marsteele

Personally I hope they don't close because I rely on the consulate office in Melbourne. If I had to apply to the Thai embassy in Canberra for 1yr multiple entry it would take approximately 3 weeks to get it. I travel in and out of Thailand from Chiangmai to Melbourne every 3 weeks generally just spending 48 hrs in Melbourne.

You can open a bank account. You just have to try different banks and branchs. Being able to show proof on address will help.

This webpage has the best info I have found online about opening accounts it should be the same for any bank.

http://www.bangkokbank.com/Bangkok+Bank/Pe...+Accounts.htm#1

Yes quite true I have an account eith the Siam bank

There is an age old saying "A fool and his Money" or as we say in Australia "Come in spinner"

Looks like she went to the well once too often. Once or twice might have been fine, but 5x is asking for trouble.

The sad part is that it seems that the woman had done well for herself with a chain of 5 restaurants and was probably living a very good life.

yep I guess she just got greedy or she still has that sick buffalo back in Thailand.

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If Thailand has problems, and Thailand wishes to address them in certain ways.

I think it is fair to let them.

All countries that I know of, is trying to keep track of

their foreigners..

Glegolo

Really ?? name any modern / first world country that has to report foriegners details checking into a hotel ??

AUSTRALIA USA FRANCE SPAIN UK GERMANY GREECE ,INDONESIA VIETNAM MAYAYSIA,,, THE LIST GOES ON

WHAT? Where did you get this list from? Strike AUSTRALIA OF YOUR LIST. I can tell you 100% this does not happen and if it did it is totally illeagal and leaves the hotel open to litigation. There is a certain thing in Australia called the PRIVACY ACT PLEASE FEEL FREE TO READ IT. The Act stipulates that no person can pass personal information about another to any person or organisation without the expressed permission of the person concerned. There is an excemption to the act tho and that is if the person/s is comitting/comitted or about to comitt a criminal offence. To get this information from the hotels about people staying there you will need a 464 warrant issued by the courts and will need a very good reason and only in relation to one person and not a blanket warrant.

Well I guess from your list Australia is not a 1st world country as for the other countries on your list I cannot comment.

I guess your wrong sufaxxis and I am sure most other western countries have a similiar law protecting privacy of all world citizens.

PRIVACY ACT 1988 - SECT 80Q

Disclosure of information-- offence (1) A person (the first person ) commits an offence if:

(a) personal information that relates to an individual is disclosed to the first person because of the operation of this Part; and

( the first person subsequently discloses the personal information; and

© the first person is not responsible for the individual (within the meaning of subclause 2.5 of Schedule 3).

Penalty: 60 penalty units or imprisonment for 1 year, or both.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the following disclosures:

(a) if the first person is an agency--a disclosure permitted under an Information Privacy Principle;

( if the first person is an organisation--a disclosure permitted under an approved privacy code or a National Privacy Principle;

© a disclosure permitted under section 80P;

(d) a disclosure made with the consent of the individual to whom the personal information relates;

(e) a disclosure to the individual to whom the personal information relates;

(f) a disclosure to a court;

(g) a disclosure prescribed by the regulations.

Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to a matter in subsection (2) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).

(3) If a disclosure of personal information is covered by subsection (2), the disclosure is authorised by this section.

(4) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(f), court includes any tribunal, authority or person having power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions.

<A name=_Toc231296907>

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If Thailand has problems, and Thailand wishes to address them in certain ways.

I think it is fair to let them.

All countries that I know of, is trying to keep track of

their foreigners..

Glegolo

Really ?? name any modern / first world country that has to report foriegners details checking into a hotel ??

