Bad attitudes in Phuket/Patong?

[kurtmartens]

Hi all.

 

(Am sure I will get some grief for this post, but ...)

 

I recently started splitting my time between home in Chiang Mai and a business concern in Phuket.  For a few months now, I have noticed that nearly all the Thais I meet/talk to in Phuket are not nearly as friendly or personable as the Thais at home in Chiang Mai or even when I lived in Bangkok.  Even the cashier at Makro or Big C, etc are/is just short of rude.  Same with other business (Thai) owners - the lady who owns the signage store 2 doors down from my business came by, gave me a quote for some work and then when I went in to talk to her about it ... she claims never to have been in my business (just plain odd!).

 

Anyhow.  Not sure if it is just me (and yes this is a bit of a rant as I had a falang melt down in Big C yesterday dealing with customer service) or if others have noticed that Thais in Phuket are colder than Thais elsewhere?  

 

End Rant.

[Lite Beer]

I have also found it rather agressive and unfriendly.

I have also noticed that a lot of the stall owners, restaurant staff etc are not Thai which might explain the problem.

[stevenl]

Not my experience.

[madmax2]

Never had a problem with Thais in Phuket except once with a Tuk Tuk driver who overcharged me because i did not get a quote before using his Tuk Tuk expecting the fee to be the same as i always paid, bad luck for the tuk tuks i have never used one since that time

I have always found Thais to be polite and respectful providing you act and treat them the same way when talking to them

[Rhys]

.... Party time..soon..

 

[theguyfromanotherforum]

I went to Phuket once for holidays. This was 2 year before I went to Pattaya for the first time.

 

Almost every restaurant I went to was extremely unfriendly and staff at hotels nothing like I encountered in Bangkok. Beach dirty. I thought surely Pattaya can't be worse than this. I was right. Pattaya is actually much better.

 

To be fair, I was staying in tourist areas. 

[phuketrichard]

most of the thais that live in  Chiang Mai are from Cm or at least the north,

many of the Thais  u come across in Patong are NOT from Phuket but Issan or Nakorn sri thamarat, an there alot of non thai's working there as well.

Patong is NOT all Phuket has to offer.

Edited December 15, 2017 by phuketrichard

[Timbob]

I've lived in Chiang Mai and found the people very friendly. I've only lived in Phuket for 3 months so I can't really comment. But when we lived in Chiang Mai my girlfriend (who is from Hat Yai - where we moved up from) often remarked on how friendly the people were compared to those down South. So you're probably right.

[kurtmartens]

24 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

most of the thais that live in  Chiang Mai are from Cm or at least the north,

many of the Thais  u come across in Patong are NOT from Phuket but Issan or Nakorn sri thamarat, an there alot of non thai's working there as well.

Patong is NOT all Phuket has to offer.

Thanks.  I know Patong is not all Phuket has to offer.  And that perhaps most of the Thais here aren't from Phuket, although if they are from Issan they certainly aren't as friendly as everyone I've encountered from Issan (and no, I do not mean bar girls.  I personally find Issan to be the friendliest part of Thailand).  At any rate, it was just my personal observation and I found it curious how different I find the attitudes between CNX and HKT.  

 

 

[kurtmartens]

53 minutes ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

To be fair, I was staying in tourist areas. 

And maybe that is the key ... just tired of the tourists.  (Can't say I blame them ... wife-beater tshirts, no tshirts and elephant pants certainly get old.)  LOL

[KarenBravo]

Southern Thais are a different ethnicity than the peoples around CM.

Southerners have some Malay ancestors and have a different temperament.

All Thais learn that Southerners have a "hot heart" and are easy to anger.

 

I, too, think that Isaan people are the friendliest to strangers, followed by the North.

Southerners are just as friendly, but, only when you take the time to get to know them.

[LivinginKata]

I find that if I make some small friendly talk in my poor Thai when in shops and restaurants then I almost always get a friendly reaction.  I guess it's just your luck but we need to work a little bit to make it happen .... just saying ...

[Psimbo]

I find the people in Chiang Mai more personable.

 

As pointed out above the majority in tourist areas are not Phuket natives and this is reflected in their attitudes, where I live I have very little, if any, attitude off the locals.

Edited December 15, 2017 by Psimbo

[theguyfromanotherforum]

13 minutes ago, Psimbo said:

I find the people in Chiang Mai more personable.

 

As pointed out above the majority in tourist areas are not Phuket natives and this is reflected in their attitudes, where I live I have very little, if any, attitude off the locals.

 

Not a good excuse.

 

Pattaya is very touristy too and every time I go eat out or visit many hotels, everyone is nice and polite. No attitude.

 

I prefer staying in Pattaya over Phuket any day.

[beechbum]

14 minutes ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

 

Not a good excuse.

 

Pattaya is very touristy too and every time I go eat out or visit many hotels, everyone is nice and polite. No attitude.

 

I prefer staying in Pattaya over Phuket any day.

You'll be sorely missed.

[hkt83100]

After about 22 years in Phuket, I must say it did not change for the better. But anyway - there are still friendly and nice people around, at least in these areas which are not over-falanged.

