn't sure if Thailand would take so found a renter before we moved. Brother-in-law managed the condo for several years. After paying him and the mortgage, taxes, etc., there was a little money left over each month, but not a lot. Did this for several years but in 2012 the real estate market had recovered enough for me to make a profit on the sale so I sold it. In hindsight, I probably should have kept it as it has continued to increase in value but I didn't like managing it long-distance and did not like having to ask my brother-in-law to handle all the problems that came up, including finding new tenants, a water leak, etc.. We put the money, along with some other funds, towards buying and selling a series of condos in Pattaya and it ended up working out well. We don't have a problem with not owning any property in the US. Should my spouse and I ever return to the US--unlikely--we can buy or rent something. Likey rent something first while we sort out where we would want to be living. At this point that would be the biggest question--we have relatives scattered from California to Florida. We both lived in Virginia but would not want anywhere with a cold winter--we barely survived a visit to China a week ago.

I just had my brother-in-law in the US send me my new USA bank debit card, after several tries to send it by the bank to my address in Thailand--I have no idea why they never arrived but no attempts were made to use them. In previous years the cards arrived without a problem. Brother-in-law took the card and the information sheet out of the bank envelope and used a regular, plain hand-addressed envelope. Sent the letter registered mail with the post office--cost $21-- and it arrived after a few weeks. It could be tracked and it seemed to take the scenic route, though. Going from Virginia to San Francisco and then I believe to LA before finally flying to Thailand, aftr a wait in LA. My bank has been issuing cards that expire in a year and I asked them, since getting the card this time has been a long, frustrating process that started in March, if they couldn't give me a longer expiration date. They complied and my new card expires in 2026. I wonder if your sister could maybe also use DHL or FedEx and put the letter in one of their mailing packets that can be tracked.

Just classic CYA. Get someone else in place in advance to blame. Something bad happens, it's the bar's fault.