AUSTRALIA USA FRANCE SPAIN UK GERMANY GREECE ,INDONESIA VIETNAM MAYAYSIA,,, THE LIST GOES ON

WHAT? Where did you get this list from? Strike AUSTRALIA OF YOUR LIST. I can tell you 100% this does not happen and if it did it is totally illeagal and leaves the hotel open to litigation. There is a certain thing in Australia called the PRIVACY ACT PLEASE FEEL FREE TO READ IT. The Act stipulates that no person can pass personal information about another to any person or organisation without the expressed permission of the person concerned. There is an excemption to the act tho and that is if the person/s is comitting/comitted or about to comitt a criminal offence. To get this information from the hotels about people staying there you will need a 464 warrant issued by the courts and will need a very good reason and only in relation to one person and not a blanket warrant.

Well I guess from your list Australia is not a 1st world country as for the other countries on your list I cannot comment.

I think if you have haven't done anything wrong or plan to do anything wrong then you have no reason to fear. How many people from around the world flee to Thailand to escape prosecution in thier own country. I think 100's if not 1,000's are hiding out in Thailand for offences ranging from theft, fraud, murder and not to mention the pedophilles. I think this is a good tool to round up these people and if the thai authorities are working with other world authorities then good on them.

I do not mean that these people hide out just in Thailand but all through south east asia. Just hope the other countries in the region adopt this same policy and catch more of the scum of the world.

I'm surprised this is the only thing so far.

With that big meeting in July of all the foreign ministers (plus Hilary Clinton), of course the police is going to try and get things in order. ESPECIALLY, after what happened at the cancellation of the ASEAN summit. Any prudent leaders would do their best to ensure that this meeting goes off without a hitch.

Yes I agree they have to know the whereabouts and movements of all tourists. The red and yellow shirts would never do anything to disrupt such an important meeting. I can see it all so clearly now tourism booming in July and farangs mounting huge demonstrations in the streets and disrupting the thai way of life. Yes it is always the farangs fault.

just kidding don't get upset

Immigration want to see passports and ID they should return to their periodic raids near Sukhumvit Road between Soi 3 and Soi 5. They actually sell passports in the area and many of the residents have more than one identity. Drug dealing is rampant there too. A perfect place for the Rohingyas terrorists to hang out. I'm just saying...

Where do they get the information for the false identities and passports? When you check into some hotels why do they need to photocopy your passport in colour not just the page with your personal information but also the inside cover which bears the coat of arms? Why do they need to photocopy anyway why not just write down the required information? What happens to the copies of my passport when I leave the hotel?

I have no problem with the thai authorities knowing where I am or what I am doing because I have nothing to hide. I do wonder tho what is happening to all these photocopies of my personal information floating around thailand. I come in and out of Thailand every three weks and always use the same address on my arrival card and that is the family home. Does my defacto have to report my arrival at the address to confirm I am actually staying there?

A little light humour on the issue

It can't be denied that sex tourism also contributes to arrival numbers. Although officially illegal, prostitution in Thailand is monitored and regulated by the government to stem the spread of STD's and to prevent excesses. Prostitution catering to foreigners is believed to be around 52% of the total prostitution scene in Thailand, and is concentrated in a few major red-light districts such as Pattaya, Patpong and Patong Beach.^[9]

Thailand has been receiving increased competition ever since Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam opened up to international tourism in the 1980s and 90s. Destinations like Angkor Wat, Luang Prabang and Halong Bay now contest Thailand's former monopoly in the Indochina region. To counter this, Thailand is actively targeting niche markets such as golf holidays, or holidays combined with medical treatment. These are especially aimed at Japan and South Korea, and in future, China and Taiwan.

The main marketing slogan for promoting Thailand internationally is "Amazing Thailand".

Sex tourism is travel to engage in sexual activity with prostitutes.

The World Tourism Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, defines sex tourism as "trips organized from within the tourism sector, or from outside this sector but using its structures and networks, with the primary purpose of effecting a commercial sexual relationship by the tourist with residents at the destination".^[1] The U.N. opposes sex tourism citing health, social and cultural consequences for both tourist home countries and destination countries, especially in situations exploiting gender, age, social and economic inequalities in sex tourism destinations.^[1][2][3]

While sex tourism can refer to a variety of commercial sexual activities, agencies and academics^[who?] sometimes also use the terms: adult sex tourism, child sex tourism and female sex tourism to refer to different kinds of sex tourism.^{[citation needed]} Attractions for sex tourists can include reduced costs for services in the destination country, along with either legal prostitution or indifferent law enforcement and access to child prostitution.