[Somtamnication]

A lot of my expat friends have left for CM over the past 9 years. They have never regretted it. My wife, local Phuket, has said most of the Thais in Phuket are from Nakon Sri Thamarat and they are the most rude and surly. They tend to gang up when working together at hotels.

 

Some of the hotel owners I consult with always tell me that HR makes sure there are less than %40 of them or trouble brews.

 

A lot of local Thais are tired of other Thais. Anyways, still their country. 

 

Personally, I get bad service at a local joint, I never go back.

[AlexRich]

11 hours ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

 

Not a good excuse.

 

Pattaya is very touristy too and every time I go eat out or visit many hotels, everyone is nice and polite. No attitude.

 

I prefer staying in Pattaya over Phuket any day.

Funnily enough I thought that I would hate Pattaya, given its reputation, but found it to be friendly with good amenities ... whilst it has its faults, friendliness of people is not one of them.

[keithpa]

16 hours ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

I went to Phuket once for holidays. This was 2 year before I went to Pattaya for the first time.

 

Almost every restaurant I went to was extremely unfriendly and staff at hotels nothing like I encountered in Bangkok. Beach dirty. I thought surely Pattaya can't be worse than this. I was right. Pattaya is actually much better.

 

To be fair, I was staying in tourist areas. 

Living in Pattaya for over 10 years an d visiting Phuket often, Oct for 4 weeks was the last time, you post is not true. That is why I am moving to Phuket.

[madmitch]

Who wouldn't be grumpy, having to deal with ignorant, drunk farangs and even more ignorant but not quite so drunk Chinese half the time?

[steelepulse]

Al I know is that whenever I travel to Bangkok, the average person seems to be a lot friendlier and less surly than the average person here. There are exceptions of course, but on average over the past 10 years this has been my observation.  

[Old Croc]

23 hours ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

 

Not a good excuse.

 

Pattaya is very touristy too and every time I go eat out or visit many hotels, everyone is nice and polite. No attitude.

 

I prefer staying in Pattaya over Phuket any day.

I think that if someone believes everyone in an entire Province is rude to him he should look inwards to find cause. 

Edited December 16, 2017 by Old Croc

[ding]

I find the people in Bangkok friendly, generally.

Chiang Mai was okay too. I just came across some aggressive touts. Never went back.

It's been decades since I've been to Phuket but don't recall being put off.

Pattaya was actually okay upon return 11 years ago.

my .02

 

I'm more interested in the expat communities right now.

[maxpower]

4 hours ago, Old Croc said:

I think that if someone believes everyone in an entire Province is rude to him he should look inwards to find cause. 

Its like two strangers walking down a Soi and the dogs are angry with one but not the other. Maybe some people emit animal like pheromones that alter the mood of others.

[kurtmartens]

On 12/15/2017 at 7:14 PM, LivinginKata said:

I guess it's just your luck but we need to work a little bit to make it happen .... just saying ...

I agree and disagree.  I shouldn't have to make small talk and work a little bit to get a pleasant greeting/hello, etc from the cashier at Makro instead of a scowl.  Just saying.

[kurtmartens]

19 hours ago, Old Croc said:

I think that if someone believes everyone in an entire Province is rude to him he should look inwards to find cause. 

I wasn't saying (and don't think anyone else has said) the entire Province was RUDE.  I was merely questioning that the day to day interaction with Thais in Phuket is much less friendly than in Chaing Mai, Issan, or even Bangkok.  And I was curious as to other opinions. 

[kurtmartens]

On 12/15/2017 at 10:56 PM, hkt83100 said:

at least in these areas which are not over-falanged.

And that might be the key issue.  I know I get tired of the tourists myself.  

[eezergood]

On 16/12/2017 at 6:34 AM, Somtamnication said:

A lot of my expat friends have left for CM over the past 9 years. They have never regretted it. My wife, local Phuket, has said most of the Thais in Phuket are from Nakon Sri Thamarat and they are the most rude and surly. They tend to gang up when working together at hotels.

 

Some of the hotel owners I consult with always tell me that HR makes sure there are less than %40 of them or trouble brews.

 

A lot of local Thais are tired of other Thais. Anyways, still their country. 

 

Personally, I get bad service at a local joint, I never go back.

Which hotels exactly did you consult with? every hotel I know is looking for staff & would not turn away ( nor be in a position to) a potentially good employee as they are from a certain area. 

However, birds of a a feather.......

[richard_smith237]

Op: Its not you...   I too have noticed observed an 'edge' to Phuket which I have not in other areas of Thailand. 

 

I put it down to the fact that Phuket is a major tourist destination, but so is Chiang Mai, Hua Hin and even in Pattaya the general 'tone' is one of far more pleasant mannerism when going about our daily dealings.

 

For the most part I find those Thai's who base themselves in Phuket to be somewhat surly and churlish. They come across as 'aggressively entitled'...  in my experience this is in stark contrast to the rest of Thailand where we may witness a general indifference ranging up to glowing smiles and friendly interaction.

 

Of course, this is not true of all Phuket and generalizations can be unfair and misrepresentative... however, if I were to generalize as I have above, the differences with the rest of Thailand are notable.

[KarenBravo]

Anyone think the locals in Samui are any better?