Destinations

Several countries have become preferred destinations for sex tourists. These include Thailand,^[4] Brazil,^[5][6] Sri Lanka,^[7][8][9] Dominican Republic,^[10][11] Costa Rica,^[12][13] Cuba,^[14][15] and Kenya,^[16]

An individual city or region can have a particular reputation as a sex tourist destination. Many of these coincide with major red-light districts, and include Amsterdam in the Netherlands; Zona Norte in Tijuana, Mexico; Boy's Town in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico; Fortaleza and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil; Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket in Thailand; Vladivostok in Russian Far East, destination for Asian sex tourists ^[17], and Angeles City^[18], the site of a former United States military base in the province of Pampanga, Philippines

As to your preposterous comment about Thai morals I refer you to the example of the Thai sex-industry which is the World's largest and most prevalent in all the World.

Not quite true. Estimates of the numbers of prostitutes in Thailand run from 800,000 to 2,000,000. India has 2,800,000, so the industry in India, at least, is larger.

Thailand is most likely the largest destination, though, for sex tourism by foreigners, but I have not read any such numbers.

Population: Thailand - 63,038,247 (2008) Sex Workers - 2.8 Million.

Population: India - 1,147,995,904 (2008) Sex Workers - 2.8 Million.

Um do the maths per capita just by looking at the figures to me the sex industry in thailand is far greater.

Dr. Nitet Tinnakul from Chulalongkorn University gives a total of 2.8 million sex workers in Thailand, including 2 million women, 20,000 adult males and 800,000 minors under the age of 18.^[2] One estimate published in 2003 placed the trade at US$ 4.3 billion per year or about three percent of the Thai economy.^[3] It has been suggested for example that there may be as many as 10,000 prostitutes on Koh Samui alone, an island resort destination not usually associated with prostitution, and that at least 10% of tourist dollars may be spent on the sex trade.^[4]

In India, prostitution itself (exchanging sex for money) is not illegal, but the surrounding activities (operating brothels, pimping, soliciting sex etc) are illegal [5].

Prostitution is currently a contentious issue in India. In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child Development reported presence of 2.8 million sex workers in India, with 35.47 percent of them entering the trade before the age of 18 years ^[1][2]. The number of prostitutes has also doubled in the recent decade ^[3].

Som nam nah... about time Thailand had a reality check, had it to good for to long.

Perhaps they will appreciate the Farang living in Thailand and stop making us jump through hoops all the time with their frequent changes in 'red tape'.

My thoughts too.

My wife and I just completed a 4-day road-trip through Chantanaburi and Trat/Kho Chang.

I'd told her before the trip that I have a new policy: "I won't pay a 'farang' price. If the Thai price and foreigner price is different, I'm only willing to pay the Thai price."

We drove up to no less than 4 national park entrances so that she could see waterfalls (her family told her that "you haven't gone to Chantanaburi if you haven't see the waterfalls"), and I simply took photos of the prices at the entrance, said "good luck with the economy," and did a u-turn.

Foreigners 200 baht, Thais 40 baht, sorry, no go.

Eventually she realized and said, "we're not going to see any waterfalls, are we?" Nope -- all the Thai waterfalls are just inside the entrances to national parks -- "som nam na" for being Thai and thinking that it's ok to price like this.

There were 5+ on Kho Chang and we skipped them all (is that entrance fee separate???? do they seriously charge a foreigner 1000 baht+ for a quick look at waterfalls there?).

Next time a foreigner asks me what to see in BKK, I won't even mention Wat Phra Kaew exists...

It is quite simple and logical really, farangs have bigger feet and are heavier than than thais thus putting more wear and tear on the parks which costs money to repair. (A thai told me this) It is not discrimination or racist thing you are just paying for the space you use whilst there. The Doi Suthep Temple in Chiangmai farangs must pay to enter, thais admitted free. Simply according to thais is that this is a place of worship for them the same as a church is a place of worship for farangs and churches don't charge farangs for going in there. I explained to him that churches don't charge thais for going in either but he could not respond to that.

Could you imagine the uproar if thais were visiting other places in the world and everywhere they went there were signs Thais $10 other people free. The crys of discrimination and racism were be heard far and wide and the thais just would not visit these places. Anyway in most places in the world it is against the law to set prices based on race, sex or religion all people are charged the same with a few exceptions for pensioners and children who get lower prices.

Oh and did you know if you have a mixed race child and does not have a thai ID card yet then he pays the farang rate.

What a bunch of dim-witted censorious moralists!! You actually seem to think that the mere carrying of drugs is evil, and that taking them is terrible, and that this poor woman deserves this sentence. You obviously think that prohibition is sensible and right.

The "war on drugs" is an idiocy that has created most of the criminality in the world today and cost society untold billions and untold misery. Drugs should be decriminalised and state-controlled, with support and care for addicts. That policy would be an immense improvement on the current state of affairs worldwide (except in a few enlightened European countries), costing the whole lot of us far far less in taxes and suffering.

People who support the current drastic penalisation of drug-takers and drug-traders are simply out to lunch.

It sounds to me that you are defending her actions, was she one of your pigions that got caught? How long have you been a drug dealer you must be very proud of your work. I put murderers, drug dealers, rapists and pedophilles in the same box..

Thailand has gone soft. 25 years to easy on her what is wrong can't they afford the rope.

For what I pay in Thailand compared to what I paid in Australia on my last visit in Jamuary in US$.

Haircut: Aust = $8.50; Bangkok = $8.50

Movie + snack + soda: Aust = $10; Bangkok = $6.50

Vaccination: no idea

Hotel (same standard eg. 4 star): In Sydney, Melbourne etc = $95; Bangkok = $100

Haircut: Aust = $8.50; Chiangmai = 60Baht (includes shave) = Aust $2.20

Bangkok is expensive compared to the north of Thailand in Chiangmai expect to pay 1/4 on most all things compared to bKK

Investment in land using a Thai nominee is illegal. I suspect he would have more chance of jail than obtaining funds. If the land purchase is done in his wifes name legal documents will have to be signed that indeed the money is not his and he has no claim on it.

The land will still be bought on her name and the situation is transparent that he did fund it as the husband. This is not a big scale investment for the pure purpose of speculation. The money should come from his account as the best and safest solution - period.

it is illeagle for her to buy land of any size using money she got from a farang. The authorities will sieze the property and then he has wasted his money.

Please people you are all jumping the gun here; government officials are taking our advice very seriously, the Pattaya Police have set up operations to incourage xpats to stay and pass on the good word of how Pattay is the only place to holaday in Thailand.

Why is Pattaya the best destination and what does that have to do with overall correction of the plight of Thailand and the relationship to tourism

I actually tell my friends intending to visit Thailand to steer clear of Pattaya - the beach is filthy and the touts are horrendous and the vendors will cuss you

that is not a good place to promote tourism - its a sexual tourists playground and shows all the signs of decay

Pattaya is a major tourist destination for Thailand so it has relevance to this thread, if you had bothered clicking on the link and reading it before posting; you would have figured out that I was being sarcastic due to the link being about Pattaya police corruption targeted at farang.

yes I ask the question why Pattaya? Pattaya tourism only attracts a certain class of people for one thing. If they were serious about promoting tourism then promote thailand where families can go. The only people who would defend Pattaya are the sort of people that you would not want you children around. Pattaya is not thailand and trying to promote this place they would only be harming the tourist industry even more. Pattaya is already known around the world for what it is not need to promote that industry any further.

Airports of Thailand posts -22.21% fall in international passengers for May as political disruption hurts tourism

Source: ©The Moodie Report By Martin Moodie 15/06/09 (Article Link)

THAILAND. Airports of Thailand suffered a -22.21% fall in international passenger numbers in May compared with the same month last year, it announced today.

Airports of Thailand operates six international airports – Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang in Bangkok, plus Phuket, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai and Chiang Rai. It handled 2,252,571 international passengers (embarking, disembarking and transit) in May.

The poor May figures are linked to the political instability in the country which has hit tourism hard, plus the global financial crisis and the Influenza A(H1N1). It has been a bad year for travel and tourism in Thailand with year-on-year monthly international traffic falls of -17.97% in January, -21.15% in February, -15.47% in March and -12.91% in April. For the first five months, international traffic was down by -17.93% year-on-year.

Most of the country's international traffic is through Bangkok (mainly Suvarnabhumi). The capital's airports posted a -22.02% fall in international passenger traffic in May to 2,117,383.

For the first five months, Bangkok's airports suffered a -17.81% decline in international passengers.

Thai government is working hard to stimulate the troubled tourism industry. It has given the Tourism Authority of Thailand THB1.4 billion (US$41 million) to revive tourism in the second half of 2009. Some 40% of the funding will be aimed at the domestic market and the .

this will be recouped by increasing the prices of visa's and taxes on tourists and then they will ask why hasn't our policies worked we increased prices and taxes and the tourists still don't come. ok we have to increase again and again untill they come to thier senses and start coming again

My 10p of quick fixes:

60 Day Entry free tourist visa regardless of how you enter the country.

Ability to renew a tourist visa for 30/60 days (for a fee of 2000/4000 baht - the cost of an average visa run) without leaving the country ...

Devaluation of the baht so that the exchange rate against GBP gets back to 65-70 (and similar vs other currencies). This would stimulate tourism and exports.

A positive PR campaign (with TAT using foreign marketing expertise and consultancy) to promote Thailand properly against the ever-increasing global and regional competition. And I don't mean a new national cocktail lol.

Ability for farang to get 30 year lease (renewable by non-revokable law) for 1 rai of land for personal use.

Simplification of the work permit process.

The current government does not want tourists, does not want investment. They can go it alone on exports. The whole world eats rice and shrimp 3 times a day. Burma and Nth korea are doing very well without farangs.

Xenophobic Yellow shirts caused the biggest damage when they shut down Suvarnabhumi. 300,000 travelers stranded- uncountable problems caused to those stranded. Foreign Minister Kasit thought is was 'FUN". They brought it on themselves. Kasit should be dumped to show the real change in Thailand's thinking. Red Shirts did not target tourist specically -Yellow and Kasit did.

yes I agree from a farang point of view. but if you ask the yellow shirts then by thier actions they helped the country. As an outsider looking in I think the current government is destroying thailand

Australia dominates the world with yellow cake deposits, a bit like the arab countries and thier oil deposits but the australian government wont even consider building such a plant for safety reasons.

I am a proponent of nuclear power, but I just get really, really scared when I think of Thailand doing it. These plants require the most scientific and careful design and location. They need very detailed studies of the geography and placement of the plants. Then, they need to be constructed in the most careful and professional manner possible. This is one of the endeavors where you don't want to see substandard concrete, less rebar and other corners cut.

Very seldom see that in Thailand. A little scary.

I can see your point and I would be a little worried too if it was a rush job. But I think if it goes ahead they will make sure it is of the highest quality and it will be scrutinised by authorities. There are a lot of international organizations that have access and check progress that Im sure Thailand would invite and give free reign too.

like your sense of humour. Are you really thai?

The problem is all us farangs complaining about how hard it is to invest or buy land in thailand. The thai government has grown sick of our moaning so they have decided to blow the place up. This will stop all the farangs winging.